Colleges say they might be able to weather cuts

Pikes Peak Community College and the University of Colorado campus in Colorado Springs believe they can weather Friday's recommended cuts in state funding for higher education in the short term.

Both began preparing for reductions last fall after the nonpartisan Legislative Council estimated the state was facing a $100 million shortfall this fiscal year as revenues declined as the economy kept sinking.

In December, that forecast became even more dire - a $600 million shortfall this year and possibly climbing to $1 billion by the end of the next fiscal year - prompting Gov. Bill Ritter to present a budget-balancing plan Friday that would cut $30 million from higher education.

If the Joint Budget Commission accepts the governor's recommendations, Pikes Peak Community College stands to lose 4 percent of its $17.5 million state appropriation, or about $700,000, said President Tony Kinkel.

The 13 community colleges in the state system will share their $5 million portion of the budget reduction, he said.

PPCC, which has an annual budget of about $50 million, serves nearly 12,000 students.

In October, Kinkel halted out-of-state travel for staff, froze dollars spent on professional development, cut planned spending of $150,000 for technology, and instituted a hiring freeze.

Those actions will save the college more than $1 million by June 30, the end of the current fiscal year, Kinkel said.

"So we've already covered the cuts for this year and made a good start on the cuts we'll have to absorb for next year," he said.

Kinkel said he is concerned, though, about further budget reductions expected to come July 1. The governor's recommended reductions for the 2009-2010 budget go to the Joint Budget Committee Friday.

"We're hearing rumors it could be around a 7 percent cut for us for the 2010 fiscal year.

If that were to happen, that would be another $1.2 million on top of this year's cuts," Kinkel said.

In a worst-case scenario, he said, his campus would consider using security agents instead of fully certified campus police officers, which cost the college $1 million per year. Contracting services such as maintenance and painting would be another possibility, he said.

The budget cuts come at a time when PPCC is bursting at the seams, with preliminary spring enrollment up 25 percent over the same time last year, Kinkel said.

"PPCC recognizes that the governor and the Legislature are doing what they have to do, balance the budget, and we'll continue to deliver high-quality education. Now, more than ever, with the economy tanking, people are flocking to community colleges, so the work still has to get done."

State budget cuts won't affect UCCS students this spring semester, as the campus in September began holding back spending on its state appropriation of $22.9 million for this fiscal year, said Chancellor Pam Shockley-Zalabak. The university has an annual budget of $127 million.

Everything from adding more classes in high-demand programs to hiring more support staff has been put on hold until this year's budget cuts are known, she said. Each position that comes open also is carefully scrutinized to see whether it needs to be filled, she added.

Chancellors at the three campuses in the CU system will work out the percentage of cuts each school receives from the total decrease, Shockley-Zalabak said.

She, too, is worried about how the university, which has about 8,000 students and is the fastest growing university in the state, will handle next year's potential cuts.

"I am very concerned about keeping access and affordability first, and supporting our faculty and staff," she said. "These are very difficult times, but we'll work as hard as we can to keep the progress of this university moving forward."

Ritter recommended that the state's allotments of financial aid be protected in this year's budget, which Shockley-Zalabak said is a positive decision. Of the approximate $13.4 million UCCS distributed in financial aid for this school year, $3.4 came from state funding.