Robert L. Barchi, MD, PhD
Message
from the
President
The recession, with its string of finan-
cial setbacks in the headlines, has affected
Jefferson as it has all of us. In many ways
because of prudent planning and the quality
of our education and care we remain on
solid footing, with no immediate threats to
our stability. But we do have deep concerns
about the effects of the economic downturn
on our students.
Jefferson is first and foremost an educa-
tional institution, and our budget relies on
tuition as a major source of revenue. We are
fortunate that demand for a Jefferson educa-
tion is at an all-time high with applications
to virtually all of our programs running well
ahead of prior years and far in excess of the
number of places available.
Although the university ended the first half
of the fiscal year ahead of our very aggressive
budget, we cannot assume that this perfor-
mance will continue through the remainder of
the year. While our clinical practices continue
to do well, and we are holding our own with
research grants despite the toughest environ-
ment I've seen in 30 years, we do expect the
research situation to tighten even further as
nonprofits retrench in the face of dwindling
endowment income. Our own endowment has
lost considerable value during the past month,
mirroring the experience of other universities
large and small. And philanthropic support
has declined by nearly one third this year.
Our immediate, most critical concern
centers on our students. Many rely on
multiple public and private sources to finance
their education, and these sources are not
readily available now. Though we charge just
a fraction of what a JMC education costs,
our medical students now pay about $64,000
annually for tuition and expenses and
graduate with an average debt of $150,000.
Students in our other schools and colleges
face similar financial challenges.
While we undoubtedly could fill the next
class with students able to cover the full
cost of their education, this approach would
seriously undermine our commitment to
diversity. We cannot allow ourselves to take
this step. We must respond to the financial
challenge facing all our students by providing
scholarship support to the most deserving
without compromising our fiscal stability.
Most universities predict a downturn in
charitable giving in the coming year. My hope
is that JMC alumni recognize and respond to
our great need for scholarship funds, reverse
our current downward trend in fundraising,
and make TJU an exception.
A rigorous expense reduction process
coupled with expansion of our education
opportunities have allowed Jefferson to remain
in good standing. With the help of each and
every TJU staff and faculty member, we have
cut expenses in the past few months while
reducing capital expenditures and restricting
hiring. These are temporary initiatives designed
to guarantee that we stay financially solid.
In doing so, we have not compromised our
mission nor our momentum. A new ortho-
pedics hospital/ambulatory care building
remains central to our master plan, and the
architectural work on it continues. Design
work on a new academic home for our
Schools of Nursing, Pharmacy and Health
Professions is underway. Plans to open the
School of Population Health in the fall remain
unchanged. And we are unwavering in our
commitment to diversity among our students.
We are conserving, marshalling and focusing
our resources to allow us to continue to grow
strategically. With help from alumni for our
students, we will emerge from the recession
stronger and closer to our goals.
Sincerely,
Robert L. Barchi, MD, PhD
President
Thomas Jefferson University
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4/13/09 7:34 PM