December is Here: Week of December 1st

I hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving holiday last week. It’s December 1st and it seems that the time between Thanksgiving and the New Year always goes by so quickly!

I have a policy of not commenting on things happening in Washington unless they can directly affect Salus or our student body. The tax bills the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate have introduced fall into the category of something that can have a significant impact on Salus and all colleges and universities. These bills, as presented, include provisions that would impede our ability to fulfill the University’s mission to provide an outstanding education for our students and care for our patients. This is what I sent out to all alumni last night and I wanted you all to see it as well since it can directly affect all of us. In addition to potentially raising the national debt by over $1 trillion over the course of ten years, the current version of the legislation also mandates the following:

• An annual 1.4 percent excise tax on endowment income. Although it is too early to put a specific number on the impact this tax would have on Salus, it nevertheless would reduce the institution’s ability to support its students.
• An end to access to the market for tax-free bonds. Access to tax-exempt debt is how many colleges and universities like Salus are able to make critical investments in our buildings and facilities.
• A repeal of the student loan interest deduction, used by many who are paying off student loans.
• An end to various tuition credits for students.
• An end for most taxpayers to itemized deductions, which, along with a proposed repeal of the estate tax, will have a serious negative effect on philanthropy for all not-for-profit organizations.
• The elimination of tax-free employer tuition reimbursement - a benefit which attracts employees who otherwise earn less.

I assure you we will do everything we can to sustain our commitment to our mission. However, Congress’ tax bill, as proposed, actually will raise the cost of higher education. We strongly encourage everyone to contact their federal legislators. We’re not sure what the final outcome will be but I do believe it’s important for our elected representatives to know and understand the implications of their actions at the local level.

On a more positive note, earlier this week I had the opportunity to attend the annual meeting of the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States (AMSUS), which is the largest meeting of the Military Health System with over 5,000 attendees. Drs. Karen Hanson and Felix Barker presented the multidisciplinary work they, along with Drs. Lynn Greenspan, Bre Myers and Kathleen Youse have been doing in support of our Veterans Readiness Initiative (VRI) program. Launched in 2015, the VRI provides multi-sensory screenings to veterans at local community colleges with the goal of identifying and removing any potential barriers to reintegration and education success. Their work has identified returning veterans with mild traumatic brain injury and other associated disorders that our faculty, students and staff have been able to help manage. The poster our team presented during this meeting garnered a great deal of attention and interest and hopefully will inspire a funding source from the Department of Defense (DoD) or the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Next Friday, December 8th, our Learning Resource Center (LRC) will be visited by the Montgomery County SPCA who will be bringing a golden retriever and rabbit (yes, I did say rabbit) to help you all take a break from studying. If you’re in the area of the LRC, you will notice a couple of boxes for donations to the SPCA. They’re hoping we can help them collect full size towels, small litter pans, newspaper, cat and kitten food and cleaning supplies with the exception of Pine Sol.

Finally, this afternoon, Don Kates, our CFO and I will be traveling to New York to represent Salus at the Metropolitan Caucus which provides a forum for elected officials from the five southeast Pennsylvania counties to meet to discuss and collaborate on key issues that cut across our region. This presents a great opportunity to educate legislators about Salus and what we bring to the greater Philadelphia and Montgomery County regions.

For those of you getting ready for finals, I hope you have a productive study weekend! I also wish everyone a safe and restful weekend!

Mike