With a $5 million budget gap looming in the distance, the Wesleyan Student Assembly (WSA) recently surveyed the student body to determine which departments and programs should face budget cuts.

Among the 472 students who participated in the WSA survey, a sweeping majority voted that financial aid should be protected from budget cuts. Academic departments were another area that most students did not want to see affected. The majority of respondents were open to the possibility of budget cuts in Athletics and the Undergraduate Tuition Scholarship Program for Dependent Children of Faculty, Professional Librarians, and Administrative Staff. Participants were split on the remainder of the issues, including budget cuts for the Green Street Arts Center, the WESU radio station, and other co-curriculars, as well as a potential faculty salary freeze and moving professors to a 3:2 teaching load.

In addition to conducting the survey, the WSA’s Budget Priorities Task Force held three open meetings for student body input, interviewed senior members of the Administration about the intricacies of the budget report, and read background information on each of the budget cut proposals. Their research culminated in a four and a half hour meeting of open discussion between WSA members and the drafting of a report of recommendations for proposed budget cuts to present to the administration.

“It is important that students speak out and have their voices heard,” said WSA President Mike Pernick ’10. “I believe the most important perspective is the people who are impacted by the cuts. This will determine the future of Wesleyan as an institution.”

The Board of Trustees will meet on campus this weekend to discuss their course of action between now and May, when the final budget for the 2010-2011 academic year will be approved. According to President Michael Roth, the administration places significant weight on the recommendations of the WSA.

“I reported to the Executive Committee this weekend and at the faculty meeting last week that I was waiting for receipt of [the Task Force’s report of recommendations] because I had heard intimations from students that some of the faculty priorities were not shared by student representatives,” Roth said. “We’ll talk about [the report] with the Board—I take it very seriously.”

In response to a proposal earlier this year by the administration to reduce the overall financial aid budget by $3.7 million, the WSA passed a resolution a month ago indicating that financial aid should be the last item to face budget cuts.

“The University has a responsibility to our students to ensure that any admit has a right to come here, regardless of their ability to pay,” said Ben Firke ’12, Task Force member and Finance and Facilities Committee Chair. “And even if you aren’t on financial aid, your experience here is enriched by people who are.”

The Task Force has sent the report to Roth and will meet with him in the upcoming week to discuss the details of the recommendations.

“The Trustees ultimately have the final say on the budget in the spring,” Firke said. “We can provide them and President Roth’s cabinet with the student view of the budget scenario, and press them hard on it.”