College district to tap reserves to save jobs
| Wednesday, Mar 03 2010 06:56 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Mar 03 2010 06:56 PM
The Kern Community College District on Wednesday approved two new administrative positions questioned by faculty and students and laid out a budget plan that would avoid massive layoffs by dipping into hefty reserve funds.
During a board meeting, the district added a new legal counsel position that pays about $144,000 plus a new lobbying post that would pay a minimum $96,800, plus benefits.
The new counsel would actually save KCCD money because the district had previously used a consultant that cost substantially more, argued district spokeswoman Amber Chiang.
District administrators also said other comparable colleges and districts have positions similar to the new associate chancellor of communication and government relations job. Also, the lobbying job would help the district garner more state and federal funds, according to a three-page "rationale for hiring" handout by KCCD.
The lobbying position has been part of the district's budget proposal since 2007, but only now does KCCD have enough money to pay for it, said Thomas Burke, KCCD chief financial officer.
Faculty and students have argued in recent weeks that the money for the positions could be better spent on such student needs as opening class sections that have been cut.
Leif Syrdahl, an adjunct faculty member at Porterville College, asked district officials whether this was the right time to approve the positions.
"It's hard to understand as a teacher when we have to turn students away," Syrdahl said.
"In light of our budget situation, we're looking for revenue opportunities," Burke responded. "We've got to think outside the box. I think this is a prudent time."
Syrdahl also asked the board why it maintains a hefty reserve fund, which has $32 million, or nearly 30 percent of its budget. The state mandates just 5 percent. Syrdahl said those funds should also be used for students.
Burke said because the district has maintained those reserves, it hasn't had to make more drastic cuts to colleges in recent years and won't have to in the near future. And Chiang said reserve funds have been used for student financial aid.
The district on Wednesday laid out a five-year budget in response to the governor's proposed budget that would decrease KCCD's general fund by 1 percent next year. To be cautious, however, KCCD is planning for a budget reduction of 5 to 15 percent in its general and categorical funds for "organizational and operational restructuring."
Because of reserves, millions of which will be allocated to local community colleges each of those five years, the district will avoid a larger budget blow, which could have necessitated faculty layoffs. The district currently has 374 faculty members doing the work of 490 full-time equivalent employees, district figures show.
By year five, the 2014-15 school year, KCCD will still be left with $14 million in reserves, or 14 percent, figures show.
Other local colleges haven't been so lucky during budget planning. Cal State Bakersfield recently decided it would need to cut nearly $7 million next year to meet state budget demands. It proposed to cut winter graduation ceremonies, ax four sports programs, raise student fees, freeze staff hiring and raise and change from a quarter to semester schedule.
In other business, KCCD eliminated several positions next year including four administrative positions from Bakersfield College and the equivalent of seven full-time positions from the district office and BC, of which no actual employees were affected.
