President Cites Good Financial Standing, 2008-09 Accomplishments in Letter
An Open Letter to the Guilford College Family
As the 2008-09 academic and fiscal year draws to a close, there is much good news to report from Guilford College.
The state of the economy and its impact on Guilford and other higher education institutions is on the minds of many of our alumni and friends, as well as students, their families and supporters of the college. I am very pleased to report that Guilford, unlike many institutions, is in good financial condition.
This is the case for two major reasons:
We acted last fall to respond to fears and facts about enrollment and economic conditions. We decreased the current budget, froze salaries and wages and reduced the staff and part-time faculty by about 20 positions. To a great extent, we protected small class sizes and first-rate student services throughout this process. After all, providing an excellent student experience is our core business.
We have never depended heavily on our endowment to support the budget. Therefore, while the turmoil in the stock market has reduced its market value, we have not seen the awful effects on revenue that Harvard, Duke and other well endowed universities have experienced. Meanwhile, we continue to build the endowment through fundraising and careful management of our investments.
Over the past year, I was asked to speak to a variety of national organizations about strategies for overcoming economic challenges, and I wrote several articles on the topic for national publications. There was a great deal of interest in our Quaker-based decision making approach—with more inclusive budgeting in which facts rule, where participants listen to each other and are open to new ideas, and people take their time to do right.
There is good news in enrollment and philanthropy:
Current enrollment projections are very encouraging, especially given the economic circumstances. It appears we may have the largest first year class in our history, exceeding the current record of 444 students. Our increased recruiting efforts in North Carolina and Virginia have paid great dividends, with 60 percent of the entering class coming from those states. This follows a record for summer school enrollment of more than 950 students.
If enrollment is still strong by the fall, we will consider restoring some of the budget cuts starting with faculty and staff pay increases, capital projects including information technology, and operating budgets in admissions, advancement, and other departments. We will also hold back funds in such uncertain times to deal with potential emergencies and another turndown in the economy.
Gifts from alumni and friends provide critical support for the college’s endowment, facilities and operating expenses. During this fiscal year, Guilford has received $10.3 million in gifts and pledges, making this one of the more successful fundraising years on record. Included were multi-million dollar gifts for student scholarships, professorships and a proposed fitness and wellness center.
We are enhancing the student experience in several ways:
Approximately $1.5 million in ongoing capital improvements include renovations and repairs in the kitchen and seating area of the dining hall and in residence halls and information technology updates in classrooms and network electronics updates. Thanks to a $1 million gift from the Edward M. Armfield Sr. Foundation, we are installing artificial turf in the Armfield Athletic Center, to benefit students involved in a variety of athletic and recreational activities.
Highlights of the past year include:
- Conferring of more than 300 degrees during May commencement and a total of more than 500 since last summer.
- Participation by 90 students in the second Guilford Undergraduate Research Symposium in February with more than 60 talks, performances and poster presentations from every academic division.
- A third-place finish in the NCAA Division III Championship by our men’s basketball team, whose 82-percent winning rate over the past three seasons was the second-best in North Carolina.
- A sold-out Bryan Series with programs featuring Khaled Hosseini, Christiane Amanpour and James Rubin, Salman Rushdie and Anna Quindlen. Next year’s series includes Garry Trudeau, Yo-Yo Ma, Paul Krugman, Anna Deavere Smith and David Gregory.
- A reunion in April of nearly 200 Mary Hobbs Hall residents from the 1930s to the 1990s celebrating the 100-year history of the residence hall.
- A Top-20 national ranking among public high schools for The Early College at Guilford, which was established by a unique partnership with Guilford County Schools in 2002.
Guilford has its challenges, like any small college (or large university, for that matter). However, with the leadership of our Board of Trustees and student-centered day-to-day efforts of faculty and staff, this institution is providing an excellent and practical liberal arts education as it has for 172 years.
Best wishes for a great summer.
Sincerely,
Kent John Chabotar
President
Professor of Political Science