https://www.toledoblade.com/local/educat...1#cxrecs_s

Won't post all as it is behind a paywall I believe but this is the most important part:

Quote:During the finance committee meeting Wednesday, university trustees were presented with year-over-year "cash on hand" projections through 2024 falling into the negative by June and dropping to a projected $13.7 million deficit by December.

Matt Schroeder, executive vice president for finance and administration, added the university's overall balance sheet and net assets saw a year-over-year $55 million decline in cash and "cash equivalents" as of March 31. The numbers declined from more than $165.8 million to $110.9 million.

For those still wondering why many of us have been sounding the alarm on massive changes at the University for the last few years. This is a borderline un-survivable trend at this point without SIGNIFICANT measures.

(04-27-2023 10:52 AM)BearcatMan Wrote:  https://www.toledoblade.com/local/educat...1#cxrecs_s

Won't post all as it is behind a paywall I believe but this is the most important part:

Quote:During the finance committee meeting Wednesday, university trustees were presented with year-over-year "cash on hand" projections through 2024 falling into the negative by June and dropping to a projected $13.7 million deficit by December.

Matt Schroeder, executive vice president for finance and administration, added the university's overall balance sheet and net assets saw a year-over-year $55 million decline in cash and "cash equivalents" as of March 31. The numbers declined from more than $165.8 million to $110.9 million.

For those still wondering why many of us have been sounding the alarm on massive changes at the University for the last few years. This is a borderline un-survivable trend at this point without SIGNIFICANT measures.

Tough scenario.

Initial Covid like symptom for many universities to come. Years in the making.

There will HAVE to be across the board pay cuts and renegotiated contracts with professors. I'm very sorry that the lowest paid will surely pay for bad decisions by the administration. No one.. absolutely no one.... is beyond cuts and scrutiny. Too much money going out without centralized control.

UT is adding 2 programs (cyber-security and cosmetology science) when cuts must be made. Will these draw students? The history program has been on chopping block for 40 years but no willpower to cut it. Cosmetology science. The science of cosmetology chemistry. Hmmmm..... Who knows what is needed.

Best thing that can happen to UT is a hard recession. Sorry to say it but our enrollment, like others including Owens, reached record levels during 2008 collapse era.

I believe we will survive but the hard choices have to be made NOW. They've been postponed for too long. I love UT and do not want to see families hurt but the university must move forward as an institution for the sake of the city as a whole.

Go Rockets!

This is true

It is also true that the university has a large foundation that has a pretty strong endowment. But UT has not had a major fund raising in awhile. Previous president was starting one at left

UT needs to get more creative at revenue generation. Lots of resources on campus. Use them

Lease office space if you have to. Offer up Rocket Hall space. Has plenty of parking.
Sell portions of campus around the Alumni office

Creativity

Go


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Tenured professors making 6 digits to teach one class gotta go.

(04-27-2023 03:30 PM)indianasniff Wrote:  This is true

It is also true that the university has a large foundation that has a pretty strong endowment. But UT has not had a major fund raising in awhile. Previous president was starting one at left

UT needs to get more creative at revenue generation. Lots of resources on campus. Use them

Lease office space if you have to. Offer up Rocket Hall space. Has plenty of parking.
Sell portions of campus around the Alumni office

Creativity

Go


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Endowments normally cannot be used for general operations due to legal restraints. This issue will be increasingly challenged as universities desperately try to cover operating expenses. This will be interesting, and if allowed via court rulings, could have reverse negative effects on fund raising.

(04-27-2023 03:30 PM)indianasniff Wrote:  This is true

It is also true that the university has a large foundation that has a pretty strong endowment. But UT has not had a major fund raising in awhile. Previous president was starting one at left

UT needs to get more creative at revenue generation. Lots of resources on campus. Use them

Lease office space if you have to. Offer up Rocket Hall space. Has plenty of parking.
Sell portions of campus around the Alumni office

Creativity

Go


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The president told the faculty senate that a capital campaign will begin soon.

(04-27-2023 08:57 PM)DetroitRocket Wrote:  The president told the faculty senate that a capital campaign will begin soon.

Then someone should sit that Pres down and have a talking to. The time to have a capital compaign isn't when the news is you can't handle capital. It's when you're flush or growing.

Alumni are not going to bail the University out of this, nor should they.

Anyone have a measure of how many state public universities are in a similar mess?

I'm not going to repeat what I've said for nearly a decade and a half, to be countered by the same talking heads who obviously are within the system and self-interested in the staid old ways. But what I've said would happen, has happened. It wasn't brain surgery.

Fix the leaks, stop defending pork as revenue, initiate the programs that compete. then do a capital campaign.

(04-27-2023 04:11 PM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  Tenured professors making 6 digits to teach one class gotta go.

The value of a Professor to a university isn't measured by number of courses taught. Yours is too simplistic a statement. Im sure (hope) you know that.

Might start at making the athletic department a separate economic entity. It survives on its own or dies on its own. Then deal with nepotism university wide.... This problem solves a drop in the bucket at a time but it seemed to me there were an awlful lot who you know hires in various Dept. and they weren't always exactly the productive ones..Who you know hires can be difficult to get rid of, they tend to know where bodies are buried and the heavenly hash recipes for family get-togethers.

(04-27-2023 09:58 PM)eastisbest Wrote:  

(04-27-2023 04:11 PM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  Tenured professors making 6 digits to teach one class gotta go.

The value of a Professor to a university isn't measured by number of courses taught. Yours is too simplistic a statement. Im sure (hope) you know that.

Might start at making the athletic department a separate economic entity. It survives on its own or dies on its own. Then deal with nepotism university wide.... This problem solves a drop in the bucket at a time but it seemed to me there were an awlful lot who you know hires in various Dept. and they weren't always exactly the productive ones..Who you know hires can be difficult to get rid of, they tend to know where bodies are buried and the heavenly hash recipes for family get-togethers.

Yep...that's what UT, and a lot of institutions in similar boats should do, but I don't think either of us is confident that they will.

(04-27-2023 09:55 PM)eastisbest Wrote:  

(04-27-2023 08:57 PM)DetroitRocket Wrote:  The president told the faculty senate that a capital campaign will begin soon.

Then someone should sit that Pres down and have a talking to. The time to have a capital compaign isn't when the news is you can't handle capital. It's when you're flush or growing.

Alumni are not going to bail the University out of this, nor should they.

Anyone have a measure of how many state public universities are in a similar mess?

I'm not going to repeat what I've said for nearly a decade and a half, to be countered by the same talking heads who obviously are within the system and self-interested in the staid old ways. But what I've said would happen, has happened. It wasn't brain surgery.

Fix the leaks, stop defending pork as revenue, initiate the programs that compete. then do a capital campaign.

Give this man a board seat

(04-28-2023 10:35 AM)indianasniff Wrote:  

(04-27-2023 09:55 PM)eastisbest Wrote:  

(04-27-2023 08:57 PM)DetroitRocket Wrote:  The president told the faculty senate that a capital campaign will begin soon.

Then someone should sit that Pres down and have a talking to. The time to have a capital compaign isn't when the news is you can't handle capital. It's when you're flush or growing.

Alumni are not going to bail the University out of this, nor should they.

Anyone have a measure of how many state public universities are in a similar mess?

I'm not going to repeat what I've said for nearly a decade and a half, to be countered by the same talking heads who obviously are within the system and self-interested in the staid old ways. But what I've said would happen, has happened. It wasn't brain surgery.

Fix the leaks, stop defending pork as revenue, initiate the programs that compete. then do a capital campaign.

Give this man a board seat

A big part of the problem is that UT has had two terrible presidents in a row.

(04-27-2023 03:30 PM)indianasniff Wrote:  This is true

It is also true that the university has a large foundation that has a pretty strong endowment. But UT has not had a major fund raising in awhile. Previous president was starting one at left

UT needs to get more creative at revenue generation. Lots of resources on campus. Use them

Lease office space if you have to. Offer up Rocket Hall space. Has plenty of parking.
Sell portions of campus around the Alumni office

Creativity

Go


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Agree that UT needs to grow a larger endowment, but in terms of operating budgets, funds from endowments are often not arranged to simply cover gaps in University operating budgets as those funds from donors have very specific conditions, that can help support students via scholarships, Athletics and other needs-but its not simply an open account of cash that UT can just take from.

And many aspects have already been sold or otherwise monetized-or soon to be, including parking, residential dorms (contract under negotiation), Scott Park campus...keeping in mind that the assets, buildings at UT are owned by the State and taxpayers, plenty of limitations and restrictions in terms of how they can be leased or sold.

At the end of the day the only way UT gains financial stability is to reduce costs (labor makes up about 90% of operating expenses) and to increase student enrollment which makes up the largest revenue source (tuition, student fees, housing/meal plans, and state share of instruction)

(04-28-2023 01:17 PM)PaulJ Wrote:  

(04-27-2023 03:30 PM)indianasniff Wrote:  This is true

It is also true that the university has a large foundation that has a pretty strong endowment. But UT has not had a major fund raising in awhile. Previous president was starting one at left

UT needs to get more creative at revenue generation. Lots of resources on campus. Use them

Lease office space if you have to. Offer up Rocket Hall space. Has plenty of parking.
Sell portions of campus around the Alumni office

Creativity

Go


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Agree that UT needs to grow a larger endowment, but in terms of operating budgets, funds from endowments are often not arranged to simply cover gaps in University operating budgets as those funds from donors have very specific conditions, that can help support students via scholarships, Athletics and other needs-but its not simply an open account of cash that UT can just take from.

And many aspects have already been sold or otherwise monetized-or soon to be, including parking, residential dorms (contract under negotiation), Scott Park campus...keeping in mind that the assets, buildings at UT are owned by the State and taxpayers, plenty of limitations and restrictions in terms of how they can be leased or sold.

At the end of the day the only way UT gains financial stability is to reduce costs (labor makes up about 90% of operating expenses) and to increase student enrollment which makes up the largest revenue source (tuition, student fees, housing/meal plans, and state share of instruction)

Below is a link to a very good story on enrollment trends at state colleges in Ohio. For some reason they didn't include Miami and Wright State which has had considerable problems. The Kent and Ohio numbers are probably skewed because they both have numerous satellite campuses which probably took a big hit. https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/fe...versities/

Update on my Wright State statement: The number of first-time students who enrolled at Wright State University this fall is the highest in three years. Wright State welcomed 1,541 first-time students this semester, a 10.5% increase from the fall of 2021 and the highest number of first-time students since 2019.

The issue with state supported higher ed today is the juice doesn't equal the squeeze. 70% or more of the cost of college has been passed to the students creating a tuition and loan scenario that is not sustainable. Why have $150k in loans for jobs that still have starting salaries under $40k if you aren't on the doc, lawyer, pharm track. Good luck not being saddled with a lifetime of loan debt even if you are lucky enough to find a gig paying $60-$70k. Tenured professors were always on the high end of the pay scale, but it didn't register because the state supported their state schools. The privates with their scholarship structures are now about equal to state tuition.

Heaven forbid a student wants to teach, go into social work or has a general business degree. I was lucky enough to be at UT in the early 90's when I could write the check, zero out my bank account, go to school, work, get a little help from my middle class parents and eventually get through with no debt. It was glorious to have a clean slate upon graduation.. My UT education was worth every penny at that time, now there is no way I wouldn't have $100k in debt for the same communications degree. And I is not so smart :-)

The juice was worth the squeeze. I knew I was going to a state school and knew what I was getting for the tuition at that time. Kids today are looked at as innovative and go getters if they bypass school, venture on their own and claw up in some tech or entrepreneurial endeavor. Who needs school when you can get a tic-tok education. College used to be the gateway to better opportunities. Doesn't seem that way anymore.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

^^^^ To add to this, the State Legislature just overrode the Governor's suggested SSI (State Share of Instruction) and passed a budget with a further reduced amount there...so this budget situation just got a little worse.

(04-29-2023 09:34 AM)emanoh Wrote:  The issue with state supported higher ed today is the juice doesn't equal the squeeze. 70% or more of the cost of college has been passed to the students creating a tuition and loan scenario that is not sustainable. Why have $150k in loans for jobs that still have starting salaries under $40k if you aren't on the doc, lawyer, pharm track. Good luck not being saddled with a lifetime of loan debt even if you are lucky enough to find a gig paying $60-$70k. Tenured professors were always on the high end of the pay scale, but it didn't register because the state supported their state schools. The privates with their scholarship structures are now about equal to state tuition.

Heaven forbid a student wants to teach, go into social work or has a general business degree. I was lucky enough to be at UT in the early 90's when I could write the check, zero out my bank account, go to school, work, get a little help from my middle class parents and eventually get through with no debt. It was glorious to have a clean slate upon graduation.. My UT education was worth every penny at that time, now there is no way I wouldn't have $100k in debt for the same communications degree. And I is not so smart :-)

The juice was worth the squeeze. I knew I was going to a state school and knew what I was getting for the tuition at that time. Kids today are looked at as innovative and go getters if they bypass school, venture on their own and claw up in some tech or entrepreneurial endeavor. Who needs school when you can get a tic-tok education. College used to be the gateway to better opportunities. Doesn't seem that way anymore.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

Very good points. I compare my situation when I was a UT student to my daughter’s, and many factors have certainly changed.

(04-30-2023 09:39 AM)bcunn3128 Wrote:  

(04-29-2023 09:34 AM)emanoh Wrote:  The issue with state supported higher ed today is the juice doesn't equal the squeeze. 70% or more of the cost of college has been passed to the students creating a tuition and loan scenario that is not sustainable. Why have $150k in loans for jobs that still have starting salaries under $40k if you aren't on the doc, lawyer, pharm track. Good luck not being saddled with a lifetime of loan debt even if you are lucky enough to find a gig paying $60-$70k. Tenured professors were always on the high end of the pay scale, but it didn't register because the state supported their state schools. The privates with their scholarship structures are now about equal to state tuition.

Heaven forbid a student wants to teach, go into social work or has a general business degree. I was lucky enough to be at UT in the early 90's when I could write the check, zero out my bank account, go to school, work, get a little help from my middle class parents and eventually get through with no debt. It was glorious to have a clean slate upon graduation.. My UT education was worth every penny at that time, now there is no way I wouldn't have $100k in debt for the same communications degree. And I is not so smart :-)

The juice was worth the squeeze. I knew I was going to a state school and knew what I was getting for the tuition at that time. Kids today are looked at as innovative and go getters if they bypass school, venture on their own and claw up in some tech or entrepreneurial endeavor. Who needs school when you can get a tic-tok education. College used to be the gateway to better opportunities. Doesn't seem that way anymore.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

Very good points. I compare my situation when I was a UT student to my daughter’s, and many factors have certainly changed.

The number of students in colleges of education has gone off the cliff. I guess we'll have robots teaching kids.

(04-29-2023 09:34 AM)emanoh Wrote:  The issue with state supported higher ed today is the juice doesn't equal the squeeze. 70% or more of the cost of college has been passed to the students creating a tuition and loan scenario that is not sustainable. Why have $150k in loans for jobs that still have starting salaries under $40k if you aren't on the doc, lawyer, pharm track. Good luck not being saddled with a lifetime of loan debt even if you are lucky enough to find a gig paying $60-$70k. Tenured professors were always on the high end of the pay scale, but it didn't register because the state supported their state schools. The privates with their scholarship structures are now about equal to state tuition.

Heaven forbid a student wants to teach, go into social work or has a general business degree. I was lucky enough to be at UT in the early 90's when I could write the check, zero out my bank account, go to school, work, get a little help from my middle class parents and eventually get through with no debt. It was glorious to have a clean slate upon graduation.. My UT education was worth every penny at that time, now there is no way I wouldn't have $100k in debt for the same communications degree. And I is not so smart :-)

The juice was worth the squeeze. I knew I was going to a state school and knew what I was getting for the tuition at that time. Kids today are looked at as innovative and go getters if they bypass school, venture on their own and claw up in some tech or entrepreneurial endeavor. Who needs school when you can get a tic-tok education. College used to be the gateway to better opportunities. Doesn't seem that way anymore.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

Good post.... Amen to low debt. I started at UT in fall of '73. My quarterly tuition was 138$ for between 12 & 16 credits. and if over 16 then it was an additional 12 or 15$ per credit hour. The parking pass was 5$ and student activity pass was also 5$. I was fortunate to have a union steel worker job at a local now defunct steel mill (805 Chicago St) making $6.35/Hr plus available overtime when minimum wage was $1.75/hr . Yes - I was working full time and not having a so-called college experience but I took home each week 150% more than my quarterly tuition. That sounds unbelievable to my young co-workers. I also lived at home. I was debt free and had plenty of money. Times have sure changed. Borrowing is almost a necessity now. Hopefully it is borrowed wisely.

State funding has dried up.

Time for inventive minds to meet the challenges of the 2020's.

Go Rockets!

(04-29-2023 09:34 AM)emanoh Wrote:  The issue with state supported higher ed today is the juice doesn't equal the squeeze. 70% or more of the cost of college has been passed to the students creating a tuition and loan scenario that is not sustainable. Why have $150k in loans for jobs that still have starting salaries under $40k if you aren't on the doc, lawyer, pharm track. Good luck not being saddled with a lifetime of loan debt even if you are lucky enough to find a gig paying $60-$70k. Tenured professors were always on the high end of the pay scale, but it didn't register because the state supported their state schools. The privates with their scholarship structures are now about equal to state tuition.

Heaven forbid a student wants to teach, go into social work or has a general business degree. I was lucky enough to be at UT in the early 90's when I could write the check, zero out my bank account, go to school, work, get a little help from my middle class parents and eventually get through with no debt. It was glorious to have a clean slate upon graduation.. My UT education was worth every penny at that time, now there is no way I wouldn't have $100k in debt for the same communications degree. And I is not so smart :-)

The juice was worth the squeeze. I knew I was going to a state school and knew what I was getting for the tuition at that time. Kids today are looked at as innovative and go getters if they bypass school, venture on their own and claw up in some tech or entrepreneurial endeavor. Who needs school when you can get a tic-tok education. College used to be the gateway to better opportunities. Doesn't seem that way anymore.

Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk

Long term there are still going to be plenty of careers in which a college degree will be the pathway to better opportunities, yes there are also paths for high school and 2 yr CC graduates. But there is clearly going to be growth in new careers in many professions. Key for HS students today is be careful in their selection of colleges and career paths making every effort to look at the over financial aspects of what will be the most (or 2nd most) important financial decision of their lives. And once in college to make the most of the opportunity in gaining marketable in demand skills, experience (internships) and develop professional networks as the degree alone will not be enough to best position themselves to find careers.