Budget Briefing

October 1, 2009

The College will generate nearly $100 million in revenue during the 2009-10 fiscal year from a variety of sources.   Our core operating budget, consisting of state tax dollar support ($17 million) and tuition income ($30 million), comprises approximately half of the total. This is the fund that pays for the core operations of the College such as teaching, research, and support services.

Another $25 million is held in dedicated funds including income from student fees and related income, dormitory income, and summer session tuition. These are self-sustaining funds that generate (usually through fees) the amount of money needed to provide the services they support.

The remainder consists of income generated by campus related entities including OAS ($17.4 million), the Research Foundation ($6.3 million), and the College Foundation ($1.8 million). These groups are independent entities but they play a significant role in supporting College activities.

Allocations:

Approximately $73 million of our revenue is allocated by division and function as shown below.  Of this amount, $25 million is dedicated to various income funds such as dormitory operations and debt service, summer session, and other income-generating activities.  Academic Affairs comprises 40% of our allocated budget, followed by Finance and Administration including Facilities (24%), and Student Development (17%) with the remainder allocated to College Advancement, Community Relations, Equity and Inclusion, and the President’s Office, as well as campus-wide costs such as utilities and scholarships.

Budgetary Challenges:

Over the past two years, the College experienced unprecedented fiscal challenges:

·        Reductions in the 2008-09 budget adopted by the state legislature

·        Additional mid-year budget reductions during 2008-09

·        A 14% increase in tuition rates since Spring 2008

·        Further reductions in the 2009-10 budget 

·        The overall reduction in state support since the 2008-09 budget was enacted totals $6.4 million, or a reduction of 33% in our state support.

·        While much of this loss was offset by tuition increases and state funding for contractual salary raises, this still represents an inflation-adjusted loss of $2.4 million.

·        The proportion of state support declined from 45% to 36% of our core operating budget.

The College met these budget reductions through a combination of measures:

• Froze 26.5 FTE Positions
  • 12 vacant faculty positions
  • 14.5 non-instructional positions across the campus
• Deferred equipment replacement & technology upgrades
• Used savings from position turnover
• Drew down accumulated savings

Fortunately, our College had been experiencing some growth prior to 2008-09.  Our core operating budget had grown by nearly $10 million, or 24%, since 2005-06.  The reductions in FTE positions were done proportionately across all divisions of the College, and the total number of positions is still 13 FTE higher now than two years ago.

Future prospects:

We are monitoring the state’s budget situation closely and planning accordingly. While projections vary, we could be facing further budget reductions in the $3 to $4 million range this year and next. We are hopeful that any reductions can be accommodated with accumulated savings and additional budgetary measures identified in the coming months. In addition, our recently launched strategic-planning process will help us identify program priorities and areas of strength which can guide our resource-allocation decisions in future years.

We will keep you apprised of any further budget developments as they unfold during the year. We appreciate your personal efforts to conserve resources and limit expenditures as we will again face an uncertain state budget in 2010. Through careful planning and fiscal responsibility, we will meet budgetary challenges and continue to strengthen our College.
 

October 1, 2009