Duke University Trustees Approve Budget for 2004-05
The 2004-05 budget of $1.426 billion represents a 6.8 percent increase over the current year
Friday, May 7, 2004
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DURHAM, N.C. -- The Duke University Board of Trustees on Friday approved a balanced operating budget of $1.426 billion, a 6.8 percent increase over the current year, for the 2004-05 fiscal year beginning July 1.
The budget includes the School of Medicine and the School of Nursing, but excludes Duke Hospital and other components of the Duke University Health System which are budgeted separately.
The new budget includes a previously announced 4.5 percent increase in the standard undergraduate tuition, fees, room and board total, to $39,240. Duke is one of a small number of schools committed to need-blind admissions and meeting full need; in addition, Duke offers a small number of endowed merit scholarships. Approximately $51.3 million of institutional support will be provided next year to Duke students, an increase of 16.6 percent over the previous year. About 90 percent of this amount will support need-based aid.
The budget continues to support the university's dual policies of admitting undergraduates based on their academic accomplishments and potential without regard to their ability to pay, and then meeting 100 percent of their demonstrated financial need. Only about two dozen private institutions in the nation maintain such "need-blind" admissions/financial aid policies. Duke has recently enhanced its undergraduate financial-aid programs with changes that increase the average grant award for Duke students from middle-income families. Duke's graduate and professional schools also provide substantial financial aid.
Income from tuition and fees from all schools will account for nearly half, or $388.6 million, of the unrestricted revenues generated by Duke's eight schools and Trinity College. An additional $402.7 million in projected revenue comes from indirect cost recoveries on grants, gifts, investment income and other sources. Indirect cost recoveries generated on grants and contracts essentially cover costs of providing the infrastructure to support research, and are expected to grow 13.3 percent next year, reflecting the growth of Duke's scientific and engineering research programs.
On the expense side of the budget, non-payroll operating and administrative expenses increased by $13.7 million, principally associated with the operating costs of several new buildings and leased research space. Salary and benefits will increase by $23.9 million, or 5.8 percent, over the current year's budget. This includes enhanced funding for campus security; funding for the development office and an increase in biweekly fringe benefit costs.
The budget also continues to support academic priorities outlined in Duke's strategic plan, Building on Excellence, such as genomics, high-performance computing, Perkins Library, faculty diversity initiatives, Student Affairs, nanoscience, social sciences, faculty development, photonics, biomedical engineering, business education, women's athletic scholarships, the John Hope Franklin Center for Interdisciplinary and International Studies and community affairs.
"This budget keeps the university on track in offering competitive compensation, improving academic programs and student support services, and continuing to support need-blind admissions," said Provost Peter Lange, the university's top academic official. "It also allows Duke to keep up with leading-edge technologies in teaching and research, and to bring online important new facilities such as the Nasher Museum of Art, the Center for Interdisciplinary Engineering, Medicine and Applied Sciences (CIEMAS) research building and the addition to the divinity school."
"This is a lean budget that reflects substantial efforts to contain administrative costs," said Executive Vice President Tallman Trask III. "Once again we are focusing our resources on initiatives that support the university's strategic plan."
