Ryan's Testimony to Senate Finance & Assembly Ways & Means Committees

The University Request

 

As previously mentioned, the Executive Budget recognizes most of the University’s mandatory and base-level costs, as well as several initiatives, however, we are asking the Legislature for $120.9 million in direct state support because the proposed Budget anticipates that campus revenue will pay for these items, which include:

 

• Negotiated collective bargaining increases
• The $50 million “Hold Harmless” restoration
• Educational Opportunity Centers (EOC) contractual salary increases
• The Empire Innovation Program
• High need economic development and public health programs, and
• Increases in the cost of transportation, supplies and materials and other general campus non-personal service expenses

 

While we recognize and understand the Governor has not directed the University to increase tuition, the University has few options for revenue enhancement outside of increasing tuition, which directly impacts our students and their families, and is something the State University and its Trustees want to avoid. 

 

We have outlined the $120.9 million in total costs as it is important to understand that our needs go well beyond the $85.3 million revenue appropriation that seems to be the focus in public discussions regarding SUNY funding.

 

As you know, we have been strong proponents of a rational tuition policy that would provide for increased tuition, but the University believes that any increase in tuition should be additive to our budget and targeted towards enhancing academic quality, not applied to meeting our mandatory base-level costs and other essential needs.  It is due to this principle that the University seeks these funds. 

 

In addition to support for our base-level needs, the University is also seeking funds to enhance the educational opportunities and academic quality at our campuses.  These initiatives will also help drive the state’s economy and meet the state’s workforce needs. They include:

 

$25.5 Million for Enrollment Growth and Full-time Faculty

This initiative funds the enrollment necessary to meet the needs of New York State. As I indicated earlier, we are underproducing by 11,000 graduates a year the current need of employers in the state.  We also need to accommodate more community college transfer students, as well as qualified freshman, to stop the outflow of these students to other states due to our inability to accept them. 

 

Over the last few years, the University has authorized targeted enrollment growth to meet the New York State demand for access to public higher education.  This growth and greater retention rates have increased our student population, leading to capacity limitations that restrict the University’s ability to accept qualified freshman applicants and community college transfers.  This affects over 6,600 students and the $25.5 million will enable us to add 313 new full-time faculty throughout the University.

 

$7.6 Million for High Need Economic Development and Health Programs

As mentioned earlier, the State is in particular need of graduates in engineering, technology, math, science, nursing and allied health.  The $7.6 million is additive to the $1 million appropriation in the Executive Budget and would add 58 new full-time faculty in these fields.

 

$18.5 Million for Community Colleges - The State’s 1/3 Share

The State University requests $18.5 million to allow the state to meet its traditional 1/3 share, which requires base-aid funding of $2,600 per AAFTE, or $150 per AAFTE above the Executive Budget’s $100 per AAFTE increase.  As community colleges are the initial higher education access point for many New Yorkers, their affordability needs to be sustained.  As local sponsor contractual agreements and inflation continue to add to the cost of operating these institutions, the state needs to provide a sufficient level of support to guarantee affordable access for state residents who chose community colleges. 

 

$1 Million for Honors Colleges

Honors Colleges provide our best achieving students with premiere academic study programs in smaller class settings.  This funding will enable the University to expand the Honors College opportunities.  It is important to keep the very best talent in New York State and this initiative will help achieve that end.

 

$10 Million for Campus Performance Initiatives

Attracting the best students is only the beginning, retaining them and helping them graduate in a timely manner is also crucial.  This money will help campuses achieve our goals in retention and graduation rates, as well as help improvements in sponsored research.

 

$9.2 Million for Tuition Sensitive Student Scholarships

Public higher education also has a mission of providing access to as many qualified individuals in the state as possible.  Minorities and underrepresented students are often in need of financial aid beyond TAP, so the state provides scholarships for these students.  However, these scholarship programs have not kept pace with tuition increases.  SUNY seeks to bring the aid formulas for scholarship programs into compliance with current tuition rates.  These include the Empire State Minority Honors Scholarship Program, the Under-Represented Graduate Fellows Program, the Graduate Opportunity Program, the Economically Disadvantaged for Professional Studies Program, and the Employee Tuition Waiver Program.

 

Campus Specific Requests

·         $900,000 for Cornell County Cooperative Extension Program due to Cornell under their Land Grant status which was not funded in the Executive Budget

·         $750,000 for Stony Brook University Marine Science Program that was not funded in the Executive Budget

 

“Rolling Capital Plan” for New Capital Construction Projects

Quality facilities are key to providing a quality educational experience, not to mention ensuring the general safety and welfare of our campus community.  The University is extremely grateful for the $6 billion the state has invested in our facilities since 1995.  We are also pleased the Executive Budget includes $48 million for new projects at our state-operated campuses.  To help the University properly plan and execute capital construction projects, and to maximize the efficiency of the capital plan, the University is requesting a “Rolling Five-Year Capital Plan” which would add an additional annual investment by the state of approximately $550 million per year.  Such a rolling plan is an affordable enhancement to the current multi-year capital plan which will assist SUNY and its campuses with long range planning and ensure SUNY’s ability to maintain a steady, annual investment in capital facilities. 

 

$45 Million for Community College Capital Projects

Community Colleges are also in need of capital improvements, and while the Executive Budget added $42 million for specific projects, the University supports an additional $45 million in capital construction projects for our community colleges who have secured local sponsor support. 

 

$75 Million for Technology and Academic Equipment

In order to compete in a global economy our students must be educated using up to date equipment and technology. However, we are falling behind in this area. To adequately prepare our students to assist our businesses to compete, we need to update our equipment.  For this purpose, the University requests additional capital funding for equipment totaling $50 million for state-operated campuses and $25 million for community colleges.

 

 

Conclusion

 

Higher education is the key to the state’s future economic development and betterment of its citizenry.  The state’s investment in higher education is returned multiple times through a better educated citizenry and a fully employed workforce.  We stand ready to work with the Legislature as you move to conference committees in consideration of the future of higher education in New York State.

 

Thank you and I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

 

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