There’s perhaps no better advocate for North Carolina’s higher education system these days than NASA Astronaut Christina Koch. A mission specialist on Artemis II, Koch graduated from the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in Durham in 1997 and went on to North Carolina State University to earn Bachelor of Science degrees in electrical engineering and physics, followed by a Master of Science degree in electrical engineering.
Artemis II Mission Specialist Christina Koch is a three-time NC State graduate in physics and electrical engineering. (Photo: Clayton Henkel/NC Newsline)That academic pedigree was on full display Thursday as Koch delivered a video message to the UNC System Board of Governors. She recounted how her time at NCSSM and then N.C. State taught her how to rechannel fear into focus.
“To have people that sat me down and pushed me harder than I would have pushed myself was really instrumental,” Koch said in her message. “Just to realize that there was so much more to explore, so much more to learn, and the amount that my mind opened during that time just can’t be understated.”
UNC System President Peter Hans said while Koch and her fellow Artemis II astronauts were peering at the surface of the moon last week, the system was doing its best to peer into the future and anticipate what the economy and society will need in the years ahead.
“With the state growing and our current workforce facing a wave of retirements, there’s going to be a strong need for many of the vital professions that our public universities were designed to fill,” said Hans.
The UNC System’s newly released Workforce Alignment Report shows that while the current economy is strong, the state needs 5,000 to 10,000 additional college graduates annually over the next several years to meet growing employer demands. Fields where the demand is greatest include nursing, engineering and education.
Hans said investments made in higher education bring new opportunities for growth and “keep North Carolina’s best and brightest closest to home.”
But to address gaps in the future workforce, the UNC System needs support from state legislators now, he said.
UNC System President Peter Hans (File photo)Top budget priorities for the UNC System in the short session include $169.7 million to cover enrollment funding, building reserves, and repairs and renovations across the 17 campuses. The UNC System will also be requesting funding “commensurate with state agencies” for faculty and staff.
Alan Porch, UNC System Staff Assembly chair, reminded the board that modest legislative salary increases over the last five years have not kept up with the cost of living.
Frustration over rising costs, changes with the state health insurance plan, increased copays, increased prescription costs, and challenges locating providers have all been weighing on university staff.
“Work volume increases, salary doesn’t for any number of reasons, and it can just be stressful,” said Porch. “That stress puts a strain on the engine that moves us all forward.”
While no agreement was reached in the last legislative session to ease that strain, Senate Bill 659 proposed a 3% increase for UNC System employees and community college personnel. The Democratic-sponsored bill never moved. A more modest proposal (Senate Bill 599) by Republicans would have provided a 2.5% increase for UNC System employees and many others in state government. That bill also did not make it across the finish line.
In light of that, UNC system leaders are trying to manage expectations about what they can accomplish in the short session. They noted that each 1% increase in salary and associated benefits costs the state $40 million.
Sally Hodges-Copple, a public policy analyst with the N.C. Budget and Tax Center, says salary increases and other priorities will be challenging this year as scheduled income tax cuts means revenue will decline next year.
UNC Board of Governors poised to increase tuition despite pushback from prominent conservative
“What the revenue forecast tells us is that’s not going to improve,” said Hodges-Copple in an interview with NC Newsline. “That’s going to get worse in the coming years because the state will not be bringing in enough revenue to sustain those already very low levels of state funding and services.”
The Office of State Budget and Management (OSBM) estimates that the automatic tax cuts will create a $2.8 billion structural budget deficit by the 2028 fiscal year 2028.
The Budget and Tax Center estimates that if lawmakers fail during the upcoming short session to address the automatic tax cuts, they will be forced to cut spending to balance the budget. To put that in perspective, $2.8 billion in spending cuts is the equivalent of eliminating all state funding for community colleges and then some.
“It’s an enormous sum of money,” said Hodges-Copple. “And that’s a very near-term problem.”
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