University of Montana president to step down

MISSOULA (AP) — University of Montana President Royce Engstrom is stepping down effective Dec. 31, as the university continues to face declining enrollments and budget cuts.

Commissioner of Higher Education Clayton Christian announced today that he and Engstrom reached the decision after “careful discussion and consideration.”

After the November Board of Regents meeting, the commissioner’s office made it clear that the university was overstaffed.

UM said it would rank academic programs in order to make decisions on further layoffs. Faculty, staff and students held an emergency meeting Wednesday to discuss their concerns about further cuts.

Last year, over 200 full-time positions were eliminated at UM, which has seen a 22 percent decrease in enrollment since 2010. Engstrom was named UM’s 17th president in October 2010.

The move comes after several years of declining enrollment at the university. UM has taken some action, but the commissioner’s office has said more work is needed.

Christian said last week that while the university budget as a whole is sound, the student-to-faculty and student-to-staff ratios don’t leave much room for spending on other needs. The university has a 16-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio, with a goal of 18-to-1.

The commissioner’s office said UM is spending more than 80 percent of its budget on personnel, compared to a university system average of 68 percent.

Recent budget cuts mean some faculty members are going without phones, and travel budgets have been cut or are nonexistent. UM faculty have said they fear continued decreases will leave professors overworked and hamper the quality of academic offerings, but Kevin McRae of the commissioner’s office said some programs that have lost students haven’t seen a corresponding reduction in faculty.