Other state models

Date: May 20, 2004

Other state models

Date: May 20, 2004

Were we to follow the models from neighboring states, Ole Miss & MSU would have their own separate boards with all the other universities under an IHL-like common board. This would be even less fair, IMO.

Date: May 20, 2004

Some states have a unified university system (The University of Podunk at Podunk City, etc.) I am sure inequities still happen, but it works well for some states. In Tennessee, there is a state system and then there is Memphis State (now U. of Memphis) which is outside the UT system. When I was there, that caused friction and problems, but UM did not want to be absorbed into the system. We talked on another thread about whether MS is ready or would benefit from such a scheme, and the conscensus seemed to be that it would never happen here. The model that is desired by some parties is for USMGC to be MSUGC, or even for USM to be MSU-Hattiesburg.

Date: May 20, 2004

At present in South Carolina, each university in the state system has its own Board of Trustees. There is a bureaucratic entity in Columbia called the Commission on Higher Education that doles out state appropriations accoding to a formula, approves degree programs, does site visits, and has made the universities jump through some "performance" hoops, but it lacks the power of a system Board of Regents.

For instance, each institution's Board sets tuition, subject only to upper limits enacted by the legislature--if the legislature has chosen to pass a bill containing such limits.

Governor Sanford has pushed for a system Board of Regents, but the big 3 in South Carolina (Clemson, USC with its branch campuses, and Medical University of SC) are counterpushing for more autonomy. It will be interesting to see how that plays out, as direct state appropriations keep declining as a percentage of each university's budget.

Our system in SC has a lot of problems (for instance, both the legislature and the CHE now tilt toward the community colleges) but the Mississippi experience does not speak well for a system Board of Regents.

Robert Campbell