Budget Update

Current as of May 25, 2011

Dear Winthrop Campus Community,

As promised at the end of Spring semester, I want to give you an update on where we are in the budgeting process, particularly related to tuition for Fall 2011.

Last night, the Senate approved its version of a state budget after almost five weeks of debate. The bill now goes back to the House, then likely is headed to a conference committee to work out any remaining differences with the House version of the budget, which was adopted in March. After a compromise is agreed to, the bill will go to Governor Nikki Haley for possible vetoes, which the General Assembly will vote to sustain or override to finalize a spending plan for all of state government for the fiscal year that begins July 1. Legislative leaders indicate it is unlikely that the budget process will be complete until late June – past the June 10 Board of Trustees meeting where tuition and fees usually are approved.

While the majority of the Senate and House have made every effort to keep the coming year’s appropriation reductions for Winthrop at no more than a 6 percent level (a loss of almost $800,000,) it remains to be seen whether an expected conference committee will operate under free conference rules, which could result in changes to either the numbers or budget-related directives called “provisos.” Therefore, it will be a while longer before the state budget process is completed, so that we can finalize a tuition recommendation to the trustees.

Concurrently, however, we realize how important it is to families to have the best information possible to plan their own budgets when it comes to tuition and fees for the coming academic year. For that reason, earlier today I told the Board’s Executive Committee to expect a tuition increase recommendation for in-state students of no more than last year’s increase of 4.9 percent– and hopefully less than that. The exact level will be subject to the finalization of the overall state budget in Columbia. The range would be an increase of somewhere between $240 and $298 for Fall 2011 students beyond the $6,088 paid by in-state students in Fall 2010.

This information is being shared beyond the campus community this afternoon via a media release found here:http://www.winthrop.edu/news-events/article.aspx?id=17734.

We will continue to keep you updated via web and e-mail updates in June. Meanwhile, best wishes wherever the summer finds you, and please know Winthrop is busy, both serving students in Summer Session and preparing for a new academic year in August.

Sincerely,

Tony DiGiorgio
President