The head of the Illinois Board of Higher Education is telling leaders at public universities in the state to brace themselves for severe budget cuts.
Administrators received an email from Board Executive Director James Applegate that says schools need to prepare for up to 30-percent in-state funding reductions over the next two fiscal years.
This, after meeting with Governor-elect Bruce Rauner's budget transition team.
For Western Illinois University, it would mean losing close to $11 million in state funding.
"It's huge. But at this time, it's not time to panic, it is time for us to plan," said WIU Budget Director Matt Bierman.
"We've cut and cut," Bierman said.
Dr. Joe Rives, at the WIU Quad Cities campus, says he's not concerned, yet
"At this point, there's nothing on paper concretely that's been approved to react. So, our plan is to protect our mission which is instruction and to expand programs and services in the Quad Cities," Rives said.
A tuition hike would be inevitable if the cuts go through.
Expansion plans and funding for the Quad Cities campus were announced earlier this year, with Governor Quinn promising $5 million in funding.
"At this point, all systems are go," Dr. Rives said.
Bierman says he believes the dollars allocated for the Quad City campus are safe, but it's too early to know if the project would be impacted in any way.
"We're promised dollars. Are those really in the bank? I don't know that," Bierman said.
Western has become more self-reliant in the past decade, even as state dollars continued to shrink. They recently completed a $60 million fundraising campaign, and much of that money was going to help students with financial aid.
"When I first started at Western, about ten years ago, 60 percent of its income was from the state of Illinois. It's now 40 percent, so the time to sit and wait for state money has passed," Dr. Rives said.