CVTC Budget Shows Increased Enrollment, New Programs, and Facilities Growth

The Chippewa Valley Board of Trustees on Thursday, June 15 approved a 2017-18 budget that provides for new programs and major building projects in Eau Claire and River Falls. 

“With this budget, we are increasing areas of instruction and improving access to our growing number of students,” said CVTC President Bruce Barker. “At the same time, we are maintaining a stable tax rate for the people in our 11-county district.”

The budget supports several new programs. Starting next fall, Mechanical Design will be added in both River Falls and Eau Claire, and the Agriscience program will become two programs, Animal Science Management and Agronomy Management.  CVTC will also be offering a very unique, completely online program in Library and Informational Services. 

Efforts will continue in 2017-18 to increase online course offerings, making CVTC classes more accessible to the public.

“We’re also preparing to start a Culinary Arts and Management program in the fall 2018 semester. We have already hired highly qualified faculty to spearhead the program and they will be working on curriculum planning over the next year,” said Lynette Livingston, dean of business and academic initiatives at CVTC. “We are very confident we are building a program that will meet the region’s needs. We anticipate this will be a highly sought-after program.”

Approximately 6,300 sq. ft. on the main floor of the Business Education Center will be remodeled into a state-of-the-art learning lab for the Culinary Arts and Management program. Also planned for the 2017-18 fiscal year is a 6,800 sq. ft. addition to the River Falls campus. Both projects will need approval by the state Wisconsin Technical College System board.

“Budgets are always made up of numbers and dollar signs, but they are really about fulfilling our mission,” Barker said. “Our budgetary plans for the next fiscal year will help us continue to support our regional workforce needs and provide our students with great career opportunities.”

The budget calls for a tax rate of 87.22 cents per $1,000 of property value, a slight reduction from the 2016-17 rate of 87.78 cents. This means a person with $100,000 of property would pay $87.22 in property tax to support CVTC, down from $87.78 the previous year. The tax levy, the total amount raised from property taxes to support the college, was set at $20.4 million, from the 2016-17 levy of $19.8 million. 

The budget calls for $94.1 million in total expenditures, up from the 2016-17 projected expenditures of $91.8 million. Most of the increased spending is due to federal grants and the building projects. 

Chippewa Valley Technical College delivers superior, progressive technical education which improves the lives of students, meets the workforce needs of the region, and strengthens the larger community. Campuses are located in Chippewa Falls, Eau Claire, Menomonie, Neillsville and River Falls. CVTC serves an 11-county area in west central Wisconsin. CVTC is part of the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS) and is one of 16 WTCS colleges located throughout the state.