Budget Woes Impact Higher Education

America’s financial climate has resulted in many community colleges exploring new ways to perform the business of education. The fiscal challenges confronting 2-year colleges have required them to examine their financial structure. As a result of their assessment, community colleges have discovered revenue challenges exist. These challenges are significant areas of concern for community college leadership. For many these fiscal challenges’ represent a threat to the quality of services to students. To prevent major service reductions and changes, institutions have considered implementing cost saving strategies aimed at sustaining high level programs designed to continue student engagement while offering affordable services.

Many of the actions and recommendations suggested by community colleges to reduce expenditures have met with support from State legislature, primarily because states are expecting a serve budget shortfall (Gregg 2009). For example, according to Dulper (2009) the Washington State policymakers will cut the education budget by $500 million, a $158 million over the first proposal released in December. The revised budget has caused community colleges to scramble in an effort to find ways to make reductions and ensuring access.