FINANCIAL REPORT FOR THE THIRD QUARTER OF FISCAL YEAR 2007
Dear Colleagues:
We continue to enjoy a solid financial position through the first three quarters of the fiscal year, thanks in large part to the increase in enrollment and to the many steps we have taken to contain costs. The third-quarter report was presented to our Trustees at their June 13 meeting.
One important measure of our fiscal health is student credit-hour production. Through three quarters of this fiscal year, student credit-hour production on the Main Campus is up 5.4 percent over the same period a year ago. This has translated to additional tuition and fee revenue, but much of this increase has been offset by three factors:
- To meet the increase in enrollment, we opened new sections and incurred other incremental expenses related to serving additional students.
- Our energy and personnel costs (which includes healthcare) increased significantly this year over last.
- Our state appropriations through March are 3.6 percent lower than what we received through March of last year. State appropriations amount to about one-third of our overall funding.
Notably, investment income has come in at about 35 percent above our budget through March, helping to push revenue for the nine-month period 4.8 percent higher than we predicted in the budget.
On the Wayne Campus, revenues through the third quarter were 1.4 percent less than anticipated, largely because of disappointing enrollment numbers last summer.
The revenue report for the Main Campus is here. For Wayne College, it is here.
Expenses
We continue to do perform well on the expense side, with spending coming in about 3.5 percent below budget on the Main Campus and about 5.9 percent below budget at Wayne College. The savings can be attributed in part to:
- We have strategically analyzed the value of every position that has opened up. The Strategic Position Review Committee was formed a year ago to ensure that we invest our personnel dollars as wisely as possible.
- We have minimized overtime and renegotiated supplier contracts, when possible.
- We lowered thermostats in the winter, part of a comprehensive green program that is gaining momentum. Additionally, thermostats will be set slightly higher this summer.
We will continue our cost control measures when the new fiscal year begins July 1. We are anticipating higher expenses in a number of areas, and the amount of state funding we will receive next year is still in flux; the recent news that the state may be $200 million to $300 million short in tax revenue (news story) may cut into the proposed increase in allocations for higher education that have been supported by the governor and Ohio lawmakers. Of course, in exchange for increased funding from the state, it may be necessary for us to freeze tuition, which provides about two-thirds of our revenue annually.
The expenditure report for the Main Campus is here. For Wayne College, it is here.
As always, I welcome your ideas and thoughts about the budget. Send your comments or questions to budget_ideas@uakron.edu.
Thank you.
To our continued success,
F. John Case
Vice President for Finance and Administration/CFO
June 25, 2007
