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The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) has established a tradition of
excellence in comprehensive undergraduate education. In order for this
tradition to continue, however, TCNJ's alumni and supporters must take
an active role in advocating for the preservation and enhancement of
conditions under which the institution can continue to excel in
fulfillment of its unique mission to provide an undergraduate
experience that is highly competitive and designed to produce future
leaders of and significant contributors to fields that are critical to
our state.
President Gitenstein’s Statement on Governor Corzine’s
FY 2009 State Budget Proposal
New
Jersey’s fiscal house is undeniably in dire condition, and Governor
Corzine is faced with extremely difficult choices. Those choices have
ramifications, and the state’s continuing disinvestment in higher
education will lead to an institutional choice between two distasteful
alternatives. New Jersey’s public colleges and universities will be forced to diminish the quality
of education offered to our state’s students or raise tuition significantly, as the governor himself has said
on numerous recent occasions. Two years ago, higher
education funding was cut so dramatically that valuable academic
programs were closed, campus activities were eliminated, and vital
student support services were foregone. We have not yet recovered fully from
those setbacks. I understand the challenge Governor Corzine must
address but, whether
through increased expense or diminished quality and service, New
Jersey’s students will unfortunately suffer from today's proposed funding reductions.
This continuing erosion of support for higher education will result in
long-term economic and opportunity costs for our state and
future generations of its citizens.
TCNJ's Value to the State
- 95% of TCNJ students are New Jersey residents
- 76% of students admitted to but declining to enroll at TCNJ leave New Jersey for their college education, according to data from the National Clearinghouse. So, without what TCNJ offers, New Jersey would be losing more of its top students.
- TCNJ attracts high-achieving students from out of state who rank in the top 10% of their high school classes and have SAT scores of approximately 1,300 out of 1,600
- Most TCNJ students (64%) graduate in four years, and nearly all have earned degrees within five (81%) or six years (86%). At other state colleges and universities, only about 30% of students graduate in four years, and less than 53% graduate within six years. That means TCNJ students are paying for fewer years of education and saving in excess of $30,000 in total cost compared to their peers at other New Jersey colleges and universities. Therefore, the majority of TCNJ’s students also have an additional two years of post-college earning power.
- 85% of TCNJ’s most recent graduating class rated their undergraduate academic experience and career preparation as either excellent or above average.
- 81 percent of TCNJ graduates from the Class of 2006 indicate they are working in New Jersey.
- During the last five years, TCNJ has secured federal grants providing millions of dollars for programs that improve the quality and diversity of New Jersey’s teachers and increase the participation of underrepresented groups in the sciences.
- TCNJ has maintained a service-learning requirement of all first year students. This provides local and state communities with approximately 20,000 hours of community service each year.
- TCNJ
supports a group of Bonner Scholars each year. These students are
rewarded for their history of community engagement and are required to
perform nearly 300 hours of service each year while on campus.
- TCNJ hosts the urban teacher academy, which helps convince high school juniors to pursue careers in urban education.
- TCNJ’s
Adaptive Technology Center provides equipment and technical advice to
disability officers and students throughout the state.
- TCNJ's
School of Education has worked with the Commission for the Blind to
develop the only blind/visually impaired (BVI) teacher certification
program in the state, and we host young adults with BVI on campus in
the summer for a career development/independence program.
- TCNJ’s Career and Community Studies Program provides liberal education to students with intellectual disabilities.
TCNJ Accountability
Board of Trustees Oversight
TCNJ’s
Board of Trustees reviews and approves our annual state budget request;
reviews and approves the annual College operating budget as well as
related tuition and fees; approves all changes to personnel
classifications and compensation, new hires, retirements, and resignations; approves all
waivers of advertising over the state threshold (College procedure
calls for competitive pricing whenever possible); and approves all debt
commitments and related projects; approves long term capital plan.
TCNJ’s
Board Audit Committee reviews the audit plan and meets with the
external auditors (without TCNJ administration) to review audit results.
Other Institutional Actions
TCNJ has conducted financial audits, an information technology security audit, implemented a comprehensive energy conservation program, has committed to becoming carbon neutral, has implemented a thorough asset renewal and facilities planning process, is conducting a campus security audit, and has created a Center for Institutional Effectiveness to assess institutional performance and student outcomes.
Results
Fiscal
- Kiplinger’s Personal Finance rates TCNJ as the 5th best value in public
higher education nationally for out of state students and the 23rd best
value for in-state students in 2008--significantly higher than any
other New Jersey school.More than 90% of TCNJ students are New Jersey residents
- TCNJ
has reduced departmental budgets, maintenance and travel expenditures,
information technology outlays, and realized savings from energy
conservation and planning in recent years.
- Standard
& Poor’s recently raised TCNJ’s bond rating from “A-“ to “A,”
specifically citing “the college's conservative budgeting and financial
planning practices” as one reason for that action.
Academic
- TCNJ was awarded, in 2006, a Phi Beta Kappa chapter—an honor shared by less than 10 percent of colleges and universities nationally.
- TCNJ is the top-ranked public master’s college in the northern region of the country, according to U.S. News & World Report
- TCNJ is one of only 5 state-supported schools nationally to be named among Barron’s Profiles of American Colleges’ 75 most competitive colleges. The others are UVA, UNC Chapel Hill, William and Mary, and UCLA.
- TCNJ
graduates 86 percent of its students within six years (better
than the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and New York
University, and far exceeding national averages). Before the College
received autonomy in the mid-1980s, it graduated 56 percent within the
same time frame.
- According to the most recent National Survey for Student Engagement, TCNJ bettered the average of its Carnegie Foundation peers in the level of academic challenge, active and collaborative learning, student-faculty interaction, enriching educational experiences, and supportive campus environment, as they apply to the experience of first-year students.
- TCNJ students have won 24 major fellowships during the last decade, including Fulbright, Marshall, Gates Millennium, Goldwater, Phi Kappa Phi, Truman, and National Science Foundation awards.
Other
- Since 1985, TCNJ has made it to 51 NCAA athletic championships and won 27 Division III national titles.
- We have produced 48 Division III Academic All-Americans
- TCNJ
has a 95% freshman to sophomore retention rate. When students stay in
school, they stay on course for timely graduation and save money. This
is also an indicator that the whole system at an institution is working
properly, not just the recruitment component.
- The EOF Promise Award is a TCNJ initiative that is specifically designed to ease the financial burdens and associated pressures on students from disadvantaged backgrounds. This program has led to a freshman to sophomore retention rate approaching 96% for participating students in the 2004 cohort.
What can you do?
Contact your legislative representatives and the governor to voice your support of:
- Stable
and predictable funding from the State of New Jersey, including support
of union salary increases negotiated by the governor's office
- Maintenance
of a governance structure that balances an institution’s need for
autonomous decision-making with the public’s right to expect
accountability and effective performance
- The continued independence and authority that TCNJ’s Board of Trustees currently holds
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