Category Archives: Higher Education Funding

Higher Education Oversight Committee Talks Fees, Tuition, Accreditation

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A special Senate Higher Education Oversight Subcommittee hearing occurred last Thursday regarding student fees, tuition, and accreditation.  The archived webcast of the hearing is available here.  UT and TBR leaders answered questions about student activity fee allocation before the hearing moved on to questions involving tuition and accreditation.
The Associated Press covered the discussion of student fee allocations and produced the following news story:

By ERIK SCHELZIG, Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Members of special Senate panel on Thursday raised questions about University of Tennessee fees being used to pay for speakers at a student-initiated program about sex.

Republican Sen. Stacey Campfield of Knoxville suggested at hearing of the higher education subcommittee that students should be able to opt out of their fees being used to pay for events they find objectionable.

But Joe DiPietro, the president of the state’s flagship public university, responded that free speech protections require officials to remain neutral about the subjects that speakers want to address.

“While I may have personal views about some of those topics, I have a professional obligation to keep our university in a position that complies with the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.”

Campfield cited one speech titled “Bow Chicka Bow WOAH!” and an event that he called a transgender “cross dressing show” as examples of having little redeeming quality.

“Now I that doesn’t mean I don’t support the First Amendment,” he said. “If someone wants to go dress up like a duck, God bless them. But I shouldn’t have to pay for that, should I?”

Campfield, who has sponsored failed legislative efforts to ban elementary and middle school teachers from addressing gay issues, said he also worried that underage children attending the university would have access to adult material.

DiPietro said the school analyzed enrollment figures at the time of Sex Week to find out how many students were under age 18.

“We determined there were six of them, out of 27,000 students,” he said. “I think we need to treat them as if they’re other students as well. Everyone is treated the same in that regard.”

In March, the university withdrew more than $11,000 in direct funding for Sex Week after some state lawmakers took issue with the program. But it said it was powerless to halt $6,700 in student fees being used to support the event. Students raised much of the lost direct funding back from private sources before the event was held in April.

DiPietro defended the overall objective of the event.

“It’s very important and very appropriate on a university campus to have some sex education going on,” he said. “If we prevent one unwanted pregnancy, if we prevent one sexual assault and prevent the transmission of a sexual disease among our students, it’s a benefit.”

Campfield said his concerns reach beyond the Sex Week event. He argued that few of the speakers paid for through student activities fees in recent years have addressed conservative issues.

DiPietro noted that the school’s college Republican group hasn’t applied for money to pay for outside speakers in the last three years.

“Organizations need to apply in order to gain or secure the funding,” he said.

Campfield appeared to want to press on about the issue before being cut off by fellow Republican Sen. Joey Hensley of Hohenwald, the panel’s chairman.

“We’ve talked about it enough,” he said.

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State Legislature Passes TN Budget; Adjourns

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Each year, state legislators are required by law to pass an annual spending plan—the state’s budget.  On Wednesday, Tennessee lawmakers debated and passed the nearly $33 billion spending plan.

The budget represents the State’s renewed focus on higher education.  Largely driven by Governor Bill Haslam, the budget includes full funding for the Complete College Act outcomes funding formula, amounting to a $35.5 million operational funding increase for higher education.  The budget also includes $60 million in capital maintenance funding for higher education and $250 million for higher education capital projects.  One significant capital project included in the budget and relative to the University of Tennessee is a $61.65 million renovation to the University of Tennessee Health Science Center’s Crowe, Mooney, and Nash Building Complex.

It is important to note that although this is a very positive state budget for higher education, state funding only accounts for roughly 30 percent of UT’s overall annual budget.

The state budget also includes:

  • A 1.5 percent salary increase for state employees (Note: State higher education institutions are unlike other state agencies in this area.  Instead of receiving full funding from the state for these raises, state colleges and universities have historically been required to leverage partial funding for them via tuition).
  • $2.96 million in matching funds annually for five years for UT Peds, a joint pediatric research effort between the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and LeBonheur Children’s Medical Center.
  • A $5 million commitment annually for four years in funding support for the Supercomputer housed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory
  • $3.5 million in recurring funding to leverage private matching contributions for the UTK College of Engineering
  • $24 million for the UTK Steam Plant conversion
  • $500,000 in recurring funding for UT’s nationally recognized Law Enforcement Innovation Center
  • $1 million in grant funding to the Parsons Foundation for the expansion of the UT Martin nursing building

Not included in the Governor’s original budget proposal but of extreme importance to the University was a funding increase for certain non-formula units (UT Institute of Agriculture, Institute for Public Service).  We are happy to announce that a 2.5% recurring operational funding increase has been restored to these units through the administration’s budget amendment.

Several harmful budget amendments were defeated this session, including an attempt by Sen. Jim Summerville (R-Dickson) to reduce UT’s funding to provide a 1.5% salary increase to employees.

The legislature adjourned on Friday afternoon until the second Tuesday of January 2014.

President Obama Releases FY2014 Budget Proposal

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President Obama released his proposed Fiscal Year 2014 budget Wednesday morning.  The budget proposal includes new investments in education, infrastructure, and research, along with the President’s proposals to alter Social Security, Medicare, and tax policy.  This budget proposal comes two months later than usual, largely a result of sequestration and an incomplete fiscal year 2013 budget.

The United States House and Senate have already passed their respective FY2014 budgets, although they contain significant differences.  The President’s budget will inform and spark debate on a number of included proposals, many of which will be debated long beyond the appropriations process.

The following items in the President’s budget proposal relate to higher education.  Several of these items may be unique opportunities for the University of Tennessee if enacted.

  • A 9% increase from 2012 levels for non-defense research and development (R&D)
  • Investments in clean energy R&D, promoting the safe production of natural gas, and creating an Energy Security Trust to fund research efforts that would help shift cars and trucks off oil  (a $2 billion investment over three years)
  • Investments in infrastructure development (including power grids that are resilient to  extreme conditions)
  • Funding increases for the Department of Agriculture competitive peer-reviewed  research grants to support research in human nutrition and obesity reduction, food safety, bioenergy, and climate change
  • A $1 billion Race to the Top fund to support competitive grants to states that commit to driving reform in their higher education policies and practices, while doing more to contain tuition.  This funding would support up to ten states who commit to sustain fiscal support for higher education while modernizing policies to constrain costs and improve outcomes, remove barriers preventing the creation of innovative student learning methods and new degree pathways, empower consumer choice through increased transparency, and smooth transitions into college and between institutions of higher education
  • $260 million for a First in the World fund. Up to $175 million of the proposed fund would support an evidence-based grant competition encouraging innovative approaches to college completion, supporting research to build evidence for successful strategies, and disseminating proven strategies. A priority would be included for projects designed to improve access and success of high-need secondary students
  • Investment in the recruiting and preparation of 100,000 STEM teachers and the creation of a new STEM Master Teachers Corps
  • Reforms to campus-based aid programs (such as Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Federal Work-Study, and Perkins Loan programs) to reward colleges that set responsible tuition policy, deliver good value and quality to students, and serve low-income and Pell eligible students well. These criteria are not defined further in the proposal with the exception of the Federal Work Study program.  Relative to this program, “quality” would be evaluated in part by providing “meaningful work to students.” The proposal also calls for an additional $150 million for the Federal Work Study program with the intent to double recipients in a five year time frame
  • Sufficient funding to support the Pell Grant Program without any eligibility changes. The funding request for FY14 would increase the maximum Pell award to $5,785 in academic year 2014-2015.  This is an increase from the current academic year award of $5,550, as well as the 2013-2014 academic year award of $5,645
  • Cost-neutral student loan reform that prevents interest rates on federal student loans from doubling on July 1 of this year, as scheduled. Future rates on new loans would be set each year based on a market interest rate, which would remain fixed for the life of the loan so that student borrowers would have certainty about the rates they would pay

For more information, please see the overview document below from the Office of Management and Budget. 

The President’s budget proposal can be accessed by clicking here.

Budget Update

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Last week, Finance Commissioner Mark Emkes presented the Administration’s Budget amendment to the Senate and House Finance, Ways, and Means Committees.  The amendment provides The University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service and The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture with a 2.5 percent increase (roughly $3 million) in recurring operational dollars.  These units were not included in the Governor’s original budget proposal.  Non-formula unit funding is incredibly important to UT, and we appreciate the Administration’s efforts to include these increases in the Amendment.  These Institutes deliver needed and in-demand services to Tennesseans across the state on a daily basis.  The amendment also includes $1 million in grant funding to the Parsons Foundation for the UT Martin nursing building expansion and $24 million for the UTK Steam Plant Conversion.

The Senate and House amendments have also been released.  Click here to view a listing of legislative budget amendments relative to the University of Tennessee.

Administration Budget Amendment Positive for UT’s Non-Formula Units

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The Governor’s budget amendment was released this morning and will have a positive impact on UT’s outreach mission.  The amendment provides The University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service and The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture with a 2.5 percent increase in recurring operational dollars.  These units were not included in the Governor’s original budget proposal.

Non-formula unit funding is incredibly important to UT, and we appreciate the Administration’s efforts to include these increases in the Amendment.  Every day, these Institutes deliver needed and in-demand services to Tennesseans across the state.