THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, February 5, 1996 TAG: 9602050031
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Long : 138 lines
Norfolk State University, hit harder than any other state-supported college by the budget cuts of the past decade, has annually beseeched legislators for more money.
This year, it finally might get some help.
The General Assembly is considering an amendment to increase state funding for colleges by an extra $340 million - primarily for faculty salaries, financial aid and technology - over the next two years.
The amendment also includes $85 million for individual requests from colleges. Of that amount, NSU would get $5 million, more than any other non-research university and more than Old Dominion University, as well.
Norfolk State has suffered the sharpest drop in state funding per student - a 20.5 percent decrease - among four-year schools from 1989-90 to 1995-96, according to the most recent state figures. Its per-student figure - $2,815 - is lower than that of every other college but two - Mary Washington and James Madison.
Norfolk State officials say the cash infusion wouldn't completely offset the funding inequity, but it would be a good start. Norfolk State would use the money to, among other things, hire more professors and buy more computers.
``We're very hopeful that with the General Assembly's influence, this inequitable situation will be corrected,'' said NSU President Harrison B. Wilson. ``They all recognize we have a special problem. . . . Any fair-thinking person would have to say something has to be done.''
Legislators from both parties have voiced support for the amendment, saying Gov. George F. Allen's plan to add $105 million for colleges' operating expenses is insufficient. But they doubt they can find $340 million more for colleges. Even if the increase is reduced, the proportions among the colleges are expected to remain the same, giving NSU some relief.
Norfolk State officials say that since 1989, they have lost $4.7 million in annual funding, which went from $25.6 million to $20.9 million. That, they say, accounts for more than half of the $8.5 million in cuts suffered by the nine non-research four-year colleges in the state.
Donald J. Finley, associate director of the State Council of Higher Education, said Friday that all schools have been hurt by the cuts. ``That's true, more or less, for every institution; it's more true for Norfolk State.''
Part of the problem, he said, is that with the budget crunch, the Wilder administration in 1990 halted the state's practice of increasing funding to cover enrollment increases. Schools such as NSU, Old Dominion University and George Mason University, which continued to grow, were squeezed the most, Finley said.
Norfolk State officials say they, in particular, were hurt when they reduced their proportion of out-of-state students at the state's request. The percentage of non-Virginians at NSU has dropped from about 44 percent to 27 percent since the late 1980s. The total enrollment is about 8,800 students.
Under Virginia policy, out-of-state students pay the full cost of their education, with higher tuition, while the state subsidizes the cost of educating Virginians. Yet Norfolk State officials contend they never received extra money to pay for the influx of Virginians.
``Our mix changed, but there was no recognition of that,'' said Earlie P. Horsey, the university's assistant vice president for budget.
Finley said the state council, which oversees colleges, had unsuccessfully lobbied both the Wilder and Allen administrations for funding to subsidize enrollment increases at colleges and to cover the increase in Virginian students at Norfolk State.
This year, Allen has addressed future enrollment increases with a proposed $49 million over the next two years to cover the extra students at state colleges.
State Secretary of Education Beverly H. Sgro could not be reached, but she has said that the state doesn't have enough money to accommodate all requests. At Norfolk State, Wilson said the years of budget cuts have forced class sizes to grow and kept Norfolk State from using adequate technology.
``We don't have the number of laboratories and equipment that students need,'' he said. ``They have to wait to get on the terminals. If you're learning and don't have the practice, how can you be required to do classroom assignments?''
In interviews, some students said they had not perceived a decline in the quality of education. ``The teachers are good,'' said freshman Tiffany Jones, who plans to major in nursing. But, she added, ``We need more technology in math. They keep saying they're going to get more computers.''
Jones also noted that her psychology class had to be moved to a larger room because it grew to more than 100 students.
Funding levels for colleges hinge on a variety of factors. For instance, a school that focuses on the sciences, such as Virginia Tech, will need more money for equipment. A school with a national academic reputation, such as the University of Virginia, will get more money to amass bigger libraries and lure higher-priced professors.
Finley said there are several ways to compare the financial standings of universities. And not all of them paint NSU's situation in the same light.
For national comparisons, most states report funding averages per student, Finley said. In that category, NSU ranks very low in Virginia. But in terms of funding per in-state student, which is another statistic calculated in Virginia, the numbers provided by NSU and the state differ.
NSU's figure, based on projections when the 1994-96 budget was passed, shows the university with a $3,339 average - more than $500 below the $3,867 average for the state's non-research universities. The state's figure, which takes into account current enrollment levels, puts NSU at $4,095 - above the $3,834 average for its peers.
NSU officials say that discrepancy doesn't erase the fact that their school suffered a disproportionate hit under the budget cuts. ``I don't think anybody's going to show you a document that says we didn't have $25 million'' in annual state aid before the reductions, Horsey said. ``We still have only $20 million. It was a real hard cut.''
Norfolk State administrators also point to state figures that show NSU with a higher student-to-faculty ratio than its peers - 21.3, compared with the 17.5 average. Yet Finley said that in terms of non-teaching staff, such as administrators and secretaries, NSU is better-staffed than its peers in the state.
Compounding NSU's problems are its revenue shortages in areas other than state aid. Unlike most Virginia schools, the university opted against big tuition increases in the early '90s for fear of pricing out low-income students. And it has a smaller cache of private funds: Its endowment stands at about $4.5 million, compared with U.Va.'s $950 million.
Although historically black colleges in the country often have complained about inadequate funding, Wilson refuses to point to racism for the inequities in state aid. ``I haven't gotten the feeling that that's the cause,'' he said. ``But if it isn't rectified this time, we might have to reconsider what it (the cause) is.''
Virginia State University, the state's other public black college, ranks among the best-funded non-research institutions, based on statistics provided by both Norfolk State and the state council.
Wilson said he's optimistic that Norfolk State will get some help, partly because of the support of legislators and fellow university presidents. ILLUSTRATION: Graphic
How Norfolk State Stands on State Aid
(Norfolk State University compared with other Virginia Colleges.)
Dollar amount/money spent per student in 1989-90
Dollar amount/money spent per student in 1995-96
Dollar Change
Percent Change
For coplete text, see microfilm
KEYWORDS: FINANCIAL AID STATE MONEY COLLEGE UNIVERSITY by CNB