Funding for Mississippi’s universities will include new performance measures after the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning today accepted the framework of a funding model provided in a report from the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS). The framework was developed after nine months of research and consultation with the IHL Board of Trustees and university leadership.
“The acceptance of this framework will help us as we move forward in making sure our universities are providing students with the skills and knowledge necessary to succeed in the Mississippi marketplace,” said Trustee Dr. Steven Cunningham, president of the IHL Board of Trustees. “We have put a great deal of time and effort into getting to this point, bringing us closer to where we need to be with regard to a strong funding model for our universities.”
The framework accepted by the Board of Trustees has two core components. Foundational funding is a data-driven calculation of what each university needs to keep its doors open, maintain its facilities, deliver its academic programs, and support students who face the greatest barriers to completion. The second component is performance funding, which would be structured so that institutions who meet specific foundational thresholds can only receive new state dollars by demonstrating improvement on agreed-upon outcomes linked to state priorities. Recommended performance metrics would include degree completion, student progression, and workforce outcomes, calibrated differently for research and comprehensive institutions.
Trustee Charlie Stephenson, chair of the Finance and Budget Committee, said the new framework will offer the Board of Trustees guidance in future funding decisions.
“Mississippi’s public universities have shifted from being primarily state supported to primarily tuition supported,” Stephenson said. “As we prepare Mississippi’s next generation workforce, we will use this framework to request multi-year recurring appropriations increases that buy down tuition pressure for Mississippi families in exchange for data driven, measurable improvement and performance excellence.”
