The state, UW, UW System

Sifting and Winnowing: Reframing the Conversation About Tuition

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Sifting and Winnowing, an independent blog for the University of Wisconsin-Madison, offers a new view on tuition today. The  anonymous writer of the blog post argues that resident tuition could be viewed as nothing more than state-subsidized non-resident tuition. When viewed this way, changes in state support will directly and more transparently affect the cost of tuition:

1. Let the overall budgetary needs of the University, constrained by market considerations (e.g., comparisons to peer universities) and/or a voluntary growth cap, objectively determine out-of-state tuition.

2. Let the state subsidy to the University, divided among the number of in-state students, objectively determine the reduction in in-state tuition relative to the out-of-state cost.

With tuition decisions framed in this way, reductions in state GPR will no longer destabilize overall university finances as they have for the past decade, but they will be much more visibly linked to reductions in affordability and/or access for in-state students.

The national context

The Great Cost Shift Continues

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Demos, a non-partisan research and policy organization, has updated its 2012 report, The Great Cost Shift. The initial report found that disinvestment in public higher education undermined the stability of the middle class by shifting costs to students and their families.

In its new report, The Great Cost Shift Continues, Demos has found that the trend of disinvestment continues unabated:

“In less than a generation, our nation’s higher education system has become a debt-for-diploma system — more than seven out of ten college seniors now borrow to pay for college and graduate with an average debt of $29,400.”

The report found all but one state, North Dakota, is spending less per student than they did before the recession, and more than half the states cut higher education funding by more than 25 percent.

Most universities responded to funding cuts with tuition increases. The average tuition at a four-year institution costs more than 15 percent of the median household income in 26 states, including Wisconsin.

Wisconsin ranks in the bottom half of states in several measures:

  • 39th, state funding for higher education per FTE State funding dropped 20.2% from 2007-08 to 2011-12 ($6,432 vs. $5,295).
  • 30th, average 4-year state tuition costs Tuition rose more than 17% from 2007-08 to 2011-12 ($6,677 vs. $7,851). Only 20 states have higher average 4-year tuition rates.
  • 29th, state higher education affordability Tuition at a 4-year state institution now takes 15.7% of the state’s median family income, compared to 12.3% five years ago.

Demos was founded in 2000 and focuses its work on three areas — achieving democracy through a guaranteed right to vote and reducing the amount of money in elections, the creation of a strong, diverse middle class through a sustainable economy, and the transformation of the public narrative to elevate the values of community and racial equity.

The state

Legislative Update

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The Legislature remains in session until April 3, and both houses have been meeting to wrap up pending legislation before the summer recess.

Legislation (SB 578 and AB 729) allowing classified research on University of Wisconsin System campuses passed the assembly last month and public hearing was held in the senate earlier this week. A vote on the bill has not been scheduled. PROFS is registered in favor of the bill and offered this statement to the Senate Universities and Technical Colleges committee on Wednesday.

Several controversial proposals are under discussion:

Senate Bill 655, legislation that would make many changes to campaign finance and lobbying laws. The bill would lengthen the amount of time each year that lobbyist can make political contributions and allow lobbyists to deliver campaign contributions to legislators anytime during the year.

Senate Bill 619, legislation that would stop the implementation of Common Core Standards in the state.

Assembly Bill 750, legislation that would forbid local living wage ordinances when state and federal money is used for workers’ salaries. Dane County, Madison, and Milwaukee all have living wage ordinances. The bill would also bar residency requirements for workers on public works projects.

The Assembly Republican  caucus met earlier this week to remove Representative Bill Kraemer of Waukesha from his post as Majority Leader after allegations of misconduct became public. The caucus selected Representative Pat Strachota (R-West Bend) to serve as majority leader, the first woman to hold the position in Wisconsin.

Several legislators have announced they will retire at the end of their term or pursue higher office. The following senators have announced they will retire at the end of their term:

  • Senator Tim Cullen (D-Janesville)
  • Senator Bob Jauch (D-Poplar)
  • Senator Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center)

The following assembly members will not run again:

  • Rep. Penny Bernard-Schaber (D-Appleton)
  • Rep. Janet Bewley (D-Ashland)
  • Rep. Garey Bies (R-Sister Bay)
  • Rep. Fred Clark (D-Baraboo)
  • Rep. John Klenke (R-Green Bay)
  • Rep. Dan LeMahieu (R-Cascade)
  • Rep. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green)
  • Rep. Jon Richards (D-Milwaukee)
  • Rep. Janis Ringhand (D-Evansville)
  • Rep. Pat Strachota (R-West Bend)
  • Rep. Mary Williams (R-Medford)

Bernard-Schaber has announced she will challenge Senator Michael Ellis (R-Neenah) in the fall, and Richards has announced a run for Wisconsin Attorney General. Marklein announced plans to challenge Senator Dale Schultz before Schultz announced his retirement. Bewley has indicated she will run for Cullen’s seat.

Candidates may circulate nomination papers between April 15 and June 2. Legislators who plan to retire must file a statement of non-candidacy by May 23.

 

 

The state, UW, UW System

Senate Committee to Discuss Bill Allowing Classified Research on Campus

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The Senate Committee on Universities and Technical Colleges will meet at 11 am tomorrow, Wednesday, March 5 in Room 400 Southeast of the State Capitol to discuss legislation (SB 578 and AB 729) that would allow classified research on University of Wisconsin System campuses. A UW System administrative policy currently prohibits such research.

The original bills included language that would allow exemptions to the state’s open records law, but that language was removed after Assembly Colleges and Universities Committee Chair Representative Stephen Nass (R-Whitewater) said he would not schedule a vote on proposal if it included the exemption. The open records provision was removed and an amended version of AB 729 passed the Assembly on February 20.

PROFS worked with the authors of the legislation and is registered in support of the bill. PROFS supports the legislation because it ensures faculty will have a say in any decisions regarding classified research on campus and some faculty have expressed interest in doing classified research.

The state, UW System

Regents to Meet Thursday

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uw system logoThe University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents will meet in Madison this Thursday, March 6. The meeting is the first since UW System President Ray Cross took office last month. Cross is scheduled to address the regents shortly after the meeting begins at 9 am.

The meeting will feature a presentation by Dennis Winters, chief economic officer at the Department of Workforce Development, and two panel discussions on the role UW System can play in the state’s economic development efforts. UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank will participate in the discussion focusing on how UW System can help Wisconsin employers become more competitive.

Some of the questions regents and panelists will consider include:

  • How do business leaders use the resources within UW institutions?
  • What are business leaders’ biggest competitive challenges? Are there things UW institutions could be doing that they are not?
  • Who do business leaders hire from UW institutions? What skills and experience are needed? What kind of employees will be needed in the future.
  • What specific activities do UW institutions undertake to keep academic programs and initiatives relevant to employers, the community, and students?
  • How can curricula be structured to best meet the needs of the state?
  • How can UW institutions best prepare students? How do students perceive their level of preparation for employment or starting a business in Wisconsin? 
  • To what extent should UW institutions consider reprioritizing or reallocating resources to expand certain academic programs or scale down others?

The board will also discuss the development of the 2015-17 biennial budget. UW System is expected to outline its budget priorities later this summer.

The national context

UW-Madison Student: The Overlooked Economic Value of an Art History Degree

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Kelsey Mullane, a University of Wisconsin-Madison junior, writes in today’s Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that recent remarks by President Barack Obama and Senator Marco Rubio on the economic value of a humanities degree are evidence of the decay of the humanities:

Today, students are choosing to pursue degrees in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) subjects rather than humanities degrees such as art history, history or philosophy. There are many possible explanations for the decline in students pursuing humanities degrees. However, I believe that the decline is occurring because undergraduate students possess a distorted perception of degree value that deems the humanities as economically inferior to STEM programs.

This perception of degree value is the product of increased criticism of the humanities following the economic recession. This criticism uses numeric data, such as starting salaries and post-graduation unemployment rates, to support the erroneous notion that the humanities teach impractical skills that hold little or no value in the current job market, thereby discouraging their study.

Mullane maintains that both STEM and humanities degrees offer economic value in today’s marketplace.