CORTLAND -- It's not just the weather that's freezing in Cortland.
"We do have a freeze on all positions," says Erik Bitterbaum, president of SUNY Cortland. "In the spring I suspect classes will be larger, classes with less than ten students, we will not offer."
Bitterbaum says the hiring freeze went into effect in late September. It's to deal with the financial reality all SUNY schools are facing which is less funding from the state. Bitterbaum says SUNY Cortland is getting at least four million dollars less next year. As part of the hiring freeze at SUNY Cortland, one position that's not getting filled is janitor.
Right now there are about 20 open janitorial positions. Instead of having close to 100 people doing that job, there are 80. To keep the campus clean, students are being asked to pick up after themselves, otherwise cleaning is prioritized. Bitterbaum says some places that are not as often traveled by the public and students may only get cleaned one time as week as opposed to higher traffic areas that get cleaned everyday.
Some students notice the difference. “The bathrooms are not so clean," says Morgan Sapolsky, a student.
There is also less staff to deal with snow removal. So areas that aren't used much may not get plowed until later in the day. The cuts in funding will also impact cutting the grass. When spring finally arrives, Bitterbaum says, the lawn won't be getting mowed as much.
