Why it's Time to Invest in CUNY
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Rebuild CUNY/Rebuild New York
Why It’s Time to Invest in CUNY
The Professional Staff Congress/CUNY, the union that represents faculty and professional staff at the City University of New York, proposes $205.1 million in additional public funding for CUNY during 2002-03. Even within the context of public revenue constraints, it makes sense to invest in higher education, and the PSC’s programmatic priorities are achievable. A great urban university for New York is within reach; investment now will support the education of generations to come.
Unique Resource
The City University, which enrolls nearly 200,000 students, is a unique resource for New York. Few other states have urban universities of such importance. For 150 years, CUNY has been a pioneer in public higher education, attracting both admiration and criticism for its visionary policy of providing access to higher education regardless of race, religion, gender or income.CUNY is part of what allowed the city and state to rise to the terrible occasion of September 11th. Not only do our graduates contribute in countless ways to the community – adding dollars to the tax base and energy to the workforce – they also develop a habit of cooperation and a respect for diversity that helps to make New York New York.
At this critical moment in the state’s economic history, CUNY faces the legacy of a quarter-century of disinvestment. The loss of full-time faculty has been so severe that the majority of CUNY’s courses are now taught by part-timers. It is an urgent priority to restore full-time faculty positions to CUNY. Basic components of a university have been lost. CUNY needs support for graduate students, funds for libraries and academic research, counselors and technicians, and sophisticated technical equipment for classrooms and laboratories are vital if graduates are to compete in the high-tech economy. A great resource for the people of New York is at risk.
State and City government must reverse trends of the past ten years, in which State aid to CUNY has fallen by almost 33% and City aid has declined by 44% (measured in constant dollars.) Much of the burden has shifted to tuition, which now constitutes 37% of the operating budget. The Governor’s proposed 2002-03 budget contains none of the funds required for restoration or growth. What is needed is a renewed commitment to public higher education and to CUNY specifically.
Surely it is not acceptable for New York to rank 47th among the states in increases to higher education over the past decade. A state whose economy is powered by knowledge industries cannot afford to rank so low. Dollars invested in higher education have the greatest multiplier effect of any form of public spending; they repay the public many times over in increased contributions to the tax base. The strength of New York is its people, and there is no better way to invest in the people’s future than by supporting higher education.
Investment Repays the Public
It is not too late to begin the process of reinvestment, starting with the current budget. The PSC is ready to work with elected State and City officials to maximize available resources. The priorities we have identified will rebuild the City University, making it the first-choice institution for New York’s middle class as well as the primary university for the city’s poor and working people. It is within our power to make CUNY great; we ask our elected representatives to join us in that process. Rebuilding New York means rebuilding CUNY.