RALEIGH: "This is the darkest hour for community colleges in 40 years," said North Carolina Community College System President H. Martin Lancaster to the State Board of Community Colleges at their meeting on Friday, April 19.

Lancaster’s comment came during a budget briefing to the Board. "The System Office is consumed with the challenges of how we will play our part in the budget crisis," Lancaster said. "Enrollment continues to grow, but we are asked to make cuts."

The NCCCS, like other state agencies, has been asked to identify where system-wide cuts of four to ten percent would be made and detail how those cuts would affect operations. The Governor’s goal is to not affect the classroom, but Lancaster told the members that the classroom cannot be avoided, even at the four percent level.

Cuts at four percent mean losses of about 144 full-time and about 675 adjunct faculty. A ten-percent reduction will take more than 5,600 instructional jobs, 340 vital jobs in student services and other support areas. These are the counselors, financial aid officers, and others so critical to student needs. Also, $4.5 million in classroom supplies would be cut.

In addition to personnel, colleges would have to cut classes and programs. At four percent 34,000 classroom seats would be lost, 100,000 at ten percent. For Sharon Wright-Watson, the student representative to the Board, that news was chilling.  Wright-Watson is a nursing student at Piedmont Community College.

Wright-Watson told the Board that people who want to attend community college because they want training or to get off public assistance constantly approach her. "The thought that they might not have the opportunities that I had is very disheartening. This will have a harsh impact not only on the colleges, but also on the community."

NCCCS Vice President for Business and Finance Kennon Briggs reminded the members that the System does not have the same flexibility as other agencies to make the cuts. "There aren’t other funds sources or lots of vacant positions to give up; we are incredibly lean. Even lower percentage cuts will do critical damage." He added that because the NCCCS gets more than 75% of its funds from the state and the majority of the rest from local governments, who are also experiencing cuts, the System is being cut from both sides.

State Board Chair James Woody agreed. "We’re cutting live limbs, the dead wood was gone long ago."

-NCCCS-

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