Illinois Gov. Rauner proposes hard-hitting budget cuts - Hailey Huffines and Puja Mehta, AlESTLEd

Chancellor Julie Furst-Bowe discussed the 31.5 percent budget cut proposed by Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner that will affect the university. “It’s serious; this could be the most serious budget cut we ever had to deal with,” Furst-Bowe said. It was a packed house at the Chancellor’s Open Forum as students, faculty and staff waited to hear from university administrators about how Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner’s recent budget proposal, if enacted, could affect SIUE. With the earliest answer to the budget proposal estimated for late May, Chancellor Julie Furst-Bowe and other members of SIUE’s Chancellor’s Council have taken the initiative to educate the university community on the impending cuts. Budget Director Bill Winter said the university has already faced a challenging amount of budget cuts in the past. http://www.alestlelive.com/news/article_9a2704d6-bd65-11e4-a67b-b7d936f56b97.html