Kingston Student Housing Co-operative: Budgeting and Governance in a Global Crisis*

Abstract

This field research case focuses on a housing cooperative based in Kingston, Ontario. The key issue is the need to craft a budget to support the general manager, Brent Bellamy, as he plans for the coming academic year. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Queen's University suspended in-person classes for the 2020–2021 school year. The Kingston Student Housing Co-operative (KSHC) depends on student members who attend Queen's to stay in its rooms and participate in its operations and governance structure. With Queen's effectively shutting down, KSHC's key source of funds will be absent for the coming year. Brent needs help recalculating the budget for the coming year, leading to advice on some of his strategic options. He is also worried about other issues at KSHC: (1) the organization's long-time bookkeeper has just given notice of her intent to retire, and he must evaluate the bookkeeping tasks that were her responsibility; (2) he has concerns about the governance structure, which sees a lack of continuity in the board of directors between years; and (3) KSHC was considering a significant build project prior to the COVID-19 pandemic that Brent would like to advance. In considering these issues, Brent must acknowledge and respect the unique nature of a cooperative as a member-owned nonprofit organization based on certain cooperative principles.