IU president concerned about budget bill

March 23, 2001

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University President Myles Brand today expressed concern over the latest version of the state budget bill. Revisions to the spending plan approved by the Indiana Senate Finance Committee not only don't include funding for maintenance, they could cause the Bloomington campus alone to lose nearly $1 million in other funding during the first year.

"I understand the difficulties facing state leaders during an economic slowdown. But I urge them to look at the central role that higher education must play in making our economy stronger and more diverse," Brand said.

For example, Brand noted, the current budget proposal does not include funding for IU's new School of Informatics. The school, one of the first such programs in the country, will "educate the employees and entrepreneurs who can help build Indiana's high-tech economy," Brand explained. Informatics courses would be offered at most of IU's campuses.

IU also has requested funding for a new multi-disciplinary science building on the Bloomington campus. The building is critical to help IU attract and retain top-notch faculty and students in a broad range of scientific fields.

"If Indiana is to build on its existing biomedical industries, we need the facilities to allow us to move forward with innovative research," Brand said.

The budget bill crafted by Indiana House Ways and Means Committee Chairman B. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, and passed by the full House, provided important funding for these efforts, Brand noted. The Senate Finance Committee's version of the budget bill makes some necessary investments in higher education technology, but is far less positive for colleges and universities, according to the president.

Meanwhile, many other states are seizing the opportunity to invest in higher education and attract the best faculty and most outstanding students.

"In an information-based economy, a 'brain drain' quickly becomes a 'business drain' and a 'revenue drain,' as high-tech firms move to where they can find the most educated employees and most innovative researchers," Brand stressed.

(Susan Dillman, 317-781-8190, pager 812-334-6377, sdillman@indiana.edu)