| TO: | Honorable Royce West, Chair, Senate Committee on S/C on Higher Education |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Deputy Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | SB276 by Staples (Relating to authorizing The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler to offer courses and degree programs in allied health and related fields.), As Introduced |
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has written the following analysis regarding this legislation.
Educational Impact Statement regarding Senate Bill 276/House Bill 605, relating to the authorization of The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler (UTHSCT) to offer training, courses, and degree programs in allied health and related health science fields
General Institutional Information
· The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler (UTHSCT) was established by the Texas Legislature as a tuberculosis hospital. After serving 30 years as a state tuberculosis and pulmonary facility, the health center became a component of the University of Texas System in 1977 when Senate Bill 13 authorized the health center to pursue its current mission to provide diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease, and primary care, biomedical research, and health education with an emphasis on cardiopulmonary disease.
· UTHSCT is the only state-supported health-related institution (among nine institutions) that does not have statutory authority to offer courses for credit or degree programs. The last health-related institution to receive degree-granting authority was The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center (UTMDACC) in 1999 (76th Texas Legislature).
· Four public universities and nine public community colleges are within a 100-mile radius of the health center. The closest health-related institution is The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.
Current Educational Activities
· UTHSCT currently has two post-graduate medical education programs in Family Practice (20 students each year) and Preventative Medicine (3 students each year.) It also supports a post-graduate pharmacy education program (1 position currently vacant) and numerous continuing education and other training activities primarily focused in nursing and medical education.
· The health center collaborates with Stephen F. Austin State University (SFASU) in providing instruction toward master of science degrees in environmental science (12 students in 2005) and biotechnology (11 students in 2005). SFASU is the degree-granting institution in both cases.
· UTHSCT reports that approximately 100 students have enrolled in courses at SFASU and The University of Texas at Tyler (UTT) that are taught by UTHSCT faculty.
· In fall 2004, UTHSCT reported 98 full-time equivalent (FTE) faculty positions of which all but one FTE were patient care or research appointments.
· UTHSCT was appropriated approximately $14.3 million for education-related activities for the 2004-05 biennium.
Current and Proposed Facilities
· UTHSCT reports that it has two dedicated distance classrooms and the potential to convert conference rooms to additional teaching space.
· UTHSCT has proposed a new 110,000 gross square foot Academic Center that would house classrooms, conference rooms, an auditorium, department offices, food court and support services. In its fall 2004 Tuition Revenue Bond review, the Coordinating Board rated the proposal “Critical” in meeting current and projected space needs through 2010.
SACS Accreditation Process
· Statutory authority would be only one step in UTHSCT’s process to begin offering courses for credit and awarding degrees. UTHSCT would need to apply for accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), the regional accrediting body for Texas institutions. The process of obtaining accreditation usually takes an average of four years. During that period, UTHSCT would provide initial evidence of appropriate resources for candidate status. It would then submit a self-study that would be critiqued by SACS, determining (along with a site visit) whether full accreditation would be granted or delayed until all standards of accreditation have been met. Initial accreditation should coincide with UTHSCT’s first-graduating class.
· The standards for SACS accreditation are rigorous. Institutions are judged on a variety of fundamental components of a stand-alone higher education institution. UTHSCT would need experienced administrative and teaching faculty, significant library resources appropriate to the level of instruction to be taught, an infrastructure that would include admissions, financial aid and other student services, and appropriate classroom and lecture facilities.
Future Educational Activities
· UTHSCT estimates that the process of obtaining initial accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) would take four to four and one-half years.
· While the plans for new degree programs remain tentative, UTHSCT has proposed developing both baccalaureate and master’s-level degree programs. The health science center expects to continue to offer health-related instruction in collaboration with SFASU and to develop a master of science degree in environmental health with UTT. UTHSCT and UTT are also discussing the need for offering a baccalaureate degree in medical technology.
Fiscal Analysis
· UTHSCT currently anticipates absorbing all new costs associated with developing future degree programs; however, if the experiences of UTMDACC are a good indication, the health science center would need to absorb significant costs to build library materials, space requirements, faculty resources, and various student services to meet SACS accreditation standards. The Coordinating Board does not have an estimate of those start-up costs at this time.
· UTMDACC estimates that ongoing costs of meeting SACS standards exceed $500,000 per year and do not include the costs of hiring new faculty, renovating space for instruction, and providing some support and student services.
· In its current Legislative Appropriations Request, the health center has requested $2.97 million in annual debt service, beginning in 2006, for a $32.4 million academic center. This cost is reflected in the Coordinating Board’s fiscal note to the Legislative Budget Board. The 110,000 gross square foot facility would include a medical library, classrooms, conference rooms, an auditorium, department offices, food court, and related support areas. The Coordinating Board has rated this Tuition Revenue Bond project as “Critical” to meeting current and future space requirements of the institution.
· With degree-granting authority, UTHSCT would be eligible for instructional formula funding for students enrolled in degree programs. If those programs attract students who would otherwise not enroll in higher education, there would be a greater overall cost to the State in funding health-related higher education.
Recommendation
The Coordinating Board recommends that The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler receive degree-granting authority as proposed under Senate Bill 276 and House Bill 684 with the understanding that the institution may require additional State support in the foreseeable future. Additional support also would be needed to build appropriate academic resources to meet SACS standards and later to accommodate students enrolled in new degree programs.
| Source Agencies: |
| LBB Staff: | JOB, CT
|