The University of Wisconsin should expect enrollment cuts and tuition hikes in the next year if state support for the UW system continues to decline, system president Katharine Lyall warned at the Board of Regents meeting Aug. 22.
UW officials cautioned that without more state aid, students would encounter fewer faculty, larger classes and less instructional technology.
“We have now hit the wall. We cannot continue this trend,” UW System president Katharine Lyall said. “We are nearing the end of our capacity to make do with fewer state resources. We must live within our means even if it means a smaller university system. This is a watershed moment for the state of Wisconsin.”
Of the large public institutions in the Midwest, the UW system has experienced the most massive cuts in state funding dating back to 1989. UW also accounted for 23 percent of direct cuts in Gov. Scott McCallum’s budget repair bill, while the system only accounts for 9 percent of the entire state budget.
This has some on the Board worried.
“The Department of Revenue’s latest [budget deficit] estimate is $1.5 billion, but last night I heard the gubernatorial debate and they were saying $2.8 billion,” said Regent Phyllis Krutsch. “The last time around, UW took 25 percent of the cuts. I’m very concerned we will have a serious cut–one we’re not ready for.”
The UW system currently enrolls 2,400 more students than projections had indicated.
“Ironically, at a time when enrollment rates are higher than ever, state cuts in funding are also at their highest,” Lyall said.
As a result, the state spends about $5,000 to support each UW student while the national average is $6,000. Additionally, with increased enrollment comes a reduction in the number of faculty employed at UW campuses.
The excess enrollment is one reason why the Board favors enrollment cuts instead of tuition hikes.
In order to cope with last year’s $44 million cut in state funding, UW raised tuition 8.2 percent. Projected cuts in state aid for the UW system next year are unknown, but some regents are predicting the numbers will be “grim” and “upsetting.”
Regent Jay Smith urged the Board of Regents to look beyond state funding and to work better with available resources.
“The state is not the only source of revenue,” Smith said. “We must work better with the other sources of revenue. If we don’t, then we’ll have to reduce enrollment.”
Cora Marett, UW System senior vice president for academic affairs, said the efforts of the UW and technical colleges of Wisconsin to address the shortage of nurses are paying off. In Wisconsin, half of the nursing job force will reach retirement age in the next 15 years while job openings in nursing will increase by 25 percent.
“The UW system and technical colleges have worked together to address this problem,” Marett said. “As a result, there are waiting lists at nursing schools–a sign of the need for expansion. With expansion, there is a need for additional instructors. This can be helped by increased state funds.”
Marett said the investment the state makes in the UW system would pay off in the future. A report by the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges indicates employees, visitors and students spend $393 million a year in the cities and towns in which they are located. Any enrollment cut would dig into that spending.
Board of Regents members remained convinced that without an increase in state funding, the UW system faces drastic changes in the near future. Lyall urged state politicians to be reasonable when making next year’s budget.
“Our legislators must be realistic and realize that we can’t have rising enrollment rates without matching state funding,” Lyall said.
