Pennsylvania's governor is proposing an overhaul of the state's university system

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, who has complained that higher education in his state is “not working,” on Friday proposed a major overhaul of the state's sprawling system that would cut tuition for many students and cut funding for schools are determined based on their educational level. performance.

The plan would consolidate 10 of Pennsylvania's state universities and all 15 community colleges under one administrative umbrella, boost state funding for public higher education and require low- and middle-income students to pay just $1,000 per semester in tuition.

The plan will not affect Pennsylvania's best-known public universities, including Penn State, Pittsburgh and Temple.

“After three decades of disinvestment, too many of our colleges and universities sit empty and not enough students have affordable access to good jobs,” Mr. Shapiro said in a statement.

Plans for the overhaul have been in development for nearly a year by a working group formed by the governor, who publicly complained about problems in the system shortly after taking office in 2023.

Competition among state-funded universities, he said last year, was creating a negative impact, with “colleges competing with each other for limited dollars, duplicating courses, driving up costs and effectively limiting access.”

Mr. Shapiro, a Democrat and former attorney general, did not reveal the dollar amount of his funding proposal, whether new taxes would be raised or whether there would be cuts to university departments. Some of these details are expected to be revealed in February. 6, when the governor will deliver a budget message.

A spokesperson for the governor said the exact governance structure of the new system — and whether it would have one board and one chancellor — still needs to be worked out with the state legislature.

While cost reduction is a priority, with the possibility of universities' administrative functions being consolidated, there were no plans to close campuses, the spokesperson said.

Under the plan, funding for each university would be based in part on a system that rewards schools that meet performance measures, including their graduation rates and the number of first-generation students receiving degrees.

Pennsylvania currently ranks 48th among states in affordability of its public higher education system and 49th in public higher education spending, according to Mr. Shapiro's office.

A 2021 analysis by the independent think tank Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found that Pennsylvania was one of only four states where students had to pay 20 percent or more of family income on higher education.

Nationally, there are growing concerns about college affordability amid budget cuts by states since the 2008 financial crisis that have shifted more of the cost to students. Several governors, both Democrats and Republicans, have proposed additional funding for higher education.

Mr. Shapiro's plan affects 10 smaller public universities in the state that are part of what is known as the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Enrollment at the 10 schools has fallen dramatically over the past decade, to 83,000 in 2023 from 115,000 in 2012. Enrollment at community colleges in the state has seen a similar decline.

Colleges are bracing for further enrollment declines in coming years as the group of students born after the 2008 financial crisis – a period of lower birth rates – matures.