The University of North Carolina System is heading into this spring’s legislative session with one main mission: get paid for the surge of students already flooding its campuses. System leaders told trustees they will ask the General Assembly for roughly $158.5 million to cover recent enrollment growth and to keep class sizes and waitlists from ballooning.
According to UNC Board of Governors materials, the request splits into about $46.4 million the system says it was shorted last year, roughly $107 million tied to this year’s enrollment growth, and about $5 million earmarked for NC Promise campuses. University officials say this enrollment cash is their first and top legislative ask when lawmakers return to Raleigh.
NC State Chancellor Kevin Howell warned trustees that without that money, students could see bigger classes and longer waitlists, which could slow their path to a degree, as reported by The News & Observer. “They’re coming for our students,” Howell said, arguing the state needs to reimburse campuses for courses they have already delivered.
What NC Promise Would Get
Roughly $5 million in the request is aimed at shoring up the four NC Promise campuses – Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State, UNC Pembroke and Western Carolina – which offer in-state tuition of $500 per semester, per the UNC System. System leaders say that money would help cover the state “buy-down” that keeps tuition low for residents and give those campuses some breathing room to handle unexpected enrollment swings.
Why The System Is Pressing The Issue
Officials point to record-high enrollment and better retention across the system, topping a quarter-million students last fall, with most of the growth in STEM fields that are more expensive to staff, Public Ed Works reports. Because state funding is based on the prior year’s enrollment, campuses have already opened extra course sections and hired faculty, then waited for lawmakers to catch up…