“We are significantly more stable,” Hardaway said. “I think that is a strong testament to the will to operate with efficiency and be good stewards of the resources of the university.”
Hardaway’s new leadership team includes a proven fundraiser, a fiscal expert and academic leaders, she said. To get the school back on its feet, employees faced 5 percent pay cuts (Hardaway took a 15 percent cut), furloughs and other reductions.
Not everyone supports Hardaway’s moves. Last month, the alumni board voted it had “no confidence” in her leadership and sent a letter to Carver Johnson, chairman of the school’s board of trustees.
Johnson said the alumni board is “misinformed” and that he and the other trustees support Hardaway’s work to build “infrastructure” to keep the college thriving.
The school’s enrollment has dropped from more than 1,100 in 2006 to 725 this year.
“One of their major concerns is the thought there will be a (single) savior out there; that has been part of our problem in the past,” Johnson said. “Right now I see signs and things that give me confidence in the president and her team. We are very pleased with the recent steps.”
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