The National Park College (NPC) Board of Trustees voted unanimously to approve the College’s FY21 budget during a special called meeting Wednesday.
The College began the FY21 budget process during the Fall 2019 semester and included input from all campus areas. Proposals were made by budget managers that later required substantial changes due to the COVID-19 global pandemic.
The budget was presented by vice president for finance and administration, Steve Trusty. “The College’s budget managers built a financially sound budget during a very tumultuous time, while focusing on service to students and the future sustainability of NPC,” he said. “We are presenting a fiscally conservative budget that focuses on the goals set forth in the Strategic Plan that aim to meet the established High Priority Objectives.”
The budget was developed based on several premises, including a commitment that there will be no increase in the cost of tuition or fees, institutional scholarships will increase by over 18 percent, current academic and student life programs will remain intact, and new investments in four-year degrees with SAU and other willing institutions will continue.
NPC president, John Hogan added, “We are working with a projected state general revenue appropriations decrease of $1.023M as well as a projected enrollment decline of 12% for the fall semester. While our projections have changed over the past few months, we know our students’ expectations have not changed but have only increased. In addition to demanding a quality education under half the cost of the average Arkansas university and close to home, they want to know they are safe. To that end, we are making additional investments in technology to increase automation and accessibility for students. We will equip our students with all the resources needed to be successful in their classes this fall, no matter how they choose to attend those classes.”
The College also worked through a staffing reorganization as part of the budget process to minimize administrative overhead, maximize services to students, and position the College to invest in new initiatives.
“We are going to do what it takes to get our students enrolled and supported while they attend their classes. Their success is our mission and our responsibility,” Hogan said.
