Oberlin College Board of Trustees Invests in the Future By Scott Wargo
			APRIL 4, 2000--"Invest in the future." It's a phrase we hear--and say--all the time. Pay now, and the long-term benefits will be extensive. The Oberlin College Board of Trustees recently took the advice to heart and has authorized an extraordinary investment in Oberlin’s future. At its March meeting the board approved a many-pronged plan aimed to enhance the desirability and value of an Oberlin College education. Elements of the plan include reducing the student-faculty ratio, increasing student financial-aid packages, and raising faculty salaries. "The College is currently in a strong financial position due to successful investment practices and the tremendous response by alumni to our current capital campaign--the largest in school history," says Thomas Klutznick, who chairs the Board of Trustees. "The board believes this is the proper time to make a major commitment to the institution's future." Expected benefits of the investment include increased retention of enrolled students and an opportunity to attract more of the nation's top high-school graduates. To reduce the student-faculty ratio and improve the academic experience of first- and second-year students, the trustees have authorized five new faculty positions in the College of Arts and Sciences. The positions--to be identified and filled during the next academic year--will have a starting date of September 2001. Over the next four years, the College of Arts and Sciences and the Conservatory of Music will develop at least five more new faculty positions. The board has also approved a recommendation to gradually reduce the student body to 2750. This semester's enrolled students number about 2800. The board envisions the additional positions as enhancing the synergy between the conservatory, the art museum, and the arts program in the College--giving Oberlin the best overall arts program in the country. The increase in financial-aid packaging addresses specifically the category of personal expenses. The trustees would also like to see an increase in the number of merit scholars attending the college and the conservatory and voted greater allocations for merit-based aid. To continue to attract and retain the nation’s top faculty, the board increased the ways it would improve faculty salaries. Adding to the current budget for faculty increases--already meant to improve Oberlin's ranking in faculty compensation--additional increases over the next two years will go to faculty at the assistant and associate-professor levels. Recognizing the interdependency of Oberlin College and the town of Oberlin, the trustees also agreed to strengthen College ties with the community at large. Daniel Gardner, until recently the director of the College's Center for Service and Learning, will head College operations to improve the economic and educational circumstances of the town under a new office to be known as Community Initiative. One of the projects of the initiative will mean that Oberlin College students will be even more involved in teaching in the Oberlin public schools.
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