Colleges look to slash travel costs

Traveling can be expensive if you’re a college professor these days.

Conference registration prices are up. Plane ticket fares are skyrocketing. Hotel prices aren’t getting any cheaper, either.

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Travel costs at colleges and universities statewide jumped about 40 percent from fiscal year 2003 to 2007, according to records from the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts.

Now, as college administrators scramble to make mandated cuts to deal with a worsening economy, travel could be a prime target for the chopping block. Yet the ability to attend conferences and meetings in other cities is crucial, academics say, if Georgia schools are to stay competitive on the national stage.

“It is part of a staple of academic work,” said Joe Hermanowicz, presiding officer of the University of Georgia Faculty Senate. “There is a sense that much is at stake with the University System of Georgia.”

Escalating airfares have contributed to higher expenses at most state schools. It’s a trend the university system is looking to reverse, as 6 percent of state funding is cut for the fiscal year that started July 1, with further reductions planned for the future.

The University System of Georgia budgeted $44.6 million in travel for the current fiscal year, $14.4 million of which is state-funded.

“One could see what was coming down the road and that the fiscal year of 2009 would be one of belt-tightening,” University System Chief Operating Officer Rob Watts said. “At every institution, that could include cutting travel funds.”

Some professors fear the cuts could drastically slash their travel budgets.

“There stands a good chance of [travel] completely evaporating. It’s an easy target,” Hermanowicz said.

Some cuts already are being felt. Watts said four statewide meetings sponsored by the university system have been called off, with the cancellation of more events possible. Instead, conference calls, Web seminars or other alternatives will be used.

Individual public colleges and universities may soon follow suit.

“We could be forced to curtail some non-essential travel,” said Medical College of Georgia Controller Jim Jones.

An AJC review of travel records obtained under the state Open Records Act and state audit data showed more than 750 school employees had travel costs exceeding $10,000 for fiscal 2007.

Especially when faculty go overseas, expenses can pile up fast.

UGA President Michael Adams, for example, took a $12,200 trip last year, $4,756 of which was state-funded, visiting study-abroad programs in Italy, Austria and London.

Being on the ground was important, Adams said, to meet with faculty and make decisions for new facilities.

“There are always things you do differently when you see people eyeball to eyeball,” he said. “We are a school with a broad international perspective on things, and I think that ultimately serves the state.”

Dennis Folds, a chief scientist in the Georgia Tech Research Institute, spent more than $61,000 in fiscal 2007, one of the highest tabs of any academic in the state university system, according to audit data. During a single two-week trip to Australia in March 2007 to present research and meet with prospective sponsors, Folds racked up nearly $9,400 in expenses.

Speaking on Folds’ behalf, institute spokesman Kirk Englehardt said sponsored research contracts funded all of the scientist’s travel expenses.

Tech spent $16.5 million on travel last year, more than any other state school.

“Research on military technology is more expensive than research on cows,” said Tom Pearson, Tech’s director of business services. The U.S. Department of Defense, Air Force and other sponsors fund most of the school’s travel budget, he said.

Most gatherings of academics are held in major cities, driving up the cost. The bigger venues are needed, educators argue, to accommodate larger gatherings.

Ronald Matson, chairman of the biology and physics department at Kennesaw State University, said the vast majority of travel requests he sees are for professional meetings and faculty presentations.

“I don’t necessarily just rubber-stamp these things, especially right now,” he said, adding that requests are granted based on priority.

The state Board of Regents, which regulates travel expenses, recently mandated that all school employees obtain approval from three supervisors before heading off on overnight and out-of-state trips. Previously, only one department manager needed to sign off.

Other states have considered outright travel bans or other ways of limiting the costs.

“A lot of times, they’re just saying ‘no’ and really holding back when it comes to attending conferences,” said Daniel Hurley, director of state relations and policy analysis for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.

With many states wrestling with budget deficits, Hurley said travel expenses are a “go-to line item” for cuts.

While educators could seek more private grants for travel, such funding is uncertain, as competition is high for those monies.

Matson and other professors maintain state-funded travel is crucial for professional advancement and educating students.

“Cutting may be a necessary evil,” he said, “but the travel itself is important.”