At its Oct. 28 meeting, the Michigan State University Board of Trustees accepted the university’s 2017-18 Operating and Capital Outlay Request.
The request, which includes components for the university general fund, AgBioResearch and MSU Extension, provides parameters that will guide the development of MSU requests through the 2017-18 appropriation cycle.
Some of the request’s highlights include:
- MSU student credit hours in science, technology, engineering and math, the STEM disciplines, have increased by more than 40 percent over 10 years, representing $35 million in additional instructional costs.
- MSU’s approximately 75 percent resident undergraduate population exceeds the Big Ten average by 10 percent, making it among the most home-state centric in the conference.
- MSU routinely enrolls more than 8,500 Pell Grant recipients, representing more than 22 percent of the undergraduate population. MSU provides in excess of $640 million in financial aid annually.
- MSU operates with approximately $3,800 less per student in state appropriations support than its Big Ten peers, an amount that represents approximately $174 million in lost resources across the institution.
Following are other actions taken by the board at its October meeting.
- The board approved the naming of the new MSU Basketball Hall of History the Tom Izzo Basketball Hall of History. Naming of the hall was made possible by a $10 million gift from Bob and Julie Skandalaris.
- The board authorized the university to plan for renovation and technology improvements at several instructional spaces, including Bessey Hall, Natural Science and Veterinary Medicine.
- Authorization was approved to proceed with infrastructure improvements to the IM West building that includes upgrading the indoor pool, locker rooms and electrical systems.
- The board approved the purchase of a piece of property on Collins Road in Lansing. The space will be used to house the Office of Regulatory Affairs, as well as staff associated with Information Technology Services.
- The board approved the appointment of Christopher Contag as the John A. Hannah Distinguished Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering. In addition to serving as department chairperson, he also will be the inaugural director of the Institute for Quantitative Health Science and Engineering.