By Chelsey Seidel
Edited by Frankie Mansfield
The presidents of the three major research universities in S.C. say that now is the time for more state funding for higher education and made their cases Wednesday to the Senate Education Committee for some of the millions of dollars of budget surplus. USC President Harris Pastides, Clemson University President James Barker and Raymond Greenberg, head of the Medical University of South Carolina, presented their top budget priorities for 2012-13 fiscal year to the Senate Education Committee.
"We need a new funding model, that old one is broken," Barker said. "Since families are feeling the same economic effects, we can't fund our plan primarily through tuition increases."
USC in-state tuition currently ranks highest among SEC public schools, and S.C. universities have come under fire for raising tuition even as the state's economy tanked with the recent economic downturn.
State universities are among the many agencies trying to get a piece of the General Assembly's $900 million surplus. However, state budget director Les Boles, has cautioned that when previously appropriated funds have been taken into account, only $122 million in new money remains to split among all the requests.
Among the requests the presidents presented were:
- $10 million in non-recurring funds for the USC School of Law.
- $3 million in non-recurring funds for the Clemson Restoration Institute in Charleston.
- $5 million for new faculty hires and $3 million for undergraduate engagement programs at Clemson University.
- $5 million in recurring funds for USC's Palmetto College, a school that would offer online baccalaureate completion courses to students.
Palmetto College would create an online college that would take advantage of two-year curricula at Lancaster, Salkehatchie, Sumter, and Union campuses and add additional courses for online baccalaureate degrees.
"We believe it's time for a high-quality, low cost provider to come to South Carolina," Pastides said. "It will compete favorably relative to the for-profit institutions but will be dramatically less expensive."
The presidents said their universities provide the economy with a skilled workforce that technology industries are seeking and that state funding is necessary to develop innovative ways of teaching.
Barker referenced Clemson's UC-ICAR program as an example of how the university has used state funding successfully in the past. The Greenville training program is for students looking to combine automotive engineering and management and gives them the opportunity to work with faculty and engineers from BMW building, testing and designing cars.
Pastides talked about the long-standing repute of the USC School of Law and said in order for the school to stay competitive, it would need money for a new building.
"I know several people in this room graduated from the USC law school and would like to see its reputation continue," Pastides said.
Increased funding from the state previously depended on how many students were educated, how quickly the graduated and whether they found jobs. But when the economy crashed, the funding formula went with it.
USC received $184 million in state funding in 2007-08. Last year, funding declined to $96 million.
Pastides told the Senate they needed a new formula. He said for the past 12 to 15 years, the formula has gone into a ditch.
"There is no longer any rational basis for providing USC with its annual appropriations from the state," Pastides said. "It's simply whatever we got last year and there's less money so we'll cut you the same amount we cut everybody else."
USC President Harris Pastides
Clemson President James Barker
