At its April 27, 2014 meeting, the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved the funding models for the two-year colleges, universities, and the technical centers (former technical institutes merged with universities). These models had been developed in conjunction with presidents and chancellors after meetings and revisions. The…

This 2015 annual report shares many of the accomplishments achieved by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools in 2015 including the celebration of their 10th anniversary. Among other achievements, the report highlights: (1) At the end of 2015 Congress and the President agreed to an $80 million increase in support for the federal Charter…

Colleges and universities are thinking strategically about their business models. Reductions in state and federal appropriations, endowment volatility, fundraising uncertainties, and limits on tuition increases are creating persistent shortfalls in operating budgets. This all comes when institutions are being called upon to enroll and graduate…

Analyzes the real operating costs of child care centers providing quality care in order to establish a model from which funding agencies and child administrators can plan and evaluate budgets to enhance the quality of child care. (Author/MP)

The issue of whether institutions of higher education should cost account space and physical plant operating and maintenance expenses to their academic programs is examined. Space costing is cited as a philosophical base for cost accounting space, operating, and maintenance expenses to the individual academic unit of an institution. (Author/MLW)

This manual is intended for use by district officials undertaking analysis of the costs of year-round school (YRS) programs. To analyze the budgetary impact of YRS, it is necessary to determine the actual costs incurred with the YRS program and to compare these costs to expenses that would be incurred without the YRS program. A simulated…

This study involved the development and use of a cost model to assess the economic consequences of the introduction of a year-round school (YRS) program. The cost model has two components. First, a comprehensive accounting procedure details the costs unique to a year-round calendar and estimates the costs that would have been incurred if the…

The authors discuss a method to increase institutional efficiency and financial stability through strategic planning, by gradually reallocating funds raised for annual operations to quasi-endowment over a period of years using a weaning model. The weaning model is offered as a tactic to address issues of financial vulnerability developed in…

Indicators of the financial health of colleges and universities are considered, along with causes of financial problems, a conceptual framework for institutional financial flows, and data sources. Five indicators are addressed: changes in institutional distress potential for private colleges, changes in institutional financial resources, changes…

Financial indicators to describe and measure the condition of colleges and universities are discussed including: determining capital charges against current revenues, analyzing revenue structures, dissecting the expenditure structure, and restating current fund revenues and expenditures. (MLW)

Papers presented at a working conference on new developments in measuring financial conditions of colleges and universities included the following: "Using Financial Indicators for Public Policy Purposes," by George W. Bonham; "Conceptual Advances in Specifying Financial Indicators: Cash Flows in the Short and Long Run," by Hans…

Maintenance and operations (M&O) requirements dominate the life-cycle cost of a school facility. Historically, facility managers have struggled to secure funding to meet these requirements. Many deferred-maintenance issues result directly from M&O underfunding. However, new approaches and technologies now enable facility managers to use…

The development of a cost allocation model at Ohio State University is discussed. The model was designed to measure the direct, indirect, and total operating costs of university operations and to recover general fund overhead costs associated with unrestricted general fund support of auxiliary enterprises and revenue-generating activities. The…

Five articles are presented concerning student aid planning and educational policy, based on experiences gained in regional workshops conducted by the National Institute of Independent Colleges and Universities (NIICU). The purpose of the workshops was to translate the data gathered in the NIICU Student Aid Recipient Survey into formats useful for…

The value of microcomputer modeling tools and spreadsheets to help college institutional researchers analyze proposed capital projects is discussed, along with strengths and weaknesses of different software packages. Capital budgeting is the analysis that supports decisions about the allocation and commitment of funds to long-term capital…