50 College Street
South Hadley, MA 01075
Telephone 413-538-2000
April 7, 1995
To Friends of Mount Holyoke College:
Recently The New York Times reported on tuition and financial aid at educational institutions, including Mount Holyoke College, which are members of the Consortium on Financing Higher Education, a group of thirty-one colleges and universities including the Ivy League, the Seven Sisters, and other leading private institutions. The March 22, 1995 article asserted that tuition from full-pay students goes directly toward funding financial aid at Mount Holyoke and other COFHE institutions. This assertion is oversimplified and misleading in a number of respects.
I have sent The Times a letter which gives a more accurate view of the present tuition and financial aid picture for Mount Holyoke and comparable institutions. Because it is very important that all those concerned about the financial well-being of the College have a full understanding of our fiscal policies, priorities, and challenges, I want to provide a concise overview of our revenues and costs, looking especially at the issues of cost per student and financial aid costs.
In terms of dollar figures, the College spent about $61 million last year to support the core educational and operational program of the College. Thirty-five million dollars in annual tuitions and fees were the major source of revenues. Funds from a variety of sources--including, gifts, grants, government aid, and revenue from endowment--represent the balance of the remaining $26 million.
Regarding financial aid, revenues from non-tuition unrestricted sources and those restricted for financial aid amounted to approximately $21.4 million. This amount, in and of itself, would more than cover last year's expenditure of $17.5 million for financial aid. So, in essence, it would be possible to claim that no tuition and fee revenues are used for financial aid. But, to say that would be as misleading as what The Times said: that all financial aid is underwritten by tuitions and fees.
Tuitions and fees are better understood as but one source of revenue to a general fund that covers all the annual costs of supporting the institution and providing educations.
In addition, as The Times story failed to make clear, all students at top-ranking institutions like Mount Holyoke receive a greater benefit, or educational value, than is covered by tuition payments. Last year, the College spent in excess of $32,500 in educational cost per student, considerably more than the $17,980 tuition paid by a full-pay student. In effect, every student is subsidized. The College is fortunate to have developed, primarily through past and present gifts, the resources to pay the substantial costs of providing access to superb educations to all students based solely on their intellectual and personal abilities.
Thanks to the generations of alumnae, parents, and friends who have contributed so generously to Mount Holyoke and to those who have supported our peer institutions, collectively, we are able to offer students "more than they pay for," not only in hard financial terms but in the scope of resources and opportunities they have to choose from. We offer the high caliber education that future generations will require in order to meet the growing demands of society.
Again, as Treasurer for Mount Holyoke, I think it is very important that alumnae, parents, and other members of the community have a full understanding of these crucial issues. I hope that the information presented above has been helpful in this regard. Please feel free to call me at 413-538-2040 if I can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Mary Jo Maydew
Treasurer
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