ORANGEBURG, S.C. – South Carolina State University is considering budget cuts and a hiring freeze as the school deals with declining enrollment that has left the university looking at a $5.5 million deficit.
The university had projected an enrollment of about 4,200 this year, although the actual number of students attending this fall is about 500 fewer.
Eric Eaton, vice president of finance, on Wednesday proposed a freeze on hiring and an across-the-board 7 percent budget cut to get the institution back on track. The school’s budget committee will consider the ideas at a meeting later this month.
Eaton said the cuts and freeze would leave the university $366,000 ahead at the end of the budget year.
He said looking forward to the next academic year, the university will pursue fund raisers and programs to boost enrollment. This year’s enrollment at the historically Black university is the lowest in five years.
“The challenge will go out to everybody,” Eaton said. “We will tighten up and put ourselves in a position to ride out this year.”
Eaton said the hiring freeze will save about $4.2 million, while closing or consolidating dorms that are not full will save another $150,000.
