Increased spending for students in NU’s 2016-17 budget

Nipissing University’s Board of Governors approved the 2016-17 operating budget at their regular meeting on June 2.

The university is projecting revenues of $66,567,837 and expenses of $71,279,170, resulting in a projected deficit of $4,711,333.

The university has increased investments in the area of Student Services by nine per cent over the 2015-16 budget, while reducing overall projected expenditures for the 2016-17 budget by three per cent. The overall administration budget has been reduced by 18 per cent, primarily a result of recent restructuring and projected debt restructuring.

The university increased the amount earmarked for student financial aid by four per cent; money that will help pay for scholarships, bursaries and awards. The budget includes a total of $3,713,240 for student financial aid.

The projected deficit is $571,882 less than the deficit projected in the 2015-16 budget.  The actual deficit from 2015-16 is expected to be less than $2,500,000. Nipissing’s Executive Team and Budget Advisory Group will work to reduce the deficit throughout the year, as they managed to do over the past three years.

Expenditures relating to academic departments and academic supports make up 62 per cent, or $43,584,909, of the total university expenses.  Salaries comprise the largest portion of the budget, accounting for 70 per cent, or $49,745,260.

“We’ve been able to make some key investments in terms of Student Services related to student retention and Financial Aid, that will help us better serve our current students and attract new students while ensuring academic excellence,” said Dr. Harley d’Entremont, provost and vice-president academic and research. “Over the past few years, we’ve been forced to make some tough decisions to improve the university’s financial situation without sacrificing the quality of what we offer. We’ll continue to be fiscally responsible and strive for efficiencies to further reduce the deficit. Moreover, we look forward to the new funding framework from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU) expected to be made public in the Fall. After some difficult years, Nipissing has good reasons to be optimistic.”

Tuition for some programs has not increased and the university has not increased tuition to the maximum permitted by MTCU guidelines. Tuition rates for some programs have increased by up to three per cent.