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84 lOth St. South t: 612.851.5000 Suite 200 f: 612.851.5001 Minneapolis, MN 55403 www.perkinswill.com PERKI NS -f-WI LL 15 February 2007 Rationale for 2400 FTE Northwestern College When newly appointed President Dr. Cureton came on board in 2003, there was desire to infuse a new sense of energy into the College, while at the same time, Dr. Cureton declared a need to become more financially efficient in order for the College to better serve its students. One key method for colleges becoming more financially efficient is to develop economies of scale in operations. When Northwestern was approaching the 1600 FTE level, various analyses were performed, and it was determined that much greater efficiencies could be gained by spreading out resources (and related expenses) over 2400 FTE. The 2400 FTE figure was an FTE level where minimal additional staff would be needed, while still meeting a key college goal of providing personalized levels of education. 2 The 2400 FTE level was also determined by looking at a reasonable "carrying capacity" for the site, while still maintaining the highly revered pastoral setting of the campus. Various formulas and calculations were performed, included assumptions for open space, non- buildable areas, academic building area needs, hard surface areas, etc. Assumptions included the college's highly ranked value placed on desirable open space. 3 The capacity was also considered in depth by the architectural planning consultant from a more subjective view. The campus planning consultant considered various site planning principles from a variety of perspectives, including landscape architecture, academic planning, existing biotic communities and their locations, building massing and volume, campus history (including a Getty Foundation grant for a historic preservation plan) and the sight lines which are extraordinarily important on this particular campus. Also considered were the ability and techniques to lessen the impact on this site's rolling and lake filled terrain (considerations included, but were not limited to, sight lines, building heights, setbacks, building massing in relation to the community, setting buildings into hillsides to reduce mass, traffic, vehicular headlight patterns, parking, etc.). While it was determined financially that the 2400 FTE was the most efficient size for the college, it was also felt that the 2400 FTE could be achieved without any detrimental effects to the irreplaceable physical setting of Northwestern College. The College values their site as one of its most important resources in defining who they are and their ability to attract students, and consequently, the desire to move to 2400 FTE was not taken lightly. C1Documents and Settings\pagel\Desktop\NWC_2400 FTE Rationale_BH_14Feb07.doc NORTH AMERICA I ASIA I MIDDLE EAST I AFRICA I EUROPE