2005 budget includes- tuition increase and employee raises

Dr. Willis Lott, Gulf Coast president, answers questions about the 2005 budget at the Board of Trustees meeting on May 19 at the George County Center.

The college's Board of Trustees approved a $66 million FY 2005 Education and General Budget on May 19.

"This budget includes another cut ($754,000) in direct state funding to our college and only one additional job," said Dr. Willis Lott, president of Gulf Coast.

Faced with continued enrollment growth and a 20 percent decline in direct state funding since FY 2000, the board also approved tuition increases for fall 2004. Tuition will go up $100 per semester for full-time students to $745, while part-time students will pay $75 per credit hour, an increase of $10. Residence-hall students on the Perkinston Campus will also see a $30-$35 increase in student meal plans. Room rates will remain the same.

"The board felt compelled to approve these recommendations. The college did not increase tuition in 2004, and there has not been an increase in part-time tuition in two years," said Dr. Clyde Strickland, chair of the board. "Maintaining the quality of programs and services while dealing with significant enrollment increases is a fiscal challenge," he added.

Despite the increases, Gulf Coast students will still be paying less than half the tuition at a state university. Several community colleges have already approved tuition hikes for FY 2005 and have higher tuition than Gulf Coast, including Hinds, Pearl River, Copiah-Lincoln, Northeast and Southwest community colleges.

The board also approved a salary increase of 5 percent for staff/hourly employees and a 4 percent increase for faculty and administration for FY 2005. Adjunct (part-time) and overload pay for instructors was raised $200, to $1,500 per course.

Sam LaRosa, Harrison County trustee, said, "The administration has had to hold the line on expenditures, including salary increases, to balance the budget. When salaries aren't competitive, it's difficult to manage enrollment increases."

Even with the increases, Gulf Coast is still struggling to reach average pay marks in several areas when compared to public schools and community colleges around the state. While Gulf Coast employees have not had a salary increase in four years, the state employee-paid health insurance premium for spouse and children coverage has increased 45 percent, from $243 to $438 per month, Lott said.

Gulf Coast instructors continue to lose ground on the Legislature's commitment to midpoint salaries. In a spring 2004 salary schedule survey of 10 public-school districts in the local area, half of public-school districts paid teachers with master's degrees more than Gulf Coast instructors with master's degrees.

Lott said, "Our staff and hourly-paid employees have suffered the most. The cost of living has risen almost 14 percent on everyday items in the last four years. Our college has thrived through a serious budget situation because of the outstanding efforts of our employees."

The FY 2005 budget also includes a conservative 3 percent enrollment increase for fall 2004. However, college officials say that applications were up more than 15 percent in May compared to last year at the same time.

For more information about the FY 2005 budget, click on the link below.

http://www.mgccc.edu/presidents_message.htm