Students and staff of State Technical College will be affected by decisions of the school's Board of Regents on Friday, which approved raising tuition rates and cutting vacation and sick leave for future part-time employee hires.
The Board of Regents approved a 3.3 percent per credit hour tuition increase, from $175.25 charged per credit hour to $181, beginning with the 2020-21 fiscal year.
That translates into about a $322,000 increase in revenue for the school.
The board also approved part-time employees hired after Friday would not receive vacation and sick leave benefits. All current part-time employees who work at least 80 hours a month would be grandfathered in and will continue to receive vacation and sick leave at the rate of half the full-time accrual rate.
Part-time employees are also to continue to be credited for a normal day's pay when a holiday falls on a regularly scheduled work day.
Chief of staff Amy Ames said the proposal to cut the part-time benefits was presented to the college's faculty and staff senates last summer, and there were no major objections.
The fiscal year 2019 audit presented to the board Friday showed State Tech's operating expenses have been larger than its operating revenues for the past three years - resulting in $1.9 million-$3.2 million decreases to the college's net financial balance, from $32 million in 2017, to $28.8 million in 2018, to $26.9 million in 2019.
State Tech President Shawn Strong and Board of Regents President John Klebba said, however, the college's finances are healthy, building projects have generated the operating losses, and a better measure of financial health is how much is being invested into reserve funds.
Strong said $1.2 million was added to reserves last year, and he expects at least $300,000 to be put into reserves this year.
State Tech is breaking ground at 3 p.m. Thursday on its Utility Technology Center, and Gov. Mike Parson is scheduled to be in attendance.
That project is expected to cost State Tech less than $5 million - in addition to $1.4 million of state appropriations, $618,000 in bonds left over after the construction of State Tech's health sciences building and $550,000 of in hand or pledged funds.
State Tech's 2018 graduation rate of 73 percent is the best among public two-year Missouri colleges and also the best graduation rate in the state when compared to Missouri's four-year colleges, according to data given to the Board of Regents on Friday - and the school's graduation rate ranks third best among peer institutions in the Midwest.
The board on Friday also approved a strategic plan for the college that includes maintaining State Tech's three-year average graduation rate at 73 percent and the retention rate at 83 percent by 2025.
State Tech's 2018 retention rate of 85 percent is the best among public two-year colleges in Missouri and second-best when compared to public four-year Missouri schools and peer institutions around the country.
The strategic plan had originally called for maintaining a three-year average graduation rate of 67 percent, but the board pushed for a higher expectation before voting.
The board on Friday approved one project to remark the runway of State Tech's airport at the request of the Missouri Department of Transportation's Aviation Sector. MoDOT contacted the college last year to make the request, after the office found on a site visit that Runway 9-27 and related taxiway markings had become faded and grown over by mold.
"Mold inhibitor additive will be used in the paint to enhance the paint's mold resistance properties and prevent mold from growing on pavement as it was observed during the site visit to the airport," according to a description of the project in the board's information packet.
Through Parking Lot Maintenance, LLC, the airport project is projected to cost almost $184,200, but State Tech will only be responsible for 10 percent, or about $18,420.
Friday was also a proverbial touchdown and takeoff for two people. It was new board member Kevin O'Mara's first meeting, though he video-conferenced in from St. Louis on account of weather. After closed session, State Tech announced Vice President of Academic Affairs Vicki Schwinke will retire after 27 years at the college, including 12 years as the head of academic affairs.
Schwinke has served in capacities including as director of business and industry relations, dean of instruction, chief academic officer and dean of student affairs.
Strong said as head of academic affairs, Schwinke "has lead the institution by expanding the college to over 35 programs and their options, successfully obtained three HLC Accreditations, as well as contributed to State Tech's numerous accolades like the recent No. 3 ranking in Forbes."
The school was ranked as the third-best college by Forbes Magazine in 2018.