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After several years struggling with the Virginia
General Assembly over funding issues, three
state-supported universities are seeking a new partnership.
Called the “Commonwealth Chartered Universities and Colleges Act,” the proposed legislation — which is still in its formative state — would create a process for chartering state-assisted public universities and colleges.
The ultimate goal is to reduce pressure on the state budget — which has seen significant decreases in the amount of support for higher education in recent years — and ensure the quality of higher education in the state.
Currently involved in this effort are the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech and William & Mary; 10 more state-supported colleges and universities may consider seeking charter status in the future.
Under the current model, state funding would be reduced from traditional levels, and in return, the universities would no longer be subject to certain state regulations regarding personnel, procurement and capital projects.
Chartered universities would still remain public institutions, governed by the boards appointed by the governor and confirmed by the General Assembly. Performance reports, audits and the commitment to provide financial aid to needy students would continue as before.
To many, this is a logical, and necessary step. The institutions have been hard at work over the past decade, increasing their endowments, building alumni support (UVA alone received over $262 million last year from alumni and friends), and decentralizing local authority and pushing greater flexibility. And the reasons for doing so are clear, and becoming even clearer.
Over the 2002-04 biennial budget cycle, taxpayer support for higher education has been cut $617 million. “ In the case of UVA this cutback in real dollars totalled $272 million for the biennium. This exemplifies the continuing trend, with the percentage of the university’s total annual budget supplied by the state dropping from about 27 percent in the 1990s (pre-Jim Gilmore) to only 8.1 percent last year. For the first time, incomefrom endowments at UVA. (at 8.3 percent of the budget) exceeded what was given by the state.
It is predicted that there will be 61,000 additional students in Virginia by 2010, and in the face of continued reduced state funding, public universities and colleges must have more say in how they operate, and how they wish to allocate funding. Otherwise, they are at great risk.
We will watch this summer as the work to write the legislation that will create charter universities and college continues. It is a good idea whose time has come, and we hope the General Assembly will approve it when it hopefully comes to a vote next year.
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