Thursday, July 21, 2011

Free Tuition For Many Athletes Inflates Enrollment

Since this topic has been coming up repeatedly in the comments on other posts, we felt it deserved its own full-length post. 

It's not much of a secret that a few years ago, Byrnes started recruiting student athletes from local public schools and offered them free tuition at Byrnes in exchange for play.  Considering the record of the football and basketball team before this practice started, perhaps this wasn't such a bad idea!  What many have also come to realize is that some of these players' siblings were also given free tuition along with somewhat of a carte blanche as far as behavior is concerned.  More than one person has already commented here that this has become a safety concern for them and prompted them to remove their children from the school. 

All the details and numbers after the jump


What does Byrnes get out of this.  Well, aside from better teams that actually win some games, they also manage to inflate their enrollment numbers with non-paying students.  During Gary Hertzog's deposition, he kept talking about enrollment in terms of numbers but not in terms of dollars.  Considering the number of gratis students at the school, this amounts to a lot of unpaid tuition that isn't available for spending but makes their enrollment appear to me more than it is.  He also testified that this "financial aid" is currently unfunded, meaning that nobody is paying tuition on these students' behalf.  Here's a clip from the deposition(highlights mine, A = Mr. Hertzog):

This an important distinction to make so lets say it again: nobody pays for these students.  Nobody.  They and their siblings are simply comped.  So, as we'll soon see, elsewhere in his deposition when Gary talks about enrollment being at 240 students, only ~220 of those are actually generating any revenue for the school.  From reading the transcript and the plan objection, I'm not sure if FC's attorney even noticed this since he never really probed the issue when asking about enrollment, but he does now.

So what kind of numbers are we talking about here?  On their balance sheet, Byrnes account for these students as "financial aid" in their tuition account along with other tuition discounts like those for employees or multi-child discounts.  This program was actually John Colby's brainchild as we will see from the excerpts to follow.

The following are from Byrnes financial statements submitted to the court as official documents and which Gary Hertzog testified were true and accurate to the best of his knowledge.  The first involves tuition for the 08-09 school year.  John Colby came to Byrnes immediately before this year began after the board asked William Bugg to leave (as per Mr. Hertzog's testimony). 

Here we see $59,806.45 in financial aid or approximately enough to cover 10 students.  Let us consider this a baseline as perhaps there are other non-athletes that are allotted some help.  As we'll see though, this number is about to skyrocket after John Colby starts expanding the practice.  The following is a clip of the same thing for the following 09-10 school year:
As you can see, financial aid now accounts for $217,975 worth of tuition, which comes out to approximately 30 students.  This is much more startling amount and represents an even greater amount of lost revenue than is indicated here, for each of these children incurs certain costs to the school.  Mr. Hertzog testified that it costs over $8,000 per child, so not only is this revenue not received, but the costs are incurred on top of that.  Lets take a look at numbers for this past year, 10-11:
Total free-rides comes out to $190,213 or approximately 26 students.  We don't have official documentation to support the reason for the slight drop, but rumor has it that some of these children were asked to leave for severe disciplinary issues.  We don't know that for certain though so treat that information as suspect.  The numbers, however, are accurate insofar as one can trust Angel Stanton's numbers to be accurate, and there's no reason to believe these are wrong. 

Taken together, this total lost tuition represents ~$467,000 or ONE THIRD of the debt Byrnes owes to First Citizens.  Instead of paying the bank and being fiscally responsible, the management team decided to spend more money they didn't have in order to buy a better football team.  Not only is this yet another example of poor management, it is terribly unfair to the many paying customers the school had. 

Before anyone gets altruistic and claims some greater social mission than higher numbers on the scoreboard, answer this question: how many girls (without an older brother who plays a sport) were given free tuition?  My guess is none.  Zero.  Zilch.  Nada.  So save the societal betterment crap for someone less informed.

Even now, in the face of bankruptcy and possible liquidation if they can't learn to balance a budget, let us see how the numbers are shaking out:

Here we see a substantial drop (so far), but still $85,500 or about 12 full-rides so far.  I suspect that we'll see this number skyrocket as school gets closer, probably followed by another shill-written article in the paper by Tucker Mitchell with headlines about enrollment up at Byrnes.  They may even be stupid enough to try and incorporate such numbers into a future plan they submit to the court after their current one gets rejected. 

If the comments we've received are any indication, this practice has also cost Byrnes revenue-generating students as parents flee some of the discipline-related problems that have come with this practice.  You see, since many of these athletes also get free-rides for their younger siblings, the disciplinary problems ripple through upper, middle, and lower school classrooms.  Such safety and discipline problems are precisely what many families are trying to avoid by paying $7000 a year for private school.

This practice is yet another example of a massive failure in management and leadership and fiscal responsibility.  First Citizens noted in their objection that the current management team of John Colby and the board have largely been responsible for the problem and thus should all be replaced.  This kind of thoughtless spending is what forces Byrnes to borrow from future year's tuition to pay current-year expenses, thus letting the deficits accrue substantial debt while masking the problem in the short term.  Frankly, this is a lot like what our national government does, but unfortunately Byrnes can't print its own money or issue T-bills! 

I can't fathom how Byrnes couldn't put forth a plan that balances their budget.  Cutting the freebies and cutting Colby and Amell's salaries down to the level of the rest of the staff would eliminate most of the yearly shortfall.  Rather than be responsible, they're hoping to squeak one past the courts and avoid having to make any meaningful change.

I hope that as things progress, the court forces Byrnes to account for paying and non-paying students on their financial reports instead of letting them try to hide their true situation with more smoke and mirrors.

13 comments:

  1. WOW….LB Phd, Really? This post is just so wildly inaccurate, assumptive (you know what happens when you assume) and terribly misleading. Judging by your total disregard for fact checking or accuracy, it should now be clear to everyone the reasons why you are hiding behind your anonymity….You can criticize Tucker Mitchell, at the Morning News, but he is a professional who lives and plays by ethical standards and rules that have apparently eluded you. But then again, personal vendettas are rarely conveyed using rational reasoning or tactics. I hate to think that you are teaching students (oh that’s right you were fired weren’t you), and am only glad that my children will not have to be exposed to you! From what I am hearing on the street, it sounds like your platform is being leveled, so you can go back to obscurity.

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  2. I'm sorry to disappoint you but the subject of this post is both a known fact and substantiated by sworn documents and testimony. Yet again, discussion devolves into personal attacks and does nothing to illuminate whatever errors might be in the post. Tucker Mitchell is and always has been a shill for the school. He even wrote his first article about filing for bankruptcy without ever using the word 'bankruptcy.'

    I must say that I find it comical that everyone seems to think they know who I am, but as yet nobody has even come remotely close.

    As for my platform, you might be referring to postings today that make it look like there is some resolution to this bankruptcy saga. This may be true but final documents and details haven't been posted yet. Even so, there are many isssues we've yet to post on that people need to see, especially one startling accusation concerning a highly-placed person that warrants further investigation for the sake of any children who may be close to him.

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  3. If someone wanted to send a child to another private school in the area, what are some good choices?

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  4. There is another comment in a different post asking the same question so I'll just type it here for both.

    Recommending other schools is difficult because there are so many factors that go into making such a decision and many of them are quite personal and unqiue to each individual family. While I may point out a number of things wrong with Byrnes and its leadership, there are some for whom this is probably the best school.

    With that said, I would personally look at which schools have a record of academic excellence and placing graduates in elite nationally ranked universities. Beware the smoke and mirrors and stick to hard numbers: names/rank of schools where grads matriculate, average SAT/ACT score, AP passage rates. I would demand to see evidence of current certification and at least 10-15 years experience in the teacher(s) one would have. I would also want to see how large the classes are. These are the sorts of factors by which one can get a sense of how well a school is performing and it bypasses the spin job that otherwise follows. Saying 90% of grads were accepted to their first choice school may not mean much if the whole class listed an in-state school as their number one. Showing evidence of class average test scores arond the 90th percentile, multiple national merit scholars, and students accepted to the Ivy league is another matter.

    That said, I would investigate Trinity Collegiate as they seem have a track record of success and are open with their results and could give you the sorts of information I'm talking about. Even so, I would check on who the teachers would be and what their qualifications and experience are. Kings also seems to have a good track record from what I hear but they don't post their results as publicly as Trinity does, so it might take some asking to get hard data on their results.

    Those are the first 2 that come to mind but I'm sure there are others. Maybe visitors here can post any info they have on other options.

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  5. Thanks, J. B. PhD! I've got family moving that way. This is good information to know.

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  6. As for the financial aide perspective it is not based on athletics because it is available to all based on financial need determined by an outside company and there are students even in the 3k and 4k programs that benefit from financial aide. Many parents are thankful Byrnes gives this oppurtunity to help them send their children to the school. You do not know all you write to be accurate, nor do you care.. what a lonely life you must lead to do all this. I hope most people will choose to find out the whole truth on their own instead of relying on someone who isn't even honest enough to show their real complete name. Byrnes is an excellent school that will be here for many years to come and has great academics. I hope only the best for all the staff, faculty, parents and children in the future. Goodbye to your days of putting them all down because people can find out for themselves and make an EDUCATED decision. Byrnes is here to stay!

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  7. Thank you for pointing this out and I apologize for not being more thorough. Prior to importing athletes, the financial aid budget was an unfunded $60,000ish. Since enrollment has stayed steady or slightly declined each year, we can call this a baseline amount. The first year of imported athletes we see financial aid jump to over $200,000. As such, I should ammend the above to reflect that ~$140,000 of additional financial aid appeared on the books coincidentally when athletes and their siblings were given full rides. Again, I apologize for not being completely thorough in my explanation.

    Until there's time to fix the numbers above, deduct $60,000 from each six-figure number and deduct 8 students from the number of full-scholarship students the amounts represent. I feel this should give a more accurate picture of the situation being described.

    Thank you for contributing. I understand this can be an emotionally charged topic for some, so I appreciate the additional information and perspective.

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  8. You are still incorrect on your assumptions. The reason financial aid has increased is probably largely due to the economy and the need for students and families to have aid during this low economy. It has also increased because the financial aid program was just started several years ago and Byrnes increased their aid each year. The only discount siblings get is the $500 multi-child discount. Yes there are student athletes who may be on aide but that is not why they are on aide. All families have to go thru the outside company before receiving any type of aide. Just wanted to update and I hope they are still able to offer aide in the future because I am sure there are many families who just need temporary help while our city and country climb our way out of this tough economy.

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  9. So you didn't get fired then, Mrs. Barnard? You're not working at Trinity and promoting that school now?

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  10. This should probaby get its own post, but I wanted to respond to your comment because you make some very good points and present plausible alternative explanations. You're corrrect that I may be wrong in my assumptions, but one must admit that on the surface it does look awfully suspicious. The jump in financial aid also corresponds to a massive increase in the "diversity" of the football and other teams. If we conslt teh SCISA Athletics Blue Book, they have a list of warning signs and red flags about this sort of thing:

    "1. A pattern of transfers into an athletic program, especially at the senior high level. 2. Shear number of athletes receiving financial aid.
    3. Involvement of Booster Clubs with financial aid.
    4. No evidence of inclusion of non-athletes. This type of activity should and will draw scrutiny and an evaluation by SCISA."

    I think we can all agree that numbers 1 and 2 are self evident. As for number 3, since Byrnes financial aid is unfunded and is simply a tuition write-off(according to sworn testimoy), there is no need for Booster involvement. Number 4 is where we may have some disagreement and where we don't have public documentation to clear up any misunderstanding. If we expand "non-athlete" to include "not related to an athlete either," I do wonder how many are still receiving aid, and in what amounts. Giving full rides to athletes and their siblings and 20% off to a few other random students in need is not quite an equitable distribution of aid and still would appear to be a recruiting tool for athletics.

    In reading the SCISA Blue Book, we discovered that such a practice is prohibited by SCISA rules. In the interest of fairness, we will dispatch letters to SCISA and some of its member schools who are Byrnes opponents detailing what we know so far and requesting an investigation. Under the circumstances, it seems that an outside investigation is the only way to get to the bottom of what's going on.

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  11. 3/11 JB: “On behalf of my fellow Byrnes parents and staff, this blog is dedicated to ferreting out the truth of the ongoing bankruptcy proceeding and dispel the lies and rumors that abound.”

    Posting public records is one thing, but making spurious and inflammatory inferences is another. You claim that you are doing this on behalf of your fellow Byrnes parents and staff. Really? It seems that you are going to great lengths to HURT your fellow parents and staff. Are you really a team player? Are you really trying to help? Why? Are you in reality a disgruntled former employee? Shame on you if you are a former employee, or even consider yourself a teacher! I certainly hope that, if you are a former Byrnes teacher, you have not moved on to a faith-based school, as that would make you an even bigger hypocrite!

    3/11 JB: “Parents are wondering whether the school will even exist this time next year. Already, other private schools in the area are having to make wait lists to deal with the deluge from Byrnes.”

    Really? In this economy, I doubt any school in Florence, SC would have a waiting list, especially in March!

    3/11 JB: “To make things worse, the board and administration are not being completely honest with those concerned. We saw the school board president on TV saying that they weren't going to be declaring bankruptcy only 2 weeks after he personally signed the bankruptcy authorization forms himself!"

    Could the reason be that the bank unexpectantly decided not to work with the school and decided to call in the loan? Things happen – I find it hard to believe that a board member would go on record on TV if he/she did not truly believe that a solution (other than bankruptcy) was feasible.

    You are a clearly an intelligent person in possession of a great deal of energy and time. Perhaps if you would channel your efforts into more productive areas that truly address the common good, everyone in Florence, SC would be better off!

    FYI: The only independent schools that fund financial aid have endowments that exceed a quarter of a billion dollars. There are no schools in this region that even remotely approach that type of financial bounty. Booster clubs raise funds to supplement strained athletic department budgets (uniforms, travel, facilities maintenance,etc...)-- they do not fund scholarships for athletes.

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  12. Thank you for posting and articulating a well-reasoned dissenting view. My biggest fear with the BSBS was that it would turn into a sort of niche echo chamber with only people posting in agreement with one another. I truly welcome alternate views and appreciate the contribution.

    I understand this is all an emotional topic, especially for those with deep ties to the school, and that seeing some of the dirty laundry aired publicly can be difficult. In every place where an accusation of lying has been made, substantial documentation proving it has also been posted. As yet, nobdy has postulated an alternate explanation. When FC attorney posed some of these same questions to Gary Hertzog in deposition, he also had no real explanation and simply dodged the questions. I realize that nobody wants to believe that people they trust have been dishonest, but I'm afraid that's the truth here.

    As for wait lists, if I reveal too much about my sources for that I will compromise my identity. Suffice it to say, other schools were receiving numerous calls from Byrnes parents trying to hedge their bets for the next year. Frankly I would have done the same thing and probably still would since the school will still have the same insolvency problems they have before the bk.

    I have many emails from FC to Byrnes wherein they do offer to work with the school on the loan, but only if Byrnes would commit to balancing the budget and stop borrowing from the next year's tuition to pay current expenses. Byrnes refused to modify their practices or make any meaningful cuts, so the bank called the loan as per the terms of the forbearance agreement.

    Let us not forget, that during the 2009-2010 year, when the school was supposedly recovering from the economic slump and doing better, the board had to put in $400,000 of their own personal money in addition to borrowing $300,000 from 2010-2011 tuition just to pay the bills. This was also back when they weren't making any payments to FC either. So far, nothing in their documents has suggested any action to balance the budget. I'm interested to read the terms of the settlement FC agreed to last week and see how this has been addressed.

    In other news, letters to SCISA officials and the athletic directors of the other schools in Byrnes conference should be going out soon. These letters detail the evidence suggesting that Byrnes is using free tuition to recruit athletes, something explicitly forbidden in the rules. We hope that this triggers an investigation and brings the truth to the surface whatever it may be.

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  13. Have you stopped posting stuff?

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