Dear Tulane Colleagues,
As I enter my second year as president, I am immensely excited about
Tulane’s future. Because of our academic and research strengths, ideal size
and enviable location, we are poised to cement our place among the
country’s most distinguished universities.
In order to meet our ambitious goals, we have just completed a robust
strategic review and are hard at work preparing for the largest capital
campaign in the university’s history. When these initiatives are paired with
the excellent work of the task forces on undergraduate education and
academic collaborations, plus a recent rise in the US News rankings to #41
among national universities, Tulane is on the path to a truly transformative
future.
In the past few weeks I have visited with hundreds of you at staff and faculty
meetings, and have encountered dozens more of you around our multiple
campuses. As I have said repeatedly, you are the backbone of this institution
and essential to our institutional excellence. I have been very impressed by
the talented, innovative, hardworking faculty and staff at Tulane.
Thus, I am pleased to announce that the President’s Cabinet has approved a
2 percent merit increase pool, effective Jan. 1, which we believe is an
important way to acknowledge the value of our workforce.
At the same time, to fulfill our ambitious goals, we are undertaking a
number of budgetary initiatives. As you recall, in January I appointed an
Operational Review steering committee to work with the Huron Consulting
Group in helping us identify ways to eliminate our annual operating cash
deficit of $15-20 million.
Today I want to update you on the progress of the committee. As a result of
their many months of research and hundreds of interviews with members of
our community, the committee recommended numerous areas where
significant savings could be realized. The President’s Cabinet endorsed each
final decision.
Two areas, institutional operations and our workforce, will be affected.
By implementing the initiatives together, we will save money and start
eliminating the cash deficit.

 In institutional operations, changes are currently underway in:
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Procurement and Travel Management *
Summer Programing *
Student Housing Utilization *
Employee Healthcare Management *
Renegotiation of Energy Contract *
Student Health Center Third Party Billing *
Admission and Enrollment *

The above areas were identified as providing Tulane with the best
opportunity for cost savings, and will have a minimal impact on the majority
of our employees. More details can be found at
http://tulane.edu/huron/updates.cfm
Regarding our workforce, we will be offering in the near term a voluntary
separation program for staff members who wish to retire or move to another
position outside the university. Details will be mailed to eligible individuals
by Oct. 21.
It is not our intention to force valuable Tulane employees to apply for the
Voluntary Separation Program. However, if we do not achieve the necessary
dollars savings through the voluntary phase, we will likely have to consider
additional measures such as non-voluntary lay-offs.
Additionally we will make changes to our policies for overtime pay, sick
leave and vacation time to make them more consistent with other
universities. These changes will be effective July 1, 2016. Details are at
http://tulane.edu/wfmo/employee-support/policies/policies.cfm
I know that this is a lot of information to absorb. Please take the time to
review all information carefully and send your thoughts and questions to
comments@tulane.edu. We will continue to look for additional ways to
secure Tulane’s financial future and save money, and we appreciate your
continued feedback.
As we navigate these challenging times together, I want to thank you for
your patience and devotion to Tulane. These difficult steps are critical to
giving us the ability to achieve our ambitious goals going forward.

 They will position us to generate the resources that will ensure an
outstanding education for every student and fulfill our mission as a great
university.
Thank you again for your loyalty and dedication.
Mike Fitts