UH will lose state funding for multiple financial aid programs if bills proposed in the Texas House and Senate are passed, University administration said at a Faculty Senate meeting Wednesday.
According to Vice President for Administration and Finance Carl Carlucci, the possible loss in state funding would mean students who currently benefit from these financial aid programs will continue to receive support, but no new students will be eligible.
Essentially, programs would be eliminated after three years.
These include the TEXAS Grant, Top 10% scholarship, B-On-Time loan and Texas College Work-Study programs.
UH President Renu Khator said cutting financial aid programs prevents students from graduating and ultimately hurts the Texas economy.
The cuts proposed in House Bill 1 would cause the UH main campus to lose $65 million; the entire system would lose $100 million in state funds.
Khator called the state deficit, which is estimated to be between $15 and $30 billion, “unprecedented.”
Vice Chancellor and Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost John Antel said the budgets proposed by the Texas House and Senate would slow down the University on its course to become an internationally recognized research institute.
The University is not alone in its fight for funding, Antel said. UH has the support of Houston-area delegates and the UH Board of Regents, which understands the balance between student success and research.
The University’s budgetary advisory and master plan groups are key in helping the University navigate through difficult budgetary times, Antel said.
“We need to continue our momentum beyond the Carnegie vision of Tier One. It’s a milestone, not the end of the journey,” Antel said.
Carlucci said the administration would not begin the tuition and fee discussion until April, when the Texas Legislature is expected to make a decision about how much funding higher education institutions will receive.
UH administrators are producing a budget for which they will seek board approval of in August.
To date, UH has reduced its biennial budget by $15 million; the UH system has been cut by $21.4 million.
UH’s operating budget was 38 percent state funded in 2001; state funding for the University dropped to 26 percent for the current biennium.
Antel predicts the UH system will see its state funding drop below ten percent in the next decade.
“We need to redesign ourselves to be less of a state-supported institution,” Antel said.
The fact that the Texas legislature and the governor do not see the value of investing in education and the future of Texas, rather than gutting public and higher education speaks volumes. People need to contact their state representative and senator, the Lieutenant Governor, and Governor, and let them know how they feel about their proposed cuts to education. These individuals in state government need to listen to demographer Steve Murdock. The future of Texas will be very bleak if the draconian cuts to public and higher education happen. Sometimes, you have to raise taxes. I hope Texans begin to see what they are up to in Austin. Where is our Wisconsin moment?
The state wouldn't have a budget problem if a bunch of Retardicans hadn't wanted to play robber baron and given all their billionaire friends tax breaks!!