CLEMSON — It’s no secret that the 2008-09 fiscal year was a doozie for South Carolina universities. More than $35 million was cut from Clemson’s budget alone.

But now, since Clemson has implemented plans and strategies to overcome these shortfalls, President James Barker is pleased with the university’s will to bounce back.

And while he said the economy hasn’t fully recovered, Barker believes it has recalibrated, just as Clemson will continue to do.

“Business as usual is no more for Clemson,” he said. “Now, we have a new normal, one that will continue to help the university get stronger as the years go by. This past year will go down as the most important year for us. It was a time where we could have curled up and asked for the pain to be taken away or we could have hit the problem head on.”

And address those problems head on is exactly what Clemson did — and with no layoffs.

“When I finished outlining the budget, I was asked how many people were going to lose their jobs,” Barker said. “I told them, ‘none.’”

While Barker admitted that vacant positions were not able to be filled as part of these supplemental strategies for lost funding, he tips his hat to the faculty and staff.

“In comparison to last year, employees have seen about a 10 percent increase in their workload,” he said. “It’s not easy, but it’s just another example of the dedication at the university.”

Barker, who is closing in on his 10th year as president, said that when he first started, Clemson was getting 40 percent of its budget from the state. Currently, that number has dropped dramatically to only 16 percent.

“Even with the stimulus funds, we used that money for one-time funding,” he said. “We didn’t bank on the economy recovering. We were farsighted enough to look beyond the immediate crisis. Our furloughs are done with, while many other schools are not.”

But even with the budget cuts, Barker does not see the size of Clemson increasing to bring in more revenue.

“Most students do not pay the full cost,” he said. “In-state students don’t come close, and while out-of-state students do come closer, it’s still not the full price. Clemson has a capacity of around 18,000 students. If we had the infrastructure for more students, that would be one thing. But we’d have to invest a large amount of money for faculty and space. In order for Clemson to remain Clemson, I don’t see that happening.”

Barker and the university are set on attracting students who are ranked in the top 10 percent of their high school classes and those who do exceptionally well on their SAT/ACT tests.

With a 54 percent acceptance rate, this fall, Clemson broke their freshman application record with more than 16,000.

Also part of the “new normal,” Barker said that 450 students came in as second semester freshman while 170 started at Clemson as sophomores.

“That’s attributed to many students taking advance placement classes while they were still in high school,” he said. “These students are prepared for Clemson.”

In addition to research initiatives such as CU ICAR and Advanced Materials in Anderson County, Barker said that another goal points to Clemson becoming a more mature and robust research institute.

“The architectural center in Charleston is another great example,” he said. “We have earmarked funds for that property on Meeting Street to expand when the time is right while we are also working with the Medical University of South Carolina where students and researchers are able to work in an environment that we don’t have here in the Upstate.”

The Baruch Institute of Coastal Ecology and Forest Science, which has a dedication set to take place later this month, is another example of promising extension services. Its goal is to conduct research and education programs focused on the ecology and management of the natural resources around the coastal region of South Carolina, all for the betterment of the state’s citizens.

“If you want to look at a map of Clemson University’s campus, just look at a map of South Carolina,” he said, jokingly. “After a tough year, we all can take a deep breath and focus on our students.”

As for Barker staying with Clemson for another 10 years, he said with a smile, “That might be a stretch.”