St. Clair College navigates staffing changes amid $5.5M projected deficit

The entrance to St. Clair College's main campus in Windsor. Photo taken August 22, 2019. (Ricardo Veneza / CTV Windsor)

Staffing changes are underway at St. Clair College amid a projected $5.5 million deficit.

President Michael Silvaggi confirmed to AM800 News that support staff are being affected as the college works through what he calls an employment stability process.

He did not provide a specific number of positions impacted.

“This is part of ensuring that the college can remain sustainable and can continue to provide supports to our community, to our industry, especially at a time when our region is experiencing some anticipated higher levels of unemployment,” Silvaggi said.

He says the employment stability process began in late February and is expected to wrap up soon. An OPSEU Local 137 spokesperson adds they were unable to comment citing confidentiality.

As AM800 reported last week, full-time faculty layoffs were avoided through voluntary retirement and incentive programs.

Silvaggi says no additional academic programs are being suspended beyond those already paused earlier this year.

The college is projecting between 8,000 and 8,500 students this fall, which he says would be in line with last year’s enrolment.

“That’s important to ensure that we are maintaining those numbers, but that again we’re looking at all our operations to determine how we can gauge,” Silvaggi said.

“Are we going to see increases on contract training? Are we going to experience some enrolment growth in certain areas because of various reasons and various opportunities? All of that factors in when we are looking at our operating budget and forecasting a budget,” he added.

In February, the Ford government announced $6.4 billion in funding towards post-secondary over four years.

Silvaggi says that’s been taken into consideration in the approved 2026-27 budget.

“There’s been some notional amounts that we have included in our budget based on some conversations that we’ve had with the ministry, we’re still looking to finalize that, but that has been taken into consideration, so certainly that has been helpful in our in our budgeting processes,” he said.

Silvaggi adds the college has about $73 million in a sustainability reserve, which he describes as a long-term fund intended to support financial stability rather than offset operating deficits.