Tabor College has announced changes to help ensure a preferred future. With the shifting patterns of resourcing the college, Tabor is adjusting to right-size the organization, as well as investing in programs and ventures to boost opportunities.
The Tabor College Board of Directors, at their Feb. 22-23 meeting, affirmed several administration recommendations in an effort to right-size the organization financially, as well as investing in programs and opportunities to fulfill Tabor’s mission to prepare people for a life of learning, work, and service for Christ and His kingdom.
“Our overall financial position is solid and strong, but for the past two years our expenses exceeded revenue, and we used reserves and borrowed to take care of operations,” said Jules Glanzer, Tabor College president. “Therefore, we have to take action to secure our future by creating a budget where expenses are less than reasonable revenue and we are investing in our future to ensure enrollment growth and increased revenue with sustainability as our key result.”
EXPENSE REDUCTIONS
In order to prevent expenses from exceeding revenue for a third consecutive year, the board approved a series of actions to be taken during the coming months to reduce budget expenses for the 2019-20 fiscal year including a 2 percent expense reduction from current levels, freezing all salaries at current levels, relocating Tabor’s online programs from Wichita to the Hillsboro campus, and reducing payroll by more than $500,000.
“While revenues have continued to grow, expenses have grown even faster,” Glanzer said. “These changes were necessary to bring expenses in line with revenue and lay the foundation for a sustainable future.”
Combining these budget-reduction actions will lead to personnel changes. Those affected by the changes have been informed.
Tabor will relocate its online Wichita programs to the Hillsboro campus. All graduate programs will be continued from the Hillsboro campus. The School of Adult and Graduate Studies will become the School of Graduate Studies and the adult undergraduate programs will be integrated into the School of Professional Studies and School of Liberal Arts Studies. Oversight of online programs will be integrated into our academic administration.
Board Chair Susan Koslowsky said, “The Board of Directors supports the decisions the administration made to meet the board’s challenge of budgeting expenses at a lower level than reasonable revenue expectations. We understand that, although difficult, the changes made were necessary to continue to move the college forward for a preferred and sustainable future.”
INVESTING IN TABOR’S FUTURE
Tabor’s administration is not just focused on cuts. “It is important that we invest in our future, ensuring enrollment growth and increased revenue,” Glanzer said. “In some ways, the process that we are embarking on is just the beginning of working to create a strong, sustainable and preferred future for Tabor.”
The expense cuts will free enough resources to allow substantial investments to be made in recruiting, retention, and fundraising, the source of 95 percent of Tabor’s income. Significant investments include: (1) Increasing the advancement staff to broaden the donor base; (2) Launching a Master’s of Education program online; (3) Creating an additional staff position to focus on student success; and (4) Restoring a staff position focusing on career services.
“Much time, prayer, and energy went into the decisions that were made,” Koslowsky said. “Thoughtful consideration surrounded each recommendation and proposal. The board recognizes, affirms and thanks the faculty for their excellent work in reinventing our curriculum, and values the work done by the administration to uphold a high standard for our students and constituents.”