For 36 years, MU Budget Director Tim Rooney has played a crucial role in the university’s budget decisions, working closely with the chancellor to determine how funds are allocated.
Rooney will retire from MU on Dec. 31, but he stresses the importance of making sure those affected by the budget understand the decisions made.
“I try to keep everyone clued in,” Rooney said. “It’s a $2 billion budget; I distill it down into meaningful aspects.”
Rooney said he’s not connected to the students as personally as a professor might be because his job is more “behind the scenes.”
“I’d like to think most people recognize me as a component,” he said.
One of Rooney’s struggles has been dealing with a declining state budget.
“It’s an annual struggle,” he said. “We try to make ends meet. We’re trying to do all the things that require money when the state funding is not keeping up.”
He gives credit to the many offices and people who play a role in coming up with the annual budget.
“We have an awesome staff in enrollment,” he said. “(The) financial aid (office) is also a part of it.”
The people who work with Rooney note his impact on the office.
“We all get along very well because of his leadership and his example,” said Margaret Marshall, the manager of Business and Fiscal Operations and one of Rooney’s co-workers. “He makes us all look good.”
Marshall said Rooney was a mentor to her.
“He’s fair-minded and dedicated,” she said. “The office respects him and everyone enjoys working with or for him.”
After retiring, Rooney plans to make up for lost vacation time with his wife. The couple has a bucket list they plan to complete once he retires.
“Places to go and things to do,” he said. “There are a lot of things I haven’t had time to learn, like landscaping, gardening (and) music.”
He also wants to get back in shape by completing triathlons, which he did when he was younger. Rooney said he has neglected his personal fitness over the past few years and would like to change that.
Rooney said he might also pick up a part time job but wants to decide after being retired for a while.
“I’ve enjoyed it,” he said of working for the university. “I’ve met terrific people and have been inspired by the people I worked for and with.”
He said he will miss the relationships he’s built the most, some of which have become his lifelong friends.
As far as Rooney’s legacy, he said he hopes it will be the “ability to communicate complex information in an understandable and meaningful format.”
The budget office has yet to choose a replacement for Rooney, but he said he hopes he can have time to work alongside the new director so the office “won’t skip a beat.”