Vermont’s storied state university needs an intervention to flourish – if not survive

By Ted Cohen

The University of Vermont has been facing a $12 million budget shortfall going in to the new year amid an alarming 15 percent drop in freshman enrollment and 7 percent decrease across all undergrad programs.

But yet…

Trustees just decided to go ahead with plans to build a $100 million basketball arena.

The math isn’t mathing.

The board allegedly overseeing school President Marlene Tromp is by all accounts letting her run reckless with spending, evidence the administration’s latest break with reality.

The University of Vermont is a small school funded partly by Vermont taxpayers.

The Legislature has decided to commit $10 million towards the planned arena to house men’s and women’s basketball.

But what Tromp should be doing is showing some fiscal restraint and telling her bosses, “We need an intervention. This is unsustainable and I’m putting my name on the line.”

So, how does she do that?

By recommending that a small land-grant school in a tiny poor state admit that trying to compete for world-class athletes is a bridge to financial and reputational ruin.

UVM has realized over the years that trying to compete with big schools for star athletes is simply a fool’s errand.

The school has previously abolished its baseball and football programs for that very reason.

After the 2009 season, the college’s baseball program was cut along with softball as a part of university budget cuts.

The football program was scrapped in 1974, the first indication that a small school realized it needed to get serious about either academics or athletics, not both.

The school’s president at the time was Ed Andrews, a physician and former dean of the medical school who was a visionary in his understanding of financial realities and how they translated to academic excellence or lack thereof.

Andrews told trustees it was time to make hard choices. He said the options were axing football or the nursing program.

The brave leader in him announced football was out.

Andrews refused to kowtow to critics who claimed Vermont needed a football team.

Tromp unfortunately isn’t in Andrews’ league.

She thinks spending $100 million for a basketball arena is a good investment in UVM’s future, notwithstanding the fact the school already has a fine gymnasium accommodating both the men’s and women’s teams.

Where the $100 million comes from isn’t the issue, even though Tromp will claim it can be raised privately.

Privately, that is, on the backs of Vermont taxpayers being required to fork over $10 million in seed money just to hire architects to come up with construction plans.

If Tromp can raise $100 million for two basketball hoops then she should be able to raise $100 million to attract and finance a world-class faculty.

It’s an easy layup she clearly is unwilling to make despite UVM’s future being in dire jeopardy.

Tromp is afraid to make controversial decisions and for that she ought to be sent packing.

Not likely to happen since the school’s trustees are as blind to reality as she is.