Faculty, Students to March in Protest of SDSU Layoffs

Faculty members and students at San Diego State University, alarmed by the prospective effect of impending budget cuts, will hold a campus march today in protest of the planned layoff of professors and other employees.

Meanwhile, David Strom, president of the local unit of the California Faculty Assn., which represents 2,000 members, said two tenured counselors--each with more than 24 years of experience at SDSU--had recently been sent letters advising them that they were being let go for budgetary reasons.

“Tenured faculty have been sent layoff notices,” said Strom, who declined to identify the two counselors.

The march is scheduled to start at noon near the campus bus terminal. Protesters will demand that university officials tap alternate funding sources to cover the shortfall, such as money now dedicated to sports programs, and avoid the termination of teachers, Strom said.

Thomas B. Day, SDSU president, has stated that a projected $19-million budget reduction will mean that several hundred part-time lecturers will not be rehired next fall. But he has stressed his desire to avoid layoffs of so-called “core” faculty, who are tenured or on track to obtain tenure. The idea is to preserve basic programs, Day said.

George Cole, a university spokesman, said Tuesday that he could not confirm whether any tenured faculty members are targeted for layoffs.

“A clear goal is not to lay off tenured faculty members,” Cole said. “But I don’t think that is guaranteed.”

Because of the impending shortfall, Day has said the 35,000-student university will have only about 90% of its current $180-million budget next fall. Consequently, Day said, about 10% of classes will be cut.