SEC upset at growth of admin.

The Faculty Senate Executive Committee yesterday adopted a resolution criticizing a 12-year trend of administration growth and the "shrinkage of support" for academics at the University." The resolution was prompted by a report of the Senate's Committee on Administration which concluded that the percentage of the University's budget devoted to administrative and clerical expenses has increased dramatically while the percentage devoted to faculty has decreased. The study, released last month and led by Bioengineering Professor Solomon Pollack, questioned whether administration spending should be cut to help support faculty, and rhetorically asked if the lack of faculty increases showed a declining interest in teaching and research at the University. Faculty Senate Chairperson Almarin Phillips, who was an ex-officio member of the committee which prepared the report, said discussion of the study at yesterday's meeting lasted approximately an hour before the resolution was adopted. The resolution passed almost unanimously, with one abstention. The resolution states that SEC is "dismayed" by the trend and asks the administration to explain its growth in spending. "We really want an explanation," Phillips said. "We want a serious, detailed explanation of what caused the growth and what's being done to contain it." Administrators have asked Budget Director Stephen Golding to study the report within "the larger budget context." Golding will meet today with Pollack to discuss sources used in the report. Golding said last night he plans to review the study and tell faculty "what the budget says about the growth of administration and what that reflects of the University's values." Golding stressed that the goals of the University are teaching and research, not administration. John Gould, executive director of the president's office, said yesterday the administration is waiting for Golding's analysis before it reaches any conclusions on the study. "It's the sort of report where you really have to look at the numbers and the interpretations," Gould said. Gould said many administrators are already working on ways to contain costs in their departments because of the University's budget problems. Phillips said he hopes the study will draw faculty to the Senate's larger plenary meeting April 17 and also convince the president and provost to speak to faculty on the issues raised in the report. Golding said last night he is analyzing the study as quickly as possible but work on the University's 1992 budget may slow him down.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.