University of Illinois

Speeches and statements

Introduction to Senate and House Appropriations Committee Hearings

President B. Joseph White
April 25 and 28, 2005

I appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today.

I have been on the job as president of the University of Illinois for three months. I continue to learn about this great University every day. At this early stage, I prefer listening to broadcasting. That applies today. So, while I will do my best to answer your questions, a lot of the value as a new president will lie in learning what your questions are and what your concerns and ideas are about the University of Illinois. I have the highest respect for you, the representatives of the citizens of Illinois who entrust the University with over a billion dollars a year in direct and indirect support. I believe in accountability and you represent our largest single stakeholder, the people of Illinois.

Let me offer you just a few thoughts to get things started today.

I think that the University of Illinois is a treasure for our state and its people. But it’s a dynamic treasure, not a museum treasure. It’s dynamic because of the transforming power of education in people’s lives. Today, in the face of new technologies and the forces of globalization, a quality education has never been more important in enabling people to achieve their dreams. We see the growing divide between people with a good education, people who have bright prospects for their lives, and people who lack a good education and, as a result, face tough, tough times which are likely only to get worse. I am passionate about bringing a high quality, affordable U of I education to talented and hard working young people in our state, young people from every community … north and south of I-80, east and west, African American, Latino, white and Asian.

I also think that the University of Illinois is a dynamic treasure because knowledge, the original, cutting edge knowledge that comes from research, is the true capital of the new economy. Land and natural resources still matter in a state’s endowment. But educated people and the knowledge that creates industries to put those people to work matters more. And the University of Illinois is a research powerhouse. In Urbana, the University’s leadership in engineering, computer science, agriculture and other vital fields is spawning new technologies and new companies at an impressive rate. At UIC, we have one of the fast growing bio-medical research enterprises in America.

While the University of Illinois is a treasure, it is certainly not perfect. For example, I came to U of I expecting that the people of Illinois — all the people — would love our University and feel a great sense of ownership of it. Some do, of course. But already, one of the goals I have established is that many more will love U of I, and for all the right reasons, during my years as president.

For example, Illinois and Chicago have great, dynamic African-American and Latino communities. I want them to love UIC and UIUC and UIS, to see them as gateways of opportunity to achieve their aspirations and fulfill their dreams. And I want women and Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities to have an even greater sense of ownership in the University of Illinois than they do today.

We face many challenges at the University of Illinois.

On the health care front, we face an urgent problem because of medical malpractice costs. Our Medical Center at UIC provides excellent care in almost 600,000 patient vists per year and many of our patients are poor, underinsured and uninsured. We face an immediate crisis that threatens our ability to continue to serve these patients. In 2000, our medical practice premium was $12 million, this year it is $27 million, next year it is projected to be $43 million. The increase this year and next year alone comes to $22 million and we are asking for help with this crisis.

On the educational front, our challenges can all be boiled down to two words: excellence and access. Excellence is what makes people covet admission to the University of Illinois. They know the difference it can make in their lives. And our excellence is threatened, seriously threatened, by the declining and flat state support of recent years. Excellence doesn’t come cheap, I’m sorry. On the other hand, excellence without access would be a hollow victory. We need to maintain our ability to admit large numbers of worthy students in a fair way and provide them with an affordable education.

Let me complete my remarks by asking and answering two vital questions:

First, what do the people of Illinois get in exchange for your billion dollar annual investment in the University of Illinois? Three things:

• Seventy thousand students a year receive an education with a market value of $20,000 to $30,000 for $5,000 to $7,000 in annual tuition.

• The U of I faculty generate more than half a billion dollars a year in funded research from sources outside the state with a huge multiplier effect in intellectual capital and new jobs, including those jobs represented by 40 unions who represent U of I employees.

• U of I provides an enormous amount of valuable service to the state through the Extension Service and myriad programs like one at UIC called Ceasefire Illinois that is reducing gun violence by over 50% in communities where it is deployed.

Second question: Why during very tough budget times should you grant the 1% IBHE recommended increase to U of I or maintain our present funding, as the Governor has recommended? Three reasons:

• First, to keep tuition affordable.

• Second, to encourage others in what I call “the compact to support U of I” to help the University financially, especially private donors. No one will step up if the state backs away.

• Third, to enable us to leverage tax dollars. For each such dollar, we import into the state many dollars as well as talent and the knowledge for new industry and jobs.

We have absorbed major reductions in state support in the first half of this decade, $130 million or 16% of state support since 2002. We have done our best to protect the academic core but there have been real effects. State supported faculty has gone down by 290. Student to faculty ratios have continued to rise, as they have … by over 30% … since 1985.

Let me conclude by noting that there are several proposals under consideration in the legislature that address education funding for K through 12 and higher education in our state. I am heartened by these initiatives and their sponsors because they recognize that education is the best possible investment in creating a positive future for the people of Illinois.

Thank you. I look forward to your comments and questions.