NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Republican Gov. Bill Haslam’s proposal to remove four-year public universities from the Board of Regents system and give them their own boards won approval Thursday in the Tennessee House.
The governor has said it would give the Tennessee Board of Regents a single focus in guiding the state’s 40 two-year schools, as he continues trying to boost graduation rates in the state. But several members expressed misgivings about excluding a student vote on the new boards and concerns that the change could breed unhealthy competition for state funding among the schools.
The House ultimately voted 71-19 to pass the bill.
Haslam’s plan calls for creating local boards for Austin Peay in Clarksville; East Tennessee in Johnson City; Middle Tennessee in Murfreesboro; Tennessee Tech in Cookeville; Tennessee State in Nashville; and the University of Memphis. Those boards would control budgets, tuition and the selection of college presidents.
Board of Regents Chancellor John Morgan in January announced his resignation in protest of the Haslam plan. Morgan called it “unworkable” and contrary to efforts to enhance oversight and accountability in higher education.