Funding might affect university mission

Governor Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, and other state legislators have proposed tying state funding allocated to public collegiate institutions to graduation rates.
 According to the university administration, funding has decreased by 5 percent in the 2010-2011 school year and 15 percent in the current fiscal school year. If the proposal passes as is, Prairie View could face another 16 percent reduction in general revenue for the fiscal years 2014-2015.
 In the Jan. 2013 Accountability Report released by the Texas Higher Education Data Resource, Prairie View's four year graduation rate of students who had started in 2007 and finished at the same institution in 2011 is 11 percent.
The same report for our sister university, Texas A&M, reported 50.9 percent graduation in comparison to Prairie View's 11. Another large university in Texas, the University of Texas at Austin reported similar rates to Texas A&M only differing by one or two percentage points.
The statistics show a vast range of graduation rates across the state so the main focus of students and administration is the effect this will have on Prairie View. The fluctuation of rates may not be the best factor to consider, but that is not the focus of legislation.
Many students, such as engineering and architecture majors, are not on a standard four year degree plan and most are encouraged to pick up a minor or another major to diversify themselves. Some students intern, study abroad or participate in other extracurricular activities which could push back their graduation date. The state legislature does not take these factors into consideration when deciding current funding so the chance of lawmakers being sensitive to such things in the future is unlikely.
"From the business aspect, education is expensive so funding is an issue that is always in conversation among the administration here at Prairie View. Linking funding to graduation rates makes sense because in essence, that is what you are here to do: get an education and graduate," said executive director of communications, Sheleah Reed. "The challenge for Prairie View is that our mission is not the same as the other universities in Texas."
According to vice president of academic affairs, E. Joahanne Thomas-Smith, changing the admission standards would be the best way to increase graduation rates, but the university's mission does not support severely limiting access to students.
Prairie View's mission statement suggests the university is "designed to respond to the needs and aspirations of individuals, families, organizations, agencies, schools, and communities-both rural and urban." The timeliness of the response to those needs and aspirations is not mentioned as alluded to by Reed.
"Prairie View is a school of second chances, taking that student who might not have been destined to come to college. We are here to give students access to opportunities and graduating in four years or less is not the first priority when it comes to preparation for the real world. So now the issue is, do we focus on improving the graduation rate or improving the quality of the students?" said Reed.
"Based on my background, I know second chances do not come easy. During my college career I became self-motivated. I took a full load every semester and summer classes every summer," said Dymonique Burton, a recent Prairie View alum and author of He Finally Spoke, a brief autobiography. "I understand the unfairness that the decision could cause, but your college experience and graduation date is an individual choice.
Burton represents the student mentioned by Reed. He dropped out of high school in his junior year but motivated himself to get on the right track. He achieved two degrees in four and a half years, in architecture and construction science. In fact, Burton was used in President George C. Wright's plea for more funding in a recent meeting in Austin, Texas.
As the voice of students, faculty and staff of Prairie View, Wright represents the university every two years and fights for funding and other rights.
The university has been making the necessary steps to increase the preparedness and academic success of the student body, but these efforts are not directly reflected in the graduation rate.
The Texas Higher Education Data Resource reports that Prairie View has a higher percentage of baccalaureate graduates who are employed or enrolled in a Texas graduate program or professional school than Texas A&M and the University of Texas at Austin.
Though Prairie View has succeeded at achieving its mission in student preparedness, this does not put the university at a safe place for funding if this law is passed.