President Loftin Announces $6 Million Program To Hire New Faculty, Support Grad Students
President Loftin
Texas A&M University President R. Bowen Loftin has announced a $6 million program to hire additional faculty and provide more support for graduate students, with the new initiatives underwritten by funds derived from outsourcing and private-sector partnerships.
Addressing the Texas A&M Faculty Senate earlier this week, Loftin said $4.5 million per year will be used to attract additional world-class faculty and $1.5 million per year will be devoted to a variety of programs to enhance opportunities for students studying for master’s and doctoral degrees.
The new initiatives will be implemented against a backdrop of Texas A&M having surpassed this fall two major enrollment milestones: a student body that now exceeds 50,000 and with the number of graduate students totaling more than 10,000.
“The past few years have been a time of shared sacrifice, of doing more with less,” said Loftin, referencing a reduction of nearly $40 million in state appropriations during the last legislative session. “It is imperative that we strategically invest in our core academic mission in order to maintain our trajectory of becoming one of the country’s top 10 public universities by the year 2020.”
Loftin said Texas A&M’s size and continuing growth, coupled with opportune business arrangements related to that size and growth, made possible the additional funding from somewhat unconventional sources.
“Although growth for growth’s sake is not an institutional goal, the university unquestionably benefits in several meaningful ways by having a large student body and a campus that is an attractive destination—for former students returning to their alma mater and for visitors overall,” Loftin said. “Also, the Texas A&M brand is becoming increasingly popular throughout the state and beyond, helping generate revenues in unprecedented ways and levels.”
Loftin said funding to support the two new initiatives will come from revenue derived from the recent outsourcing of the university’s dining services to Chartwells, a division of Compass Group; savings from the outsourcing of custodial, landscape services and building maintenance to SSC Service Solutions, another division of Compass Group; and from revenue generated by two major strategic partners, Barnes & Noble and PepsiCo.
Barnes & Noble operates the large campus bookstore that figured prominently in the expansion and renovation of the recently reopened Memorial Student Center. PepsiCo has the contract for providing beverages and snacks campus-wide, as well as at all athletic and other public events.
Loftin indicated the new faculty hires will be spread across the academic units of the university based on strategic priorities recommended by the academic deans and the Provost. The $1.5 million earmarked for enhancement of the university’s graduate programs will be used to recruit top student-scholars.
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Media contact: Lane Stephenson, News & Information Services at (979) 845-4662
$4.5 million to attract new faculty. How about starting with trying to keep existing faculty and staff. A 3% raise (1.5% of that is a one-time increase) after multiple years of no salary increase at all is not really a way of showing appreciation. Why would new faculty want to come to A&M if they know the way they will be treated once they are here (there are numerous examples of faculty candidates not accepting a position here after visiting; especially in engineering).
Yes, $4.5 for new faculty … at the cost of the staff! The way staff salaries are heading (I’m not talking about the overpaid directors, assistant directors and associated managers), most of the rank and file staff would be able to qualify for food stamps soon!
… and let’s not talk about the projected $1 million in projected costs to move your office in Rudder Tower to the Administration building at the front of campus, just so you can occupy the same office Earl Rudder occupied!
Wow, $1.5M for grad students translates to $150/each! Maybe I’ll pay one week’s rent with mine, then get back to working at my restaurant job that pays more than the TA positions in my department. I’d like you to know I’ve personally convinced at least three “top scholars” to look elsewhere. Graduate support in my department (Liberal Arts) is a joke.
But how ’bout that football team?? Who needs actual education at a University…
I think that it is great that this funding was set aside for this purpose. It could have easily been earmarked for non-academic purposes, but it was used to support students and research.
The other comments on this page may want more of the money for their selves, but investing in attracting top faculty during a down economy is a big plus. What if we can attract a few Nobel laureates with some of the money? Think big, Ags. It’s time to rise.
Before recruiting new “top scholars” how about funding the current grad students you have that are struggling to find funding for tuition and research. Dwindling TA positions due to budget cuts in departments aren’t helping either! How do you expect TAMU to be a top university if the graduate students can’t do research because we have to find full time jobs!
how about not hire more people and distribute those funds to grad students so I can afford my Ramen noodles after I pay fees.
Considering that the projected savings from selling out our staff was supposed to be much, much more than six million dollars, and that the move was touted at the time as a way to fund this, I’d like to know where the rest of the money went? Perhaps to finance our transition to the SEC? To pay partially for renovation of the stadium? Where was the concern for Aggie values or the “Aggie Family” when we cut all those staff members loose? And where was the concern for education when we paid tens of millions of dollars on a damn game?
Ags, chill out. This is an investment. Yes it is vital to invest more so in the resources we already have, but to grow in quantity of quality is also vital. You also have to realize this is all Loftin can do considering the recent slash in budget. More money will come from the SEC, we just won’t see it this year. Mark my words when I say much more money will come though. A&M starts receiving official conference split funds from the SEC starting next year as part of the highly lucrative TV-deals(along with Missouri), which will go much further than just athletic investment. The turmoil that goes on in public education costs is that it takes time. Give it time, our administration knows what it is doing, especially considering the budget constraints.
Whoop! This is a fantastic investment. The idea to let the private sector take over some services is already paying off. The free market at work…
How far are you willing to go before student dissatisfaction ruins the image of this university? I want to be former student of A&M and be respected that way, but only if A&M remains a great place worth representing.
Awesome program and announcement!!! We’ve benefited for many years from TAMU, its programs, the corp experience, and kids following in the tradition. Where do I apply?