USM to announce budget cuts soon - ED KEMP, Hattiesburg American

The University of Southern Mississippi will announce budget cuts to address a projected $15 million shortfall for Fiscal Year 2012. President Martha Saunders and Provost Bob Lyman met with the deans of all five colleges Monday to discuss how to "best communicate" proposed cuts to employees and students. The two held another meeting with co-chairs of the University Priorities Committee on Tuesday. Then comes the hard part. "We will talk with affected employees first," Saunders said. Dean of the College of Health Michael Forster said those talks will probably occur Thursday. Per state College Board policy, officials face a Sept. 1 deadline to notify tenured and tenure-track faculty if they are to be terminated for the 2011-12 academic year.