Editor,
On March 11, the San Mateo County Community College District (SMCCCD) Board of Trustees discussed a contract with a privately-owned, for-profit management company to operate an athletic club (SMAC) at the College of San Mateo and, in the near future, at Cañada College.
Why does a public community college run a fee-based athletic club? I have been told that:
1) It provides health and wellness services for the community. But is locating the newest facility at Cañada College in toney Woodside and Emerald Hills consistent with the social justice mission of SMCCCD and help economically disadvantaged members of our county?
2) “Enterprise activities” provide supplemental funds to support college programs. Profit-making ventures like SMAC, the Bookstore (which lost $698,553 in 2017-2018), and the cafeteria “generate financial resources that support educational programs beyond that which is available from community and state allocations.”
SMCCCD, though, is locally supported through property taxes. In fact, 84% of its $201 million budget comes from San Mateo County, not the state of California, unlike most community colleges.
According to an analysis by college officials, being locally funded by property taxes provides an extra $67 million into District coffers.
The current budget puts $30 million into surplus. Not bad for a non-profit, public institution.
One has to ask whether the return on investment from SMAC for educational programs is worth the effort (averaging only $289,000 a year during the life of SMAC, or 0.0014% of the District budget).
Couldn’t reallocation and eliminating waste (like exorbitant administrative salaries) cover educational costs?
Michael Reiner
San Carlos
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