In good times, Oberlin's endowment is about $800 million dollars. Now, says Ronald Watts, the college's Vice President of finance, it's...quite a bit smaller.
WATTS: "The endowment, which is reflecting the global market values, is down on an average payout basis, a little over 200 million dollars."
That steep loss has left Oberlin with a $6.5 million hole in its budget. So, in addition to the salary freeze, there are big cuts in travel, printing and other administrative costs. Watts said those measures will allow the school to balance its books without reducing hours or cutting any of Oberlin's 980 union and non-union workers - at least for now.
WATTS:" No one can predict the future, so you never say never. But right now, our goal is to retain the employees we have."
Watts says, despite the budget crunch, there are no plans to renegotiate contracts with the unionized members of its workforce.
Kymberli Hagelberg, 90.3