In a special meeting on July 6, 2020, the CWC Board of Trustees approved a revised proposal for the 2020-21 Academic and Non-Academic Fees for Fall 2020 for the FY21 budget.
“As our communities know, the college took a major economic hit in the 2016-17 school year when we had to reduce our staffing down by about 30 or so positions – down to the bone. Now to meet the state’s $1.5 billion shortfall we need to make more cuts and make some necessary fee increases,” said President Brad Tyndall.
According to Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Kathy Wells, an increase in general fees with an effective date of Fall 2020 was being requested of the Board due to the significant decrease in revenue from state aid, the decrease in county valuation, and increasing essential expenses. The revised fee schedule also included a new Transcript Fee of $3.00 per transcript. CWC does not currently charge for transcripts, which is no longer the norm.
“We have been able to reduce expenses by strategically combining and eliminating positions, reorganizing departments, and maximizing efficiencies, and we will continue to do this. We will also continue to place the highest priority on offering quality academic degrees to our students – we will not make any sacrifice with regard to student learning. Unfortunately, quality academic programs that engage and retain students are not decreasing in cost,” said Wells.
The proposed Non-Academic Fee Schedule increase includes a new fee for credit card transactions. This revision is being presented in order to defray as many costs as possible for the college in response to the impending state and local funding reductions. “These fee increases still keep CWC within the normal band of fees that are seen at colleges in the region and around the nation. It’s unfortunate that we have to raise fees, but we feel it is necessary to remain competitive and still offer the same quality education that CWC is known for,” said Vice President for Administrative Services Willie Noseep.