In 1983, the university faced drastic cuts to its budget, and it was proposed by the Board of Regents that there be a 10 percent increase in tuition. Yet the university made it through these tough financial times. It was also during this year that President Appleberry resigned and was replaced by President Donald Wilson.
At the beginning of the decade, both Carney Hall and the Auditorium were torn down due to structural deterioration. On the site where Carney Hall once stood, the new science building, Heckert-Wells Hall, was built in 1984. President Wilson is also responsible for the Student Union being renamed in honor of Jack Overman, the director of the union from 1951 to 1984.
