Declining enrollment, budget shortfalls plague DCC - Chad Knudson, Yellowstone Newspapers

Dawson Community College faces a serious threat from collapsing enrollment and unrealistic budget assumptions. Deputy Commissioner for Two-Year and Community College Education John Cech offered the Board of Trustees what he called a “frank” assessment of the condition of the college last week. “The regents and the commissioner [of higher education] have several concerns,” he said, adding these concerns were shared with President Jim Cargill at the Board of Regents meeting Sept. 19-20 in Butte. Primary among the issues is the disconnect between budget projections for full-time-equivalent resident students and actual enrollment. “Last year the amount presented [in the budget] was 380, so obviously at 274 you came in quite a bit below the 380,” he said. “The concern is budgeting 350 (for the current school year).... We’ve heard that your projected annualized FTE this year could be as low as 225.” http://www.terrytribune.com/node/1272