Clemson wants to hire 86 new faculty over 5 years

COLUMBIA -- Clemson University wants $5 million to begin hiring 86 faculty members as the school continues its new mantra of divesting to invest, president James Barker told legislators Wednesday.

Barker asked a House budget-writing panel for $12 million in additional money from recurring revenue. That breaks down to $5 million for the first phase of a five-year hiring plan, $3 million to expand students’ internships and other internal career-preparatory opportunities, $3 million for Clemson’s Restoration Institute on the former Charleston Navy base, and $1 million for technology.

Employers are “looking for regions with strong, science- and technology-oriented research universities that can produce the people they need to hire and research-based innovations that will keep them competitive,” Barker said. “With your support, Clemson can be a key member of South Carolina’s economic development team.”

Barker also asked for $46 million in one-time money for building programs, mostly to renovate two of the campuses’ oldest buildings and other maintenance needs; $3 million would go to the institute in North Charleston for equipment and testing.

After several years of budget holes, economic advisers expect legislators to have an additional $913 million in recurring and one-time money for 2012-13. However, they warn that most of that money may be eaten up by required increases, such as in property tax relief, reserve funds, health care and pension benefits.

Rep. Chip Limehouse, R-Mount Pleasant, said he expects colleges to get at least a little boost this year, particularly to support training in high-tech careers that will aid job recruitment. He also noted the state’s colleges have a staggering amount of deferred maintenance needs.

“Yes, there’s some new money on the table. We’re not going to go crazy,” said Limehouse, chairman of the Ways and Means subcommittee that writes the budget for higher education.

Clemson’s 86 new positions will help the university meet its 2020 goals of attracting and retaining top faculty members, while preparing students for the new economy, officials said.

The goal is to hire 15 to 18 faculty members yearly over the next five years. The $5 million includes money for salaries, benefits and start-up costs for adding researchers, spokesman John Gouch said.

The university has eliminated 550 positions over the last three years through buy-out offers and normal attrition, Barker said.

Barker said the state’s ever-diminishing financial support has forced Clemson to adopt is divest-to-invest strategy, requiring the school to eliminate programs and shift positions in order to stay competitive and provide a top-notch education.

For example, Clemson is phasing out its agricultural education degree and restructuring it to focus on high-demand majors in agriculture, such as in sustainable agriculture, and food and packaging systems, Gouch said.

Clemson’s per-student allocation from the state’s general fund is the lowest it’s been in a generation, and using tuition to make up the difference – when families are facing the same economic pinch – isn’t feasible, he said.

While state funding and tuition remain vital, the school is also looking for other sources of money, including donations, more research and private partnerships, he said.

Legislators praised Barker for his approach.

In her executive budget proposal, Gov. Nikki Haley gives Clemson and other public colleges 2.3 percent more from the state’s general fund to cover employees’ higher health costs. Her proposal would give no one-time money to colleges for capital improvement needs.