This article from the Springfield Republican summarizes the major trends at UMass Amherst, including funding, construction, student costs, a shift to a market mentality, and student debt.
Category Archive: Higher Education News
Dec
14
2011
UMass Budget Request
The University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees voted on December 14 to seek a 20% increase in its budget from the state in Fiscal Year 2013. This is an unusually large request, but is exactly the sort of bold move PHENOM has been advocating for a long time. The needs on our campuses are many and they are very pressing — financial aid for students at risk of incurring untenable debt, funding for staff and faculty union contracts, a huge deferred maintenance backlog, student support programs, restoring the number of full-time faculty, and so on. The Department of Higher Education has submitted a more modest budget proposal for the community colleges and state universities that represents a 5% increase from last year (plus funding for union contracts).
PHENOM looks forward to a massive, coordinated, advocacy campaign over the next few months. SAVE THE DATE: MARCH 7, 2012 has been tentatively selected by a coalition of groups for a coordinated Lobby Day at the State House. Details to follow.
UMass President Caret says this request is part of the university’s goal of returning to a 50-50 split in funding between the state and students, which he says is the norm nationwide. Just 10 years ago, the state funded 63 percent.
Sep
03
2011
Higher Ed Left Out in the Cold….Again
In the last few weeks, three announcements show, once again, that rhetoric and reality face a severe disconnect on Beacon Hill when it comes to public higher education.
First, the Governor proposed how to use the $460 million in unanticipated, unbudgeted revenue from this past fiscal year. 2/3 would go into a rainy day fund, while 1/3 would go to a variety of worthwhile endeavors. PHENOM believes that the rainy day fund is important and should be filled — but NOT when it’s raining. It’s raining in our state and on our campuses. Student fees are up, support for our students is down, and campus buildings are in need of repair. This is a moment when a few dollars could be spent on higher ed — which all the politicians say is so important to the state’s economic future.
Feb
23
2011
Make UMass Affordable
The average debt levels for students at Williams, Amherst College, Wellesley, Harvard, and MIT range between $8,000 and $15,000. At UMass Amherst it is $23,614. This article in the February 23, 2011 Boston Globe makes a forceful argument for keeping costs down at UMass.
Feb
03
2011
College Affordability is Top Public Worry
(reprinted from Inside Higher Ed, Feb. 3, 2011)
More Americans who identify themselves as struggling economically are worried about the affordability of higher education than about any other financial stress, according to a report, “Struggling in America,” released Thursday by Public Agenda. The findings, based on interviews conducted with 1,004 adults Nov. 18-21, 2010, revealed that 77 percent of parents who were struggling economically said they were worried about paying for their children’s education, making it their most common personal financial worry. In contrast, 61 percent of the same group of respondents said they personally worried that they would not be able to afford to retire, while 45 percent feared being able to pay their mortgage or other debt. Coming in last was the fear of losing one’s job (32 percent).
Sep
09
2010
Higher Education Chief Decries Cuts in Funding
By Tracy Jan
Globe Staff / September 9, 2010
Massachusetts higher education commissioner Richard Freeland criticized state legislators yesterday for continuing to cut funding for public universities and colleges amid increased student demand, saying that they have put the system of 29 schools in a compromised position.
The campuses — including 15 community colleges, nine state universities, and the five-campus University of Massachusetts system — are at a crossroads, he said, forced to choose between maintaining affordability and maintaining quality. “Massachusetts is headed in the wrong direction on this, and we are placing the future of the state in jeopardy,’’ Freeland said.
Sep
09
2010
Understanding Our Tax System: A Primer for Active Citizens
An Introduction to the MassBudget Tax Primer
By: Kurt Wise and Noah Berger
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Taxes are the way that we combine our resources, through government, to accomplish things that we can’t do as well, or perhaps at all, as individuals: educate our children, build and maintain transportation infrastructure, provide police and fire protection, keep our air and water clean, promote public health, and maintain a social safety net. In a democracy, people are ultimately responsible for deciding how much of their resources to commit to paying for these public goods, and how to share those costs. That’s what tax debates are about.
Jul
15
2010
Other States Increase Support for Public Higher Education
It’s the recession. It’s the trend. It’s the times. We hear all sorts of reasons why we can’t expect increased investment in public higher education these days. But wait….look what’s happening in Maryland and in Ohio! These excellent articles paint a detailed picture of how higher ed communities can come together, make some compromises, and generate tremendous public and political support that translate into increased funding and frozen costs for students.
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Apr
17
2011
House Budget Proposal FY 2012
The FY 2012 House Ways & Means budget proposes: