Prepared Remarks
Arthur K. Smith
Chancellor, University of Houston System, and
House Appropriations Higher Education Subcommittee
University of Houston System Presentation
January 30, 2001
Thank you, Chairman Hochberg, members of the Subcommittee. It is my
pleasure to come to you today as Chancellor of the University of Houston
System.
You may recall the State Auditor's Profile of Four Texas Public
University Systems - the University of Houston, the University of Texas
System, the A&M System, and the Texas State Universities System - and a
review by the Legislative Budget Board in the late 1980s that found all
system administrations in the state appropriately perform many different
functions and have many different funding levels.
Each system administration, including mine, is unique in its
organizational structure and operations.
The Need for Continued UHSA Funding
In 1996, the UH
System Board of Regents decided to combine the positions of Chancellor
of the UH System and President of the University of Houston. When I
came to the System in April 1997, I continued to streamline the
administration by assembling a senior executive team that possesses both
System and University responsibilities. This allows for maximum
coordination and efficiency.
This consolidation has been a success. Even though the universities
have more autonomy, the System Administration still plays a vital role
in coordinating initiatives that require a system-wide approach, and we
provide some centralized services that are best administered at the
system level.
State support for the UH System Administration is critical if our
universities are to serve effectively our constituencies.
System-Wide Initiatives
UH System universities try to
take advantage of the unique, joint financial and academic opportunities
provided by their geographic proximity. Let me cite a few examples for
you.
PeopleSoft
In FY99, the UH System purchased the student,
financial, and human resources information systems from PeopleSoft.
Once implemented, these systems will enable the universities to achieve
a higher level of reporting accuracy and timeliness of information
critical to the efficiency of the UH System. All four universities
will begin implementation of the human resources system during this
fiscal year. Implementation of the core financial system at all four
institutions and the student financial system, initially at UH Clear
Lake, is scheduled for completion in FY02.
Joint Contracts
Over the past two years, the System
Administration has negotiated joint contracts on behalf of the
universities for services that will benefit students and be
cost-efficient for the universities. Among these are contracts for
bookstore services, food services, and pouring rights for soft drinks.
Academic Initiatives: UHS at Sugar Land and Cinco Ranch
One of our finest achievements has been the UH System at Sugar Land in
Fort Bend County where our four universities collaborate in the delivery
of 32 bachelors and masters degree programs.
A Classroom/Office Building at Sugar Land is the System's TRB
request. This request for $18 million anticipates the need for
continued expansion brought on by increasing enrollments forecast in
Fort Bend County.
On the heels of our success at Sugar Land, the Texas Higher
Education Coordinating Board approved our proposal to convert the
University of Houston West Houston Institute at Cinco Ranch into a
university system Multi-Institution Teaching Center-the UH System at
Cinco Ranch.
Realizing the importance of reaching our non-traditional students at
times and in ways that accommodate the conflicting obligations of work
and family, we have developed Campus Net, an electronic campus through
which all four system universities deliver programs electronically to
the metropolitan area.
UH System Administration Special Items
UH System Center Support
Implementing off-campus
operations such as Sugar Land, Cinco Ranch, and Campus Net enables the
UH System to serve our constituencies in cost-efficient ways. The
expansion of operations into high-demand and under-served communities,
however, requires an investment of significant resources for program
development, infrastructure development and operations, and
administration.
Texas Aerospace Scholars' Program and the Technology Outreach
Program
The UH System Administration also receives special item
funding for two programs for the benefit of NASA, and which are
implemented by the Johnson Space Center. These are the Texas Aerospace
Scholars' Program and the Technology Outreach Program.
While the UH System is happy to support and facilitate these
initiatives-because they align with our own teaching and research
goals-they are not our programs. We are simply the conduit through
which NASA receives funding.
Mr. Chairman, the University of Houston System, particularly the
University of Houston, has been a major factor in the phenomenal growth
and success of the Upper Gulf Coast, and we expect to play an even
greater role in the years to come.
The educational needs of our ethnically diverse population must be
accommodated if our workforce is to receive the top-quality education
and professional skills demanded by the economy of the new century. Our
intellectual and instructional needs, at the current rate of funding,
will not keep pace with the changing needs of Texas.
We are ready to meet our challenges, asking only that we be given
the resources we need to do so with the excellence that our citizens
deserve.
That concludes my presentation on the University of Houston System
Administration, Mr. Chairman. I will be happy to answer your
questions.