Reply to Which top colleges have a significant budget deficit? Which ones are red flags?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]How did a tiny school like Middlebury run up such a large deficit?[/quote]

A [b]$4.49 million budget deficit[/b] against an overall budget of $344 million isn't that significant (1.3% of overall budget). Reasons mentioned are rising healthcare costs, staff and faculty pay increases, and debt servicing. [/quote]

As far as I can tell, Middlebury had a $14.1 deficit in FY 2025 and has a projected budget deficit of $8.6 million for FY 2026, along with about 15 years of perennial deficits prior to these most recent years.

https://www.middlebury.edu/stories/archive/2025/05/board-trustees-approves-fiscal-year-2026-budget-tenure[/quote]

You are just a glutton for punishment. [b]Why do you post this stuff when you know that it is wrong?[/b]

Why post something a year old when you know that there was a fall update with a lower number and then the Feb update with the current $4.49M number?

Let me remind you:

Middlebury has a larger endowment than Colby.

Middlebury has less debt than Colby.

Middlebury draws from their endowment at a lower rate than Colby draws from theirs and could close their deficit and go to a surplus simply by raising their draw rate to equal Colby's.

Middlebury has raised their fees at below average rates among the NESCAC schools for many years.

Middlebury has fixed the root causes of their deficit while Colby has run a deficit for the last three years running.

Neither school has any significant financial issues but Middlebury is without question in stronger financial shape. 
[/quote]
My research was incomplete. I apologize to those reading through. However, your comments, which appear to be reasonable and accurate with respect to Middlebury itself, seem to have conflated my post with those of one or more other people.[/quote]

Your research wasn’t really incomplete, the latest number wasn’t published anywhere, just stated. 
[/quote]

Actually, it was published here:
https://www.middlebury.edu/stories/archive/2026/02/trustees-accept-major-gift-art-museum-discuss-strategic-plan-and-approve-tuition

and here:
https://www.middleburycampus.com/article/2026/02/board-of-trustees-talk-tuition-increase-and-improved-budget-deficit[/quote]

Right, they “stated” it but you wouldn’t find it in any document. That’s what I meant.[/quote]

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