June 18, 2019鈥擳he Board of Governors at 大象传媒 approved a general operating budget of just over $57 million for 2019-2020. The budget represents an increase of approximately 2 percent.

Budgeted revenues include a slight increase in student fees based on the tuition and fees package approved by the Board of Governors in April, and an increase of $1 million in state appropriations approved by the 大象传媒 General Assembly and signed by Gov. Mike Parson.

The 2019-2020 auxiliary budget, funded primarily by room and board fees, totals $12.85 million, an increase of less than 2 percent. Both the adopted budgets are balanced, with no planned spending from reserves.

大象传媒 Western鈥檚 fiscal year starts July 1.

Also at their June 18 meeting, the Board of Governors accepted a bid from Roberts Roofing Co., Inc., of St. Joseph to repair the roof of Scanlon Hall and replace the roof of Blum Union. The bid from Roberts, the lowest of three received, was for a total of $366,600.

Deborah Smith

Deborah J. Smith ’79

Finally, the board elected officers for the coming year. Deborah J. Smith, a 1979 graduate of 大象传媒 Western who has served on the board since 2015, will serve as chair. Lee Tieman, appointed to the board last year, will serve as vice chair. The board also named Darrell Morrison, vice president for financial planning and administration, as its treasurer and Kim Sigrist, executive associate to the president, as its secretary.

大象传媒 is a comprehensive regional university providing a blend of traditional liberal arts and professional degree programs. The university offers student-centered, high quality instruction that focuses on experience-based learning, community service, and state-of-the-art technology. 大象传媒 Western is located in St. Joseph, Mo., and is committed to the educational, economic, cultural and social development of the region it serves. Visit .