It was talked about at last Thursday’s Danville Area Community College Board of Trustees meeting, and a vote will likely be taken at their February 24th meeting. The issue is, will DACC be raising tuition for the summer and fall semesters. The general consensus seemed to be, continue with DACC’s usual routine of a small incremental increase, of perhaps five dollars per credit hour.
Members of the board stated they had no intention of closing a budget gap by putting it all on students’ backs, even though the other two sources of funding: property taxes and state funding, will have their adjustments further down the road. Chairman of the DACC Board Chairman David Harby said making sure future students do not have a major credit hour increase is one reason to do small ones consistently.
AUDIO: We want to make sure that this college is financially sound. And the reason we’re financially sound is so that we can move on a dime. When a new industry is going to move into town, we’ve got money to do programs. When we don’t get money from sources that we thought were guaranteed; we can survive, make payrolls, and make sure the college is open for students.
Meanwhile, one item on the Board of Trustees agenda last Thursday was recognition of the coming retirement of Assessment Retention Counselor for Adult Education, Susie Catlett. DACC president Dr. Stephen Nacco says, she will be missed.
AUDIO: She’s been really part of the legacy of what she built; in adult education, and specifically with certified nursing assistant programs. She defined it for the college, she’s managed it with absolute aplomb, and she’s helped transform hundreds of lives of students who have gone through the program.
Catlett’s retirement becomes official in May.