During his first State of the State address yesterday, Gov. John Kasich addressed the broader problems of higher education in Ohio but remained silent about the specifics of his funding plan for state colleges and universities.
Kasich plans to release his biennial budget proposal on March 15, and Ohio University is expecting a 10 percent — or $27 million — reduction in state support. OU, however, does not know what it can expect in the details of Kasich’s budget plan and will not have a definite funding reduction target until then.
“We are putting a budget together that will transform our state,” he said during his speech. “You ain’t seen nothing yet.”
The state must fill an $8 billion hole in next year’s budget caused by the absence of one-time federal stimulus money, and Kasich said during his address that he is “most concerned” about those who relied on this one-time funding to operate and expand.
OU is planning for this decline in funding and has also prepared for the possible loss of $9.2 million in state money this July, said Becky Watts, chief of staff to OU President Roderick McDavis. Former Gov. Ted Strickland delayed the payment from June until July to balance the 2011 fiscal year budget, and there is no guarantee the payment will come through. But, OU has heard recently that it is likely the university will get the money, Watts said.
During his speech, Kasich encouraged “restructuring” as a way for state-funded units to manage budget cuts.
“We’ve been looking at this for a long time. We believe … in restructuring, providing a better product at a lower cost to the taxpayer,” Kasich said during his speech.
OU is pushing a shared services tactic to combat budget cuts next year encouraging departments to consolidate certain services and share costs. Kasich also discussed some problems the state is facing in higher education emphasizing that he would like students to be better trained for jobs right out of college and seek those jobs in Ohio, instead of neighboring states, after graduation.
“When (graduates) leave, we lose their money. … We lose the jobs; we lose their entrepreneurial spirit,” Kasich said, during the address, pointing out that one third of college graduates leave Ohio within three years of graduation.
“We can’t keep going backward; we can’t keep losing hundreds of thousands in jobs,” he said.
Last month, OU created a Center for Entrepreneurship that will provide “academic, applied learning and business development services across the university and the Southeast Ohio region,” according to a university news release.
“This helps students develop skills to start a business or lead a business so they leave (OU) ready for success,” Watts said.
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