In light of devastating budget cuts, state college students this fall are facing teacher shortages, cancelled classes, crammed classrooms and higher tuition.
My sister is enrolled in the California State University system and she was saying that some classes she needs to graduate are not being offered this fall. Apparently, this is not an issue limited to California. The Washington Post just ran a story on how Maryland and Virginia state colleges are facing a budget crisis of their own.
The University of Virginia is shutting down its public computer labs. Maryland’s community colleges are turning away students by the thousands. Classes are larger at George Mason and Virginia Tech. The University of Maryland Baltimore County is cutting positions. And Virginia’s state universities are coping with furloughs for the first time in recent memory.
State funding for higher education is eroding in Virginia and Maryland, reflecting a national retrenchment for public colleges and universities.
Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) announced a nearly 15 percent reduction in state aid this week, to be partly offset by federal stimulus dollars. Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) reduced higher education funding by $30 million last month. They were the latest in a string of cuts in the two states that have diminished overall support to higher education by 10 percent in Maryland and 20 to 30 percent in Virginia, all in little more than a year.
Jillian Ferron, a 19-year-old GMU sophomore, said classes seem “a touch bigger” this year and course choices seem fewer.
Are your children attending state school? What has their experience been this fall?
My alma mater-
the University of Missouri- just enrolled it’s largest class ever. They seem ready to support the number of students they have, but they’ve always been ginormous, so the infrastructure exists. Plus money has always been tight, so further tough times probably won’t have much of an impact.
I know
That the tight budgets are real. UVa is totally strapped for cash, and has been for a few years. But the public computer labs aren’t part of that. One of my friends is in charge of UVa computing, and the reason they pulled the labs is that 99% of the kids were coming in with their own laptops, and the labs were completely empty. What the kids needed was wireless access, not labs.
Good point!
interesting point
Universities must be pleased with that – I imagine keeping up with the costs of maintaining computer lab infrastructure would be a huge and ongoing cost.
My daughter attends
a state university. Just today she called to tell me that she was going to buy a new laptop because the hours and lab help had been cut in the media center. She thought she could squeak through this, her last year, with her 4 year old lap top with supplemental trips to the media center, but, alas…it’s not to be.
Their tuition is rising for spring semester, too…I’m thinking three percent?
They’re not hiring
DH is (was?) planning on going all out for the faculty market this year. But so far no universities have posted in his area. Usually there are 15+ schools hiring. The hiring for business schools is also down but apparently much less than other programs (seems a little strange that business school hiring isn’t being hit more…). So now we’re hoping DH can get a Fellowship or something. And there’s always next year… He’s in physics and DOE has been very supportive with funding so hopefully it will trickle down to faculty hiring.
UC’s tuition
going up 32% in the next year or so. It totally stinks.