SC Research Universities Seek Freedom From State Controls
Faced with dwindling
state appropriations, public research universities in SC recently sought
more control over their financial affairs during this year's legislative
session. Clemson University, MUSC, and USC requested independence from
the state's higher-education governing board, the SC Commission on Higher
Education, in order to work with private businesses to spur economic
development in the state. The universities wanted to abolish the commission
and create a new governing council that would have been run mostly by
their own trustees. The institutions also desired regulatory changes
to simplify procurement practices and to permit them to enter into land-lease
agreements with private companies, allowing the businesses to build
on state-owned land. The state commission, public regional universities,
and two-year colleges in SC opposed these efforts, voicing concerns
that the universities, having their own governing councils, would destroy
checks and balances in state government that make sure postsecondary
institutions respond to the interests of taxpayers. A spokesman for
the SC Commission on Higher Education stated that having the Commission
oversee all state institutions helps avoid unnecessary duplication of
academic programs, makes transfer policies smoother, and coordinates
efforts to improve SC resident’s access to college. Furthermore,
the commission suggested that research universities, acting on their
own, would probably gain more political power than other institutions,
and that keeping all institutions under one umbrella helps protect regional
universities and community colleges, and leads to a fairer distribution
of state funds among all institutions.
Source: Chronicle of Higher Education—Government & Politics—Volume
49, Issue 41, Page A19
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