Calling KSG’s recent program and faculty increases “very precipitous,” Zeckhauser says that the school should review its projects to ensure that all current research is worthwhile.

“I think it’s a good time to take stock,” he says.

Students say they are interested in the effect of budget cutbacks not only on academics but also on morale.

The KSG cafeteria, a popular gathering place for students and faculty, loses money each year, a problem that will only grow when the University concludes ongoing wage negotiations with its dining service employees.

Although she has stressed the importance of the cafeteria to the KSG community, Newman says ending dining services at the school remains a possibility.

David Libatique, a second-year student in the school’s Masters of Public Policy program, noted that while students last year had a banquet following the completion of a major project, this year’s budget left no funds for a similar celebration.

“It makes a difference,” he says. “It affects the way students perceive their value.”

—Staff writer Elisabeth S. Theodore can be reached at theodore@fas.harvard.edu.