Message from IUC President Bruce Johnson...

Fall is the best season of the year.  The beautiful autumn leaves are changing and the weather is great.  Students are starting school with a renewed sense of enthusiasm and focus.  The university campus is jumping with excitement.

This year’s enrollment numbers are up about 5%, on average, at the IUC institutions.   This is due in part to the traditional increase most universities see during a poor economy, but also in part to a renewed focus on student retention at our Universities.  Students and their families understand that in order to ensure that their time is well spent on campus they must complete courses and graduate with a degree. 

Policy makers also understand the need for students to complete courses and graduate.  This is why the recently passed state operating budget contained a funding formula that changes the way students are counted on campus.  Funding will no longer be based solely on enrollment.  The new formula rewards institutions for the number of students who complete courses, and students who graduate.  This new policy focus will put a financial premium on student completion rates and progress toward a degree.

Some policy makers, however, are concerned that the new formula will penalize institutions that focus on students who are less prepared to attend the University  – those institutions that have an “access” mission.  This fall the IUC will be engaged in a consultation with the Chancellor on elements of the state funding formula to ensure fairness and balance.  Specifically, the Chancellor is required by the budget bill to “conduct a study to identify the socio-economic, demographic, academic, personal, and other factors that identify a student as being ‘at risk’ of academic failure, and recommend how these factors may be used to determine allocations of the State Share of Instruction after fiscal year 2010.”  The study will be a critical part of the funding formula in future years.  Our goal is to make sure that the formula appropriately recognizes the validity of the access mission while maintaining a reward for student success. 

We look forward to reporting to you on our progress.