Comments on: Report on today’s administrative presentation: The Rose

By: Loki

Loki — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 03:04:21 +0000

Well, they are actually relatively set for the next two years, due to the $100 million reserve fund accrued by Pres. Reinharz over the previous decade. After FY 2010, however, we’ll be in serious shit, given current trends. Even with all the changes and cost savings, we’ll still be running a deficit, and the chances of recovering all the money we need through fundraising is near to impossible. This is where the art comes in – to bail us out in several years. We have enough funds due to the current cuts, reserve fund, and planned cuts to last us till then.

The Rose closing is not a stopgap measure because we need cash now. It is intended to recapitalize our endowment earlier, thereby allowing us to draw from it before FY 2014 under current law and avoiding other cuts.

Whether this is the best plan…. I don’t know. I’ll elaborate more on that tomorrow.

By: Ben Fertig

Ben Fertig — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 02:48:53 +0000

As an biology alumnus in Maryland, I appreciate the posting of this summary, as though I care about this issue, I was not able to attend this forum. Thank you for your posting.

Though I am not a financial expert, something seems off to me in the projected timings reported here.

Why is there a disconnect between the projected low of the endowment this FY09 followed by a recovery, but then the sale of art that takes *months to years* based on the recovery of the art market, which I imagine would either coincide or follow (but not precede) the general market recovery? The art market is a luxury — isn’t it the early to fall and late to recover, similar to vacation real estate? So why are they counting on a rebounding art market to sustain them when the endowment, invested in the rest of the market, would have already recovered?

Also, there is the issue of the $10M budget gap, which I would imagine could be closed through a combination of fiscal conservation and aggressive fundraising within 2009. The ~600K operating expenses for the museum, I would imagine, could be covered through increased ticket prices/sales and other alternatives. Personally, I prefer trying to recover the endowment via donations, which it appears is not entirely out of the question.

I am disappointed by the way in which Brandeis made this decision and announced it, without consulting either the Rose Art director, Board of Overseers, or the students, all of whom this greatly affects. It was cowardly to make this decision behind the backs of those who the Administration and Board of Trustees perceived would disagree. Furthermore it did not consider the creativity and concern of the Brandeis community, which has come up with many innovative solutions since the announcement, based upon the limited available information. With better communication, perhaps a less painful solution could have found earlier on that would have diffused emotions and reflected better upon the reputation of Brandeis as a nationally recognized institute of learning and culture.

By: Elana

Elana — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 02:00:07 +0000

While the space would be lovely (as the initial plans for new Fine Arts work/learning areas were dropped), what people fail to realize is that the Rose Art museum is to a Fine Art student what a Lab is to a Pre-Med. The Rose is where we go to look, to touch, to explore and gain real life experience. Without the Rose, we are left in a dark room with a slide projector.

By: Lev

Lev — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 01:46:34 +0000

aimy, that’s really interesting. Why is that?

By: aimy

aimy — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 00:52:12 +0000

Hi, I’m one of the UDRs for the art department and I just wanted to clarify on something Marty Krauss said after President Reinharz left the briefing. She said that the “silver lining” of this situation is that the Rose will be converted into gallery space and studios. We may have lost funding for a new art building, but no one from the art department supports this plan.

By: A Summary of Today’s Forum | Innermost Parts

A Summary of Today’s Forum | Innermost Parts — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 22:00:38 +0000

[...] After giving this daunting presentation, French stepped aside to let President Reinharz answer student questions. Much of this conversation focused on the closing of the Rose Art Museum, which Liza covered in her recent post. [...]