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Sinclair leaders looking for ways to avoid financial crisis

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By Doug Page, Staff Writer Updated 6:26 PM Saturday, January 30, 2010

DAYTON — Decreases in state funding and the collection of a local levy have Sinclair Community College leaders looking for ways to overcome any potential financial crisis.

The school’s board of trustees Saturday, Jan. 30, approved a resolution directing school President Steven Lee Johnson to explore ways “to soften the impact of a sudden and dramatic decline in state revenue.”

The resolution outlined four scenarios:

• Continuing to add to the school’s rainy day fund to be used in emergencies

• Develop plans to increase student tuition and fees

• Develop budget reductions contingencies based on maintaining student enrollment increases

• Develop operating budget contingencies to cap or reduce student enrollment” to match potential state aid cutbacks.

The last is a worst case scenario, said Madeline Iseli, Johnson’s chief of staff.

“It would be against the grain of our history and tradition,” she said. “But the trustees have to look at every potential solution.”

The trustees also approved a recommendation to revise this year’s budget revenue protections downward by $1 million to reflect a 2 percent cut in state aid. The trustees also revised this year’s revenue projections for the school’s countywide levy downward by $600,000 to reflect County Auditor’s concerns over collections.

State aid and levy revenue are the school’s main sources of income. The school’s increased enrollment — up 25 percent over last year — has helped soften some of the impact. But Trustee Larry Harkness, chairman of the trustees finance committee, warned that the associated costs with increased enrollment will be felt later in the school year.

Sinclair’s $2,050 annual tuition for full-time Montgomery County students is the lowest in Ohio. The next lowest is $2,400, a $350 gap. Johnson has said his goal is to maintain the school’s tuition as the state’s lowest, but he could see narrowing that gap.

In September, the trustees approved a 3.5 percent tuition increase, beginning this month at the winter quarter. The college had kept tuition frozen for 12 of the last 19 years.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2290 or dpage@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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