Sonoma State to Receive $45M Funding Infusion

The roller-coaster saga of program and athletics cuts at Sonoma State University encountered another curve on Tuesday when California lawmakers announced a one-time $45 million cash infusion.

The influx will provide needed financial relief: In January Sonoma State announced sweeping cuts to address a $24 million budget deficit. That plan would have eliminated multiple academic programs and all of the university’s athletic teams. But those cuts were put on hold in April when a judge issued a temporary restraining order, agreeing with claims in a lawsuit that the college had sidestepped its own policies on program elimination. In May, however, the same judge decided SSU could move forward on planned cuts.

To address its budget crisis, Sonoma State had planned to cut more than 20 academic programs, six academic departments, multiple faculty and staff jobs, and all 11 of its NCAA Division II athletic teams. Now some cuts will likely be walked back due to the influx of funds.

California Senate president pro tempore Mike McGuire, a Democrat, announced the additional state support in a joint statement with other lawmakers on Tuesday afternoon, saying the funding marks a “turning point” for the university “following months of turmoil” at Sonoma State.

While the plan hasn’t been finalized, it will come before lawmakers this week.

“The initiative will start with a $45 million state investment which will grow and stabilize SSU’s key programs, and restore some faculty positions and academic degrees at the campus,” McGuire wrote. “This transformational funding is embedded in the state budget, which will be voted on later this week by the Legislature before heading to Governor Newsom’s desk for final signature.”

McGuire also pointed to specific projects that the funding will help advance at Sonoma State, including a new career center to connect students and graduates with local employers, an “aggressive recruiting campaign” to expand college access, and the launch of new academic degrees. In addition, he said the funding would allow SSU to restore “some key faculty positions.”

The funding will also help fund SSU athletics “over the next few years,” according to the release.

McGuire described the $45 million cash infusion to Sonoma State as a “long-term recovery plan” that was “the result of months of collaboration and community engagement with state leaders.”

University officials thanked McGuire—a Sonoma State graduate—in a statement, crediting him and other state lawmakers for their support of SSU programs.

“These one-time funds are an investment in the future of the university as it develops cutting-edge programs to meet healthcare, data science, and other regional workforce needs in the coming years, and are a vote of confidence in the enduring mission and values of Sonoma State University,” a university spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement to Inside Higher Ed.

While the cash infusion will help stabilize the university, some cuts will be difficult to walk back. The Press Democrat, a local newspaper, reported that most of Sonoma State’s 200-plus athletes have already transferred out and multiple coaches have found jobs elsewhere.

Of the $45 million funding infusion, $8 million will go to athletics, the newspaper reported.