The university’s hiring freeze ended Monday, but administrators do not expect a frenzy of hires despite severely understaffed departments across the campus.

While University System of Maryland Chancellor Brit Kirwan’s removal of the freeze gives administrators more flexibility, it doesn’t add any funds to department budgets. The biggest obstacle to hiring more faculty and staff still remains, and overburdened university departments shouldn’t expect help anytime soon.

“A lot of departments are exercising caution,” said Dale Anderson, the university’s director of human resources. “The belief is that departments are going to move cautiously. It doesn’t mean we have more money … It doesn’t mean that we have a green light. We are still struggling and very cautiously optimistic.”

The freeze was implemented in the fall to prepare for state budget cuts. But the end of the legislative session and the passage of the state budget mean there is more certainty, Kirwan said.

“Our budget situation is stabilized,” he said. “We’re not under immediate threat of budget cuts.”

But Kirwan also expressed some hesitation.

“This is not a time to feel expansive,” he said. “Some caution is still called for.”

Most university officials said they still planned on leaving vacant positions open because they simply lack the money to fill them. University Relations has 20 openings – 10 percent of its staff – even after filling six positions with special approval, said Brodie Remington, its vice president. Four members of the department have also been laid off.

“It’s very difficult to live with,” said Remington, who still didn’t expect the department to make any new hires. “But it’s something we have to get through.”

The lack of staff, Remington said, has led to fatigued employees who are being asked to pick up the slack by bringing work home with them in the evenings and on weekends. Despite the smaller staff, the department has increased donor visits by 20 percent over last year, Remington said.

“It’s more difficult to reach all of our goals,” Remington said. “Everybody is doing more.”

Academic departments have also been bogged down by the extra work.

“We are not able to have as many adjuncts,” said Rhonda Malone, the director of faculty mentoring and development. “It puts a greater burden on professors.”

Faculty members have complained about morale, problems in their personal lives and have seen other components of their workload suffer, Malone said. Many are teaching larger classes or courses in areas they don’t specialize in potentially harming students’ academic experiences, she added.

“Everyone feels the pinch,” Anderson said. “There are positions that if they were staffed we would be able to get the work done if they were here. It puts burdens on everyone.”

During the hiring freeze, university President Dan Mote had to approve every hire a department made and only “essential” personnel could be hired. About 20 faculty members have been hired compared to about 80 last year, Provost Nariman Farvardin said.

Since the freeze ended, some departments are still requiring approval from the vice president who oversees the department before making hires, while others have reverted to their earlier systems, Anderson said.

Some departments were not as affected as others.

The Office of Student Affairs had around five openings, including a web developer and a civic engagement position in the Stamp Student Union, said Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Warren Kelley.

“The hiring freeze caused temporary delays in service,” he said.

The office did add two mental health professionals.

Despite the flexibility of independent hiring apart from Mote’s approval, administrators are still skeptical of the additions they will be able to make due to budget constraints, but only time will tell.

“Just because the controls that were put in place have ended it doesn’t mean we aren’t under the same budgets,” Anderson said. “It doesn’t make sense to do a lot of hiring. We may have to lay people off [if the state continues to cut funding].”

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