COLUMBIA, S.C.
Benedict College trustees have approved a small pay increase for some professors, but salaries remain lower than they were before the school cut pay across the board two years ago during a financial crisis.
The college has undertaken a major debt restructuring and is working to reverse a slide in enrollment, leaving trustees confident the college will have money left over when the 2007-08 fiscal year ends.
Benedict cut salaries across the board 5 percent in 2005 during a financial crisis.
President David Swinton told the trustees that left some instructors and assistant professors with salaries below the minimum level in the college’s guidelines. He wanted to raise those salaries to at least the minimum guidelines.
Enrollment also is building at the historically Black college. Swinton said 2,640 students enrolled this year an increase of more than 100 students from its recent low, but well below the 3,005 students at Benedict in 2002.
But the numbers don’t tell the whole story. Swinton said much of the increase came in the freshman class while the college continues to struggle to retain its upperclassmen.
Information from: The State, http://www.thestate.com
— Associated Press
© Copyright 2005 by DiverseEducation.com
