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| Chancellor Charles B. Reed |
As the 2004/05 academic year comes to a close, I want to thank you for the work that you do for the California State University. Your commitment to the CSU and its mission is what allows our university to make such a significant impact on California and its students.
Let me take this opportunity to share some information with you about new budget developments at the CSU:
Last week, Governor Schwarzenegger released his May revision to the 2005/06 state budget. The May Revise, which is an update to the budget that takes into account the tax revenues the state received in April, fully funds the compact agreement that we reached with the governor last year and enhances student access to the CSU. This revised budget will include an additional $212 million for the CSU in 2005/06, our first increase after three years of budget reductions. With this funding we will be able to enroll 10,000 new students beginning in fall 2005, increase by 2,700 the number of State University Grants and, for the first time in three years, give our employees a pay increase. The governor also proposed a $250,000 augmentation to the CSUs budget to increase the number of students seeking a math or science teaching credential.
Even with this increase, however, I recognize that our campuses still face significant budget challenges, and that this is merely a first step toward helping us recover from past deficits. The budget now goes back to our legislators in Sacramento, who will continue debating and working on it for at least another month. We will be asking our legislators to support the CSU budget as presented in the governors May Revise, and we will be reminding them that an investment in higher education is an investment in this state's future.
I will send you another update when we have a final budget for 2005/06. In the meantime, please continue to watch the CSU's Budget Central Web site, www.calstate.edu/budgetcentral, for the latest budget news. This site also gives frequent updates on our continuing efforts to inform industry and community leaders about the CSU's impact and contributions to our state, and how you can help with those efforts. To receive CSU news on a regular basis, you may subscribe to the CSU Leader, our weekly e-newsletter, at www.calstate.edu/CSULeader.
Thank you again for helping to make the California State University such an outstanding institution of higher education. I wish you a productive and rewarding summer session.
Charles B. Reed
Chancellor
California State University