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UA chancellor gets on knees, begs for full funding Thursday, Oct 26, 2006 By Rob Moritz Arkansas News Bureau LITTLE ROCK - The chancellor of the University of Arkansas' flagship campus got down on his knees Wednesday and begged state legislators to fully fund his budget request and those of the other state colleges and universities. The UA-Fayetteville campus would be $36 million short of its funding needs even under state higher education funding formula, and state higher education institutions will still need more money for capital improvements if voters approve a $250 million bond issue on the Nov. 7 general election ballot, UA Chancellor John White said. "I will get down anytime and ask you to fully fund our formula for colleges and universities across this state," White told lawmakers reviewing state agency budgets at the state Capitol. "We have got to have Arkansas competing at the leading edge in the knowledge-based industry. We cannot be left behind." White, along with University of Arkansas System President B. Alan Sugg, also urged the Legislative Council and the Joint Budget Committee members to support the proposed bond issue for building projects and technology upgrades at state universities and two-year colleges. Since Oct. 11, lawmakers have been reviewing the budgets of state agencies, commissions and departments, along with those of state colleges and universities, in preparation for the 2007 legislative session. On Tuesday, lawmakers reviewed the budgets of Arkansas State University in Jonesboro and its two-year college affiliates. Wednesday, lawmakers reviewed the budget requests for the colleges and universities in the UA system. The Fayetteville campus is requesting a $331.8 million budget for the 2007 fiscal year, including $4 million to add 40 new faculty positions and a 3 percent faculty pay increase. A 5.25 percent tuition hike, which went into effect July 1, along with a $6 million increase in state aid would fund the pay raises and 40 new faculty, White said earlier this year when UA trustees approved the tuition hike. The Fayetteville campus needs about $335.6 million for capital improvements, he told lawmakers Wednesday. "The General Improvement Funding process has not provided the infusion of capital, and as a result, we are really losing ground," White said. "We're busting at the seams through the combination of facility deterioration and growth of enrollment." Sugg presented lawmakers with a chart showing that the buildings on the state's colleges and universities have not been funded as well as in surrounding states. Colleges and universities in Arkansas have received about $142 million from 1994-2005 for construction and renovation of buildings, he said, or about $14.2 million annually for the 10 universities and 22 two-year schools in Arkansas. Mississippi colleges and universities received $650 million from 1994-2005 and higher education institutions in Tennessee received $650 million. In Oklahoma, state colleges and universities received $1.1 billion during the same period. Under the higher education bond proposal, $100 million would be used to pay off existing bonds and $150 million would be earmarked for Arkansas' 10 public universities and 22 two-year colleges for capital improvements and technology upgrades. About $63 million would go to the University of Arkansas System and be split among campuses in Fayetteville, Fort Smith, Little Rock, Monticello, Pine Bluff and the medical school under the plan. The University of Central Arkansas would receive $13 million, Arkansas State University $9 million, Arkansas Tech University $7.5 million, Henderson State University $4 million and Southern Arkansas University $3.5 million. The distribution of money was decided based on student enrollment, space needs and the condition of facilities at the various campuses. About $9.3 million also would be allocated for the e-Corridor connection, a high capacity fiber optic research network for 10 universities and the medical sciences campus. The remainder of the money would be allocated among the state's two-year colleges. On Tuesday, Linda Beene, director of the state Higher Education Department, told lawmakers that state higher education institutions would seek $236.7 million in additional revenue for operations over the next biennium. She also said that state universities and two-year colleges also are seeking an additional $318 million for capital improvements, though that amount would drop if voters on Nov. 7 approve a proposed $250 million bond issue. During Wednesday's budget meeting, White said UA Fayetteville has a 56.4 percent graduation rate and set a record for student enrollment this fall with 17,929 students. He said the university is working to improve the recruitment of graduates of two-year colleges to the four-year university, and is beefing up its efforts to recruit minority students to the school. |
