As this issue of the FACS Magazine was going to press, another round of budget cuts was being assigned to the University System of Georgia. At various alumni events, I have briefly commented on the effects of budget reductions over the past four years. It’s inherent in Family and Consumer Sciences that we are good at managing resources, even in lean times. It hasn’t been easy, but we have adjusted, adapted and coped. Until now.

Do you remember the advertisement for one of the national hamburger chains where the cute older lady complained, "Where’s the beef?" I thought about her when news came that there would be another budget cut. Maybe there are alumni out there asking, "Dean Nickols, where’s the fat?" So, I thought I would give you more details about the College’s economic situation.

There is no "fat" in the operations of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences. In fact, the cumulative effect of four years of mandatory budgetary "diets" puts the health of the College at risk. To complicate matters, these cuts have occurred simultaneously with a 75 percent increase in undergraduate enrollment, thus increasing the demands on the College, which now has the fourth largest undergraduate enrollment at the University. Some of the cuts and the adjustments made by the College are described in the article "Big Classes, Big Changes."

Sources of funding for the College have changed markedly in recent years. Whereas state appropriations were the mainstay of the budget in years past, they are now less than 29 percent of the College budget.

FACS faculty members are highly successful in acquiring external funding for research and public service/outreach/ext programs. They brought in $28.4 million in contracts and grants in 2003-04, which places our College fifth among the University’s 14 colleges and schools in the amount of external funding. For every state dollar invested in faculty assignments to research and public service/outreach, $6.77 is generated in grants and contracts. That’s a good investment! This level of grants success is only possible when faculty have the time to devote to their research and public service/outreach work and the support staff to provide the needed infrastructure.

A comparison of state appropriations and external funding between 2001 and 2004 reveals the erosion of state support and the increasing importance of other sources of revenue for the College. In 2001, 73 percent of the College budget was generated by the faculty, whereas in 2004, that percentage has increased to 80.5 percent.

Someone has said, "The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little ‘extra.’" The College of Family and Consumer Sciences has been meeting the challenges of diminished state resources through extra effort on the part of the faculty teaching larger classes, advising more students, securing more grants and contracts and devising alternate approaches to support the Extension county agents and serve external constituents. (Articles in this issue describe two effective programs of public service/outreach.) It is clear that we have an extraordinary faculty.

Provost Arnett Mace, Vice President for Finance and Administration Hank Huckaby and President Michael Adams have recognized the need to maintain an outstanding FACS faculty and allocated resources from the fall tuition revenue for faculty lines in emerging priority areas in the College. Even with this support, the loss of state funding for faculty has been so severe that student/faculty ratios are 45/1 in some programs and 65/1 in others. This is way off the mark of our goal of 35/1 or less.

Along with our faculty, our staff are extraordinary. Unfilled vacancies and lost positions on the staff result in heavier workloads and delays in completing tasks such as trouble-shooting computer malfunctions, processing laboratory experiments, compiling reports and conducting business functions. I look forward to the time when resources are more plentiful and our College is staffed appropriately. I also look forward to a time when faculty and staff can be rewarded for their outstanding performance, loyalty and commitment to FACS and UGA.

Alumni and friends’ contributions move the College from ordinary to extraordinary. Last year the College received gifts and pledges totaling $754,770. These gifts of financial support, your service as officers and volunteers for the FACS Alumni Association and time as guest lecturers are truly appreciated. To those on the Honor Roll of Donors, included in this issue, thank you for your monetary support. Its importance grows when state support declines. Also, your gifts are vital for the future strength of the College.

Dear alumni, you have a vested interest to protect. The value of a degree from the University of Georgia has risen in recent years. It has taken the University of Georgia five, 10 and 20 years to achieve a top-ranked national reputation. Further budgetary cuts will unravel this achievement in short order. Now is the time to let your elected representatives know it matters to you, and to the future of Georgia, to protect this valuable investment.

Sharon Y. Nickols, Dean