Ryan's Testimony to the Higher Education Committee of the NYS Legislature

Senator LaValle, Assemblyman Canestrari, and members of the Legislature, thank you for inviting me to testify.  It’s a privilege to take part in the public conversation on the future of the public higher education in New York State.  

As we all know, higher education is key to future economic development in the state.  From workforce development to the scientific research that is the basis of innovation for the New Economy, the return on investment in SUNY is phenomenal. 

Every dollar the state invests through direct aid to SUNY generates more than $8 for the state’s economy, resulting in a total economic impact of $18.4 billion per year.  Every student offered a place at one of our four-year schools will earn an additional $1 million over their lifetime because they hold a four-year degree.   

Before us is the opportunity to take New York’s very good public higher education system and make it great – but this will only be possible with your leadership and support.  My testimony last week focused on four principal areas for investment … access, quality, capital and affordability … and I appreciate the opportunity to talk to you again about these important matters in the future of public higher education in New York.

We need to invest in access. 

Enrollment of full-time, first-time students at the State University is at an all-time high.  While SUNY community college enrollment has increased 23% in the past 5 years, enrollment at four-year SUNY campuses has held steady primarily because state funding for enrollment growth was absent.  This has resulted in a growing number of community college graduates being denied admission to a four year SUNY campus. 

Access to public higher education is a point of pride and an obligation for New York and, with strategic investment, SUNY can remain an open gateway to better lives and more opportunities for all New Yorkers regardless of family income.  SUNY maintains points of entry for all students through our four-year colleges and our network of community colleges.  In addition, for more than 35 years, the university’s Educational Opportunity Program has provided access to public higher education for students whose economic circumstances prevented them from realizing their full potential in high school.  We currently have just over 10,000 students in our EOP program system wide, a number that is capped by limited state funding to support the program.

As educational costs continue to increase and there is a larger pool of college-going students each year, we need to uphold our commitment to ensure that every single New York State student who wants to earn a college degree has a place in our public higher education system – regardless of income. 

We need to invest in quality.  

The quality of an institution is only as good as the people leading its instruction and research.   Outstanding faculty attract outstanding students.  Our faculty is internationally recognized for their expertise in fields as diverse as medieval literature, computer animation, and nanotechnology.  They are winners of awards including the Nobel Prize, Dirac and Fields medals, and MacArthur “Genius” grants.  

They are driving technological innovation in all phases of research, from basic scientific research to product development.  Last year SUNY faculty were the driving force behind 11,000 sponsored projects on SUNY campuses, 78 licenses or options with businesses, 245 new invention disclosures, 32 new U.S. patents and $13.5 million in royalties. 

SUNY faculty are also an important factor in attracting and retaining the innovative workforce that is the key to economic growth.  Our faculty creates rich cultural communities that are highly attractive to the innovators who can provide our state with a competitive advantage in driving future wage and employment growth patterns. 

That said, we need to invest in more tenure track, full-time faculty across the University system.  At our four-year campuses, 65% of the faculty is full-time.  At our community colleges, the figure is 35%.  While our adjunct professors provide quality instruction, the number of full-time faculty must increase.  They perform the research, advising and service that are critical to maintaining high quality at the university.

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