Bowles Response to House Budget

June 4, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

UNC President Erskine Bowles today issued the following statement on the House budget recommended for FY 2010-11:

The North Carolina House has passed a budget that would place public higher education in North Carolina on a path toward mediocrity. The University understands the tough economic environment we are in. That's why this year we agreed to take 29% of the Governor's budget reversions, even though we account for only 13% of General Fund appropriations. We know in times like this that everyone has to share the pain. But having already cut our state-supported administrative costs by 23% last year, the massive new cuts proposed by the House this week would do devastating damage to our academic budgets and the quality of education we can offer our students. If these proposed cuts remain in the state budget, another 1,700 positions will have to be eliminated across the University. Quality faculty will lose their jobs or be pirated away. Classes will be significantly larger or unavailable. As a result, retention and graduation rates will fall dramatically. And worst of all, many qualified North Carolina students won’t be able to obtain the financial aid they need—and many more will be denied admission altogether—since the House budget caps UNC enrollment growth and fails to fully fund need-based financial aid.
It takes generations to build a great university. Unfortunately, a great university can also be destroyed virtually overnight if not properly sustained. Just ask any business looking at bringing new jobs to North Carolina how important our University system is to their decision to locate in this state. If the budget conference committee is not able to undo the damage done by the House, economic opportunity for all North Carolinians will be diminished for years to come.

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