Budget Deficit Brings Staff Cuts, Tuition Increase to County College of Morris

Due to a multi-million dollar budgetary shortfall, the County College of Morris is taking drastic measures to “close the gap” and continue to provide valuable programs to students.

In a statement released Friday by the school, the college’s president, Dr. Edward Yaw said he has recommended to the Board of Trustees that 22 positions be eliminated and tuition fees rise for the 2015-16 school year.

The current budget gap is $4.3 million, the school said, and of the 22 positions to be eliminated, nine are currently not filled.

The staff reductions will save more than $1.7 million, the school said, and as a result of tuition increases for the coming school year, $1.4 million is estimated to realized. The board of trustees has already approved the use of $1.2 million of the college’s reserve funds.

Despite the wide gap, CCM has already reduced operating expenses by more than $5.4 million over the last “few years,” the college said, through energy savings, purchasing consortia, and other cost-saving measures.

“Like many colleges in New Jersey, CCM is facing budgetary challenges due to declining enrollment,” Yaw said in a statement. “A 10-percent enrollment decline over the last three years has resulted in a tuition and fee revenue loss that has made these measures necessary. In addition, we have experienced flat operating funding from the State of New Jersey and the County of Morris over the last several years. We have tried to take a responsible approach through a combination of staff reductions, tuition and fee increases and the use of our reserves to balance our budget. We have worked hard over the last several months to put together a balanced plan that requires a minimum of staff cuts and tuition increases to put us on a more solid financial footing.”

The board will vote on the plan at its June 17 meeting.

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