Dear Faculty and Staff:

 

On February 22, the Foundation Board participated in a planning retreat organized by the Executive Director of the Foundation, Betsy Schneider and her staff.  The focus of this year’s retreat was on planning for a capital campaign. For the first time in the history of SCC’s Foundation, the Board will be pursuing a campaign to raise funds for the college. This three-year effort will begin with research and planning, will involve many individuals throughout the college, and, if successful, will exceed the established target. 

SCC’s new strategic plan, scheduled to be approved by the Trustees at their March meeting, includes a goal focused on Innovation. An objective associated with this goal calls for the college to “Launch a capital campaign to encourage community investment in SCC and to fund STEAM and Workforce Development facilities.” Chad Shepherd and Isaac Ruedin will be sharing a draft copy of the strategic plan within the next week.

During the afternoon of February 22, the Board of Trustees participated in a budget and planning study session. The purpose of this session was to:

• Provide an overview of enrollment and budget trends;
• Introduce new opportunities for enhancing enrollment and retention; and
• Share preliminary information regarding proposed tuition and fees for FY 20.

As you may remember, last year the college opted not to pursue tuition or fee increases.  With declining enrollment and lack of new funds from the state, it will be difficult to create a balanced budget without considering an increase this year.  For next year’s budget, Vice President Galbierz is recommending a $3 per credit hour tuition increase.  Based on feedback from some of the other Missouri community colleges, our proposal is much lower than the average projected increase.

We will also recommend a $2 increase for the technology fee and the establishment of a new Student Success Fee in the amount of $4 per credit hour.  The additional revenue from the technology fee will be used to replace classroom technology that is currently outdated.  The funds will also allow the college to purchase a new student tracking software program that utilizes predictive analytics.  The new Student Success Fee will provide a direct benefit to students by funding additional advisers, retention strategies, and other critical resources needed to increase the retention and success of our students.

We will also recommend that the Board eliminate the graduation fee, the admissions fee, and the computer science networking course fee.

If you are interested in learning more about the planning retreat, please feel free to join us at the President’s Council meeting today at 2:40 p.m.  An overview of the retreat will be provided.

I hope you have a wonderful week!

Best wishes,

Barbara