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Higher-education officials in Idaho found out in 2003 how quickly financial cracks can appear in ground-breaking plans.
When state lawmakers authorized the issuance of bonds in 2002 for the construction of a $136-million higher-education research complex in Boise, officials at the University of Idaho were thrilled. The president, Robert A. Hoover, praised the project -- which was set to house academic programs, retail space, and state and federal offices -- as a "new way to live, learn, and work."
But just over a year later, in April 2003, Mr. Hoover resigned after accepting full responsibility for missteps on the project, known as University Place, that produced a budget shortfall of as much as $7-million for the 2003-4 fiscal year, and left the university's foundation with a $28-million loss. Because of the problems, the university's vice president for finance and administration was placed on administrative leave.
A university-commissioned audit, released in April 2003, found several flaws in the overall management of the project, including conflicts of interest and confusion in financial decision making that stemmed in part from unclear boundaries between the university and its foundation. Mr. Hoover acknowledged that the financial problems had the potential to severely harm the long-term health of both entities, and to damage higher education throughout the state.
A nationwide search was under way during the summer of 2003 to replace Mr. Hoover, who meanwhile found another job. In June 2003, he was named president of Albertson College of Idaho, where he had been on the Board of Trustees for two years, and where his daughter and son-in-law are alumni.
Boise State University experienced its own change at the top in May 2003, when Robert W. Kustra was named president. Mr. Kustra, who had served as president of the Midwestern Higher Education Commission in Minneapolis, replaced Charles Ruch, who announced his departure in August 2002.
On the budget front, Idaho higher-education officials ended the 2003 legislative session with some good news. Gov. Dirk Kempthorne, a Republican who was re-elected in the fall of 2002, vetoed several budget cuts that lawmakers had proposed for higher education. As a result, the state's public institutions received a 2.1-percent increase for 2003-4, bringing their total appropriation to $218-million. University officials viewed the budget as relatively generous, given that they, along with other state agencies, had to cut their spending twice during 2002-3, when tax revenues fell short of expectations.
In 2003, Idaho lawmakers authorized the use of bonds to pay for seven major higher-education construction projects, worth $66.2-million. The Legislature did so after having frozen funds for all state-financed capital projects in 2002-3.
Faculty members at public institutions, however, received no pay increases for the second year in a row. And students were to receive higher tuition bills, with rates for 2003-4 scheduled to increase by an average of 9.6 percent, or $290.
In the fall of 2002, Idaho voters approved a proposition that affected higher education. The measure requires American Indian tribes to contribute 5 percent of their annual net gaming income to colleges and other educational institutions near Indian reservations.
| DEMOGRAPHICS | ||
Population: | ||
| State: 1,341,131 (Rank: 39) | ||
| Nation: 288,368,698 | ||
Age distribution: |
State: | Nation: |
| Up to 4 | 7.5% | 6.8% |
| 5 to 14 | 15.9% | 14.6% |
| 15 to 19 | 8.6% | 7.2% |
| 20 to 24 | 7.3% | 6.7% |
| 25 to 44 | 28.0% | 30.2% |
| 45 to 64 | 21.5% | 22.0% |
| 65 and older | 11.3% | 12.4% |
Racial and ethnic distribution: |
State: | Nation: |
| American Indian | 1.4% | 0.9% |
| Asian | 0.9% | 3.6% |
| Black | 0.4% | 12.3% |
| Pacific Islander | 0.1% | 0.1% |
| White | 91.0% | 75.1% |
| Other single race | 4.2% | 5.5% |
| More than one race | 2.0% | 2.4% |
| Hispanic (may be any race) | 7.9% | 12.5% |
Educational attainment of adults (highest level): |
State: | Nation: |
| 8th grade or less | 5.2% | 7.5% |
| Some high school, no diploma | 10.1% | 12.1% |
| High-school diploma | 28.5% | 28.6% |
| Some college, no degree | 27.3% | 21.0% |
| Associate degree | 7.2% | 6.3% |
| Bachelor's degree | 14.8% | 15.5% |
| Graduate or professional degree | 6.8% | 8.9% |
Per-capita personal income: |
State: | Nation: |
| $25,057 | $30,941 | |
Poverty rate: |
State: | Nation: |
| 12.0% | 11.5% | |
New high-school graduates in: |
State: | Nation: |
| 2003-4 (estimate) | 16,220 | 2,942,993 |
| 2011-12 (estimate) | 18,523 | 3,045,628 |
New GED diploma recipients: |
State: | Nation: |
| 603 | 648,022 | |
High-school dropout rate: |
State: | Nation: |
| 10% | 9% | |
| POLITICAL LEADERSHIP | |
Governor: Dirk Kempthorne (R), term ends 2007 | |
Governor's higher-education aide: | |
| Brian Whitlock, 700 West Jefferson, Boise 83720; (208) 334-2100; bwhitlock@gov.state.id.us | |
U.S. senators: Larry E. Craig (R), term ends 2009; Michael D. Crapo (R), term ends 2005 | |
U.S. representatives: 2 Republicans C.L. (Butch) Otter (R), Michael K. Simpson (R) | |
Legislature: Senate, 7 Democrats, 28 Republicans; House, 16 Democrats, 54 Republicans |
| COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES | ||
Higher education: |
State: | Nation: |
| Public 4-year institutions |
4 | 628 |
| Public 2-year institutions |
3 | 1,085 |
| Private 4-year institutions, nonprofit |
4 | 1,541 |
| Private 4-year institutions, for-profit | 2 | 318 |
| Private 2-year institutions, nonprofit | 0 | 135 |
| Private 2-year institutions, for-profit | 1 | 490 |
| Total | 14 | 4,197 |
Statewide coordinating boards: | |
| Idaho State Board of Education P.O. Box 83720 Boise 83720 (208) 334-2270 http://www.idahoboardofed.org/ Gary W. Stivers, executive director | |
Private-college association: | |
| None | |
Statewide national-service agency: | |
| Serve Idaho 1299 North Orchard Street, Suite 110 Boise 83706 (208) 658-2063 http://www.serveidaho.org/ Kelly Houston, executive director | |
Statewide virtual university: | |
| None | |
Institutions censured by the AAUP: | |
| None | |
Institutions under NCAA sanctions: | |
| None |
| FACULTY MEMBERS | ||
Average pay of full-time professors |
State: | Nation: |
| Public universities: | ||
| Professor | $64,375 | $82,344 |
| Associate professor | $52,129 | $57,984 |
| Assistant professor | $43,145 | $48,671 |
| All | $53,061 | $63,595 |
| Other public 4-year institutions: | State: | Nation: |
| Professor | $57,441 | $69,641 |
| Associate professor | $47,875 | $54,062 |
| Assistant professor | $41,119 | $44,293 |
| All | $46,647 | $54,255 |
| Private universities: | State: | Nation: |
| Professor | n/a | $99,634 |
| Associate professor | n/a | $64,782 |
| Assistant professor | n/a | $55,232 |
| All | n/a | $76,132 |
| Other private 4-year institutions: | State: | Nation: |
| Professor | $50,899 | $65,277 |
| Associate professor | $43,786 | $50,087 |
| Assistant professor | $36,590 | $40,971 |
| All | $43,390 | $50,415 |
| 2-year colleges: | State: | Nation: |
| Public | $39,188 | $48,240 |
| Private | $48,790 | $35,925 |
| STUDENTS | ||
| Enrollment: | State: | Nation: |
| At public 4-year institutions | 43,655 | 6,055,398 |
| At public 2-year institutions | 10,096 | 5,697,388 |
| At private 4-year institutions | 2,638 | 3,308,460 |
| At private 2-year institutions | 9,205 | 251,043 |
| Undergraduate | 58,644 | 13,155,393 |
| Graduate | 6,399 | 1,850,271 |
| Professional | 551 | 306,625 |
| American Indian | 943 | 151,150 |
| Asian | 1,108 | 978,224 |
| Black | 417 | 1,730,318 |
| Hispanic | 2,218 | 1,461,806 |
| White | 59,453 | 10,462,099 |
| Foreign | 1,455 | 528,692 |
| Total | 65,594 | 15,312,289 |
Enrollment highlights: |
State: | Nation: |
| Women | 55.4% | 56.1% |
| Full-time | 67.5% | 58.8% |
| Minority | 7.1% | 28.2% |
| Foreign | 2.2% | 3.5% |
| Proportion of enrollment made up of minority students: | State: | Nation: |
| At public 4-year institutions | 8.0% | 24.5% |
| At public 2-year institutions | 6.2% | 34.4% |
| At private 4-year institutions | 7.7% | 23.6% |
| At private 2-year institutions | 4.0% | 38.0% |
Degrees awarded: |
State: | Nation: |
| Associate | 5,016 | 578,865 |
| Bachelor's | 4,646 | 1,244,171 |
| Master's | 1,072 | 468,476 |
| Doctorate | 91 | 44,904 |
| Professional | 159 | 79,707 |
Residence of new students: | ||
| State: State residents made up 73% of all freshmen enrolled in Idaho in fall 2000 who had graduated from high school in the previous year; 72% of all Idaho residents who were freshmen attended college in their home state. | ||
| Nation: 81% of all freshmen in fall 2000 who had graduated from high school in the previous year attended colleges in their home states. | ||
Test scores: | ||
| State: Students averaged 21.2 on the ACT, which was taken by an estimated 60% of Idaho's high-school seniors. | ||
| Nation: Students averaged 20.8 on the ACT and 1020 on the SAT. | ||
Graduation rate at NCAA Division I institutions: | ||
| Boise State University | 28% | |
| Idaho State University | 21% | |
| University of Idaho | 54% | |
| National average | 58% | |
| MONEY | ||
Average tuition and fees: |
State: | Nation: |
| At public 4-year institutions |
$2,860 | $3,746 |
| At public 2-year institutions |
$1,410 | $1,379 |
| At private 4-year institutions |
$5,326 | $16,287 |
Expenditures: |
State: | Nation: |
| Public 4-year institutions | $549,328,000 | $124,877,518,000 |
| Public 2-year institutions | $77,317,000 | $27,447,430,000 |
| Private non-profit 4-year institutions | $38,388,000 | $79,699,659,000 |
State funds for higher-education operating expenses: | ||
| State: | Nation: | |
| $305,337,000 | $63,648,456,000 | |
| One-year change: | State: | Nation: |
| Down 5.6% | Up 1.2% | |
| State spending on student aid: | State: | Nation: |
| Need-based: | $856,000 | $3,866,311,000 |
| Non-need-based: | $3,996,000 | $1,274,188,000 |
| Total spending on research and development by colleges and universities: | ||
| State: | Nation: | |
| $82,496,000 | $32,723,078,000 | |
| Sources: | State: | Nation: |
| Federal government | 41.6% | 58.6% |
| State and local governments |
22.3% | 7.1% |
| Industry | 8.1% | 6.8% |
| The institution itself | 26.6% | 20.0% |
| Other | 1.4% | 7.4% |
| Total federal spending on college- and university-based research and development: $29,927,000 | ||
| Selected programs: | State: | Nation: |
| Department of Health and Human Services |
$7,139,000 | $11,803,426,000 |
| National Science Foundation |
$3,831,000 | $2,489,319,000 |
| Department of Defense | $4,919,000 | $2,284,380,000 |
| Department of Agriculture |
$5,943,000 | $643,244,000 |
| Department of Energy | $4,505,000 | $742,378,000 |
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration |
$2,598,000 | $940,627,000 |
| Largest endowment: | ||
| University of Idaho | $126,395,000 | |
| Top fund raisers: | ||
| University of Idaho | $23,956,600 | |
| Brigham Young University Idaho | $9,180,500 | |
| Boise State University | $5,391,800 | |
