State support for higher ed expected to increase

[Hibush]

The prognosis for state spending looks unusually good, according to an analysis by the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association . It has now pushed over $100 billion a year.

The West is seeing some of the bigger increases (California, Nevada, Oregon, Arizona), but also Missouri, Arkansas and Lousiana. Perhaps different motivations btween those two regions?

Some states that have been having a bad time of it continue to do so (Hawaii, Vermont, Alaska, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania) with even or lower support.

Some big bucks may flow in New York, where the governor wants to raise enrollment in the public university system from 376,000 to 500,000. That increase may cost some of the (too?) many other schools in the region enrollment.

[apl68]

Arkansas has never exactly been a higher ed leader, but we haven't slashed funding in bad years the way some states have.  Simply by virtue of that we've moved up a bit in the rankings for higher ed support over the years.  We've also not had the vexed relations between our legislators and academic leaders that some states have witnessed.  There's never been a sense that higher ed has gotten too big for its britches and needs to be defunded to put it in its place.  It's generally recognized as a public good worthy of support--even in a state that has always had a marked tendency toward frugality in funding public goods.

Louisiana slashed higher ed spending (and almost everything else) quite drastically some years back, and is still trying to recover from that under more sensible leadership.  Not sure about Missouri.

[mahagonny]

Some big bucks may flow in New York, where the governor wants to raise enrollment in the public university system from 376,000 to 500,000. That increase may cost some of the (too?) many other schools in the region enrollment.

Eh, I'd be happier to see the competing schools get the enrollment. SUNY has a poor reputation for its treatment of faculty.

[Hibush]

Some big bucks may flow in New York, where the governor wants to raise enrollment in the public university system from 376,000 to 500,000. That increase may cost some of the (too?) many other schools in the region enrollment.

Eh, I'd be happier to see the competing schools get the enrollment. SUNY has a poor reputation for its treatment of faculty.

Do you see it as SUNY chairs and dean are poor managers or as the SUNY system offering a bad deal to faculty collectively? Both should be addressable by the union negotiations, so it is interesting to know where unionization as a remedy is inadequate.

[dismalist]

I read the article about New York, my former home State. CMIIR, but it seems as though all this spending is aspirational: You guys get billion dollars worth of grants from the Feds or somebody else. Unfunded mandates? Bullshit?

[Wahoo Redux]

Oh please, oh please, oh please, oh please...

Our culture is flexible and changeable.  I've always thought that there would be an adjustment in favor of higher ed as people begin to panic when their colleges begin to falter.  Our uni is in trouble, and if they close or reduce it much more it is badly going to hurt this community and the surrounding suburbs.  If they shutter us it is the end of our downtown.  Our students are almost all local. 

We need to keep out troubled colleges in the headlines.  Aspirational, yes, but at least people are talking about education.  I've always thought this could work in the long run.

[marshwiggle]

Oh please, oh please, oh please, oh please...

Our culture is flexible and changeable.  I've always thought that there would be an adjustment in favor of higher ed as people begin to panic when their colleges begin to falter.  Our uni is in trouble, and if they close or reduce it much more it is badly going to hurt this community and the surrounding suburbs.  If they shutter us it is the end of our downtown.  Our students are almost all local. 

We need to keep out troubled colleges in the headlines.  Aspirational, yes, but at least people are talking about education.  I've always thought this could work in the long run.

As long as the discussion centres around education and the value students derive from it, more discussion is better. If it mostly focuses on higher education as the battleground for the culture wars, the public will probably lose interest and/or patience.

[mahagonny]

Some big bucks may flow in New York, where the governor wants to raise enrollment in the public university system from 376,000 to 500,000. That increase may cost some of the (too?) many other schools in the region enrollment.

Eh, I'd be happier to see the competing schools get the enrollment. SUNY has a poor reputation for its treatment of faculty.

Do you see it as SUNY chairs and dean are poor managers or as the SUNY system offering a bad deal to faculty collectively? Both should be addressable by the union negotiations, so it is interesting to know where unionization as a remedy is inadequate.

Well, here's something. A few years ago.  https://www.theknightnews.com/2015/10/07/almost-six-years-later-no-contract-for-cuny-union/

[Hibush]

Some big bucks may flow in New York, where the governor wants to raise enrollment in the public university system from 376,000 to 500,000. That increase may cost some of the (too?) many other schools in the region enrollment.

Eh, I'd be happier to see the competing schools get the enrollment. SUNY has a poor reputation for its treatment of faculty.

Do you see it as SUNY chairs and dean are poor managers or as the SUNY system offering a bad deal to faculty collectively? Both should be addressable by the union negotiations, so it is interesting to know where unionization as a remedy is inadequate.

Well, here's something. A few years ago.  https://www.theknightnews.com/2015/10/07/almost-six-years-later-no-contract-for-cuny-union/

That's the City university. Different set of universities, funding source and union.

I didn't see anyting in the original story whether CUNY also plans to expand enrollment. My sense is that they would not be pulling students away from the region's small private schools the way SUNY's addition of 125,000 students would.

[mahagonny]

If they are like many states, they do not pay 50% of your social security tax like non-state run businesses do.

[Mobius]

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

[dismalist]

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

Yup. State employees need not pay social security taxes if and only if the State has an at least comparable retirement program. Social security by another name.

One can only avoid social security taxes by becoming Amish. However, the Amish don't take just anybody. They have standards.

[mahagonny]

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

No. I meant that in those states where public employees do not pay social security tax, mine for instance, the employer also does not match it. That's why I would rather see the private colleges get the funding.

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

Yup. State employees need not pay social security taxes if and only if the State has an at least comparable retirement program. Social security by another name.

Social security is the better deal. It goes on for as long as you live. The retirement programs are a finite sum.

[dismalist]

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

No. I meant that in those states where public employees do not pay social security tax, mine for instance, the employer also does not match it. That's why I would rather see the private colleges get the funding.

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

Yup. State employees need not pay social security taxes if and only if the State has an at least comparable retirement program. Social security by another name.

Social security is the better deal. It goes on for as long as you live. The retirement programs are a finite sum.

States make and have made contributions to their retirement plans from general revenue also. That's an employer contribution by another name.

State retirement plans, like Social Security, are annuities.  If they are or become unfunded, they become Pay-As-You-Go or get re-funded. They go on forever.

[Mobius]

How would this help students and/or faculty?

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

No. I meant that in those states where public employees do not pay social security tax, mine for instance, the employer also does not match it. That's why I would rather see the private colleges get the funding.

What does this have to do with anything? Your figures are wrong. It's about 25% of states where public employees don't pay into Social Security. In some of those states, higher ed employees do have FICA withheld.

Yup. State employees need not pay social security taxes if and only if the State has an at least comparable retirement program. Social security by another name.

Social security is the better deal. It goes on for as long as you live. The retirement programs are a finite sum.