For students who wanted to know what's up with the economy's effect on UF, the Weaver Hall basement was the place to be Tuesday evening.
UF President Bernie Machen spoke to about 50 students at the third installment of a meet-and-greet trek across the UF campus.
In an interview before the question-and-answer session, Machen said his collaboration with the Inter-Residence Hall Association was formed during summer when both sides realized he wasn't in touch with students.
The meet-and-greets were created with the intent of reaching out to on-campus residents, though off-campus students are also encouraged to attend.
"On-campus students are special," Machen said. "They provide a unique part of campus life."
IRHA President Jonathan Sheffield said the forum was designed to be friendly and low-key.
"It really depends on both parties wanting to talk to each other," he said.
The forum lasted about 45 minutes, sandwiched between one-on-one time with Machen and students who wished to shake his hand, introduce themselves or pose for photos.
Machen suggested the forum's focus be on the economy, though he called the event "just a conversation about what's on students' minds."
Most of the questions were about how budget cuts would affect departments and programs.
While Machen referred students to the deans of their colleges for more specific information, he said the university would do everything in its power to keep scholarship money and individual college funding.
Josh Perry, a UF junior majoring in Chinese and English, said Tuesday was his second time attending a Machen forum, which was essentially more of the same.
Perry said while Machen did a good job of being interested in student concerns, many of his answers were vague and unhelpful.
"Am I satisfied? No," he said. "I'd still like to know what's going on next year."
Machen said UF will publish a report mid-April on the changes each college would make if its budget is slashed by 10 percent.
"At that point everyone is gonna weigh in, and that's what we want to happen," he said.
In May, UF will find out how much state funding the university will receive.
