As a public university, MSU is funded in part by the state of Michigan, with roughly 20 percent of its operational costs supported by state appropriations.
State appropriations served as the primary funding line for public universities historically. In 1985, MSU received more than 58 percent of its operational budget from the state. However, declining state support for higher education has been the trend for the past several decades and has a direct impact on university operations.
Governor Gretchen Whitmer, an MSU alumnus, proposed a 3 percent increase for publicly funded universities in the Executive’s proposed 2020 fiscal year budget.
Organizations such as MSU Extension and AgBioResearch rely heavily on state funding to support statewide outreach and research efforts. However, engaging the public on the importance of funding higher education can help keep the issue top of mind for state legislators.
The Spartan Advocate initiative allows MSU faculty, staff, students, alumni and university partners to get involved in the conversation. Through supporting facts, resources and opportunities, the program gives advocates the tools they need to communicate the importance of supporting MSU and higher education to their representatives.
Mischelle Warner, MSU Extension district director in northeast Michigan, encourages her staff to utilize the resources provided through the Spartan Advocate initiative to support their own programming and initiatives.
“Many of the audiences we interact with want to know what’s going on with the university, but find it difficult due to the geographical distance between northeast Michigan and East Lansing,” she said. “Anytime we can extend connections with campus and provide additional resources to our staff, it’s proven to be of value for education.”
The MI Spartan Impact initiative, a data program used to illustrate the university’s impact on the statewide economy, is part of the Spartan Advocate program. MI Spartan Impact is used largely to encourage legislators to make decisions with higher education and MSU’s land grant mission in mind.
In 2018 alone, the university contributed to $5.8 billion in total economic impact statewide.
“I encourage all my district staff to sign up for this program,” Warner added. “They have expedited the process of writing to their local representatives and made it easy to stay in the know on issues we face in higher ed.”
Jeremy Reuter, director for statewide advocacy for MSU, oversees the Spartan Advocacy initiative and its database of 1,500 highly engaged advocates. Currently, Reuter keeps advocates in the loop through a series of email and social media communications, but he has plans to expand efforts by connecting with departments on campus and alumni groups across the state.
“From a government relations perspective, campus is very strategically positioned,” he said. “Because we’re only a few miles away from the Capitol, it’s easier to host state officials and encourage advocacy from the Spartan community as a whole.”
At the Spartan Caucus on March 5, alumni legislators were invited to campus to dine with MSU’s Government Relations team at Brody Square. Information discussed during this meeting included the governor’s proposed budget, partnerships between MSU and the state, and ways MSU can help support various legislative committees through research and expertise.
“The face time our team gets with legislators is important to keeping advocates informed on the current priorities,” Reuter added. “It’s also a great opportunity to connect research and expertise on campus with the various committees our Spartan Caucus legislators serve.”
David Bertram, associate vice president for State Relations, sees polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, is an immediate a topic that MSU will be working with the legislature on in the coming year, as it's been identified as a priority by Whitmer and others. PFAS are a group of harmful man-made chemicals that are very persistent in the environment and in the human body. PFAS have been discovered in several water sources across the state.
“MSU is poised to provide significant research and remediation resources in partnership with the state to address this PFAS issue,” Bertram said.
Now is a great time to become a Spartan Advocate, according to Reuter, currently there are 28 elected officials currently serving in Michigan's 100th Legislature, as well as Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Anyone with an interest in advocating for MSU and higher education can sign up to become a Spartan Advocate for free at mispartanimpact.msu.edu. You can also explore the MI Spartan Impact data by region and read stories about Spartans making a difference across the state.