When classes at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga begin Monday, students, faculty and staff will find a campus undergoing significant transformation. It seems safe to say that in many ways UTC is entering a new era. Changing admissions standards, reduced state appropriations, a revised tuition structure, new rules designed to improve retention and graduation, and major infrastructure projects suggest that is the case. Taken as a whole, the coming academic year presents Chancellor Roger Brown and staff with challenges that must be met if the institution is to maintain a positive trajectory.
The most pressing issue is financial. UTC, like almost every institution of higher learning in the state and nation, must now do more with less money.
Major cuts in state appropriations — 25 percent in two years — make it more difficult for UTC to properly pay faculty and staff, to provide routine upkeep and to purchase or maintain up-to-date classroom equipment and subscriptions. The reduction in funding also continues the disturbing trend of shifting a growing share of the cost for higher education from the state to students and parents.
More investment needed
That fiscal transfer is detrimental in both the short and long term to the state. Government should invest more heavily in educating the highly trained workforce Tennessee will need to attract well-paying jobs in a competitive workplace.