The Board of Regents for Higher Education on Thursday voted to implement consolidation plans for the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) that are estimated to save the system at least $41 million a year.
CSCU Communications Director Maribel La Luz tweeted news of the vote as the discussion evolved late Thursday morning.
“It’s time for us to take a collective look at how we are serving our students and how can we do better,” said CSCU President Mark Ojakian as tweeted by La Luz.
Board of Regents Chairman Matt Fleury led the board in taking action to implement both systemwide administrative consolidation and organizational consolidation of community colleges. The motion passed with one abstention, La Luz said.
Ojakian had said in a letter Monday to the campus community and documents filed with the board’s agenda that he is proposing an “operational consolidation” that will save $28 million annually by uniting the community colleges into a centrally managed institution. The proposal would keep 12 campuses in place but reduce the number of administrators there.
In addition, Ojakian proposed saving another $13 million annually by consolidating administrative functions across all 17 CSCU colleges and universities. That plan could affect purchasing, information technology and human resources.
Implementation is planned for July 1, La Luz said via email.
