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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]We're compiling a college list now with our junior. Some colleges we've come across and researched have significant budget deficits. We are trying to figure out which ones to worry about.

We know that a college budget deficit can be a significant red flag, particularly if the uni is a small, private, or regional college with a low endowment. And a structural, long-term deficit often leads to reduced academic quality, fewer student services, etc.

Here are the colleges with budget deficits that we are aware of (see below). Are we missing any others we should know about? Which ones to truly worry about (I'm assuming some big ones will figure it out with its endowment but not sure if that's smart thinking)?

Colleges with Budget Deficits (rough amounts reported from the past year):

USC: $200 million
UChicago: $160 million
Stanford $140 million
Penn State: $140 million
Harvard: $113 million
American U: $80 million
GW: $76 million
NYU: $71 million
Boston U: $30 million
Middlebury: $14 million
WashU (St. Louis): $7 million
Brandeis: $2 million
Pitzer: $1.3 million
[/quote]

I have appended the 2024 Forbes Financial Health Rankings next to the school. Most of these schools are very wealthy and will adjust tie spending if the nonsense form the administration continues. None of these schools are in long term danger though the experience at R1s will change if they have to start funding more of their own infrastructure costs. Of the 2 SLACs on this list Middlebury will have no issues at all, it is extremely wealthy and the main source of the budget drag has been addressed and the deficit is already down. Pitzer has a relatively small endowment and is tuition dependent. But with an under 25% acceptance rate they should not have any issues sourcing the students needed to keep budget intact and this is reflected in their Forbes grade. Penn State is not graded by Forbes since it is a public institution.

USC: $200 million A+
UChicago: $160 million A+
Stanford $140 million A+
Penn State: $140 million
Harvard: $113 million A+
American U: $80 million B
GW: $76 million B+
NYU: $71 million B
Boston U: $30 million B
Middlebury: $14 million A+
WashU (St. Louis): $7 million A+
Brandeis: $2 million A-
Pitzer: $1.3 million A[/quote]

I don’t think long-term health is the concern here.

For example, Middlebury had to cut benefits (including 401k contributions) for staff and wind down the Monterey institute (which undergrads had the opportunity to attend) to get their issues under control. That has a real impact on the experience even if the financial situation never spirals.[/quote]

Here you go again.

Middlebury didn't have to do anything and didn't do anything that negatively affected student experience. They have been very open about the struggles of MIIS and are now winding it down. The cuts to benefits were insignificant though any cut is significant to those impacted.

Their debt load is smaller than that of Colby which is smaller and has a considerably smaller endowment (both total and per student) and it spends more money on student instruction than any of the NESCAC schools except Amherst, Bowdoin, and Williams. [/quote]

The delusion is strong with this one.

There were protests about it, especially the benefit cuts. And the cuts aren’t done yet. They have a structural deficit that they are working to reduce. The school admits all of this and you are still in denial. Sad.[/quote]

Delusional is what you are writing. Sad.

There was a tiny University Professors Union protest for an afternoon along with a small number of supportive students. People are always going to complain when they lose something and all Middlebury did was align their pension contributions to that of their peers. Middlebury does not have a structural deficit, they have has a small ongoing deficit mainly driven by MIIS which they are addressing. Borrowing at about 3.5% is a better long term strategy than raising their endowment draw. If they raised their draw to that of Colby they would actually have a surplus even with MIIS.
[/quote]

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

https://www.middlebury.edu/stories/archive/2025/05/budget-update-board-trustees

From the Board of Trustees: “On behalf of the Board of Trustees, we write to acknowledge the financial challenges we face as an institution and the impact that addressing those challenges has on you. While this is our first open letter to the community on the issue, it is far from our first engagement in this work. For a board, no job is more important and no responsibility greater than ensuring that the organization we serve is in sound fiscal health, today and for decades to come. [b]That is why last winter we directed the administration to create a plan to eliminate Middlebury’s long-standing structural deficit by balancing budgets in the College and Schools as we continue to deal separately with the finances of the Institute.[/b]”

https://vtdigger.org/2025/05/08/middlebury-college-faculty-staff-and-students-take-action-against-administrations-budget-cuts/

The protest: “Middlebury College faculty, staff and students staged a schoolwide walkout and teach-in on the Old Chapel green on Thursday morning in response to the college’s plan for making budget cuts to address a projected $14.1 million deficit this fiscal year…

Thursday’s demonstration was the latest in a series of actions faculty, staff and students have taken in the past month to express frustration with the budget decisions.”

Do you make up things in all aspects of your life, or just on this issue?

[/quote]

You are wrong, wrong, wrong...I was 100% correct.

You obviously didn't read the articles or your comprehension abilities are weak. Both are possibilities.

The "structural deficit" is MIIS which Middlebury has supported/owned for over 20 years. It is being shutdown, something that Laurie Patton should have done after Covid but didn't. Problem solved but we understand that doesn't fit the narrative to which you so desperately cling.

You are laughably dim. We've been down this road with you in the past. We understand that you somehow feel hurt by Middlebury and just cannot let it go. We see you going out of your way to denigrate Middlebury whenever you get the opportunity.[/quote]

Still wrong. There has consistently been a deficit at [u]both[/u] the College and at MIIS. You can also see it year after year in the financial statements. From the previous interim president:

“Looking forward, we anticipate a similar challenge next year, though we expect that [b]the College will carry a larger portion of the deficit compared with the Institute or Schools[/b].

[b]We want to emphasize that the deficit we’re addressing in this message is at the College.[/b] At MIIS we continue to pursue the four-year plan to turn around enrollments…

To say it as clearly as possible, our challenge is this: [b]We haven’t been able to balance our books despite significant progress in how we do business.[/b]”

You’re right, we’ve (many of us) been through this with you before, because you just constantly gaslight even though everyone here can read for themselves. It’s your trademark move.[/quote]

Here’s the latest from February.

Budget deficit is now estimated to be $4.49 million, and the deficit carried by MIIS will be offset by the sale next year. [/quote]

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