Students attend STLCC board of trustees meetings to make their case for the child care center
Carlos Restrepo
– Editor in Chief –
Children’s laughs, cries and high pitch voices could be heard at the administrative building of STLCC, the Cosand Center, in downtown St. Louis. It was the monthly STLCC Board of trustees meeting and, as it has been the case since the Nov. 19, 2009 meeting, parents and their children are part of the otherwise quiet reunion.
On Feb. 25, 2010, student-parents and other individuals continued to raise their voices in support of keeping the child care centers at Forest Park and Meramec opened.
“I come to you on behalf of the Forest Park child care center, which you have voted to close, and Meramec, which you have voted to close,” said Andrea Simmons, STLCC-Forest Park student. “I am a student; I have one more year to go to graduate of the respiratory therapy program and I need the child care center to be opened to continue to graduate. Forest Park is a stepping stone for me, and I am going to further my education, but in order to do that I need the child care center opened.”
The decision to close the Forest Park and Meramec child care centers was reached by the Board of trustees at their Nov. 19, 2009 meeting in the midst of much opposition from students. The closing would save the college nearly $600,000, according to an STLCC press release.
“During this economic downturn, we have worked very closely with the board to avoid cost increases, to reduce expenditures and to improve college revenues, all of which have kept St. Louis Community College in a financially healthy position,” said Chancellor Zelema Harris in a statement released on the STLCC website shortly after the decision to close the centers. “This next year will present us with significant challenges as we manage growing enrollments with no new revenue. We have to consider the best strategies to meet the needs of all of our students, and therefore came to the conclusion that the costs versus the population of students served at these two facilities compete with other critical priorities throughout the district.”
Meramec alumnus Jim Owens, who spoke at the meeting, shared a presentation with ideas on how to possibly save the college some money through the firing of unnecessary administration of the Athletic department.
Owens said in the presentation that other colleges have only one athletic director and one assistant in their athletic department. The total STLCC administration head count for the 14 teams across the district is three directors, five assistants and three information directors.
His proposal was to eliminate two directors, four assistants and two information directors, which he claims would save the school $500,000 to $600,000.
“We are only going to have 14 teams guys…when we get rid of all these directors and information directors and assistants you are going to save five to six hundred thousand dollars. Maybe you can keep child care open,” Owens said. “You are not going to keep sports, why not keep child care open?”
As he addressed the Board of trustees, Owens reminded them that they were elected officials and said “not to get comfortable in your seat.”
“If you won’t support student services; if you don’t have fiscal responsibility; don’t get comfortable in your seats.” Owens said. “I’ll see you on April 6.”
Also addressing the trustees was Gyla Meyers, Meramec student and parent, who has become a regular at the board meetings. Meyers said there were several inconsistencies in some of the numbers the school used to make the decision of closing of the centers.
Meyers said that in regards to the child care cuts, in the June 2009 Board Minutes that were posted, it stated that the three child care centers served 700 students across the District, at a subsidy of $693,000. However, Myers said, in the Nov. 2009 press release, it states that the centers at Forest Park and Meramec serve a total of 209 students and the college spent nearly $600,000 to subsidize the expenditures of these two centers.
“I am a little confused in regards to five months later, if it was 693 [thousand dollars] across the district for 700 students and now is 600 (thousand dollars) for 209 students, are you telling me that 500 students utilize Flo. Valley and it only costs 93 thousand dollars?” Meyers said. “I am just a little confused.”
(See entire video of parent complaints at the Feb. 25 Board of trustees meeting at www.meramecmontage.com)
After several other parents talked in front the board members, the meeting was adjourned and no statement was made from the board members addressing the parents.
Meyers said that she would continue to address the board members at their meetings until she gets an explanation regarding the numbers and figures.
“I believe in change and I believe that truth always comes up,” Meyers said.
