From the Desk of the President

April 29, 2026

Dear CSU Pueblo Community,

As we finalize the FY27 budget, I want to thank you for the hard work and collaboration that has taken place throughout the academic year.  

At the start of FY26 in July 2025, we identified a significant structural deficit in our Education & General (E&G) fund. (E&G is the core operating budget used to run the day-to-day academic and administrative functions of the university.)  A structural deficit in E&G means our ongoing expenses (e.g., salaries, operating costs) are greater than the revenue we generate from tuition and state appropriations.

Throughout the year, campus Budget Roundtables provided an important forum for discussion and input, including conversations last fall about how to address an estimated $2.4 million structural deficit.

In prior years, the university relied on external funding sources such as Title V, federal COVID relief (HEERF), and Vision 2028 funds to help close budget gaps. Those resources are no longer available.

Another important stabilizing factor for the university in recent years has been (and continues to be) the transfer of more than $5 million annually from Extended Studies to the E&G fund. While Extended Studies operates as a self-supporting auxiliary with strong revenue, most other auxiliary units have accumulated unsustainable negative balances over time.

In anticipation of these challenges, Interim President Rico Munn last summer began working with Cabinet to identify vacancy savings and implement strategic changes throughout the year.  That work was continuing when I joined the university as your new president in March 2026. 

Working closely with Cabinet and with many of you across departments, we identified approximately $1 million in savings in the E&G budget and $1 million in Athletics, while also restructuring and reorganizing to achieve additional efficiencies across every corner of the institution.

Our priority throughout this process was to protect areas that are central to our mission, namely those that contribute to student success.  We preserved student financial aid, maintained equity increases for lecturers and senior lecturers, and prioritized a 1% salary increase for faculty and administrative professional employees.  We kept student success at the center of our deliberations, recognizing that every decision would have an impact on the instruction, services, and support we deliver to our students.  While we held student aid steady, we made the difficult decision to build in a 3.5% tuition increase for resident students, and a 5% increase for non-residents – the maximum amount approved by the legislature.  We recognize the burden this places on students and our access mission, and we are committed to helping students seek scholarship funding through our foundation, institutional aid, and other opportunities through our generous donors.  

As we worked through this process, it became apparent that closing the $2+ million budget gap could not be resolved through restructuring alone.  The budget cuts have included staff reductions across nearly every division of the university through the elimination of 8.0 FTE in vacant positions and 8.6 FTE through layoffs.

These decisions were, by far, the most difficult part of the budget-balancing process. Conversations with affected employees have taken place over the past few days. These colleagues are deeply appreciated for their contributions to CSU Pueblo, and we are committed to supporting them as they navigate their transitions.  This support includes helping match affected employees with other opportunities at the university whenever possible.

Next week, the CSU System Board of Governors will meet on our campus to review and approve the budget.  While this process has been incredibly difficult, I am confident in sharing with the Board that our leadership team and colleagues across the university have approached these decisions with the utmost care, collaboration, and attentiveness to our core mission.  I also know that CSU Pueblo will emerge stronger, and a more financially sustainable institution. 

We must also recognize that challenges in higher education remain.  We are facing a time where colleges and universities across the nation are under great pressure from budgetary constraints, a tight competitive market, and some negative narratives about the value of higher education in the popular media.  But we know the value of an education at CSU Pueblo.  Our students know it, and our community understands the value proposition we bring – changing lives for the better.  We have the capability to raise the prosperity of individuals and families, and to bring economic growth to our region.  In spite of our current challenges, I remain optimistic about our future.

Rhonda M. Epper, Ph.D.

President

Slide Deck: April 29, 2026 Budget Roundtable

February 3, 2025

Colleagues,

I understand that some of our community have asked for a formal statement from leadership in reference to recent changes and signals at the federal level.  In our time together, such statements will be rare from me as I tend to believe that the most important statements are the work we do and the way we do it.  That said, I recognize that these are uncertain times and there are many more questions than answers right now. My career in corporate litigation, politics and higher education leadership has taught me the importance of gathering information before making decisions and putting students at the forefront of all we do. 

CSU Pueblo serves our community, prepares our students for their futures, and complies with the law – and that is work we will continue. And while I may not have answers to all that you question, I want to reiterate what we do know. 

Here are the facts:

• Title V of the Higher Education Act of 1965 is the law

• • An executive order cannot repeal Title V of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended through September 2006, in which Congress found that “Hispanic Americans are at high risk of not enrolling or graduating from institutions of higher education.” 
  • Section 511 of Title V calls for Hispanic-serving institutions to “set forth, or describe how the institution will develop, a comprehensive development plan to strengthen the institution's academic quality and institutional management and otherwise provide for institutional self-sufficiency and growth.”

• CSU Pueblo is a regional university that serves Southern Colorado

• • Our mission as a university is to close the educational attainment gap in Southern Colorado. We are rooted in our community and are the school of choice for our students from the rural region – we are an HSI, but also a Minority Serving Institution, and that is a key part of our service to Colorado. 

Our work is important, and it is lawful. 

To be in compliance with the law we must expand opportunities for Hispanic students and do everything we can to increase the attainment of Hispanic students toward a college degree. This is work that not only creates a powerful ripple effect for all of our students but is good for our communities. 

The proven way to grow our student success is to create an open and welcoming environment. That is work we will continue to do so every student at CSU Pueblo has a path to success. Last week, our team shared a message with students that outlines the resources available for all CSU Pueblo students to support their individual path.

As faculty and staff, we always represent our great university, but we also have freedoms allotted through academic study, lessons related to course subject, and efforts on personal time. However, please note that work hours, work resources, and your role at CSU Pueblo cannot be used for advocacy. 

Our leadership team at CSU Pueblo and at the CSU System continues to monitor the situation and we will keep you updated. In the meantime, be assured that we are resolute in continuing our important work set out by the law. 

Thank you,

Rico