Dean of Students Newsletter

During the economic recession, we’re going to see what colleges are really made of.

Most colleges and universities derive their revenue for operations from three sources:

1. Tuition, Room, Board, and Fees. 2. Endowment Income. 3. Annual Gifts.

Some colleges and universities derive additional funds from research grants, although this tends to happen more at large universities.

It doesn’t take a sophisticated knowledge of economics to see what’s going on around the country. Endowment income is negative, and annual gifts are much harder to raise during a recession. That leaves tuition. Most colleges and universities cannot, in good conscience, pass along tuition increases of 40% or more to offset the losses in endowment income and annual gifts. So what do you do? Every college and university in America has, with few exceptions, taken the same approach: try to reduce expenses and explore options for increasing revenue.

Some colleges may not make it through the recession at all, and will cease operations. Others are going to think about what they do and make difficult decisions that will redefine the priorities of the college through the recession and beyond.

My job during this time includes thinking strategically about what we must continue to do, what we can do without, and what we can do differently. During this time, I want everyone, and particularly students, to feel as though they can ask questions of our department, and that it is not inappropriate to suggest new ideas. You might have an amazing idea that no one has thought of.

I will confess that I’ve lost a lot of sleep thinking about what a deep, long-term recession might mean for CMC. Every other college and university would have to endure a similar hardship. But I find comfort in my thoughts about our special community. We have a great sense of community at CMC. This is why I think, as we go through the recession and come out the other side, CMC will show that we are far more than a college.

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