Mesalands audit shows improved financing at college

TUCUMCARI -- Once facing potential closure, Mesalands Community College seemingly has “turned the corner” from a doomsday scenario after improving management of its finances, the Office of the State Auditor said last week.

But according to Allen Moss, the institution’s president, Mesalands’ future is still uncertain.

“I think we can safely say we’re not looking at closure,” he said. “I’d like to think we did everything we could to show that we’re stabilizing and that we can continue as an independent community college, but that final decision is still out there.”

Moss’ comments come following an effort from Auditor Joseph Maestas, the New Mexico Higher Education Department and the Legislature to save the two-year school in Tucumcari following years of shifting leadership, staff turnover, budgeting woes and poor training.

Both Moss and Maestas said the fiscal year 2024 audit and a special audit into what led MCC into “financial demise,” as it was termed in a statement from Maestas’ office, have yet to be completed. They gave no deadline for completion.

Moss was in administration at Mesalands, became interim president in 2023 and then assumed the top role on July 16. He said the community college has gone through several presidents since 2020. That, coupled with turnover of staffers who knew how to use student information systems only compounded MCC’s lack of ability to handle its finances, according to Moss.

Amid these challenges, the community college fell behind on completing its audits.

“From there, it just kept piling up,” Moss said.

Moss said that as MCC lagged, it nonetheless made new hires that were not in the budget and gave raises to employees that were not approved. MCC, as a result, burned through its reserves, according to Moss.

He said he was not part of administration at the time these decisions were made. But “I sometimes questioned, how are we doing this at such a small college?”

In early 2023, the school asked the Legislature for assistance with auditing because administrators didn’t think they had enough cash on hand to make payroll, according to Moss. The request prompted an on-site visit from the Higher Education Department, which then referred to the state auditor for review, Moss said.

Maestas, who assumed office in January 2023, immediately began working on the intervention, using special appropriations from the Legislature (through the Higher Education Department) to directly assist in conducting the audits for FY22 and 2023, according to Dave Peña, a spokesperson for Maestas.

Maestas’ audits found that MCC improved in correlating pay with positions and offering training programs to improve its faculty and staff.

With a “significantly improved audit opinion,” MCC will retain its federal funding, allowing it to pursue funding for capital projects in the next legislative session, according to both Moss and the auditor.

State Sen. Pat Woods of Broadview, whose district includes MCC, said in a prepared statement that the recent changes in the community college “mark a new chapter of growth and stability.”

Woods told the Albuquerque Journal that he is optimistic about the future of MCC because of the leadership of not only Moss as president, but Richard Primrose as chairman of the Board of Trustees. The chairman previously served as Tucumcari city manager and Quay County’s manager before his retirement in 2021.

“With Mr. Primrose on that board, I think (MCC is) scrutinized a lot,” Woods said. “He’s watching the money close.”

Higher Education Department spokesperson Tripp Stelnicki said the agency is reviewing the latest audit.

HED has outsourced a feasibility study to examine whether MCC can continue to function as an independent higher education institution or should merge with another one.

Community analysis and study are underway, including a community survey regarding the community college, Stelnicki said.

“When complete, HED will make recommendations to the Legislative Finance Committee based on the findings of the feasibility study,” he said.

Woods said he looks forward to the study’s results. He believes MCC is not in the same position it was a few years ago, when lawmakers suggested a merger might be feasible.

“I am confident that the study will recognize the fact that they’re under new management, they’ve got their finances in order, they’re becoming more successful in the community they serve,” Woods said. “I truly believe they can operate independently.”

Moss said “it’s hard to even put a value” on how important the audits are to public trust in his institution.

“No one is going to have trust when you can’t give answers,” he said. “The community needs to know that the college is going to be here, that we’re going to keep working to provide the training and courses that are needed.”

Moss said people in Tucumcari have approached him to say they are happy MCC was able to improve its audits.

“I think that is a sigh of relief from the community,” Moss said.