Facing the deepest budget cuts in its history, Allan Hancock College raised tuition fees for the fall semester by $6 dollars a unit while at the same time making further cuts to student services.
Facing a $4.5 million budget deficit, college administrators are dealing with some tough choices this semester.
“These are the deepest cuts in community college history—even as serious as budget cuts have been over the years,” said Rebecca Alarcio, the college’s director of public affairs. “We have tried very hard to make decisions with the budget that least impact students, but when you’re dealing with cuts of this magnitude, there’s no way to avoid that.”
According to Alarcio, fees at community colleges are established by the state Legislature, and the funds generated go to the state fund. Thanks to that arrangement, this isn’t the first time Allan Hancock has been in this situation. Nor will it be the last.
“To put it mildly, these are dicey budget considerations,” Alarcio said. “In any given year, we don’t know what our budget is going to be. [The Legislature] is dealing with the state budget at a time when we’re in fall registration.”
Alarcio also noted that the cuts weren’t just a matter of the state giving “x-amount less dollars,” but that the Legislature also mandated cuts to specific areas, what are known as categorical programs.
Services such as counseling, Extended Opportunity Programs and Services, and disabled student services all received cuts of 15 to 32 percent.
“That means fewer counselors, fewer hours to help students,” Alarcio said. “The effects are still trickling down on how we’re going to maintain our services.”
And things are predicted to only get worse next year. With no end in sight to California’s budget woes, the specter of yet another round of cuts is looming.
“We don’t even know what the shortfall will be—that’s part of the problem,” Alarcio said. “This year, we sort of put our finger in the dike. Next year, by all expectations, the budget will be worse.”
Part of the “finger in the dike” strategy included several cost-saving measures that were one-time fixes, which according to Alarcio included:
• $540,000 in a one-time payment from the state for property tax backfill for 2007-2008.
• $200,000 in utilities savings due to retrofitting on the Santa Maria campus and closing on Fridays over the summer.
• $153,000 in reduced reassign time for faculty.
So what’s with the building?
Students and members of the community alike may be wondering why—in the face of such drastic cuts—the college is proceeding with new construction on campus.
College administrators were quick to point out that the new construction is being paid for with funds from Measure I, which by law must be used for very specific construction and infrastructure projects. None of the funds can be used by the college general fund or for teacher salaries.
“The funding for these projects is separate and distinct from our college general fund,” explained College Superintendent Dr. José Ortiz. “I stress that differentiation so that anyone who casually observes new construction on campus, and then wonders why we are still cutting classes or services, will understand that they come from different funding sources and cannot be combined.”
According to Allan Hancock’s website, Measure I—which was passed in 2006 by voters in Northern Santa Barbara County—was intended to “improve the college and keep up with changes in job training technology, address deteriorating classroom facilities, and add new classrooms.”
Contact Staff Writer Nicholas Walter at nwalter@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Aug 20-27, 2009.