Institutional Resources/Expenditures
Why do various campus stakeholders often have different perspectives on the budget? Can't we all "just get along?"
Economics is the science of scarcity. All institutional actors will have valid reasons that their particular department should receive priority in funding decisions. For example, the Art Department will argue that 'without support for art in our universities, where will the next generation of artists come from?' Intercollegiate sports activities will highlight the physical benefits of activity for students and the alumni funding drawn by successful sport teams. There are few reasons not to give funding to many, many groups, because a university is made up of so many different social and academic parts. Conflicts will always arise, and some groups will inevitably feel shortchanged. The ultimate purpose of university education remains an open question in America, and what aspects of university life should be emphasized -- from academics, to extracurriculars, to financial aid policies to make the university more socially inclusive -- remains a subject of heated contention.
2. When we invite constituents to participate in the budget process, don't we also create heightened expectations? How can we infuse both honestly and realism into the budget cycle in the attempt to keep all stakeholders on the same page?
Heightened expectations are indeed inevitable when constituent groups are asked to participate in the process. For example, when students are asked to be part of the budgetary process, they naturally assume that their voices will yield more money for financial aid. If advocacy groups are allowed to participate in the process, they may take their presence as a signal that their particular ideology is welcome by the administration, even if the administration merely wanted their input, not to give their program for reform a rubber stamp. Honesty can be conveyed by highlighting the scarcity of resources from the beginning of the budgetary process, and forcing groups to 'do the math' when making requests -- even explaining what cuts they feel in current programs are fair, so that their pet projects can be funded
