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State College/University Advocate Asserts State Colleges are Effective and Productive

Darryl G. Greer

Executive Director/CEO

Released
May 16, 2006

As higher education leaders appear today before the Assembly Budget Committee on the higher education budget proposal, a state college advocate asserted that the nine institutions are productive and accountable with the limited resources they have, serving more students overall, more full-time students, and more residential students than ever, and graduating more students.

Despite criticism in recent weeks from some state officials regarding staff growth and spending, the executive director of the New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities (ASCU) pointed out today that:

The question comes at a time when the state is facing one of the nations most severe and long-lasting structural budget deficits, and the legislature is considering a budget, proposed by the governor, that contains the biggest cut in the history of New Jersey higher education.

Greer also seeks to debunk the idea that statewide restructuring of higher education, granting colleges more autonomy, has been the cause of higher education's shrinking share of the state budget.  In fact, he points out from 1984-1994, when there was a Department of Higher Education, higher education's share of the entire state budget declined from 9.5% to 7.1%.  During the next decade (post restructuring), the share continued to fall, from 7.1% to 5.3%.  According to Dr. Greer, it is simply false to draw a cause and effect relationship between state-level governance structures and funding of higher education.  The state share of total college/university funding has fallen to 25%, or 40% counting fringe benefit contributions.

Greer says, "The State of New Jersey has been headed in the wrong direction for a long time regarding state support.  The recent NJ Policy Perspective report 'Flunking Out,' illustrates how far New Jersey has slipped and why families and students pay a higher share of college costs in New Jersey."

While the state colleges and universities must be efficient and accountable, blaming increases in student tuition and fees on the state higher education governance structure or college staffing growth is specious.  What drives up student fees the most is lack of state educational and facilities funding for higher education, and whether state-negotiated salary obligations are paid by the state.  The anticipated cost of negotiated salary increases next year (FY 2006-2007) is expected to be $30.9 million just for the nine ASCU-member institutions: The College of New Jersey, Kean University, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University, Ramapo College of New Jersey, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Rowan University, Thomas Edison State College, and William Paterson University.

According to Greer, the state, with no capital budget for higher education, has, in effect transferred to colleges the responsibility for facilities construction and renewal, passing costs along to students through fees.

Greer also contends that too much has been made of presidents' salaries which, he says, are in line with those of many other states' master's level public institution leaders.  He produced a chart which compares the $250,000 average salary for his group with median and upper-middle range (60th or 80th percentile) salaries for similar types of institutions in other states, and shows that amounts are in line with the Northeast region.

"The state colleges and universities by national standards are efficient and effective institutions, serving New Jerseyans well in spite of years of state financial neglect.  Examples of cost-savings and collaboration abound and have been documented with the Commission on Higher Education," says the ASCU leader.

"The executive and legislative branches are asking appropriate questions, and we look forward to working together to ensure college opportunity, and to help our leaders find ways out of the current fiscal crisis, the critical core issue from which we should not be distracted."

(State College/University Accountability Facts and Trends)