$627,000 Amazon revenue withheld by Morrow County, Cutting athletic scholarships...

The students, alumni, and community members of the BMCC service district have questions about the college administration’s proposed budget. Taxpayers deserve to know: are their funds being spent wisely or wastefully?

$627,000 Amazon revenue withheld by Morrow County
Due to the college administration’s short-sighted plan to cut educational offerings on BMCC’s Morrow County Campus, the Morrow County Commission voted 2-1 on Tuesday, April 19th to withhold $627,517 of tax revenue collected from Amazon. This money had been slated to go to the college as a one time gift, but the commissioners withheld the money in response to BMCC’s planned cuts. BMCC’s administration needs to answer for this substantial loss in revenue caused by their actions. 

Cutting athletic scholarships
BMCC’s budget cuts over $90,000 of scholarships for student athletes--a cut of 30%. This is in spite of the fact that athletics at BMCC brings in revenue. Why make this cut? Well, salaries and benefits in the athletics administration are increasing by $120,000. Do we want a college with more administrators and fewer student athletes?

Title II funds lost
The college administration and College Prep faculty spent the month of March working diligently to prepare a comprehensive application for federal Title II grant funds under the auspices of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). These funds support adult education, GED, and ESL students at the college. On April 6th, without warning or consultation, the college administration withdrew its application, resulting in the loss of approximately $200,000 in federal grant funds. Working all month on a complex grant application and then withdrawing it without consultation--is the college administration creating chaos?

Class schedule missing
How will these cuts affect students working towards their degrees? The college administration has not published a schedule of classes for the coming year, but it claims it will offer the same classes. How is that possible? When 10 full-time faculty are gone, along with nearly 20 part-time faculty, when 3 programs are eliminated, how can the college say its offerings will be unchanged? How can students plan when these cuts are announced and the college does not publish a schedule of classes? 

More managers, more consultants--less education
The college budget does have increases--what are they for? $100,000 for travel and consultants in “assessment”, plus $65,000 for newly-created “assessment administration.”
$100,000 for a new administrator in marketing–a position that used to exist until the college cut it in 2020.
$165,000 for a new administrator in “institutional research and planning.”
$140,000 to hire a dean of student affairs.
The college administration says it wants to be more nimble--does moving taxpayer dollars from scholarships and educational offerings to administrators make it more nimble--or more top-heavy?Taxpayers, students, and alumni need answers--why is the college budget in disarray? Why are they gutting scholarships and educational offerings to hire more administrators and consultants? Go to SaveBMCC.com, click on “Email the board” to share your feedback on the budget.

For more information about these cuts please contact Pete Hernberg, Blue Mountain Faculty Association President at petehern@yahoo.comor 541-743-1552.