College of Charleston President Andrew T. Hsu shared the following message with faculty and staff on Tuesday, June 15, 2021: 

Dear Faculty and Staff,

I hope everyone’s summer is going well so far and that you are able to find some time for rest and relaxation. I wanted to provide you an update on this week’s Board of Trustees’ annual two-day retreat at Stono Preserve.

During this meeting, the Board of Trustees met with campus leadership to hear updates on enrollment projections and various campus projects and also to set tuition/fees and the budget for 2021–22.

Of special interest to all employees, in the approved budget for 2021-22, faculty and staff will receive a three-percent base salary increase, which takes effect July 1, 2021. I am very pleased that this cost-of-living increase was approved by the S.C. General Assembly so that our employees can be recognized for their incredibly hard work throughout the pandemic and their continued service to our university. In addition, the College was able to set aside some additional monies for targeted merit increases, which will be distributed at a later time.

Please note: While the increase is provided for in the College of Charleston’s annual budget, this increase is still subject to and predicated upon approval and funding by the S.C. General Assembly in the state’s overall budget. The state’s budget is in the final steps of the legislative process, and final word on this increase should come in the next week or so. That being said, it is not uncommon for our Board of Trustees to approve the College’s budget with certain assumptions of what we believe the final state budget will contain.

Our College of Charleston budget also reflects investment in key areas of our strategic plan, supporting various initiatives of the strategic plan’s three pillars of student success, academic distinction and employee success. A few examples are budget allocations to the Employee Tuition Assistance Program, the Committee on Commemoration and Landscapes, several strategic technology projects and upgrades targeting student retention (including classroom intervention software), Honors Program, Bridge Program, iCharleston Program and re-instatement of the staff development and training program, to name but a few!

During the meeting, the Board of Trustees discussed their bylaws’ naming policy and associated guiding principles. In the coming months, representatives from the Board of Trustees will conduct listening sessions with various campus constituencies before finalizing the language for the naming policy and guiding principles.

As for enrollment (which influences our budget), we are projecting a fall freshman class of about 2,400 students and more than 600 transfers. This represents not only the largest freshman class in school history, but also growth in our diversity numbers, Honors College cohort and non-resident population. Our success is the result of the entire campus community’s efforts this past year.

We are emerging from this pandemic in a strong position, and that is, simply put, because of you. Thank you for your dedication to your profession, to your colleagues and to our students – that commitment has made all the difference in our university’s success.

Sincerely,

Andrew

Andrew T. Hsu, Ph.D.
President
College of Charleston