The University System of Maryland has imposed a hiring freeze on its 11 schools as it braces for state budget cuts amid a floundering economy, said Chancellor William “Brit” Kirwan.
The freeze is the first since 2002, when the system was forced to fire hundreds of employees. This year, the state is expecting a shortfall of more than $400 million as the struggling economy combines with the largest tax increases in the state’s history. Kirwan said he expects to hear within a week how much money the system will lose.
“There are strong signals that there will be some reduction to the fiscal year 2009 budget, and we will need to be in a position to respond to any reductions that come our way,” Kirwan said in an interview Wednesday.
“Assuming this is a temporary fiscal condition, I don’t think that this is going to have a dramatic impact on our ability to provide good education and support to our students. Obviously, if this continues into future fiscal years, it becomes a different story.”
Most teaching positions should have been filled by the start of the academic year, but any vacant employee slots are also subject to the freeze, Kirwan said.
The state’s largest schools have a few dozen open teaching spots. The University of Maryland, College Park, has 38 open faculty positions; Towson University has 41, according to the schools’ Web sites.
“Critical” openings, however, can be filled at universities with the approval of the school’s president, Kirwan said.
“This is not what I would call a hard freeze in the sense that no one can be hired,” Kirwan said. “The presidents can use their discretion to make hires in critical areas.”
System officials did not expect the state to sway from its decision to freeze tuition for the third consecutive year.
