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Clif’s Notes for June 19, 2018

June 19, 2018 by Clif Smart

Campus

As many of you may be aware, Governor Mike Parson addressed the General Assembly last week.

He discussed the need for a fresh start for our state. He indicated that he will work each day to make Missouri a better place. He stated that he will not be motivated by selfish ambition but by a commitment to serve Missourians. He commended public servants and affirmed his appreciation and respect for everyone who takes up the call to public affairs.

In this address, Governor Parson was talking to legislators, but he wasn’t just talking about members of the legislature. He was also talking about us. The faculty and staff at Missouri State University are public servants, motivated to work to make Missouri a better place.

Moving Missouri forward

I have had multiple opportunities to interact with Governor Parson in the short time he has been in office. Through these conversations, I have learned about his plans for moving Missouri forward. He intends to focus on infrastructure and workforce development. The work we do at Missouri State aligns with this agenda.

Our infrastructure needs

While the bulk of the state’s infrastructure needs center on our system of highways, roads and bridges, we know that there are also physical and digital infrastructure needs in higher education. Governor Parson championed the bonding package that resulted in renovations to Ellis, Hill and Hass-Darr Halls, so he is familiar with our infrastructure needs.

We have already begun to inform the new administration about current infrastructure requirements. Shortly after Governor Parson took office, staff from the Missouri Department of Higher Education toured our campus. We showed them the good, the bad and the ugly in our campus facilities and information technology infrastructure.

Developing a strong workforce for Missouri

Higher education is also a critical partner in developing the state’s workforce. That workforce includes a wide and ever-changing range of professional positions.

We know how valuable a liberal arts and science education is. We are committed to developing the whole student through a curriculum rich in literature, art, humanities, philosophy, mathematics, and social, life and physical sciences. Educating students to be global citizen scholars committed to public affairs is an important piece of our mission.

We will continue to make the case that an education grounded in the liberal arts and sciences is critical to workforce development. We hear repeatedly about the “soft skills” gap in the workforce. It is through a liberal arts education that students learn the communication, social and life skills necessary to be effective in the workplace.

As a statewide, comprehensive, public university, we must also be responsive to the needs of our state and the direction set by our elected leaders. This will likely require that we commit resources to expand programs in areas of critical workforce need, like health and technology. It may also require that we target specific degree and certificate programs to quickly create or grow. We must work together on these initiatives for Missouri State to continue to lead the state.

I hope you are as excited as I am about the new direction for the state and the opportunities for our university.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Smart Tagged With: governor

Clif’s Notes for July 25, 2017

July 25, 2017 by Clif Smart

Hill Hall exterior

Last week the Governor’s Innovation Task Force met on our campus. This was one of five roundtables the task force is holding throughout the state.

MSU’s role in workforce development

Governor Greitens established the Innovation Task Force to bring together private and public sector leaders from across the state in a non-partisan effort to ensure that Missouri’s strategy to promote innovation and new technology start-ups is informed by the best minds from business, nonprofits and government.

I was privileged to get to meet with Governor Greitens, Drew Erdmann (the Governor’s Chief Operating Officer and the chair of the task force) and the other members of the Innovation Task Force. I advocated for the university and for our economic development initiatives and assets like the Jordan Valley Innovation Center and The eFactory. The Governor assured me that he is aware of our success at Missouri State University, and he supports our mission and work.

We were able to host these meetings and engage with the Governor because of our investments in economic and workforce development. It is important that we continue to focus on developing the state’s workforce and investing in the state’s economic infrastructure. The IDEA Commons project I discussed in last week’s note is one way we can do this as we move the university forward.

Hill Hall renovation

Last week the Board of Governors awarded the contract to renovate Hill Hall to Carson-Mitchell, Inc. In addition to submitting the lowest bid, Carson-Mitchell, Inc. is the general contractor for the Ellis Hall project.

The project will enhance the overall learning environment in Hill Hall. It will also improve accessibility, replace old mechanical systems and improve the life safety components of the building. The project also relocates offices on the fourth floor to allow for new classroom space and renovates the old pool area into a student lounge, meeting rooms and a computer lab. The work is scheduled to be completed by fall 2018.

No university reserves will be used to fund the budget for this project. Rather, $9.5 million will be funded with bond proceeds received from the state. The remaining $1.5 million will be funded with allocations for maintenance and repair and classroom upgrades.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Smart Tagged With: governor, IDEA Commons

Clif’s Notes for Feb. 7, 2017

February 7, 2017 by Clif Smart

Clif's Notes

On Thursday, Governor Greitens released his budget recommendations for fiscal year 2018. As I discussed in a prior note, the state’s revenue in the current fiscal year has not met projections. Accordingly, the governor is recommending a fiscal year 2018 budget that is $572 million less than the fiscal year 2017 budget.

Meeting with leaders to determine strategies18278_1526-Capitol

The impact of these reductions for higher education included a $72.7 million reduction in core operating appropriations for public universities. Missouri State University’s share of that cut is $8.2 million, an 8.9 percent reduction from last year. This year’s budget also omits the line item included in last year’s for our collaborative mechanical engineering program with the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

I spent a significant part of the month of January meeting with the governor, the governor’s chief policy adviser, the lieutenant governor, the commissioner for higher education, our elected leaders in the General Assembly, other government officials and other university leaders about the funding situation. I have also spent substantial time meeting with our board, the senior administrative team and leaders of university constituent groups to discuss our strategy for implementing the budget cuts.

Based on these discussions, I want to assure you of a couple of things:

  • First, our elected leaders have repeatedly told me that they remain committed to higher education and are proud of the overwhelming success we have achieved at Missouri State University. The funding situation is the result of a revenue gap at the state level, not hostility to higher education generally.
  • Second, Missouri State University has worked through budget cuts before, and we have an experienced team who will guide us through the current situation.

Our board makes a plan18443_7245-Clifs-Notes-Board

Last week the Board of Governors spent the bulk of its time discussing the budget. The result of that conversation is the following set of guiding principles that the university will use to develop the university’s fiscal year 2018 budget:

  • Protecting the core mission of the university—academic achievement, scholarship and student success—is paramount. Budgetary decisions should be consistent with the mission and strategic plan of the university, with a primary focus on preserving strong academic programs, increasing the number of graduates at all levels, and enhancing diversity and inclusion.
  • All units will share in budget reductions and must become more efficient, but decisions about the relative levels of reductions will be strategic and reductions will not be equal in all areas of the university.
  • Given the importance of increasing revenue, any reduction in student credit hours would negatively impact the budget. Enrollment growth must continue to be a priority. The university must continue to invest in programs, facilities and technology that will grow enrollment and increase revenue while continuing to align with accreditation requirements.
  • Affordability and access remain important goals of the university; therefore, the university will not rely solely on increased tuition and fees to replace the budget shortfall.
  • All budget decisions will be made through a transparent process that uses existing budget committees, involves all constituent groups and utilizes a university-wide communication strategy. The university will continue its commitment to valuing and supporting people and will carefully consider the impact of all budget decisions on faculty and staff.

Guidelines for budget considerations19712-0134-Clifs-Notes

The university will also direct cost centers to consider or avoid the following specific strategies in making budget decisions:

  • The overall goal of budget decisions should be to help our university emerge as a stronger, distinctive and more focused leader in higher education, poised for the future. We must maintain quality, maximize efficiency, reduce expenses and increase revenue.
  • No one-time savings should be used for filling an on-going budget shortfall without prior approval from the president or provost. Transferring an ongoing and necessary cost to another unit is not an option.
  • Rather than imposing across the board cuts, cost centers should evaluate if entire programs may be eliminated without significantly impacting enrollment. Budget decisions should not reduce student access to core courses during fall, spring and summer semesters.
  • Evaluate restructuring units, positions, programs and support services to achieve greater efficiency.
  • Budget reductions should not significantly increase risk to the university. Evaluate the effects of cuts on enterprise risk management.
  • Budget reductions should not interfere with the university’s compliance with state and federal regulations.
  • Continue to develop and leverage partnerships with other colleges and universities in the state, along with corporate partnerships, for successful program expansion and increased revenue

The Executive Budget Committee will meet this week to begin the process of developing fiscal year 2018 budget recommendations for the Board of Governors. We will keep you informed of and involved in the process as it occurs.

Evaluating athletic expenditures

Last week, as the budget news was emerging, we formed a work group to evaluate strategies to reduce expenses in athletics.  The Athletics Budget Work Group will be chaired by Dr. Jim Hutter. I have asked that group to determine how we can reduce athletics expenses by at least $750,000.

Supporting our international students19724-9671-International-700x394

The university issued a statement last week about our efforts to support our international students from the countries impacted by the Jan. 27 Executive Order. Read the full statement.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Financial Outlook, Legislative Session, Smart Tagged With: Board of Governors, budget, Executive Budget Committee, governor

Clif’s Notes for Feb. 10, 2015

February 10, 2015 by Clif Smart

Occupational therapy building under construction

Clif's Notes

In this issue, I focus on progress on our legislative goals.

18279_5067-Oreilly-Family-Health-Science-CenterOutlook promising for legislative goals

Released funds and proposed legislation allow the University to make headway toward goals.

Governor releases funds for occupational therapy program

I have some very exciting news—we have made significant progress on our second legislative priority for this year. The governor has released $620,000 of the $1.325 million withheld for our occupational therapy program in Springfield and health programs in West Plains. This allows us to move forward with these programs as planned.

Thank you to Governor Nixon and our other elected leaders for making this possible. It is an important first step. We will continue to work with the governor’s office and our legislators to obtain additional funds and be sure this appropriation is included in next year’s budget.

Proposed legislation could provide funds for capital projects

Another of our legislative priorities this year is to obtain a capital appropriation for four maintenance and repair projects. The Senate has passed SCR 9, one of the legislative vehicles that will get us closer to receiving this appropriation. The resolution will now move to the House of Representatives. We are in active discussions with our legislators to see that the House passes SCR 9.

Last week I testified to the House Appropriations in Higher Education Committee and Select Committee on Budget. I focused on education as the engine for economic development in Missouri. I also focused on Missouri’s low funding of higher education by comparison to neighboring states. I encouraged our lawmakers to take action and increase investment in higher education through Missouri’s performance and equity funding models.

We will continue to advocate for Missouri State in Jefferson City. As you interact with lawmakers, I would encourage you to do so as well.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

 

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Financial Outlook, Legislative Session, Smart Tagged With: budget, fy15, fy16, governor

Clif’s Notes for Jan. 27, 2015

January 27, 2015 by Clif Smart

Ellis Hall

Clif's Notes

In this issue, I focus on the governor’s proposed budget.

18136_1520-Ellis-HallGovernor’s State of the State address

On Jan. 21 the governor gave his State of the State address. He also released his executive budget for next fiscal year. You can find more information about the governor’s address on the governor’s website and about the governor’s executive budget on the Office of Administration Division of Budget and Planning website. Highlights include:

  • The governor included capital appropriations of revenue bond proceeds in his supplemental budget. These appropriations include four maintenance and repair projects at Missouri State totaling approximately $19 million: Ellis Hall, Missouri Hall, Hill Hall and life safety improvements on the West Plains campus.
  • The governor included an increase of 1.3 percent to operating appropriations for public higher education.

These highlights make clear that we are off and running on our legislative priorities for 2015. We appreciate the governor’s support for Missouri State’s capital projects. We also appreciate the governor’s willingness to include an operating appropriation increase for higher education.

We will use the governor’s executive budget as a starting point to articulate to our elected officials the need for a larger increase to our operating appropriation, the need to release withheld appropriations and the need to keep the $1,325,000 appropriation for our health initiative programs in the budget.

Thanks for all you do for Missouri State!

Filed Under: Clif's Notes, Financial Outlook, Legislative Session, Smart Tagged With: budget, facilities, fy16, goals, governor

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