The Student Services Planning and Budget team proposed a $1.043 million reduction for the ‘18-19 academic year, in accordance with the target reduction of $1.2 million to Student Services suggested by the Foothill-De Anza College District.

Additional budget cuts were also requested to the counseling office, projected at about $516,000. This would result in reducing the faculty to eight positions and elimination of evening services, among other possible consequences.

This new budget recommendation for Student Services at De Anza, follows a series of revisions the SSPBT has continually been making over the recent months this quarter due to additional budget reduction requests by the district in response to the ongoing enrollment crisis.

“The next phase in the planning process is to position ourselves, along with other shared governance bodies, to think of a strategy to mitigate the impact of these budget cuts,” said Rob Mieso, interim vice president of Student Services.

In communication with other shared governance bodies such as the DASB and Academic Senate, the SSPBT voiced their concerns saying additional reductions will result in negative consequences for students as early as next year.

Along with the budget recommendation, the team collectively chose to include the following statement: “SSPBT is gravely concerned about the negative impact of the proposed budget reductions on our ability to serve students and the adverse effect these cuts will have on enrollment, student retention, completion, delivery of mandated services and overall service delivery to our students. We recognize the important role Student Services plays in supporting student success and our collaborative efforts with instruction. The proposed budget reductions will significantly limit our ability to fulfill our mission as a body, and the college’s overall mission.”