Latest COV vic: SUNY’s finances

The coronavirus pandemic has exacted a heavy toll on New York’s public universities, which are bracing for a 25 percent cut in state operating aid on top of big revenue losses, The Post has learned.

The 64-campus State University of New York faces a revenue loss of $800 million to $1 billion for the 2020-21 academic year due to COVID-19’s impact on enrollment and costs to keep campuses safe, a SUNY spokesperson said.

The president of the State University at Albany sent a Sept. 17 memo to his administration and faculty saying the campus is grappling with a $59 million deficit and that he anticipates the cut in state operating assistance this year.

“We have been informed to expect a 25 percent cut in state funding this year which is an $11.9 million loss. While reductions to state support are not yet official, we need to plan for these now, as our one-time cash reserves are being expended in their entirety this year,” Havidan Rodriguez wrote.

Rodriguez said the school has “instituted 15 percent budget-reduction targets for all divisions” and imposed a freeze on hiring and nonessential spending to generate $39 million in savings.

One problem SUNY-Albany has encountered is plummeting enrollment from out-of-state and international students. Unlike state residents, foreign and out-of-state students are not eligible for state tuition relief and therefore pay most, if not all, of tuition and dorm costs that run roughly $32,000 per semester — a big source of revenue.

“This year we are seeing a 13 percent drop in out-ofstate and a 47 percent decrease in international students,” Rodriguez said.