2008 Woodie Awards
Shortfalls delay new building
Haley V. Hartsook
Issue date: 2/4/08 Section: News
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The projected state budget was $400 million less than expected, due to a lack of revenue this year. Bredesen said that he was forced to make some "hard decisions," the first of which cut funding to all capital outlay projects for the year. MTSU's new science building was at the top of that list.
The $115 million facility was supposed to be completed in 2009. It would house both the biology and chemistry departments and include a chiller plant to power it.
Sidney McPhee, president of MTSU, said that it is the largest funded project in Tennessee history for higher education in cost, size and scope.
McPhee said that he was disappointed, but not surprised by the decision, given the state of the economy. However, he emphasized that the longer the project was delayed, the more expensive it would be in the end.
Jerry Preston, the executive director of facilities office development for the Tennessee Board of Regents, said that the project escalates at a minimum of $8 million to $9 million a year. Preston said that while they had asked for $115 million this year, they would likely have to ask for $123 million or $125 million next year.
George G. Murphy, a professor and the department chair for biology, has been working on developing the new science building for twenty years.
Murphy said that the decision to push back the construction of the science building was "short-sighted." He said the building would serve the economy by training students in areas of science and engineering, both driving forces in the American economy.
Murphy cited the America Competes Act, which was implemented by Congress in early 2007. The act was a response to the "Rising Above the Gathering Storm" report that was compiled by the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The report emphasized America's need to improve math and science education in order to stay competitive globally. One of the America Competes Act's major points was to improve educational opportunities in science, technology, and mathematics from elementary school through graduate school.
Murphy was also concerned that due to the lack of facilities, the biology department would not be able to attract new professors or keep the present faculty. He explained that the basic facilities were put in place 40 years ago. Since that time the field of biology has changed, and what faculty and students can do inside the existing building is limited.
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Lightening
posted 2/04/08 @ 9:17 AM CST
Dear Gov. Bredesen,
Why do you hate MTSU? We have the lowest amount of funding per student and the lowest square footage per student of any university in Tennessee. (Continued…)
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