Communications from the Office of the Provost

Dear Colleagues,

I’m writing to share an important notification and to provide an update on the Fall 2025 schedule build. Please look for an announcement next week of town hall dates.

First, the notification:

• This week, the Chancellor’s Office provided notice to the California Faculty Association (CFA) that there is a possibility that layoffs may occur for Unit 3 members at CSU Bakersfield.  This notice was issued in accordance with our contractual obligation to provide early notification to CFA if there appears to be any possibility that a layoff of a Unit 3 member could occur.  This early notification occurs at the beginning of a workforce reduction process, and does not name colleges, departments, or faculty members, because that information is not yet known.  We are in the process of implementing a new budget model and are exploring every option to avoid layoffs or time-base reductions for faculty members.

Next, an update on the next week of the Fall 2025 schedule build:

• Today (March 7) is the extended deadline for Fall 2025 department schedules to be submitted to the college Deans.
• Once college Deans have received department schedules, I will review Fall 2025 department schedules with each Dean. Upon approval, the Dean will then give the Chair a green light to enter courses into PeopleSoft. This process will be completed by March 14.
• The initial schedule in PeopleSoft will include names for Tenured/Tenure-Track/FERP faculty only.  Lecturer faculty names will not be published at this time.
• The order of assignment for faculty for remaining courses will be reviewed and approved by the respective Dean and the AVP for Faculty Affairs. The Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) for Unit 3/Faculty will be followed. Consultation with CFA will be ongoing throughout the roster approval process.
• Once order of assignment review has been completed and the roster has been approved, formal notification to Lecturers regarding Fall 2025 work will be made. Chairs have been advised not to provide official notification to Lecturer faculty prior to roster approval. Formal notification will be delivered by Dean/AVP Faculty Affairs after the Fall 2025 roster has been confirmed.
• Once the Lecturer faculty roster has been approved and formal notifications have been made, Lecturer faculty names will be assigned to courses in PeopleSoft. The target date for completion of this work is April 28, to ensure 1) timely notification to faculty regarding available work has been provided and 2) course information includes faculty names is available at the time registration begins.

Our north star in process will be to preserve the quality of our academic programs and ability to provide the high-quality educational experience that our students deserve. I acknowledge the challenges of this moment and recognize that behind each and every position is a dedicated educator, colleague, and a valued member of our academic community. If reductions must happen, we are committed to handling this process with care, fairness, and transparency.

I remain deeply grateful for all that you do.

Dear Colleagues,

This week’s update focuses on the schedule build for 2025-26.

The college deans will be sharing the instructional budget model for the schedule build with respective college chair councils in the next several days.  As a reminder, the timeline for the schedule build has been extended as follows:

• March 7 - Department Chairs submit revised schedule drafts
• March 14 - Departments complete entry of schedule in Peoplesoft

In addition, the Academic Senate has taken up the following updates to the Academic Calendar:

• April 1 - Advising for continuing students begins
• April 28 - Registration for continuing students begins

Finally, I have been able to share updates with faculty, staff, and students this week in meetings with the Senate Budget and Planning Committee and my regular visit with ASI.

I will continue to provide information as it becomes available. For now, I wish you a nice weekend.

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to provide another weekly update, which continues to be focused on the 2025-26 Budget & Course Schedule Build.

Budget

• As a reminder for context, due to reductions in state funding, Academic Affairs (AA) faced $9M in reductions in 2024-25. These reductions were addressed primarily through salary savings (45.5 tenure-trackfaculty positions, 4 staff positions, 5 MPP positions) and the cancellation of low-enrolled class sections.
• Unfortunately, as you may have heard, the Governor’s January budget proposal includes additional budget reductions (about 8 percent and deferral of compact funding for two years) for the CSU making our situation even more serious. For our campus, this means that Academic Affairs is now encountering an additional $5-6M in reductions for 2025-26.

Schedule Build Process 

• To navigate budget challenges the campus Budget Office and AA are working together to develop a new instructional budget model that takes multiple factors into consideration (such as enrollment (FTES*), unique department/program needs, etc.).
• I anticipate the instructional budget model will initially be shared with department chairs next week.
• While this approach is new to our campus, similar approaches are utilized elsewhere including various CSU campuses.  This approach is being guided by the need to serve our students and to promote student success while concurrently addressing the budget challenges and move CSUB through this period.

*FTES = Full-time Equivalent Student

Schedule Build Timeline

This is a complex and ongoing process, requiring significant time and effort.  In order to accommodate this work, there are updated deadlines for the schedule build this semester:

• March 7 - Department Chairs submit revised schedule drafts
• March 14 - Departments complete entry of schedule in Peoplesoft

In addition, the Academic Senate has taken up the following updates to the Academic Calendar:

• April 1 - Advising for continuing students begins
• April 28 - Registration for continuing students begins

As I share this, I want to acknowledge that this process is different and new.  Please know that I hear your questions and concerns whether during the General Faculty Meeting or through other meetings and conversations.  I remain committed to transparency as we navigate these challenging times together. Your patience, collaboration, and dedication are greatly appreciated as we work through these challenges on a common path forward together.

Let’s remain steady and focused in our collective work toward a shared mission.

Colleagues,

I’m writing to provide an update for Week 3 of the semester and the first update since last Friday’s General Faculty Meeting.

Dr. Kristen Watson has quickly jumped into the interim Vice President of Business and Administrative Services and Chief Financial Officer position.  Dr. Watson and I have met multiple times this week to discuss budget and will continue to work closely moving forward.

The Academic Senate Budget and Planning Committee (BPC) and the university Budget Advisory Committee (BAC) met this week, both contributing to the important work of shared governance.

The schedule build process for 2025-26 is underway.  In an effort to meet student needs, address the budget situation, and achieve greater course schedule efficiency, adjustments to the schedule build process will be implemented. We intend to do so by considering various data, including previous enrollments, which Department Chairs already have. To accommodate for these changes, we have already extended the schedule build timeline, and I will work with the Academic Senate to consider further extending the timeline.

While I recognize the challenges of this moment and that change can be difficult, the 10^th Annual Unity Breakfast held on campus this morning provided a reminder of the power of coming together as a community and engaging collaboratively to achieve shared mission and goals. We will get through this together.

I plan to send weekly updates on Fridays moving forward. However, I will provide additional updates as needed.