Texas college officials will meet at the Texas Capitol in Austin Tuesday and Wednesday to make requests for funding from the state during its 87th legislative session.
“It’s going to be a whirlwind. It’s going to be fast, and we’re all going to have to work together to recover the state’s economy,” said Houston Community College Chancellor Cesar Maldonado.
This year’s legislative session, which will prepare colleges for the next 2022 and 2023 biennium, is bound to be an interesting one for higher education. It’s taking place during a global pandemic that forced many colleges campuses to close and adapt hybrid formats while placing additional pressures on students — particularly those with lesser resources and lower family income, said Jason Smith, vice chancellor of government relations at University of Houston.
College officials noted in legislative appropriation requests that the pandemic put a financial bind on higher education and the state, forcing government officials to ask colleges to return 5 percent of their revenue last summer to offset possible financial restraints in the future.
But Texas is in better shape than some expected, Smith said.
Some institutions like San Jacinto College and Lone Star College have decided to make no requests, according to legislative appropriation request documents provided to the state.
“Lone Star College is aware that there is a budget shortfall. Therefore, our legislative priorities are not built around asking for more money but in holding steady the current funding formula,” said Kyle Scott, Lone Star’s vice chancellor of Strategic Priorities. The college has also focused on expanding its program offerings for students, he said.
Texas Southern University’s Interim President Kenneth Huewitt said the institution has felt the pressures of the country’s economic downturn and resulting budget cuts like other colleges.
Still, “we decided we’re going to ask for what we need. It’s not a wish list. It’s a needs list,” Huewitt said of Houston’s only historically Black university.
Here’s what Texas colleges are requesting:
Prairie View A&M University: Restoration of state budget cuts to university revenue and an additional $70 million for a combination of initiatives, including $6 million for the Health Houston Initiative, which aims to improve the quality of life in Houston area communities through outreach education; $4 million for the Juvenile Crime Prevention Center, which develops and implements research, education and training programs, and policies to prevent and reduce juvenile crime and delinquency in Texas; and approval of $10 million debt service that will allow a $60 million multi-use classroom and student support services facility to be built.
Houston Community College: With an expected increase in enrollment, HCC has requested $134 million, the same amount it received last biennium, and no additional items, according to Maldonado. HCC has also joined a collaborative request from all community colleges in the state for a combined $50 million for the Texas Reskilling & Upskilling through Education initiative to prepare and equip students with skills for in-demand careers.
Texas A&M University: Wants the 5 percent budget cut be restored; $25.7 million for the biennium to hire 128 faculty, making it one-fourth closer to the goal of increasing faculty involved in teaching and research by 514 new members by 2025; and roughly $35 million in debt to update the Biological and Chemical Sciences Complex.
Texas Southern University: Requesting $157 million for university enhancements, including renovations to academic buildings to accommodate new projects; $142 million to improve the campus’ infrastructure, and $4.5 million to advance on-campus technology, particularly to assist with new restraints during the pandemic.
University of Houston: Requests about $150 million with $20 million allotted for the UH College of Medicine and $9 million for the College of Pharmacy. UH also wants funding for new buildings and operations, and for mental health funding, which would hire more counselors and increase related services, according to Jason Smith, UH vice chancellor and public affairs.
“We had record enrollment at all four universities. We continue to grow and so physical space is going to a premium for us,” he said.
UH officials are also asking the legislature to allow them to investigate the economic impact of UH being named a Top 50 school in the U.S. News and World Report’s annual college rankings, Smith said.
“We hope to look at what it would take to be in the top 50 … and how being a top 50 school would have an impact on UH and the city of Houston, and Texas, essentially,” said Smith.
“For Texas to not have a top 50 school in its largest city, I think we’re missing out. It’s very important for our economy to have that,” Smith said.
UH-Clear Lake: Is requesting restoration of state cuts to its budget, as well as funding for STEM facilities and its community-based support programs, like its Center for Autism and Development Disabilities.
UH-Downtown: Wants $13.4 million from the state, with about $3.6 million going to public service projects and enhancements for the university.
UH-Victoria: Will similarly request funding to compensate for budget cuts and to enhance the campus.
University of Texas at Austin: Requests a total of $30.5 million which includes $12 million to the Texas Advanced Computing Center, a resource center for computing researchers, and $5.3 million to develop UT’s Texas Viral Pathogen Testing Network.
