Faculty Senate President Sue Willis closed the first meeting of the academic year Wednesday with a Thanksgiving treat for all, saying no classes will be held the day before the holiday.

On a more serious note, Willis began the meeting by addressing NIU’s ongoing budget situation.

“Are we getting another budget cut next year? Who knows,” Willis said. “The state situation is so unclear.”

The senate listened to reports from several advisory committees and discussed the creation of an advisory board for Technology Services.

“They eliminated software, and none of this was discussed with people who use the systems,” said Paul Stoddard, representative from the department of geology.

After discussion on the proposed board, members decided to recommend its implementation to the University Council.

Patricia Henry, the NIU representative on the Faculty Advisory Council to the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IHBE), brought up discussion from a late May IBHE meeting about a proposal to create an op-ed piece on how the budget affects students.

“We want to know what do the students find different; what are they losing out on because of the budget cuts?” Henry said.

Dennis Munk from the NIU Department of Teaching and Learning said the university will see the impact of the budget on education by the end of the year.

Munk’s classes have been larger than usual, and he said this can impact education.

“If you want to give a project that will involve meeting individually with a student, it’s more difficult,” Munk said. “It’s too soon to know what the impact will be on the quality of experience.”