The Sun’s March 23 editorial entitled “On the Outside Looking In” is, frankly, a bit perplexing when I think about the openness that distinguishes President Skorton’s administration. When it comes to the well-being of our university, there can never be too much communication, especially in these times of financial challenge. A critical ingredient in that process is transparency of decision making, which has been a top priority for President Skorton from the very start of his administration. And, I am proud to say, that the administration and the Board of Trustees have redoubled efforts to be more transparent since the beginning of the financial crisis last fall.

As departments across the University make cuts to their annual budgets to offset a $200 million budget shortfall, Weill Cornell Medical College is reaching deep into its pockets to scrounge more than $2.6 million — a sum that the University truly does not have to spare.

This exorbitant payment will be handed over to the U.S. government in order to resolve charges brought against the medical college for filing fraudulent claims in order to secure millions of federal research money from the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense. Unfortunately, this incident was not an isolated one for Cornell. The University has spent millions in the past to cover up similar charges of fraud surrounding research funding.

Cornell’s top dogs will face some of the tightest budget constraints of all those on the hill. And while the financial outlook is discouraging, we see opportunity in the possibility of an overhaul and centralization of Cornell's highest posts — particularly the bureaucratic infrastructure that is maintained by the Office of the Provost.

President Skorton announced Sunday night that the office will face a dismal 10-percent cut in its expenditures. The drastic cutbacks, however, are riding on the coattails of a decade that saw some of the most expansive initiatives and increases in administrative spending to reduce what they saw as relative decentralization of the administration.

Well, Skorton called it, so we must obey. Starting this July, Cornell will need to trim 5 percent of its budget. As the provosts cancel their orders of multicolored paperclips and leather-backed desk chairs in favor of (gasp!) generic brand office supplies, we here at the Berry Patch have prepared our own list of items for the chopping block. Take note Skorton: recession spending isn’t as complicated as you might think.

Brass Polish for Statler Hall

While Cornell was able to largely avoid the Bernard Madoff ponzi scheme that cost other universities millions of dollars in losses, Cornell’s finances were not invulnerable to the economic meltdown that has gripped the country. According to The Cornell Alumni Magazine, Cornell’s endowment, which was valued at $6.1 billion on June 30, 2008, fell 27 percent during the second half of 2008.

Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Stephen Golding in an interview on CNBC, considered the current economic status “the perfect financial storm.” He explained the complexities and the uniqueness of the current situation by adding, “This is a much broader problem with many more components at one time than what many of us have historically seen.”

Almost every student would agree that the week before Fall Semester Finals is a wretched time. So perhaps it isn’t the best time to consider how to improve the dialogue between Cornell administrators and students. After all, we are trying to cope with a tidal wave of long deferred assignments that have hit us like a tsunami. In a frantic race against time to prevent academic ruin, desperate undergrads huddle in overcrowded libraries. In this fevered atmosphere, student stress quickly gets translated into inchoate grumblings about Cornell’s failings.

The University announced yesterday that Prof. Christopher Ober, material science and engineering, will serve as interim dean of the College of Engineering, succeeding current dean Kent Fuchs, who was selected last month to become Cornell provost at the start of next year.

“[Ober] is an exemplary leader and faculty member at Cornell,” Interim Provost David Harris stated in a press release. “He is well respected by his peers and he is known for attention to detail. He will be deft in running the College of Engineering while the University proceeds in the dean search.”

Ober will serve as the interim dean until the University finds a permanent replacement for Fuchs.

In less than two months, Engineering Dean Kent Fuchs will take over as the University’s 15th provost. In a meeting with The Sun yesterday, Fuchs (pronounced Fox) spoke about the state of the University, his focus on rankings, his plan to ensure diversity at Cornell and his background in divinity.

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The Sun: What do you see as the responsibilities of the provost?

President David Skorton outlined several measures the University will take to combat state budget cuts and revenue losses resulting from the Wall Street crisis in a e-mail sent to the Cornell community yesterday. Though the long-term effects of the current state of the economy will not be known for several years, actions will be taken immediately in anticipation of further cuts and continued losses.

“While we cannot be certain about the dimensions, depth and duration of the difficulty, we are confident Cornell is in a good position to adjust operations and budget to address a loss in revenue in the wake of the financial crisis, relying on the institutional expertise and commitment of faculty, staff, alumni, students and friends,” Skorton stated.

President David J. Skorton gave his annual address to staff yesterday at Barton Hall. The speech came in the middle of the Energy Fair, whose organizers took a lunch break while University personnel gathered to hear Skorton discuss the state of the University and how staff will be affected by the recent economic crisis. The address was sponsored by the Employee Assembly, an elected body that represents Cornell staff.

Kicking off the staff meeting was Brian Cornell, chair of the Employee Assembly, who welcomed the audience and introduced Mary George Opperman, vice president of human resources. Opperman discussed her personal concerns over how staff and the University will fare amidst the financial turmoil.