With state budget cuts sweeping the nation, public universities are finding it necessary to make plans to accommodate their projected smaller budgets as well.

University of Wisconsin System spokesperson David Giroux said schools need to figure out possible solutions to meet the budget and still serve their mission as an institute for higher learning.

Giroux said the budget shortfalls will take effect for the 2009-11 school years, adding, “Right now, our current operations are not directly affected other than ways we are tightening our belts a little bit so that we can soften the impact when it comes.”

The only “belt-tightening” that has taken place so far, according to Giroux, is tighter restrictions on hiring.

“The chancellor is now required to review every new level on campus, giving a greater level of scrutiny,” Giroux said.

He added this could affect students by making it harder for them to get all the classes they need for graduation because certain positions in departments might not be filled.

Faced with a similar situation in their upcoming budget, the University of Minnesota has taken a comparable approach, already cutting back positions that can be “absorbed” into other job titles.

University spokesperson Dan Wolter said has also put a pause to all new hires until they figure out exactly what budget cuts they will see in the coming months. Wolter added 85 percent of the senior faculty has experienced salary “freezes,” including the president.

Wolter said an area that will likely be affected by the budget cut is research grants for professors.

The California State University System is facing huge economic disparities as well, and is expecting to cut enrollment by 10,000 next year to help the state compensate for their budget shortfall.

In response to this, California Lt. Gov. John Garamendi said in a recent editorial in the San Francisco Chronicle, “Are we so desperate for another short-term fix to the state deficit that we’re willing to sacrifice our future teachers, solar-energy engineers, film producers and nurses?”

Garamendi added in the editorial he thinks the state’s deficit should not affect students. The California System has forgone a tuition increase for now.

On the other side of the nation, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist announced a plan Nov. 20 to allow all 11 state universities to raise tuition up to 15 percent per year to compensate for budget cuts, according to the Miami Herald.

Giroux said it’s hard for the UW System to determine exactly what should be done with the foreseen tightened budget because they are not certain how much of the budget the system will be required to meet.

“[It’s like] standing on a river bank and trying to get to the other side, and not knowing how deep the water is or how swift the current is moving.”

Giroux added the period of uncertainty would present some challenges.

“We don’t know how significant they will be, and we’re trying to do our best to manage our way in those situations,” Giroux said.

— Jacquelyn Ryberg contributed to this report.