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State Investment in the University of Iowa an 'Unbeatable Return'

Posted on: Tuesday, 21 February 2006, 15:01 CST

By Saul Shapiro, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa

Feb. 21--WATERLOO -- The state of Iowa gets "an unbeatable return" on its investment at the University of Iowa, according to the No. 2 man on campus, Waterloo native Michael Hogan.

However, those dividends are at risk, he said, because of reduced state appropriations.

Hogan, the provost or "chief academic officer," told the Downtown Waterloo Rotary Club Monday that the state spent $295 million on the university in fiscal year 2005 and reaped $1.6 billion in additional revenues, including $360 million in grants and contracts awarded to U of I faculty and staff.

Other sources of money include licensing fees, patent revenue, and out-of-state tuition (from nearly 40 percent of university students).

"For every $1 invested by the state, the university generated an additional $5.50 or so from other sources, and we estimate that more than $2 of that comes from sources outside of Iowa," he said.

Hogan, the son of a Rath worker and brother of Waterloo accountant Dennis Hogan, is a Columbus High and University of Northern Iowa graduate. He said education is a driving force behind state economic development.

He cited the impact of the Carver College of Medicine with 2,500 Iowa-trained physicians in the state -- 100 in Black Hawk County alone -- who earned more than $500 million last year. In turn, the doctors statewide employed a support staff of 12,000.

The College of Medicine contributes in other ways, too.

Iowa's largest biotech start-up company -- Integrated DNA Technologies with 338 employees -- is a spinoff from faculty-developed discoveries.

Dr. Mark Stinksi invented "the CMV promoter," which is used in the development of drugs to treat cancer, viral infections, hemophilia and other diseases --- bringing in $46 million since 1994.

Hogan touted the wide-ranging success of academic programs at Iowa with three ranked No. 1 in the nation, including the Writer's Workshop; four at No. 2, including audiology and printmaking, while another 10 are in the top 10 and 23 more are in the top 25.

All told, Iowa was No. 21 among public universities rated by U.S. News and World Report.

Hogan said, those rankings are at risk because of reduced state funding.

"Across the Iowa Regents institutions, state appropriations were reduced by more than $100 million between 2001 and 2005," he said. "During that time, the University of Iowa's general fund fell by $36 million, we lost almost 90 faculty positions, and our faculty salaries fell to almost the bottom of our peer group. With tuition increases now capped at about 4 percent, the potential to recoup our losses has been limited."

In competition with K-12 education and Medicaid for state funds, Hogan said, "Our hopes for a new era of growth for higher education seem dim."

If there has been a silver lining, it has been fundraising. The university recently surpassed its $1 billion campaign goal by $58 million.

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To see more of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.wcfcourier.com.

Copyright (c) 2006, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa

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Source: Waterloo Courier

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