Michigan universities see shrinking state appropriations
State schools in Michigan saw a drastic cut in state appropriations for fiscal 2012, continuing a longtime trend of state funding decreasing as tuition fees increase.
In all, state appropriations for public Michigan colleges reduced by 15 percent.
Those cuts were recommended by Gov. Rick Snyder in February, passed by the state legislature in May and reiterated in a report published by the House Fiscal Agency Sept. 16. They will go live when the fiscal year begins on Oct. 1.
Michigan’s cuts follow a national trend in which states are cutting back on higher education spending.
The fiscal 2012 budget reduces higher education funding by $827 per student, the largest cut “in the history of higher education in this state,” according to Michael A. Boulus, executive director of the Presidents Council State Universities of Michigan.
The 15 percent reduction follows a 2.8-percent cut in state appropriations for public universities in fiscal 2011.
The state this year budgeted about $1.2 billion toward higher education. In Washtenaw County, Eastern Michigan University was awarded $65 million of that total and University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus was given $269 million.
But as state appropriations decrease, the number of in-state college students is on a slight 0.5 percent uptick, figures show. Additionally, the revenue received from tuition and fees at Michigan’s 15 public universities is expected to increase by 6.5 percent, or more than $600 per student.
U-M is least affected by the cuts. At U-M’s Ann Arbor campus, state appropriations make up 16.9 percent of the school’s general fund revenue.
But EMU is more reliant on state funds. There, state appropriations constitute 22.8 percent of the school’s general fund revenue.
EMU this year increased tuition by 3.65 percent, raising the cost about $10 per credit hour. The University of Michigan raised in-state tuition 6.7 percent last year.
Kellie Woodhouse covers higher education for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at kelliewoodhouse@annarbor.com or 734-623-4602 and follow her on twitter.
state university funding
Comments
Technojunkie
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 6:21 p.m.
Return admissions and grading standards to what they were 20 years ago. Everywhere except UofM since they get first dibs on students. The student population would plummet and state appropriations would go much further. Cut administrative overhead to what it was at least 20 years ago, most definitely including the UofM. Problem solved. But that won't happen because everyone must have a degree, just like everyone's child is above average. Sorry, the real world doesn't work that way. The education industry is just another racket, just like the housing industry became. So long as they can get away with lowering standards to fill seats and get Uncle Sam to loan tuition money, and parents blindly believe the hype, the game will continue. Maybe we should pay more attention to what kids learn in grade school instead of playing "let's pretend" with academic qualifications when they hit voting age?
PittsfieldTwp
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 5:52 p.m.
With a chart like that, not much needs to be said. It's time to start cutting back on obscure non-essential research and start using what money is left on training kids. If tuition was affordable, and the state was footing the bill, it would be different. But households cannot continue to pay for a college education that has too high of a ratio leaning towards research vs. education. I get it. Research saves lives and creates spin-off companies. But during times like these, we need to examine all the research being down and cull out the stuff that is just "writing papers for the sake of writing papers".
Michigoose
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 4:48 p.m.
Median family income for U-M students is $200,000 per year. The University is doing great research but is failing to educate the best and brightest in Michigan, because many of them cannot afford to attend or must drop out due to family financial problems.
PittsfieldTwp
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 5:53 p.m.
Exactly.
Kafkaland
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 5:26 p.m.
Michigoose, this has been debunked over and over again here. No need to rehash it. And UM offers very substantial financial aid to students from families in the lower income brackets - much of it paid for by out of state students who pay full tuition.
Brian Kuehn
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 5:22 p.m.
"Median family income for U-M students is $200,000 per year" @Michigoose: where did you locate that particular fact?
Geoff Larcom
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 4:20 p.m.
Note: Before raising tuition 3.65 percent for this year, EMU did not raise tuition at all for the 2010-11 academic year. EMU has led the state of Michigan in tuition restraint the past three years. This is particularly relevant because one year's increase builds on the previous one. Despite the cutbacks in state aid, EMU has made a strong effort to help its students afford college.
Martin S.
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 11:46 p.m.
Oh, yes! EMU is so financially responsible! Shall we revisit the ridiculously unnecessary Presidential "mansion" that's still so out-of-place with respect to the campus as a whole and Ypsilanti? Or, shall we take a look at how EMU "threatened" each Union group earlier in the year that if they didn't "give up" their raises, dozens of employees would be laid off (which did indeed happen). Or, perhaps we should consider the continuum of "financial waste" at EMU, which still includes an incredibly high amount of travel ("boondoggles" ) for its staff. What a wonderful FOIA that's going to be.
Ron Granger
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 1:54 p.m.
I would love to see in-state vs. out of state overlayed on that graph.
Gordon
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 1:27 p.m.
Sounds reasonable to me that State appropiations are being reduced. Would sound reasonable that tution would be reduced also. Seems those paying tution have had their incomes reduced also. The key here is a chain of events that make everyone take a cut to continue the industry - education. If auto workers are on a two tier system then the ability of their children to pay for college has been reduced. If universities begin to cut the salaries of learned professors then the number of unversities might remain the same. Yes, there are scholarships etc to help including graduates with large debt and no prospect of job. Seems in our interest to get ahead financially we might be endangering the whole system. Higher education managed to have inflation during the last thirty years of deflation. Something is out of whack & market forces will correct it at some point in time; but it will be very painful instead of midly dis-comforting.
Michael Cohen
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 1:21 p.m.
In-state tuition is about 1/3 of out-state tuition. About 60 percent of the students are in-state, and the legislature pushes to keep that fraction high. The result is that the University actually gets less from the State than it gives up by discounting tuition for in-state students. With each cut from the State, that gap gets bigger. The State wants the UM to be a world class research university and an engine of growing a new Michigan economy. But this structure for funding actually holds the University back.
sellers
Tue, Sep 27, 2011 : 11:32 a.m.
This is a rapidly changing funding structure and is changing the business of higher education for Michigan residents. At some point, why would instate tuition be different from out-of-state tuition, since residential taxes no longer help sustain the institution? When will U–M, MSU, or WSU decide to become private? What about bigger schools buying smaller ones (Think MSU taking back Oakland U.)? It's not that the move is wrong, or a mistake. It's a significant shift, and with revolution-like changes folks need to be prepared for how to operate and plan with such changes. Residents with MET or similar situations surely will have questions on the value of such trusts?