December 2008 • Vol. 7, No. 4

State of the Center: A Report from the Director

The economic downturn has affected everyone, and the RRC is no exception. Our endowment has lost some value, which means that we will now have less money for RRC operations. Until the recent steep declines, income from our endowment investments paid for 85% of our staff salaries. With loss of market value, we estimate that our endowment income will now fund only 72% of staff salaries, and the economic news may get worse before it gets better. University of Florida budget cuts are responsible for the loss of former coordinator John Worth’s position, which still remains unfilled following his departure in 2006 for a job elsewhere. Much of our fund raising efforts over the past four years have gone into recovery from Hurricane Charley, which has not allowed us to add significantly to our endowment fund.

In short, over the past four years the RRC has suffered a triple whammy – hurricane damages, loss of our only UF-funded position, and now decreased endowment income. But the news is not all bad.

Continued in: State of the Center: A Report from the Director

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