Compilation of Responses to Op Six Comments

COMPILATION OF RESPONSES TO OP SIX COMMENTS

October 2016

CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT UNIVERSITY

General for All Institutions

  1. Is there some threshold beyond which the institution doesn’t see itself going with regard to the percentage of tuition revenue being used for financial aid? What is realistic?

Our 2016 Six-Year Plan allocates 5.5% of tuition revenue for financial aid. We have not established a threshold but will continue to monitor the needs of our students during these lean and difficult years.

Christopher Newport’s current allocation of $2.2 million of tuition revenue for financial aid represents 5.2% of estimated tuition revenue. In Spring 2015, the Board of Visitors approved a multi-year plan to generate additional tuition revenue for financial aid with a goal of $5 million – 7.4% of estimated tuition revenue. We plan to reach that goal by FY21.

COLLEGE OF WILLIAM AND MARY

General for All Institutions:

Is there some threshold beyond which the institution doesn’t see itself going with regard to the percentage of tuition revenue being used for financial aid? What is realistic?

The university has not set a target for the percentage of tuition revenue to be used for student financial aid. However, the use of tuition revenue for financial aid has been an important part of our strategy and commitment to ensure that W&M remains affordable for our students, particularly those from lower- and middle-income families in Virginia. A recent study by NACUBO indicated that for the 2015-2016 academic year, the average discount rate for incoming students at private institutions exceeded 40 percent. As a public institution, state general fund support for E&G programs coupled with state support for in-state, undergraduate financial aid reduces the need to redirect tuition revenue to student aid. Based on current levels of state funding, we would expect to allocate no more than 25% of our undergraduate tuition revenue to support undergraduate aid. However, as economic conditions fluctuate, the level of state support and changes in families’ financial needs may require us to re-evaluate the extent to which tuition revenue is needed for financial aid versus other institutional priorities.

CWM

How realistic is it to do a 6% salary increase in FY2018? If salaries are not part of the equation what impact will it have on a tuition increase rate? When will CWM decide?

William & Mary’s Board of Visitors continues to support competitive faculty salaries as one of its top priorities for the university. The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) finds that average salaries for W&M faculty continue to fall well short of the 60th percentile goal of our peer group. This gap persists despite notable increases in faculty salaries over the last 3 fiscal years. In FY2013, W&M’s salaries were 20% below the 60th percentile goal. Today, SCHEV estimates that we still fall 14% under the goal. Given the persisting gap, we find the 6% salary increase for faculty in FY18 set forth in our six-year plan to be realistic based on the revenue assumptions included therein. If salaries were not increased in FY18 and given no other unanticipated incremental costs, tuition increases for FY18 could be lowered. The Board is actively engaged in these discussions and is expected to take action beginning with its November 2016 board meetings. The final FY18 budget will be set by the Board at its April 2017 meeting.

What is CWM’s involvement with the Chesapeake Economic Development Center?

The Chesapeake Bay Economic Development Center, proposed in partnership with Old Dominion University, would bring together the expertise of W&M, VIMS, and ODU as a resource to attract new businesses to the region. The collaborative effort will enhance existing regional infrastructure by providing businesses with the scientific, analytical and educational resources needed to test new technologies and expand business opportunities in areas prone to frequent river or coastal flooding. VIMS’ on-going research in water quality coupled with W&M’s growing activities in data analytics will complement ODU’s efforts to build training programs for businesses interested in expanding/adapting goods and services that are responsive to changing environmental conditions in coastal regions.

Have there been any discussions with Richard Bland College regarding assisting them with back office operations?

In July 2015, W&M worked with Richard Bland College to assess its staffing levels and its administrative and financial processes. Since then, RBC has hired additional personnel and reports that they are almost fully staffed in the areas of finance and administration. RBC has also worked to improve its use of electronic systems, most recently completing an update to its financial systems. While clearly still a work in progress, RBC continues its efforts to improve all of its back office operations. W&M provides no direct support, but continues to work with RBC staff to provide ad-hoc guidance and share best practices on operational issues.

GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY

General for All Institutions:

  1. Is there some threshold beyond which the institution doesn’t see itself going with regard to the percentage of tuition revenue being used for financial aid? What is realistic?

Currently, Mason’s practice is to set aside funds from Out-of-State Non-General Fund revenues to provide institutional financial aid. Of the University’s estimated $328.3 million in total Non-General E&G tuition revenues, approximately 39% or $128.2 million comes from Out-of-State tuition and fees. Of the $128.2 million, 7% or approximately $10.0 million is used to provide both Out-of-State and In-State institutional financial aid. Of the $10.0 million that is estimated to be spent in FY 2017, approximately 42% will supplement In-State financial aid. This supplement is essential to help reduce the increase in the amount of unmet need. Mason’s primary recruiting market is diverse and the University draws a large number of talented in-state students from lower income categories; students who are challenged to meet their educational costs. Mason’s graduates provide Virginia’s economy with vital professional workforce in growth areas such as information technology, cybersecurity, healthcare, and business services. Many students work part-time to complete their degrees. With additional Commonwealth supported financial aid, we can assist these students and in turn provide a timely path to degree completion that enables them to enter their professional careers more quickly and to contribute to the Commonwealth economy at a greater level.

Over the last several years, Mason has conducted market surveys and tuition pricing studies to better understand the price elasticity in its Out-of-State market. Although there are many factors that Out-of-State students consider while making a decision on which University they will attend, we know that costs of education continues to me a major factor. We feel that we have little elasticity in our Out-of-State price and additional increases for support of institutional aid could impact our ability to attract and retain our current levels. This could have a direct impact on the level of instructional aid that we currently benefit from for both In-State and Out-of-State students. It is essential to preserve the financial aid funding that was received from the Commonwealth in FY 2017 and increase that amount to help with the increases in In-State enrollment projected for FY 2018.Anecdotal information suggest that standard practice is to provide approximately 3% of total tuition revenue for institutional aid which is the current level that Mason provides and feels is realistic given the University’s economic landscape.

GMU

Please provide more detailed information for Strategy 7: Support Teaching and Scholarship. Faculty salary increase information should be detailed in the Financial Plan section.

Strategy 7. Support Teaching and Scholarship Excellence – Recruit and Retain Top Talent - Mason’s external recognition for quality of work life speaks to the work environment, however, compensation packages are the key to attracting and keeping high-quality faculty and staff. Mason’s salary appropriation continues to lag behind the majority of public research institutions in the Commonwealth despite the fact that we live in a very high “cost of living” area. In addition, Mason competes with both regional (i.e., GWU, Georgetown, American, UMD) and national (i.e., Northeastern, Temple, UCLA) institutions of higher education as well as private companies and federal government agencies. Most recent calculations from SCHEV shows that Mason’s salary percentile to its peers is at the third percentile; the lowest and only signal digit percentile when compared to all Institutions of Higher Education in the Commonwealth. According to SCHEV’s calculation, Mason would need a 24.4% increase or almost $46 million to be funded at the 60th percentile of its peers for teaching and research faculty salaries. This is the largest difference when compared to all institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth. With an increasing trend in competition in the regional area and due to its limited resources, Mason is unable to retain its talented human capital when local private and public universities in the Washington D.C. and Maryland area are able to provide a competitive compensation package without the individual having to consider a personal residential move to another city or state. Without addressing this concern, Mason will not be able to retain the human capital that it’s been able to recruit and develop and stands to fall further behind in the replacement of this talent pool. Mason is at a critical point with its retention and without an infusion of base operating resources, the impact could result in an inadvertent undoing of the positive momentum that has been gained over the last several years. Replacement for the loss of this talent pool alone would cost Mason and the Commonwealth more than the support of the requested funds.

This strategy includes salary, benefits, start-up packages, and retention. Specifically, Mason’s requested funding would provide:

  1. Salary increase of 4.5% for Teaching and Research Faculty as well as Administrative Faculty and Classified Staff (approximately $17.9 million – FY 2018).
  2. Funding to support increased faculty lines along with providing faculty start-up packages for approximately 15 new faculty members (approximately $5.9 million– FY 2018).
  3. Targeted Faculty emergency retention funding to support an maintain our talent pool that we developed and benefit from (approximately $6.4 million – FY 2018)

With this strategy, Mason is requesting General Funds to support approximately two-thirds of the cost with the remaining one-third funded by Non-General Funds.

Mason could face up to a 50% faculty turnover in its faculty ranks due to retirements. As most faculty retirees will be full or associate professors, in order to maintain an appropriate mix of faculty ranks we will need to replace many of these faculty at a comparable level. Given the significant level of turnover (expected at 50% within a decade), the current strategy will no longer be adequate and must be complemented with an increase in financial resources in order to maintain a competitive faculty mix.

GMU

Is the School of Public Health still an initiative? Please explain.

School of Public Health Update

The School of Public Health is still a critical initiative for Mason. Since the submission of the last year’s Op Six question and university response, the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) criteria for an accredited School of Public Health have changed. Concisely, the new criteria require institutions to have:

  1. An MPH program with at least three distinct concentrations or areas of specialization;
  2. A doctoral program in public health (PhD or DrPH) with at least two concentrations;
  3. Minimally 21 primary instructional faculty to support academic programs; and
  4. Demonstrated fiscal resources and organizational support to adequately fulfill its stated missions.

A summary of the progress towards the criteria is summarized below:

1. An MPH program with at least three distinct concentrations or areas of specialization;

Currently, the Department of Global and Community Health now offers five accredited MPH concentrations: (1) Community Health Promotion, (2) Epidemiology, (3) Global Health, (4) Health Policy, and (5) Public Health Communication.

2.A doctoral program in public health (PhD or DrPH) with at least two concentrations;

Plans for developing a PhD in Public Health with concentrations in (1) Epidemiology and (2) Behavioral and Social Sciences are underway with a target launch of fall 2018. The proposed PhD concentrations are aligned with existing accredited MPH concentrations within the department and combine faculty strengths across the Departments of Global and Community Health and Health Administration and Policy. Both of these College of Health and Human Services departments are engaged in a variety of public health-related research and practice activities that will positively contribute to the PhD training experience.Once the PhD in Public Health has been approved by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) (target submission Academic Year [AY] 2017-2018), Mason will submit its application for accreditation to CEPH.

3. Minimally 21 primary instructional faculty to support academic programs; and

Schools of public health are required to employ a minimum of 21 full-time primary instructional faculty in the unit of accreditation. The 21 minimum is to ensure sufficient “breadth of thought” within defined areas of concentration and to provide “faculty access to colleagues with shared interests and expertise” (CEPH, 2016).

The 21 faculty minimum include at least three faculty per concentration area for the first degree level offered and one additional faculty member per degree level. For example, a concentration within both MPH and PhD degrees (i.e., epidemiology) requires a minimum of four faculty members.

Currently, the Department of Global and Community Health is comprised of 17 faculty full-time equivalents (FTEs), 7 of which are dedicated to the undergraduate Community Health program (current enrollment exceeds 535 students). It is not clear yet whether any of these FTEs canbe counted toward the minimum faculty requirement. Nevertheless, it is estimated that an additional 8 – 10 FTEs will be needed to meet the 21 minimum faculty requirement.

4.Demonstrated fiscal resources and organizational support to adequately fulfill its stated missions.

Mason and College of Health and Human Services have already made a substantial investment in establishing a school of public health. During the past three years the Department of Global and Community Health (the academic core for the new School of Public Health) has hired a new chair who also serves as the Director of the Public Health Institute and five new research intensive faculty including a former Epidemic Intelligence Service Officer from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and two new term positions.

In AY 2015-2016, the Department of Global and Community Health hired a full-time MPH Program Coordinator and a full-time instructional designer to support new online activities. Currently, we are searching for one additional tenure-track faculty position to support new online activities.

JAMES MADISON UNIVERSITY

General for All Institutions:

  1. Is there some threshold beyond which the institution doesn’t see itself going with regard to the percentage of tuition revenue being used for financial aid? What is realistic?

The university would not go beyond 10% of tuition revenue for financial aid. Although financial aid is a critical factor for James Madison University to enhance access for under-represented students, JMU’s tuition is so low (compared to other institutions in the Commonwealth) the total revenue generated is significantly less to meet the needs of the university’s operations and programs.

JMU Specific:

Is the increased number of low-income students related to programs like the Valley Scholars that address access issues, or is it related to an overall change in the demographics of the student population?

For JMU it is both. James Madison University is committed to providing access to academically qualified students who may not have the necessary resources to pursue a college degree due to their financial resources or geographic location (educational resources not necessarily available to them). Two of the university’s strategic goals in the Strategic Plan include: (a) The university will determine the composition of the student body that is both appropriate and adaptable to the changing needs of the university and the Commonwealth; and (b) The university will expand access, building new bridges to cross existing socioeconomic, geographic, learning and/or physical barriers to participation in academic pursuits and campus activities.

The demographics of the student population attending the university have been changing since 2000. We currently have 58% of our students on some form of financial aid as compared to less than 50% in the early 2000’s. The Valley Scholars is an example of a program initiated by the university to promote such access in the communities surrounding the institution. However, our initiatives for a diverse learning community expand beyond the communities closest to the institution to enhance the experience for all our students. The Professor-in-Residence program works with middle schools and high schools in the Richmond and Northern Virginia areas providing guidance and support to both students and teachers in the designated schools. The Centennial Scholars program admits 50 under-represented students each year. This program provides a full scholarship as well as mentoring and academic support to the students. While we have admitted increasing numbers of Pell-eligible students, the institution has not had sufficient financial aid to offer these students to offset their gap. We would like to change that and are hopeful the financial aid funding review will recognize JMU’s access efforts (and strong graduation rates) and increase the state allocation to JMU.

LONGWOOD UNIVERSITY

General for All Institutions:

  1. Is there some threshold beyond which the institution doesn’t see itself going with regard to the percentage of tuition revenue being used for financial aid? What is realistic?

In recent years, Longwood University has allocated about 6% of tuition revenue for financial aid. We do not anticipate allocating much more than this, particularly since the Longwood University Foundation is now focused almost exclusively on raising money for student financial aid. The Foundation contributed nearly $1.6 million to student financial aid in the last academic year, up 34% compared to five years ago.

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