During the spring semester of 2023, Rockhurst University announced to students and staff that they were in a financial deficit due to a combination of lower-than-expected enrollment, the pandemic and smaller expenditures. In response, the university instituted several measures in attempt to regain financial stability, some of the most impactful being the furloughing of staff, requiring professors to either teach an extra course or take a pay cut and increasing student tuition. After one year, things seem to be looking up for Rockhurst in terms of funds, but faculty still may not completely satisfied.
The university remains in a budget deficit, meaning expenses are exceeding revenues, but there has been financial improvement since the procedures were put into motion last year.
“Revenues remain modestly higher than budgeted. Performance for the last six months of 2023 was stronger than the comparable period in 2022, thanks to the hard work by faculty and staff, both on the expense and revenue sides,” said associate vice president of university marketing and communications, Katherine Frohoff.
This year has brought in an influx of new enrollments, especially within graduate programs. This can be attributed to the university putting more focus on programs relating to nursing, health sciences and business. For example, the remodeled nursing building on campus allows for cutting-edge opportunities that draw prospective students in and the recent name and curriculum change to Rockhurst’s business school looks to do the same for that respective major.
Looking to the future, the university is being proactive in attempting to continue to increase enrollment and prevent further financial issues. One way they are doing this is by improving communication with prospective students. The university is working with a new marketing partner to connect with new people and bridge relationships that lead to enrollment.
“We have strengthened our communications with prospective students and are doing a better job of connecting with high school freshmen and sophomores to increase the likelihood that we are in their consideration set,” said Frohoff.
While the finances of the university are improving and strategies are being implemented to increase Rockhurst’s revenue, faculty members still find themselves stuck between the strain of teaching an additional course or taking a pay cut.
Last year, the financial loss if a faculty member decided to opt out of teaching an extra course was a flat rate of $3,000. This would be a hard loss for faculty members at the lower end of the pay scale, effectively forcing those who cannot afford the lost compensation to teach an extra course.
On the contrary, adding another course to an already full plate is stressful. One key aspect that sets Rockhurst apart from other local universities is the dedication of the professors to meet with students individually in office hours, should they request to do so. While this is a great opportunity for students to learn and to build relationships with professors, it takes up a lot of time. So not only must they spend time planning for the course, teaching the material and grading the work, they also must carve out time to meet with around 25-30 students weekly. For professors teaching extra courses, managing these responsibilities, among those outside of work, is difficult.
“I have found the transition to teaching an extra course during the 2023-2024 academic year to be quite challenging,” said Glenn Young, associate professor of theology and religious studies. “One of the things that I have always tried to do at Rockhurst is be present to students, to be supportive of them and care for them as persons. This is much harder to do when I have less time and more students due to the increased teaching load. I believe increasing our teaching load runs the risk of making us less effective teachers, both inside and outside the classroom.”
As the university continues to cut unnecessary expenses, professors will maintain the requirement of either an increased course load or a pay cut for the 2024-2025 academic year, with some alterations that slightly improve the situation.
Instead of a flat-rate cost for those who choose to opt out of teaching an additional course, it will now be determined on a sliding scale. This means that those who have a higher salary will pay a higher opt-out fee than those who make less, making the choice to teach extra classes fairer for those with lower incomes. After the 2024-2025 school year, the policy will be given over to the faculty senate, giving faculty a greater role in the decision that affects their lives immensely.
While Rockhurst is making great strides in lowering the financial deficit, it is important to recognize what the faculty is sacrificing to do so. Going forward, look for more updates regarding the financial status of Rockhurst University and how it is affecting faculty.
