Welcome back from what I hope was a good holiday break. I want to draw your attention to today’s Effectiveness and Efficiency for the Future Committee meeting at UT-Martin. The meeting of this group of University trustees begins at 1 p.m. Central time, and it will be webcast live. To view it, click here.
Should you miss it live, you will find it archived online so you can follow up at a more convenient time.
At the meeting, committee members will discuss appropriation cuts and budget measures as well as a list of efficiencies being studied to determine how they will strengthen UT for the future. The list includes 11 categories of suggestions reviewed and considered after employees submitted them through UTALK. The 11 categories are:
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Reduce printing and mailing and increase electronic media
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Energy conservation
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Employee extra service, compensation and overtime
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A review of the academic calendar
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Reduce travel with more videoconferencing
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The practice of hiring retirees
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Streamlining General Education
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Improving the performance management system
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Investing in distance learning
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Reviewing contracts and renegotiating
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Outsourcing services
Your feedback has driven all of this, and we are proud of how everyone at UT is stepping up during these difficult times. We will move forward with measures to save UT money and make it a better institution of learning and service to the state.
Let me begin this new year where we ended: applauding your efforts and ideas to help UT save money during this budget season.
I appreciate that you continue to send in emails and suggestions via UTALK, our interactive Internet feature at http://president.tennessee.edu/utalk, and through your campuses, and you are actively helping us cut costs by limiting energy consumption and taking other proactive measures.
I hope you will take time to watch today’s webcast, and thank you again for all you do for UT.
Regards,
John Petersen