Your story, “College Spends Most, Graduates Less” (Jan. 20, 2013), begins “NorthWest Arkansas Community College spent more of its fund balance than all of the other 21 staterun community colleges combined in the last fiscal year.” The graphic within the article suggests NWACC has the greatest budget deficit.

As a new NWACC student in statistics, I have learned the meaning ofdata depends on context.

Though the article notes NWACC’s $39,159,691 in revenue, it does not show exactly how revenue or reserve use aff ects its budget overall. Nor does it give the revenue or budgets of the other community colleges or two-year schools. Thus, the NWACC shortfall cannot be compared except dollar for dollar, for schools of diff erent size and mission.

NWACC is said to be “one of the largest twoyear colleges in the state,” in the last line of the story. Why not note NWACC has the largest enrollment of any community college, and the second largest of all two-year colleges, with a full-time equivalent enrollment of 5,721, second only to Pulaski Technical College, which has a diff erent mission?

Why not note that NWACC’s budget is only 10 percent higher than National Park Community College, which serves roughly half NWACC’sstudent enrollment? Is NWACC’s 3.5 percent gap between last year’s revenue and income higher or lower than the others? Is NWACC’s 20 percent dip into its reserves higher or lower compared to other’s reserves? You do not say.

Despite the article’s length and tone, it is hard to tell from the story if NWACC is managing its funds better or worse than its peers.

CHRISTINE SHEPPARD

Fayetteville

Opinion, Pages 5 on 01/25/2013