Greetings, ESF Community,

The Voluntary Separation Program (VSP) has been a welcome step in our efforts to manage our budget, and I am pleased that, as of the close of the application process on October 24, we received 41 applications. I'd like to provide the campus with an update that includes critical next steps in program implementation.

First, I extend my heartfelt gratitude to each applicant for their invaluable service and contributions to our college community and for their commitment to helping ESF achieve long-term financial sustainability. I would also like to express my sincere appreciation to the College Foundation Board of Directors and our Foundation Director, Brenda Greenfield, for their unwavering support. This past Saturday, the Foundation Board approved an increase in funding to support the robust interest in the VSP, ensuring that every current ESF employee who applied for the program be approved. Formal letters to individual applicants will be sent by this Friday, November 14.

Applicants will have until December 1 to complete the VSP process. Once program participation is confirmed, supervisors will be asked to provide Human Resources with a proposed succession plan for each departing member within their department. This step is crucial as we work to balance workloads and manage the shift in responsibilities. SUNY is expecting a reduction of 38 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) positions and, although we will have to conduct some searches and backfill some positions, it is our intention to maximize the benefit of the VSP to reduce headcount.

Where possible, we will avoid backfills. Where we have to backfill, we will look first to current staff to offer promotional opportunities. As the pieces fall into place, it is my hope that most new hires will be in entry-level positions. In order to meet the goals of this program, some remaining staff will be given new performance programs to ensure that critical roles are filled going forward. This will be a significant undertaking for all of us and I will do my best to mitigate disruptions.

I appreciate all of the support that you have provided as we work our way through the ESF stability planning process. I especially want to thank Dan Vera for providing valuable student feedback and Matt Smith for his work on behalf of professional staff and faculty. Together with Academic Governance, these voices have been very valuable in reminding us that transparency and a shared governance process is crucial to our success.

To that end, I have asked the Office of Communications and Marketing to create a website for the stability planning process. In addition to posting the stability plan and presentations and communications about the planning process, I will work to involve our campus as much as possible in helping think through what it means to restructure post-VSP. However, and as I noted at Academic Governance on November 10, there are ethical personnel implications and involving others must be done thoughtfully to balance the needs of the campus as a whole with the obligation I have to individual employees. I welcome any suggestions you have about additional ways to receive feedback as we work our way through this important process. Suggestions can be shared directly with president@esf.edu. Please look out for the new website to be live this Friday.

Together, we have a unique opportunity to maximize the benefits of the VSP and ensure we are on track to meet SUNY's expectations. While the VSP alone may not achieve all our goals, through careful analysis of workload demands, opportunities for reallocating responsibilities, and rebalancing performance program priorities, we are well on our way to meeting the Personal Service spending targets set out in the Financial Stability Plan.

The VSP has been very successful. I’ve said dozens of times that ESF gets the big things right. We have exceptional students, faculty and staff who do tremendous work. It is my job to ensure our long-term fiscal health, and we are in a better position today than we were last year. The future is bright at ESF and I am grateful for all of you. Thank you for your continued dedication and support.

Sincerely,

Joanie