MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – West Virginia University president Gordon Gee delivered a State of the University as the higher education landscape continues to change, and economic realities alter the life path of many families and hopeful students. Gee also unveiled the WVU Pledge program to assist Promise scholars in reducing the cost of their education to zero.
Since the pandemic, enrollment has dropped steadily and simultaneously improved graduation rates have formed a one, two punch that projects a $35 million deficit for 2024 that could balloon to $75 million over the next five years if steps aren’t taken to reposition the institution to be student focused.
“Students chose not to return to college due to a string job market, the rising cost of attendance and dare I say it- a cynical perspective on education,” Gee said.
Gee said the 2024 projected deficit of $35 million is about three percent of the $1.3 billion annual budget, making the issue manageable in the short term. According to Gee, the entire higher education system nationwide is on shifting sands, whether other leaders recognize it or not.
“We’re going to determine a financial strategy in which we wring this structural budget deficit out of our system, and then we have resources available to invest,” Gee said.
As part of the “strategic repositioning” ordered by the Board of Governors, Gee said they will implement the “First Principals,” to put students first, embrace the land grant mission and people that are served and invest in initiatives that set WVU apart from the more than 4,000 other institutions across the country.
“These principles in many ways return us to our core roots and are critical as we prioritize the issues facing higher education and our own financial situation,” Gee said.
Removing financial barriers is an important way to allow the student to focus on learning and making contributions to campus life. The WVU Pledge will cover remaining costs of tuition, fees, housing and meal plans for qualifying Promise scholars.
“Twenty-five percent of our students are on Pell Grants which means they are lower income students,” Gee said. “But guess what, there are a many geniuses in West Virginia as there are in California- we just need to make sure students get the opportunity to come and flourish.”
Students who meet the following guidelines will be automatically included in the program, no application is required.
1. Incoming first-time freshman as of the fall 2023 semester,
2. Admitted to WVU, WVU Institute of Technology or WVU Potomac State College by June 1
3. A Promise Scholarship recipient with an Expected Family Contribution of zero
4. Living in a residence hall during each semester the scholarship is received
5. Has submitted a Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, and qualified for the Promise Scholarship by the May 1 priority deadline.
In preparation for the State of the University speech, Gee spent weeks in focus groups on the Morgantown campus. Gee said he views the “First Principles” as the way to address fiscal challenges while growing the university and student body.
“If someone were to ask me what is the biggest challenge facing the university, I would say complacency is the number one word,” Gee said. “We are not going to be complacent- we have no room for complacency at our institution.”
President Gee will also contribute to a virtual Campus Conversation scheduled for Thursday, March 30 at 11 a.m.