For University of Memphis counselor Richard James, the thought of holding a bake sale to prevent the erosion of an institution of higher education was once laughable.
But with state lawmakers continuously chipping away at the funding for the state's university systems, the need to sell cookies to cover basic expenditures and maintenance costs has apparently become a grim reality.
Following nearly two decades of diminishing financial support for higher education from the state, coupled with the current financial strife raging in the state's general assembly, education officials across the state have now been forced to consider and excise some extreme measures to stretch the educational dollar to meet its essential needs.
"The band-aid has become a rubber band, which is now being stretched to the breaking point," said Michael Kahn, president of University of Tennessee's faculty senate, who came to Memphis to take part in a rally with members of U of M's staff senate in an effort to send a message to state legislators regarding the deterioration of universities across the state.
Those who attended also heavily advocated the need for state lawmakers to implement tax reform that will generate more state revenues, thereby curbing future reductions in funding for higher education.
"Any talk that is conducive to producing more revenue, no matter where it comes from, to more adequately fund higher education is a good thing," said Laura Edwards, vice president of the staff senate at The U of M. "At this point, we just badly need more funding, because it has reached a critical level."
Currently, spending on higher education in Tennessee ranks well below the regional average, and is also falling woefully behind on a national level, according to Charles Manning, chancellor of the Tennessee Board of Regents.
In the last 10 years, the faculty salary for public university educators fell to 6.2 percent below the national average. In fact, faculty members make nearly $11,000 less than they did in 1990 when inflation rates are factored in.
Financial support and spending for students is also well below the regional status quo.
Given some of the grim statistics regarding higher education in the state, and state lawmakers scaling back funding to universities, University of Memphis President Shirley Raines said it is becoming increasingly difficult to provide a quality education at an affordable price.
Last year, legislators only appropriated 85 percent of the funds required by higher education institutions. This directly led to the largest tuition increase (15 percent) for students in state history, hiring and construction freezes, deteriorating facilities. It spurred an exodus of faculty members, who have been attracted to other states where salaries are often much higher.
Both Raines and Manning said the "deplorable" level of funding for higher education is having a negative impact on the entire state, and warned that if legislators do not adequately address the dire needs of educators, then the future economic condition of the state could be greatly affected.
"Higher education is an investment for the future of this state," Raines said.
Raines added the far reaching economic benefits to the state by churning out more college graduates should be a top priority as the general assembly reconvenes its session this week.
Only 18 percent of Tennesseans have a college degree, a figure that is alarming within the higher education community.
However, with TennCare and K-12 education taking center stage for this year's budget appropriations, and top state officials projecting that $705 million in new revenues are needed just to maintain current statewide operations with $545 million in additional revenues needed to make improvements, some state officials and educators are expressing little hope in securing increased funding for higher education for the 2002-2003 fiscal year.
"Unfortunately, I would be surprised if meaningful reform came out of the legislature this year that will benefit higher education," said representative Larry Miller (D-Memphis).
Legislators asked higher educational officials to find ways to operate more efficiently with less funding last year.
In other words, doing more with less, according to Raines.
Some legislators have been critical of the structure of higher education in the state, saying it is disorganized, inefficient and wasteful in its operations.
The committee, which Raines was a part, included plans to transfer remedial and developmental classes to community colleges, reevaluate the costs of sports, raise admission standards and cut anything not tied to an institution's core mission.
In addition, Manning said the possibility of another tuition hike for this year is 100 percent. But like many issues revolving around higher education today, the question remains as to how much it will increase.
If higher education is forced to make more cuts, Manning said, Tennessee students will likely encounter larger classes, steeper tuition increases, fewer classes offered and more part-time teachers in place of experienced professors when they return to classes from the break.
Moreover, Manning added that the lack of funding is producing an educational landscape where institutions are being forced to rely on student fees to move forward rather than funding from the state.
"Students need to become active in this situation, because they are being directly affected," said Raines. "If we had 20,000 students calling our state representatives, then that would be a powerful voice they could not avoid."
