wfn.org | [PCUSANEWS] Mary Holmes College to remain open - for now

[PCUSA NEWS <PCUSA.NEWS@ecunet.org>]

Note #7817 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

Mary Holmes College to remain open - for now
03265
June 18, 2003

Mary Holmes College to remain open - for now

School still might close but board exploring options

by Evan Silverstein

LOUISVILLE - With the clock ticking, the board of trustees of financially
troubled Mary Holmes College in West Point, MS, met in special session June
13-14 to unanimously approve keeping the Presbyterian-related school open.
	
At least for now, that is.
	
Facing the certain loss of millions of dollars in crucial federal funding by
month's end, and the potential for the plug to be pulled on important
monetary assistance from the Presbyterian Church (USA) at the end of the
year, board members were under pressure to settle the historically-black
school's fate. 
	
But as they did at their regularly-scheduled board meeting last month, a
minimum quorum of seven of 15 trustees voted to hold their ground and keep
the school operating with a scaled back, non-accredited class schedule this
fall.
	
"The board did vote to continue operation of the facility," said the Rev.
Floyd Rhodes, the PC(USA)'s interim associate director for higher education.
"The board voted not to go into bankruptcy, not to close. There will not be a
lot of courses offered at this time, but there might be in the future."
	
The move - like lightning striking the same place twice - essentially
reaffirmed similar action taken by the board in May to keep the two-year
college operating without federal assistance, accreditation or full staffing
while exploring options for remaining open.
	
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) dropped the
111-year-old college from its membership rolls in December. Without
accreditation from SACS or a similar agency, Mary Holmes is ineligible for
federal funding, estimated by the PC(USA) at $3 million for this year. The
money is pivotal since it pays the salaries of Mary Holmes staff and faculty
and provides financial aid for almost every student at the college.
	
The meeting on the school's campus was arranged and paid for by the PC(USA)
to prompt trustees to meet in person to take another, harder look at the
situation.
	
Mary Holmes Chair Jack Baugh conceded before the meeting that he and the
other trustees may have been "following their hearts" in initially trying to
save the school, and now must focus on the "hard questions" of whether
keeping the college open is really feasible.
	
"They need to decide what's going to happen," said Baugh, who was unable to
attend the board meeting. "That's what they have to wrestle with."

PC(USA) treasurer Joey B. Bailey told the Presbyterian News Service that he 
believes the board of trustees may not have done enough strategizing about
the future.
	
"I'm disappointed that a more thorough decision wasn't on the table to
discuss alternatives," said Bailey, the General Assembly Council's deputy for
Mission Support Services and CFO. "We stand ready to help them in any way we
can, but the (Mary Holmes) board just hasn't really asked for our assistance
in even evaluating their alternatives."
	
Rhodes, who attended the meeting, said the school hopes to offer cosmetology,
computer and business courses this fall if enough students enroll. No
associate degree programs can be offered since such courses require the
school to be accredited, Rhodes said. 
	
The school finds itself in debt $2.5 million after years of mismanagement,
low enrollment and a deteriorating physical plant, according to Rhodes. 
	
Money owed includes a $456,000 loan approved by the GAC in 2001 and $491,000
to the U.S. Department of Education for renovating a dormitory.
	
During a conference call June 17 involving school trustees and PC(USA)
officials, a committee of six trustees was appointed to compile a long-range
plan for paying the debts and keeping the school open.
	
The six-member committee is set to meet next month in Atlanta to work on the
long-term plan, which board members hope will lead Mary Holmes to financial
stability and renewed accreditation. Rhodes said some board members, such as
Baugh, challenged fellow trustees to identify money sources for keeping the
school going in the meantime.
	
Trustees still could close Mary Holmes when the board meets again in August
if they believe the long-range strategy cannot be carried out. 
	
"If it appears that it's not doable then they will dissolve Mary Holmes, but
they'll do it at the eleventh hour," said Beneva C. Bibbs, the PC(USA)'s
associate for Racial Ethnic Schools and Colleges. "Right now they're going to
stay and fight." 
	
Meanwhile, only a handful of faculty and staff remain at the college, said
Baugh, who declined to speculate about what employees might do after federal
money that pays salaries for nine of the employees is discontinued at the end
of this month. He said two staff members are already working on a volunteer
basis.
	
Rhodes said there was lengthy discussion about financial matters before board
members agreed to give the long-range planning committee the go ahead to
meet.
	
School leaders also hope the new plan will be good enough to convince the GAC
 to continue Mary Holmes' allocation from the denomination's annual Christmas
Joy Offering. 
	
In June 2002, the GAC set four conditions Mary Holmes was required to meet
for continued PC(USA) funding through the offering: a comprehensive
fund-raising strategy; a business plan addressing its financial problems; a
vision for changing its image and mission through new programming; and a
10-percent increase in enrollment for the fall semester.
	
Though the council approved this year's allocation last September, a National
Ministries Division subcommittee recommended last month that funds for Mary
Holmes be discontinued starting in November. The GAC will decide on the
allocation - which this year totals $272,211 - when it meets in September.
	
"The hope is that if they present a viable plan that National Ministries
Division will rescind its thinking," Rhodes said. 
	
In other developments, Nathaniel Jackson, who was hired three years ago to
lead the school out of debt, resigned last month as president of Mary Holmes.
	
Two college staff members, Evelyn Bonner and Gail Turner, have been appointed
to manage the day-to-day operations at the college, where no classes are
being held this summer. Bonner, a Mary Holmes graduate, is director of the
school's Helen R. Walton Learning Resources Center. Turner has been in charge
of community relations.
	
The college won't search for a replacement for Jackson until the board
decides how to proceed.
	
To bolster the school's comeback effort, Mary Holmes board members appointed
the Rev. Andrew Jackson Young Jr., prominent civil rights leader and
politician, as its newest trustee, hoping he can raise money and awareness
about the school through his many public speaking engagements. 

*** For instructions on using this system (including how to UNJOIN this
meeting), send e-mail to mailrequests@ecunet.org
------------------------------------------
Send your response to this article to pcusa.news@pcusa.org

------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe from this mailing list, send an 'unsubscribe' request to

pcusanews-request@halak.pcusa.org