CSUN President Says ’93 Layoffs Could Slice Into Tenured Faculty : Budget: Deeper program cuts are also in line for the next school year, in light of reductions at the state level.

Cal State Northridge President Blenda J. Wilson on Tuesday said layoffs that could reach tenured faculty, and deeper program cuts, are probable for the 1993-94 school year, as the school faces its third consecutive year of state budget reductions.

“The truth is we are in a budget-cutting process,” said Wilson, who took over the school’s top post in September. “We don’t have enough money to do everything we want to do well.”

Although faculty, student and staff representatives will submit their opinions following a series of meetings through April, Wilson said she will make the final decision on the reductions, which could for the first time mean the layoff of tenured faculty members at the school.

Last year, school officials dramatically reduced the number of part-time instructors to balance its budget but were able to avoid layoffs of tenured and tenure-track professors. This past semester, more than 800 of nearly 6,000 planned classes were canceled as a result of the state budget shortfall.

With another round of state cuts next academic year, Wilson said she is not able to guarantee jobs at the campus.

“We’ve seen layoffs in the external world for a number of years,” Wilson said in an interview. “. . . We simply have to recognize that we are in the same circumstances as the rest of the country.”

Wilson and other campus officials have said the school cannot continue to make across-the-board cuts and still maintain a high standard. Instead, Wilson said, available money should be spent on the academic programs the campus does best.

The current effort is part of a long-range strategy by Wilson to make the school more efficient, school officials said.

Will Forthman, the faculty union representative for CSUN, said that faculty layoffs prompted by any program reductions must be considered carefully, not only because of the jobs involved, but because of the effect on students.

“To get rid of programs, you need to phase them out over a period of time,” said Forthman, a philosophy professor. “I don’t think there is enough time to eliminate programs by next fall.”

Wilson has ordered campus administrators to prepare department budgets for the coming school year that will reflect cuts of 5%, 8% and 10%. Committees formed in each of the school’s three departments--academic affairs, student affairs and administration--will be required to submit to Wilson a list of proposed program changes by April.

“It’s impossible to cut any more operating expenses so we are going to have to make some decisions about staff and specific programs,” said Ronald Kopita, CSUN vice president for student affairs. “We’ve cut ourselves to the bone and the only place to go is the marrow.”

All areas of the campus, including athletics, will be scrutinized for reduction or elimination, Kopita said.

Gov. Pete Wilson’s proposed budget calls for a 4.5% reduction for the Cal State University system for the 1993-94 school year. If approved by the Legislature, those cuts would total about 25% over three years for the academic budget at CSUN, even though the student population has remained constant at about 29,000.

For students, the continuing decline in state funds for higher education will probably result in fewer classes, as well as a fee increase for next year. The annual cost of attending a CSU campus jumped 40% this year.

At CSUN, about 180 classes have been canceled for the spring semester, which begins Feb. 1, campus officials said. That number may increase, however, at the conclusion of telephone registration, which ends Thursday. Students can add or drop courses by telephone through Jan. 29.