UH seeks funding for facilities and student support

The University of Hawaii Board of Regents is asking for an extra $16.8 million in operating funds for the next academic year to help maintain facilities and support students, including raising pay for graduate assistants.

The supplemental operating budget request, approved by the regents at a meeting Thursday at Windward Community College, now goes to Gov. David Ige’s administration, which will hammer out its own version of the 2019 fiscal year budget. Because of the university’s semi-autonomous status, the regents’ proposal also will be submitted directly to the Legislature.

Maxwell Bendes, a master’s degree student in tropical plant and soil sciences, testified that graduate assistants play a crucial role in research and teaching at the university, and a salary increase would go a long way in improving their living conditions.

“Many graduate assistants are barely scraping by on their stipends, resorting to food stamps and other forms of government aid to make ends meet,” he said in written testimony.

The budget proposal earmarks $2.85 million to boost the base pay of graduate assistants by about $300 a month, by moving them up four steps on the salary schedule. It would also give 2 percent raises to graduate students who are already at that higher level, known as “Step 10,” which now pays close to $2,200 a month. Graduate assistants also receive tuition waivers.

“I thank the board for including the salary increase in your budget,” Taylor Lewis, president of the UH-Manoa Graduate Student Organization, told the regents. “I hope that you all recognize that it only scratches the surface of what is needed for graduate students at this university.”

UH is also seeking another $700,000 to fully fund Hawaii’s Promise, a “last dollar” scholarship for students with financial need at community colleges. Launched this fall, the scholarship kicks in after students exhaust other public and private grants and scholar­ships. It aims to remove tuition as a barrier for community college students defined as needy under federal guidelines.

Hawaii’s Promise is benefiting 100 percent of eligible students — 1,740 students across the state — at a cost of $2.5 million, according to UH spokesman Dan Meisenzahl. The university had requested $2.5 million for the new program last year, and lawmakers appropriated $1.87 million. Community colleges dipped into their reserves to cover the shortfall, he said, and UH is asking for $700,000 to cover the full cost in the next academic year.

The biggest item in the UH operating budget request is $5 million for facilities maintenance, both repair projects and staff positions. The figure includes a request for a $500,000 Access Security System to enhance safety for students and staff at UH campuses.

Other requests include:

>> $4.6 million for staff positions to support underserved students, including Native Hawaiians, Filipinos, veterans and people with disabilities.

>> $1.1 million for academic and other student services at UH West Oahu to support its recent enrollment growth.

>> $1.2 million to “in-source” security services at community colleges and hire staff to maintain the new Inouye College of Pharmacy Building at UH Hilo.

The supplemental funding request comes on top of the university’s base budget of $441 million in general funds, according to Kalbert Young, chief financial officer for the UH system. The university also relies on revenue from tuition and other sources.

Separately, regents are also requesting $269 million for capital improvement projects statewide for the 2019 fiscal year, which typically are paid for with bonds. The deferred maintenance backlog has reached $745 million, and UH has developed a long-term plan to tackle it, aiming to renew and modernize its facilities.

“If you’re going to address deferred maintenance, it’s much more cost-effective and efficient to modernize the campuses at the same time,” Young said.

One major project, pegged at $41 million, would transform Sinclair Library into a “student success center” to increase student retention, enhance student life and use space more effectively. Hamilton Library stores the vast majority of the campus book collection and could also consolidate Sinclair’s collection, freeing up valuable space.

“The renovation of Sinclair Library represents a unique opportunity to create flexible space for studying, student success, collaboration and group learning in a modern environment,” said Jan Gouveia, UH vice president for administration.