April 24, 2012. Targeted campuses “are not making any profit,” says FAU Vice President for Finance Dennis Crudele

By Scott Travis

(April 24, 2012)

The faculty at Florida Atlantic University are usually united in opposing most budget cuts — unless it involves closing down small campuses.

A proposal to close the downtown Fort Lauderdale tower and the Treasure Coast campus inPort St. Lucie is alarming to those at the campuses. But many faculty at other campuses see it as a good way to deal with a $10 million budget hole, according to a website FAU created to get ideas on ways to cut the budget. A final decision is expected in June, but most at FAU think the proposals are a done deal.

“We’re a minority and a very small faculty, and we can’t make a lot of noise,” said Stephanie Cunningham, a graphic design professor at the Fort Lauderdale campus. “And we’re in the last week of classes. We don’t really have the time to organize a protest, and in the summer, there will be so few students on campus.”

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