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The University's operating budget for 2000-01 will grow 2.7 percent to $466.9 million. The Board of Trustees approved next year's preliminary budget at its March 11 meeting.
The current fiscal year's income is projected to reach $454.6 million, according to budget forecasts updated in December.
In developing the preliminary budget for 2000-01, "one of the challenges was to find budget resources to accommodate growth of the (computer) network," said Ginny Leitch, director of the Office of Budgets and Financial Planning. "It will be an ongoing issue."
Another challenge was steady or dropping enrollment in some schools, coupled with low inflation putting pressure on universities across the nation to contain tuition increases.
"This is a fairly conservative budget for tuition income," Leitch added. "With enrollment levels and network services issues, it was a challenging budget to develop."
The 2000-01 budget is based on a very conservative enrollment projection of 9,285 students -- more than 300 fewer students than CWRU's fall 1999 enrollment total. Other budget assumptions for next year are employment of 2,070 faculty and 2,750 staff.
Research and tuition are expected to remain CWRU's largest sources of income next year. Income from research funding is budgeted to grow 4.1 percent to $191.9 million in 2000-01. Research and recovery of related overhead costs will provide 41 percent of CWRU's income next year.
The School of Medicine expects a 5 percent increase in its research funding, primarily from the National Institutes of Health. The school recently ranked 10th among the nation's medical schools in NIH funding.
Nationally, the research funding picture is strong for biomedical areas, but growing more slowly in engineering and the sciences, Leitch added.
Tuition again will provide 33 percent of 2000-01 income. The budget projects that income from tuition and fees at all schools will grow 4.8 percent next year to $155.1 million.
Budget figures for tuition income assume a decrease of 16 full-time students and an increase of one part-time student throughout the University.
Endowment income is budgeted to grow 4.9 percent next year to $54.8 million, providing nearly 12 percent of CWRU's income. The payout rate from CWRU's pooled endowment funds has been increased from $1.739 per unit to $1.835 per unit. Schools can use these funds to support their operations, according to funds' restrictions.
The market value of the funds in CWRU's pooled endowment was $1.01 billion as of December 31. CWRU's total endowment, including funds held in trust for others, was $1.528 billion at the end of 1999.
On the expense side, the preliminary budget calls for $460.6 million in expenses across campus, with $6.3 million reserved for uses such as repayment of construction debt.
The compensation pool for current faculty and staff is again budgeted to rise 3.5 percent.
The budget sets 2.5 percent as a guideline for overall increases in non-salary expenses.
The student aid budget is expected to grow 7.2 percent to $63.5 million. More than half of the increase will support offering Trustee Scholarships to incoming freshmen. This scholarship program will enters its third year this fall.
Spending for major maintenance projects will again increase 6.0 percent, providing additional funds to support some building renovations.
CWRU's 2000-01 expenses may be affected by an upcoming capital campaign. Plans for the campaign are under discussion and could be finalized later this fiscal year.
A separate capital budget will support construction and renovation projects. In 2000-01, the capital budget is expected to grow 46.0 percent to $75.5 million.
The driving force behind this great an increase in the capital budget is the $27.7 million in expenses planned to support construction of the Peter B. Lewis Academic Complex for the Weatherhead School of Management.
Including construction of the Lewis Building, new construction will account for 46 percent of the capital budget, or $34.5 million.
Building renovations will account for another $26.9 million of the capital budget. The two largest renovation projects next year will be $7.5 million toward the $26 million Agnar Pytte Center for Science Education and Research project in the College of Arts and Sciences, followed by $5 million toward renovation of the Harland Wood Building (west wing) in the School of Medicine.
Another $3.8 million is budgeted to support the third year of a project to renovate the residence halls. Highlights of this four-year project, which receives support from $20 million in bonds CWRU issued in 1997, are providing more comfortable and less densely populated living areas, expanding green space and recreation areas, and updating building systems.
The capital budget also includes $13.5 million (17 percent of the overall capital budget) for debt repayment related to projects campuswide, and $700,000 (1 percent) for purchasing research equipment.
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