FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Regents at Kentucky State University have agreed to request $23 million from the state to cover a budget shortfall.
The board of regents at Kentucky’s only public historically Black university met Tuesday to hear an update on the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education’s analysis of the school, the Lexington Herald-Leader first reported.
The council will request the funding from the general assembly and use it to cover the shortfall, said Travis Powell, the agency’s vice president and general council.
“Significant operating deficits, especially in 2019 forward, have resulted in depletion of reserves and this current structural deficit is unsustainable,” Powell said.
Kentucky State University has been taking corrective actions to stabilize the school’s finances since learning earlier this year that it has a $15 million budget shortfall and a projected shortfall of $7 million for the current fiscal year.
The university is currently under state oversight and the council has been investigating the school’s finances and will recommend management changes.
Council President Aaron Thompson said Kentucky State has a strong foundation despite the financial woes.
“We will learn our lesson from this go-around,” he said.