Barton community college administrators shared the latest preliminary budget information Tuesday at the Board of Trustees study session. They also looked at the results of an outside survey of online learners and took a tour of the new Ag Complex under construction.

Budget plans

 Vice President of Administration Mark Dean said valuation figures are due from the Barton County Clerk’s Office this week. The college will need to create a budget that is revenue neutral – that is, that does not require more tax dollars than it collected last year – or publish a notice if next year’s tax rate will exceed that.

The trustees need to determine a requested dollar amount by July 20 and provide a notification of intent to exceed or not the revenue neutral rate (RNR).

For Fiscal Year 23, which ends June 30, Barton started with a funding balance slightly under $21 million. After total revenue of $34.6 million and total expenditures of $35.9 million, the ending balance was $19,673,778, a change of $1,321,527. This was expected and the trustees anticipated dipping into cash reserves.

The actual change in the funding balance won’t be known until after the end of the fiscal year, Dean said. He noted that the change in the balance decreased due to a temporary transfer of $900,000 for the new Ag Center. These funds will be reimbursed by the Department of Commerce and the Barton Community College Foundation.

For the next fiscal year, which starts July 1, revenue from tuition will be “relatively flat,” Dean said. An increase in enrollment will be offset by the decision to decrease tuition and fees charged to high school students enrolled in college courses.

There is some additional one-time funding from the state for the FY 24 budget but the college is limited in how this money will be used. “These funds are earmarked for certain projects as outlined by the State of Kansas,” he said. There are three categories: cyber security, capital outlay, and business and industry.

Operational accounts in the budget have been adjusted for inflationary increases in insurance, fuel, utilities, etc.

An overall wage increase of approximately 3% has been calculated into the preliminary budget.

Ruffalo Noel Levitz Survey

Also at Tuesday’s study session, Todd Mobray, Barton’s director of Institutional Effectiveness, talked about the results of a survey conducted by Ruffalo Noel Levitz. It showed 74% of Barton online learners who responded were satisfied or very satisfied with the college, compared to a national average of 72% for other institutions; 81% said they would likely enroll there again if they had to do it all over. The national rate is 75%.

The top five factors students consider when they choose where to enroll are:

• Flexible pacing for completing a program - 91%

• Ability to transfer credits - 90%

• Work schedule - 90%

• Convenience - 89%

• Cost - 89%

Barton’s strengths are:

• Registration for online courses is convenient

• The campus offers exceptional and affordable learning opportunities supporting student, community and employment needs

• The application and enrollment processes were easy to understand and follow.

• Assessment and evaluation procedures are clear and reasonable.

• Billing and payment procedures are convenient for the student.

Items with lower satisfaction than the national average were earmarked as “challenges” for the institution to work on. One such item was in response to the statement “There are sufficient courses within my program of studies available each term.”

Ag Complex

The trustees concluded the meeting with a tour of the exterior of the Ag Complex. Dean said 75% of the concrete has been poured.

“The structural metal is up,” he said, adding workers are in the process of adding the “skin.” Then work can start on the interior. While construction is about a week ahead of schedule, electrical equipment and the HAVC system are not scheduled to arrive until September. A December completion date is anticipated.