2023-24 Budget Process for the Upcoming Fiscal Year 2024-25

Dear Colleagues,

It is once again that time of year when we start working on the budget process for the next fiscal year. 

Balanced budget

The good news is we have a balanced budget for the next three years primarily due to one-time federal funding. The bad news is the budget is balanced because of one-time funding.

While enrollment increased by 5.6% last year from the previous year and is trending toward as much as a 10% increase in full-time equivalent (FTE) this 2023-24 academic year, it is still down over 27% from 2018. This leads to a structural deficit from lost tuition revenues of over $3 million. 

Thankfully, the college has secured more than $20 million in federal one-time dollars since 2020 to assist in closing that gap over the past few years and help smooth out the three-year forecast until we can assess enrollment recovery by next fall term.

Stabilization budget

During its November meeting, the Board of Education endorsed a proposal to pilot a two-year budgeting cycle, with the 2023-24 academic year serving as the "stabilization year." This means the college will not consider any General Fund expansion or contraction during this budget year (i.e., no new budget additions/new full-time positions or budget reductions/eliminations of full-time positions), as those will be considered during the 2024-25 academic year cycle. Therefore, under the Board of Education's direction, this year the Budget Advisory Group (BAG) will focus on Continuous Quality Improvements (CQI) along with other topics, such as the structure of a two-year budget cycle, how the BAG fits within Shared Governance, resource allocation for computer labs, and reviews of equipment, furniture, classroom technology allocations, course fees, etc.

Budget process page

Like past budget cycles, we will maintain a budget process webpage where you can find all relevant budget messages, presentations, timelines, and more. This page will be updated throughout the year.

I hope to use this year to improve other areas of resource allocations at the college and to focus on the 2024 bond campaign. I look forward to engaging with the college community as we move through this year’s budget process.

Kind regards,

Tim

Finance Council serves as a venue for participatory decision-making recommendations related to policies, procedures, and the strategic issues related to organizational finance. Learn more on the Finance Council webpage.

The Budget Advisory Subgroup (formerly the Budget Advisory Group) is now part of the Finance Council, with additional members. Information about the Budget Advisory Subgroup and membership can be found on the Finance Council page.