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Wilberforce University may cut most academic majors
University faces deficit of $5M in $18.3M budget
By Mark Fisher
mfisher@DaytonDailyNews.com
WILBERFORCE | Wilberforce University officials are proposing the elimination of nearly two-thirds of the school's academic majors and its track and field team this fall to help resolve a financial crisis.
A committee made up of Wilberforce administrators, faculty and students made those recommendations and more in a "financial workout plan" presented to the university's board of trustees and its faculty union over the weekend.
Trustees will vote on the recommendations in early August, said Marshall Mitchell, the university's vice president for institutional advancement.
If approved, the plan will result in an undetermined number of faculty layoffs, Mitchell said.
Richard Deering, president of the Wilberforce University Faculty Association, said the faculty union has scheduled a meeting Friday to discuss the recommendations and prepare a response.
Deering estimated the proposed cuts could affect five to 10 of the 45 full-time faculty members, which he said would be "disruptive" to the start of the academic year in mid-August.
The private, historically black university ? with about 800 students ? declared a state of financial exigency earlier this summer, laying off 11 full-time administrative and support staff in June and asking remaining employees to take temporary salary cuts of 30 percent to 40 percent for six weeks to help the school weather the budget shortfall.
"Neither the worst tornado in the nation?s history nor the sinister act of arson perpetrated by a mob during the nation?s Civil War posed as great a threat to the university?s future as financial distress does in the present time," said the 10-page financial plan obtained by the Dayton Daily News . The 1974 Xenia tornado did substantial damage to Wilberforce.
Wilberforce faced a "cash-operating deficit" of nearly $5 million on an $18.3 million annual budget in the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to the financial document.
Mitchell said part of the $5 million shortfall stems from one-time payments on previously accrued debts. Overall, the plan's recommendations would result in a savings of $2.2 million this fiscal year and $2.5 million in each of the next two years, or a total of $7.2 million over three years.
The proposed elimination of Wilberforce's men's and women's track team will save an estimated $190,000 a year, Mitchell said. The plan said the team was singled out because it did little to enhance campus life, since the university hosted no home meets.
The plan's recommended academic cuts will likely receive the most scrutiny. The university committee evaluated every academic major based on enrollment and funding levels; its analysis concluded that 24 of 37 majors should be eliminated, including sociology, economics, mathematics, chemistry and electrical engineering.
Majors recommended to be continued are bachelor's of art in mass media/communications, literature, music, political science, psychology, and rehabilitation services; and bachelor's of science in accounting, management, marketing, biology, computer science, computer information systems and psychology.
If approved, those program cuts will take effect this fall. Wilberforce will make arrangements for students close to graduating in those programs either to take their remaining courses on campus or to travel to other area universities such as Wright State University, University of Dayton or Central State University to complete the courses needed for their degrees, Mitchell said.
"We will accommodate every single student," he said.
The plan did not propose significant changes to Wilberforce's CLIMB program, which serves working adults who have some prior college and who want to obtain a degree. CLIMB was described in the financial document as the university's "greatest area of growth" and "a considerable bright spot for the university."
Wilberforce is not alone in its financial struggles. Officials at two other private, liberal arts colleges in the Miami Valley said times are tough at their schools as well, although they plan no job cuts for now.
"We're doing okay," said Wilmington College spokesman Randy Sarvis. "We've had no layoffs, though we did have a round of belt-tightening in the budget last year."
Antioch College President Joan Straumanis said the school "has had some budget cuts, but no layoffs. Next year looks tight, but we believe that income and expenses will be balanced."
Small private colleges depend on fund-raising along with income from endowment to stabilize their finances, and in some cases, to pay for daily operations. But the stock market's struggles have sabotaged endowments' investment returns, and the sluggish economy has reduced donations from companies, foundations and private individuals.
William Gray, president of the United Negro College Fund, has said historically black colleges like Wilberforce are especially hard hit in a bad economy because they rely heavily on corporations and foundations ? rather than alumni ? for money.
"Black colleges, by the very nature of their constituency, operate very close to the line," Gray told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "They simply don't have alums who have had access to capital accumulation; they generally don't have multimillionaires to draw from."
Clark Atlanta University announced a month ago it would cut its budget by 20 percent, resulting in layoffs and possible cuts in academic programs. And in April, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools yanked Morris Brown College's accreditation, citing major problems with financial aid, record-keeping and institutional effectiveness, the Atlanta newspaper said. Both schools are historically black colleges.
Wilberforce's accrediting agency, the North Central Association, is scheduled to come to campus in early 2004 for a review of the university's financial health, Mitchell said. The school's overall accreditation is up for renewal in 2005, he said.
"If anything, we feel our plan bolsters and strengthens our re-accreditation efforts," Mitchell said.
Contact Mark Fisher at 225-2258 or mfisher@DaytonDailyNews.com
[From the Dayton Daily News: 07.22.2003]
Find this article at:
http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0722wilbercuts.html
University faces deficit of $5M in $18.3M budget
By Mark Fisher
mfisher@DaytonDailyNews.com
WILBERFORCE | Wilberforce University officials are proposing the elimination of nearly two-thirds of the school's academic majors and its track and field team this fall to help resolve a financial crisis.
A committee made up of Wilberforce administrators, faculty and students made those recommendations and more in a "financial workout plan" presented to the university's board of trustees and its faculty union over the weekend.
Trustees will vote on the recommendations in early August, said Marshall Mitchell, the university's vice president for institutional advancement.
If approved, the plan will result in an undetermined number of faculty layoffs, Mitchell said.
Richard Deering, president of the Wilberforce University Faculty Association, said the faculty union has scheduled a meeting Friday to discuss the recommendations and prepare a response.
Deering estimated the proposed cuts could affect five to 10 of the 45 full-time faculty members, which he said would be "disruptive" to the start of the academic year in mid-August.
The private, historically black university ? with about 800 students ? declared a state of financial exigency earlier this summer, laying off 11 full-time administrative and support staff in June and asking remaining employees to take temporary salary cuts of 30 percent to 40 percent for six weeks to help the school weather the budget shortfall.
"Neither the worst tornado in the nation?s history nor the sinister act of arson perpetrated by a mob during the nation?s Civil War posed as great a threat to the university?s future as financial distress does in the present time," said the 10-page financial plan obtained by the Dayton Daily News . The 1974 Xenia tornado did substantial damage to Wilberforce.
Wilberforce faced a "cash-operating deficit" of nearly $5 million on an $18.3 million annual budget in the fiscal year that ended June 30, according to the financial document.
Mitchell said part of the $5 million shortfall stems from one-time payments on previously accrued debts. Overall, the plan's recommendations would result in a savings of $2.2 million this fiscal year and $2.5 million in each of the next two years, or a total of $7.2 million over three years.
The proposed elimination of Wilberforce's men's and women's track team will save an estimated $190,000 a year, Mitchell said. The plan said the team was singled out because it did little to enhance campus life, since the university hosted no home meets.
The plan's recommended academic cuts will likely receive the most scrutiny. The university committee evaluated every academic major based on enrollment and funding levels; its analysis concluded that 24 of 37 majors should be eliminated, including sociology, economics, mathematics, chemistry and electrical engineering.
Majors recommended to be continued are bachelor's of art in mass media/communications, literature, music, political science, psychology, and rehabilitation services; and bachelor's of science in accounting, management, marketing, biology, computer science, computer information systems and psychology.
If approved, those program cuts will take effect this fall. Wilberforce will make arrangements for students close to graduating in those programs either to take their remaining courses on campus or to travel to other area universities such as Wright State University, University of Dayton or Central State University to complete the courses needed for their degrees, Mitchell said.
"We will accommodate every single student," he said.
The plan did not propose significant changes to Wilberforce's CLIMB program, which serves working adults who have some prior college and who want to obtain a degree. CLIMB was described in the financial document as the university's "greatest area of growth" and "a considerable bright spot for the university."
Wilberforce is not alone in its financial struggles. Officials at two other private, liberal arts colleges in the Miami Valley said times are tough at their schools as well, although they plan no job cuts for now.
"We're doing okay," said Wilmington College spokesman Randy Sarvis. "We've had no layoffs, though we did have a round of belt-tightening in the budget last year."
Antioch College President Joan Straumanis said the school "has had some budget cuts, but no layoffs. Next year looks tight, but we believe that income and expenses will be balanced."
Small private colleges depend on fund-raising along with income from endowment to stabilize their finances, and in some cases, to pay for daily operations. But the stock market's struggles have sabotaged endowments' investment returns, and the sluggish economy has reduced donations from companies, foundations and private individuals.
William Gray, president of the United Negro College Fund, has said historically black colleges like Wilberforce are especially hard hit in a bad economy because they rely heavily on corporations and foundations ? rather than alumni ? for money.
"Black colleges, by the very nature of their constituency, operate very close to the line," Gray told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "They simply don't have alums who have had access to capital accumulation; they generally don't have multimillionaires to draw from."
Clark Atlanta University announced a month ago it would cut its budget by 20 percent, resulting in layoffs and possible cuts in academic programs. And in April, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools yanked Morris Brown College's accreditation, citing major problems with financial aid, record-keeping and institutional effectiveness, the Atlanta newspaper said. Both schools are historically black colleges.
Wilberforce's accrediting agency, the North Central Association, is scheduled to come to campus in early 2004 for a review of the university's financial health, Mitchell said. The school's overall accreditation is up for renewal in 2005, he said.
"If anything, we feel our plan bolsters and strengthens our re-accreditation efforts," Mitchell said.
Contact Mark Fisher at 225-2258 or mfisher@DaytonDailyNews.com
[From the Dayton Daily News: 07.22.2003]
Find this article at:
http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0722wilbercuts.html
