Virginia’s governor, Robert F. McDonnell, has asked state legislators to cut aid to Virginia Commonwealth University by an amount equal to half of what the university will generate from a $1,700-per-student tuition-and-fee increase this year, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Governor McDonnell, a Republican, said tuition increases in recent years had become unacceptable, but added that he had “reserved the rest of the money and depending on what happens with the board of visitors’ decision on tuition increases this year, perhaps we can release the rest of the money next year.” The increases are expected to bring the university $33.4-million; the governor proposed trimming aid to the institution by $17-million—an amount that the university’s president, Michael Rao, said would directly affect “VCU’s ability to continue providing a quality education and ensure that students graduate on time.”
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12 Responses to Va. Governor Seeks to Cut Funds for University That Raised Tuition
22280998 - December 19, 2010 at 1:01 pm
Punish the university for trying to provide a quality education while refusing to appropriate the necessary money yourself.
kevingannon - December 19, 2010 at 8:16 pm
If there’s a dumber way to go about things than what Gov. McDonnell has found, I have yet to think of it.
wall8305 - December 20, 2010 at 8:09 am
Hmmmm – as state governments provide an ever-smaller percentage of the operating costs of public universities, it is inevitable that those universities need to make up the shortfall in other ways, one of the most obvious of which is to raise tuition. One might think that VCU’s need for a tuition increase is a powerful argument for MORE state funding, not less. Gov. McDonnell’s action simply feeds into a powerful feedback loop that accelerates the cost of college for students – less state funding = higher tuition costs = still less state funding?
nampman - December 20, 2010 at 10:31 am
Maybe the legislature could hold the Governor’s salary hostage as well!
11272784 - December 20, 2010 at 11:46 am
It is appropriate to quote the Hon. Forrest Gump:
“Stupid is as stupid does, sir.”
phsartori - December 20, 2010 at 12:21 pm
A pretty lame rationale; and probably a bad policy to stake out. But, given the notorious inefficiencies in universities and poor utilization of existing resources (human and physical capital), it may help make us rethink how we use those resources.
jffoster - December 20, 2010 at 12:36 pm
I am not closely acquainted with the financial situation in the Commonwealth of Virginia, nor with the situation at the State Universities, nor with the various moda operandi of the current governor. A question then for readers who might be familiar with these: Is this possibly the Governor’s way of trying to force the universities to make cuts and retrenchments in programs and personnel, including faculty? That is of course another way universities can save money and reduce tuition increases.
psychout - October 27, 2011 at 7:54 pm
Eric,
I’m surprised you never mention in the article the nuts and bolts of what the UC’s are actually doing which is eliminating the SAT Subject tests as an admission’s requirement. There will be something on the order of 30,000 more students “eligible for admission’s review” but that is not going to significantly impact who eventually gets in since those will normally be less qualified students. BTW this is a terrible idea which I wrote about for CHE a couple of years ago.
http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ808783&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ808783
11144703 - October 27, 2011 at 10:40 pm
‘The Evolution of Selectivity’ and “holistic review” are euphemisms for avoiding TOO MANY ASIANS at the most selective campuses.
boss50 - October 28, 2011 at 11:38 am
The movie “Moneyball” is about an historic shift in selecting major league baseball players. Billy Bean of the Oakland A’s uses statistics of proven performance over his scouts’ subjectivity. The statistical approach works, and
in the end the entire league moves in that direction. Not said is that baseball today dominated
by Dominicans. And the fans (many of
them paying fans) are quite happy with performance independent of
ethnicity. College admissions should
take notice.
mdegreeff - October 29, 2011 at 2:47 pm
I was at this session, and I have to say that I was stunned that they were talking about doing holistic review when they don’t collect transcripts, school profiles, teacher recommendations, and counselor recommendations. I realize that many public high schools in CA do not have enough counselors (or any for that matter) to handle the demand of school resources that this would entail, but how do you do holistic review without the voice of the high school adding to the applicant’s narrative? Most teenagers, particularly kids from disadvantaged backgrounds, have no idea how to tell their full story, and a helpful teacher recommendation, letter from a minister, or a supportive counselor note can make all the differences. I have no idea how you do holistic review based on the self-reported information from the students, which they have had for years, by the way.
And psychout is right. The test dynamic is changing (will be more evident and impactful at Berkeley and UCLA), and they are recruiting nationally to fill beds and bring in more tuition dollars.
old nassau'67 - October 30, 2011 at 3:19 pm
1. Add JEWS (ahem) to 11144703′s “TOO MANY ASIANS”. Read Karabel’s (or Potok’s) The Chosen. 2. I wonder if “Parade All-American” weighs heavily in a “holistic” evaluation?3. “Holistic Review”: a sesquipedalian evasion of the California Regents’ ban on Race-Based Affirmative Action in 1995 (Sp-1 and Sp-2 directives).