HARRISBURG, Pa. — Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi highlighted the University’s impact on the commonwealth and commitment to access and affordability during her first appearance before the Pennsylvania House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, March 21.

Joining Bendapudi at the hearing were the leaders of Pennsylvania’s other state-related universities: the University of Pittsburgh, and Temple and Lincoln universities.

In her testimony to lawmakers, Bendapudi emphasized that the University’s land-grant mission to serve the citizens of the commonwealth, paired with its unique Commonwealth Campus structure, provide unmatched access to a world-class higher education to citizens in communities across Pennsylvania.

“As the sole land-grant university for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, with our 24 campuses, we are accessible to really all Pennsylvanians,” Bendapudi said. “Ninety-six percent of the citizens of this commonwealth are within 30 miles of one of our locations. And I want you to know that across our Commonwealth Campuses, nearly 80% of the students we serve are Pennsylvanians.”

Bendapudi underscored Penn State’s value to the commonwealth and the significant role it plays in educating the state’s future workforce, solving real-world challenges through cutting-edge research, and driving economic growth. 

“I am so proud of our land-grant mission — every day, when I walk into Old Main, I see the words of Abraham Lincoln,” said Bendapudi. “To me, that’s a reminder: We are here to leverage the transformative power of higher education, access and affordability for every citizen of this commonwealth. We are here to do research that has an impact on the commonwealth, the country and beyond. Without question, we were created specifically to support the economic development, the workforce development, and the competitiveness of our state.”

Despite educating more Pennsylvanians than any other single institution in the state, Penn State receives the lowest state funding, on a per-resident-student basis, of any of Pennsylvania’s public universities (Penn State receives between $2,600 and $3,400 less per Pennsylvania resident student than the state’s other public universities). To help provide fairer funding for Penn State students, the University presented a historic request to the commonwealth to increase its general support funding by $115.2 million for fiscal year 2023-24.

Penn State’s general support appropriation, which is used to reduce the University’s in-state tuition rate, has remained flat at $242.1 million since 2019-20. In his budget address on March 7, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro proposed a 7.1% increase in Penn State’s general support funding for the next fiscal year, which, if approved by the state General Assembly, would represent an increase of $17.2 million, to $259.3 million.

While Bendapudi expressed appreciation for the governor’s proposed increase, she said additional state investment is vital to the University’s efforts to control costs, enhance student success, and create academic and career pathways that will prepare students to meet the commonwealth’s workforce needs.

“Today, I am hoping to make a case to you that as you look at us, please consider that we educate close to 50,000 Pennsylvanians every year, and that it’s time to look at aligned incentives to make sure we support our students,” Bendapudi told lawmakers.

Rep. Gina Curry (D-Delaware County) of the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus asked about efforts to address racial justice and promote diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) at Penn State.

“I am committed to creating a University where everybody, no matter who they are, when we say, ‘We Are,’ knows that they have every right to be here and to succeed,” Bendapudi said. “Equity is the throughline of everything I’ve done. One of the things we are looking at very intentionally is that we need to invest in the people and the programs that we already have. The reality is, we have been one of the few universities to put out a public dashboard about how we are doing, not just recruiting but retaining and graduating our students of color, as well as how we are doing on faculty retention, recruitment and progression.”

Fostering greater DEIB and creating a welcoming environment for those of all identities, backgrounds and walks of life is part of Bendapudi’s vision for Penn State and central to the University’s long-term success. As such, Bendapudi has identified three priority areas that focus on strategic, deliberate actions Penn State can take to make measurable progress on DEIB goals, including:

• Closing the four- and six-year graduation rates for students across all backgrounds and identities by enhancing support for underrepresented students throughout their academic careers.
• Diversifying Penn State’s faculty across all ranks and tracks by creating communities of support for faculty of all backgrounds.
• Creating equitable professional development opportunities that help staff advance and grow.  

Bendapudi also was asked by Rep. Torren Ecker (R-Adams and Cumberland counties) about the need for increased funding for Penn State Agricultural Research and Cooperative Extension, given the importance of agriculture to the state’s economy.

“The impact that Penn State has on agriculture here in Pennsylvania is really remarkable,” Bendapudi said, citing Penn State Extension’s presence in all 67 Pennsylvania counties and avian flu testing that was conducted at the University’s Animal Diagnostic Laboratory, as well as work with the state’s agricultural processors and producers. “I certainly hope that you will all find it appropriate to support [Agricultural Research and Extension], because this unquestionably impacts the economy of the commonwealth.”

The hearing, which is held annually as part of the commonwealth’s budget-setting process, saw lawmakers touch on a variety of additional topics impacting higher education, including endowments, campus safety, shifting state-wide demographics and enrollments, student debt, athletics and performance-based metrics. A recording of the hearing is available here.

Bendapudi will next address the Senate Appropriations Committee on March 30 in Harrisburg. Penn State’s appropriation will be finalized later this summer, as lawmakers must agree upon and present a 2023-24 state budget for the governor’s signature by the end of the fiscal year on June 30.

Penn State students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends are encouraged to voice their support for Penn State and the University’s state funding at Capital Day on Campus on April 14. To learn more about how to help support Penn State’s legislative priorities, visit advocate.psu.edu.