OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - College and university presidents from across Oklahoma are urging lawmakers to ease cuts to higher education as the lawmakers grapple with a $1.3 billion hole in next fiscal year's budget.
Oklahoma Chancellor of Higher Education Glen Johnson and several presidents held closed-door meetings Wednesday with House and Senate budget leaders to outline some of the dire consequences of further cuts.
Johnson says colleges and universities already have had cuts totaling about $112 million for the current fiscal year, which is about 11 percent of their total appropriation.
As a result, he says most institutions already are laying off staff and faculty and several have implemented furlough days.
He says athletic programs also are being eliminated, including basketball at Carl Albert State College and volleyball and equine at Redlands Community College.
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