Despite projections of a $2.5 million deficit in the College budget for the 2010 fiscal year, we have ended the year with a $5.6 million surplus ("Dartmouth Ends Year with Surplus," July 23). Throughout the budget reduction process, College President Jim Yong Kim continually stressed changes to "back of the house" spending that would preserve the quality of the student experience at the "front of the house." Nearly half a year later, it seems that the College has followed through on its promise. Course options remain varied, support for the 31 varsity sports teams remains strong and a wide variety of extracurricular activities continue to thrive. Furthermore, Kim followed through on his stated goal to make all necessary cuts as quickly as possible instead of prolonging them over several years unlike several fellow Ivy League institutions.
Even though the surplus is relatively small, this success might still tempt the institution to rest on its laurels and put a halt to both internal evaluations and spending reductions.
Throughout the recent budget reduction process, though, the administration's ability to streamline College expenses without harming academics or research suggests a certain degree of unnecessary spending on the part of the College. As there will always be opportunities for any institution to reduce spending, we do not suggest that the College was intentionally overspending. We simply caution against the mistaken notion that monitoring spending should no longer be a priority. With a $5.6 million surplus, the College stands in a decent position moving into the next fiscal year. As the College finds itself with an opportunity to further evaluate long-term expenses without pressure to slash spending quickly the administration should use this time to reflect on the spending changes implemented over the past year, and decide whether there is a need for further reductions or even backtracking. The College is at the mercy of a larger financial system, and a situation like the international economic disaster that precipitated the recent budget crisis could very feasibly reoccur in the near future. Dartmouth needs to be prepared for such an occurrence. For that reason, becoming too comfortable with the current surplus would be a real disservice to the College and its students. Now that we have some breathing room, let us take full advantage of the opportunity to evaluate spending at all levels. It is possible that we have cut all there is to cut. But true fiscal responsibility involves constant reevaluation, regardless of the nation's financial situation. Even though the worst is behind us, the College should still exercise the same degree of fiscal caution and the same willingness to acknowledge when certain policies can and should be made more efficient. Just as the College expects us, as students, to constantly improve, so we should hold the College to the same standard.
The administration's financial progress thus far is laudable but at an institution that holds itself to the highest of standards, we should always search for better ways to manage not only our intellectual potential, but our financial resources as well.
