WORCESTER — After raising tuition and fees for the first time in three years last June, the University of Massachusetts has announced substantial central office belt-tightening measures that this year saved $3.1 million by cutting staff, canceling raises and imposing a hiring freeze.
In addition, the university announced $239 million in system efficiency measures, a move that UMass officials say will help the university keep up with enrollment growth and streamline business practices.
“We’re getting smarter about the way we do business,” said university spokesman Robert P. Connolly. “That’s what this is about.”
Last June, the trustees’ committee on administration and finance voted to increase tuition by 5 percent and institute a $250 technology fee, to the dismay of student protesters who voiced their concerns to the board.
The board of trustees approved the decision a week later, raising the total cost for an on-campus student in Amherst to $25,674 for the just-concluded academic year.
A year later, the university is highlighting efforts to cut costs in the face of overwhelming enrollment growth, Connolly said. According to Connolly, enrollment at UMass has grown by 44 percent, or 22,000 students, over the last 20 years.
“State funding could never keep up with that level of enrollment growth, so we inevitably need to look for ways to achieve economic efficiency to meet that type of expansion and demand,” Connolly said. “So many students are wanting to come to UMass, and we need to find ways to make that work on a business scale.”