Office of the President
Below is a letter sent to legislators by TSU President Dr. John M. Rudley to address issues facing Texas Southern University.
The number one problem facing Texas Southern University is the significant lack of state resources that amounts to a staggering 19% reduction in general revenue.
In fiscal 2010, the university received $122 million in general revenue and now it is facing a proposed $99 million allocation.
Texas Southern has not been allocated any funds to continue the improvements that we have started while other public universities have received enhancement funds that further widens the gap for African American students who are predominately from Texas's urban metropolitan areas such as Houston and Dallas.
There are three areas of funding that the Legislative Budget Board cuts each session as a starting point for Texas Southern thereby jeopardizing its base budget.
The first item cut is the Academic Development Initiative (ADI) funding that was approved to make up for the 53 years since its designation as a state institution where the Texas State Legislature did not fairly allocate funding to TSU but instead funded traditionally white institutions' requests for both base and enhanced funding. The Academic Development Initiative funding avoided a federal law suit, which is currently administered by the US Department of Education and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. The university provides annual progress reports to the Coordinating Board, which then submits our response to the Dallas Office of the US Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights regarding the impact of these funds on Texas Southern University. The original OCR request was $40 million and the settlement was for $25 million in fiscal 2000. These funds are a part of the university's base budget of $169 million and any reduction is a dollar for dollar reduction in operating funds.
The second area cut is the Hold Harmless funding that the state provides to institutions that suffer from unexpected and significant decreases in enrollment and other unusual situations such as the effects of hurricanes. In fiscal 2010, the legislature provided funding to stabilize the university's financial outlook since it had suffered from years of mismanagement and a host of deferred maintenance and unpaid debt. The legislature added to an existing hold harmless amount of $3.8 million by adding $6.6 million. The hold harmless funding allowed TSU to recover as intended but, in subsequent legislative sessions, the LBB removed the entire amount, including the original $3.8 million.
The third area of cuts is in our Institutional Enhancement funding, which is essentially a fund that is a consolidation of special item funding that institutions received in the past based upon specific initiatives. Texas Southern's institutional enhancement funds are for a Summer Academy for students who have developmental course requirements, accreditation for various colleges, the Mickey Leland Center and support for the administrative computing center. The institutional enhancement funds were cut from $18.6 million to $14.9 million.
A recap reflects:
(1) the cut in ADI ($25 million to $21.2 million) $ 3.8 million
(2) the cut in Hold Harmless ($3.8 + $6.6=$10.5) $10.5 million
(3) the cut in Institutional Enhancement ($18.6 to $14.9) $ 3.7 million
Total cuts for Texas Southern University for three items: $18.0 million
The current recommendation by the LBB, further cuts TSU's budget by $1.5 million in formula funding and $635 thousand in formula research funding. Total reductions for TSU amounts to $20.1 million.
To add insult to injury, the TSU School of Pharmacy was excluded from a $4 million equity funding allocation in the last legislative session that was argued for by both TSU and the University of Houston but only the University of Houston received funding. This funding disparity is a perfect example of a perceived legislative preference by unknown decision makers to fund other institutions and not Texas Southern when both pharmacy schools require the same resources.
We have made tremendous strides in raising the quality of the university during the past seven years, and we would appreciate your assistance in correcting the significant reductions in funding for Texas Southern University so we can continue this progress.
Click the attachment to view the chart below.
[attachment=167]
Sincerely,
John M. Rudley
President
[img=784x476]https://ci5.googleusercontent.com/proxy/S-AxUKduPb-Sa0SiYfVbhKzUivLAjn5IxTpGxzZQYNrDffbqdmvT2e-YU8j8P0c726AiZwzg4JZXPrWOCVUq_Y6jlv2swMrKprqoviWRa76d6-OvqFTOL4K_-rHnMXLjH3aN=s0-d-e1-ft#http://files.ctctcdn.com/ea170298001/9e6bf4f1-b753-4819-9eda-8e68f9962056.jpg[/img]
Dr. John M. Rudley
Below is a letter sent to legislators by TSU President Dr. John M. Rudley to address issues facing Texas Southern University.
The number one problem facing Texas Southern University is the significant lack of state resources that amounts to a staggering 19% reduction in general revenue.
In fiscal 2010, the university received $122 million in general revenue and now it is facing a proposed $99 million allocation.
Texas Southern has not been allocated any funds to continue the improvements that we have started while other public universities have received enhancement funds that further widens the gap for African American students who are predominately from Texas's urban metropolitan areas such as Houston and Dallas.
There are three areas of funding that the Legislative Budget Board cuts each session as a starting point for Texas Southern thereby jeopardizing its base budget.
The first item cut is the Academic Development Initiative (ADI) funding that was approved to make up for the 53 years since its designation as a state institution where the Texas State Legislature did not fairly allocate funding to TSU but instead funded traditionally white institutions' requests for both base and enhanced funding. The Academic Development Initiative funding avoided a federal law suit, which is currently administered by the US Department of Education and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. The university provides annual progress reports to the Coordinating Board, which then submits our response to the Dallas Office of the US Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights regarding the impact of these funds on Texas Southern University. The original OCR request was $40 million and the settlement was for $25 million in fiscal 2000. These funds are a part of the university's base budget of $169 million and any reduction is a dollar for dollar reduction in operating funds.
The second area cut is the Hold Harmless funding that the state provides to institutions that suffer from unexpected and significant decreases in enrollment and other unusual situations such as the effects of hurricanes. In fiscal 2010, the legislature provided funding to stabilize the university's financial outlook since it had suffered from years of mismanagement and a host of deferred maintenance and unpaid debt. The legislature added to an existing hold harmless amount of $3.8 million by adding $6.6 million. The hold harmless funding allowed TSU to recover as intended but, in subsequent legislative sessions, the LBB removed the entire amount, including the original $3.8 million.
The third area of cuts is in our Institutional Enhancement funding, which is essentially a fund that is a consolidation of special item funding that institutions received in the past based upon specific initiatives. Texas Southern's institutional enhancement funds are for a Summer Academy for students who have developmental course requirements, accreditation for various colleges, the Mickey Leland Center and support for the administrative computing center. The institutional enhancement funds were cut from $18.6 million to $14.9 million.
A recap reflects:
(1) the cut in ADI ($25 million to $21.2 million) $ 3.8 million
(2) the cut in Hold Harmless ($3.8 + $6.6=$10.5) $10.5 million
(3) the cut in Institutional Enhancement ($18.6 to $14.9) $ 3.7 million
Total cuts for Texas Southern University for three items: $18.0 million
The current recommendation by the LBB, further cuts TSU's budget by $1.5 million in formula funding and $635 thousand in formula research funding. Total reductions for TSU amounts to $20.1 million.
To add insult to injury, the TSU School of Pharmacy was excluded from a $4 million equity funding allocation in the last legislative session that was argued for by both TSU and the University of Houston but only the University of Houston received funding. This funding disparity is a perfect example of a perceived legislative preference by unknown decision makers to fund other institutions and not Texas Southern when both pharmacy schools require the same resources.
We have made tremendous strides in raising the quality of the university during the past seven years, and we would appreciate your assistance in correcting the significant reductions in funding for Texas Southern University so we can continue this progress.
Click the attachment to view the chart below.
[attachment=167]
Sincerely,
John M. Rudley
President
[img=784x476]https://ci5.googleusercontent.com/proxy/S-AxUKduPb-Sa0SiYfVbhKzUivLAjn5IxTpGxzZQYNrDffbqdmvT2e-YU8j8P0c726AiZwzg4JZXPrWOCVUq_Y6jlv2swMrKprqoviWRa76d6-OvqFTOL4K_-rHnMXLjH3aN=s0-d-e1-ft#http://files.ctctcdn.com/ea170298001/9e6bf4f1-b753-4819-9eda-8e68f9962056.jpg[/img]
