2020-2021 was a very unusual year for Sheridan Student Union as we worked to continue our work and create virtual student focused programs, events and services that enrich your life here at Sheridan.
From a fiscal perspective this is a period of considerable instability not just for Sheridan Student Union, but also for student unions in Ontario who derive most (and in some cases all) of their revenue from student fees. There have been significant factors affecting the consistent collection and budgeting of student fees over the last several years for Sheridan Student Union. These factors include the implementation (then court-ordered retraction) of the Student Choice Initiative introduced by the Ontario Government (2019-20), and now the impacts of the COVID-19 global pandemic (2020-?). Through these challenges, enrolment has remained quite stable and the SSU has transitioned to a mostly virtual organizational model. Despite this, operational and facility needs have endured.
Looking at revenues and expenses for 2020-21, this year marked the transition out of the fee collection methodology established by the Student Choice Initiative which led to higher-than-average student revenues at student associations across the province. This, coupled with COVID related government support, our mostly-virtual pandemic operations and underspending due to closed campuses led to a fiscal surplus at the end of the year.
While most of the challenges outlined above are provincial and global in nature, we also face an exciting period of growth on campus. Sheridan Student Union has partnered with Sheridan College to build an exciting new Student Centre at the HMC Campus as we aim to build equity in student experiences throughout the three campuses we serve. We are now building operational and reserve capacities to support three sizeable campuses, and we are confident that we will have the fiscal capacity to undertake this considerable challenge as we aim to open this new (and delayed) facility sometime in 2021-22.
While most of the challenges outlined above are provincial and global in nature, we also face an exciting period of growth on campus. Sheridan Student Union has partnered with Sheridan College to build an exciting new Student Centre at the HMC Campus as we aim to build equity in student experiences throughout the three campuses we serve. We are now building operational and reserve capacities to support three sizeable campuses, and we are confident that we will have the fiscal capacity to undertake this considerable challenge as we aim to open this new facility sometime in January of 2021!
From an operational standpoint, the changing environment we operate within has required us to develop new revenue and budgeting models, and to transition our operational environment from physical to virtual. There have been staffing impacts and austerity measures pursued, but throughout all of this we remain ready to serve the Sheridan community now, and in the future.
Surplus fees collected are held – to a large extent – in restricted reserves that will ensure Sheridan Student Union continues to have the operational capacity and resources to support three student centres and a health and dental plan for the Sheridan College student community.
The audited financial statements - which are available here once approved at our Annual General Meeting - present some information related to the year-over-year position of each of our fiscal reserves. It is worth noting that our most sizeable reserves (building and medical funds) are associated with ongoing and future payment commitments to building and medical plan fees.
While our annual impact statement generally focuses on a high-level synopsis of Sheridan Student Union’s fiscal position, there are some unique elements this year worth some comment. Specifically, revenues of $10,073,332 outpaced expenses of $7,309,549. This resulted in significant contributions to restricted reserves including the Building Fee, Capital Fee and Medical Plan Fee. Expenses were significantly lower than expected due to campus shutdowns for the pandemic, and the delayed opening of the HMC2A facility as the result of the same event. This resulted in the collection – and transfer to reserve – of student fee revenues collected during 2020-21, many of which remain restricted to the purpose for which they were collected.
Of final note, Sheridan Student Union prides itself on being one of the college’s largest employers of students on campus. We look forward to returning to campus and re-establishing a variety of paid student positions that will assist us to serve the Sheridan College community.
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