Managing Fluctuating Revenue Streams: A Guide for New Chief Financial Officers and Other Finance Professionals within the Public Community College Sector

American community colleges are accredited with awarding more than 800,000 associate degrees and over 500,000 certificates during academic year 2014-2015 (American Association of Community Colleges, 2018).These figures highlight the important role that community colleges play in the higher education sector. Nevertheless, operating in this industry is not without challenge. Changes in the economy, education market, and private sector often require these colleges to examine service offerings and price store main relevant and financially viable. The purpose of this research was to describe, compare, and contrast funding strategies employed by community colleges during fiscally challenging times; to compare the actions of the colleges in the study to the toolkit of options suggested by Mullin, Baime, and Honeyman (2015); and to use the information to provide guidelines for how colleges can weather financial storms. Data were collected from six interview participants and compared to the suggestions of Mullinet al. The data were analyzed, and the results of the findings suggested that interview participants responded to financial challenges in a manner similar to the model under review. However, there were some unique aspects to how interview participants performed. The results of the findings were used to create suggested guidelines for new CFOs and financial leaders.