WSU impacted by federal directives to cut higher ed funding

PULLMAN — In light of recent chaos that institutions are experiencing nationwide, Washington State University is getting ahead of the curve by planning for shifts in government priorities that could lead to funding reductions.

The WSU Board of Regents met virtually on President’s Day to discuss federal financial challenges and impacts to next year’s budget.

Regents expect to adopt the budget in May. In the meantime, officials are planning for scenarios that could result in upward of 10% in cuts.

WSU President Kirk Schulz said public and higher education across the U.S. have been affected by challenges stemming from changes brought by the new presidential administration.

Executive orders made by U.S. President Donald Trump’s during his month in office have placed pressure on institutional funding and research. These involve reducing indirect costs that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) finances through grants, and stop orders for work using United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funds.

WSU Provost Chris Riley-Tillman said looming federal and state funding cuts might result in the loss of millions, causing the university to implement hiring and travel freezes, along with permanent reductions.

Schulz said it’s a chaotic time that WSU is trying to navigate through.

“We’re going to continue to be resilient,” he said. “Keep our mind and focus on why we’re here and what we’re doing and continue to support our students, faculty and staff.”

Kim Christen, vice president for research, said WSU receives more than $231 million in research funding from more than 1,100 grants supported by 23 agencies.

NIH issued a directive that caps indirect costs by 15% earlier this month. The order was blocked by federal court with a temporary restraining order last week, but it still poses the potential of reductions.

Christen said if the cap went into effect, WSU would have lost nearly $5 million this year for research. She added that if all federal agencies reduce research funding by 15%, the university will be at a $23.5 million loss.

She said WSU has also been affected by Trump’s directive to freeze foreign aid. The university currently has more than $3.6 million in USAID frozen and a little over $123,000 in grants from the Department of State.

Christen said while the freeze was temporarily lifted by a federal court restraining order, most USAID work has not resumed. She added 11 awards WSU received are affected by stop work orders to date, amounting to nearly $6.5 million in funding.

Leslie Brunelli, executive vice president for finance and administration, said WSU is currently working off a $1.3 billion total budget. The university’s $671.3 million core funds budget, which pays for day-to-day operations, is primarily funded by more than $244 million in tuition revenue and over $232 million by state appropriations.

The university’s planning scenarios involve up to a 10% decrease in the core funds budget. Brunelli said options include reductions of about $4.4 million for 1%, $13.1 million for 3%, $21.9 million for 5% and $43.7 million for 10%.

Riley-Tillman said within the scope of all these challenges WSU is facing, the institution has to see this as an opportunity to come out as a more galvanized, focused university.

“I’m confident if we do so, on the back side of this WSU is going to be a much stronger university,” he said. “So there is a light at the end of the tunnel, but the challenges are stunning.”

Pearce can be reached at epearce@dnews.com.