CT State system outlines budget squeeze, community-college leadership consolidation and need for bonding for campus repairs

Leaders of the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CT State / CSCU) told the Appropriations Committee on March 5 that systemwide headcount exceeds roughly 66,000 students and that spring-over-spring enrollment rose 6.2 percent, but they also described a budget gap driven chiefly by the loss of one-time federal ARPA appropriations and other carryforwards.

Chancellor and CT State leadership said the system will use reserves, pursue additional revenue through enrollment growth and philanthropic fundraising, and continue reductions in part-time staffing and other operating costs; they flagged a target deficit-mitigation need of roughly $95 million across the biennium and asked the committee for more time to provide institution-level, quarterly budget updates that the system will share with the finance committee and legislature.

John Maduco, president of CT State Community College, described a leadership model change that will keep every physical campus and site open but reduce the number of senior campus leaders from 12 to seven through a national search for multi-campus presidents. "We are maintaining all campuses open, all locations, and all sites of teaching open," Maduco said, adding that the reorganization is intended to reduce managerial overhead and shift resources to student-facing services such as advising, public safety and childcare. He said all current campus CEOs may apply for the new posts.

Managers also described the Mary Ann Hanley award (formerly PACT) as central to community college enrollment stabilization. CT State reported more than 23,000 Hanley awards in recent years and said the program has been a major driver of community-college access. On the Roberta Willis scholarship, CT State and the Office of Higher Education said they are using a $10 million statutory allotment for need-merit notices but that only $5 million of the cited $15 million carryforward remains available for institutional need packaging; presidents said institutions remain concerned that late appropriations could force colleges to postpone or retract student offers.

Multiple presidents and the chancellor pressed for release of capital bonding funds the legislature previously approved but not yet allocated; the system reported approximately $460 million in approved bonds that have not been allocated and said deferred maintenance and facilities problems are pressing issues (examples discussed included leaking roofs, mold and other health-and-safety concerns). Legislators asked for a campus-level breakdown of reserves, cumulative mitigation steps and line-by-line staffing and organizational charts for both the system office and individual institutions.

On academic programs, the provost's office said it had reestablished routine low-enrollment program reviews to identify programs that should be combined, changed, or discontinued to protect student pathways and program vitality. Officials also stressed that community colleges will continue all campuses and classroom sites and that the leadership change is meant to improve resource flexibility and equity across locations.

Chancellor and presidents committed to provide the committee with more-detailed quarterly financials, the rationale and projected savings associated with the 12-to-7 leadership model, and staff-level organizational charts before the working-group meeting.