Contact: Maridith Geuder
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Mississippi State spent more than $550 million in 2006-07 carrying out its primary missions of teaching, research, and service to Mississippi. Less than 30 percent of that came from state appropriations, with the remainder from sources such as funded research, tuition and private contributions.
About $347 million in expenditures, or 63 percent of the total, went directly into support of the university's core functions of instruction, research and public service, while the rest supported institutional operations such infrastructure maintenance, student services and academic support functions, such as libraries.
The single biggest slice of the expenditure pie was accounted for by research, at more than $168 million, or 30 percent. That includes the statewide work of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, as well as research conducted by on-campus colleges and departments.
Much of MSU's research is linked directly to major state industries, both traditional and emerging, from agriculture to aerospace. The university this year used $760,000 in new funding to expand research start-up packages for faculty early in their careers.
More than $100 million, or 18 percent of total expenditures, was spent last year directly for instruction, with $44 million of that amount, or 8 percent of the total, devoted to faculty salaries. Increased funding for fiscal year 2008 from state appropriations and tuition revenues was used, in part, to create 31 new faculty positions.
An additional $32 million, or 6 percent of the FY 2007 expenditure total, went for academic support. A big piece of that category represents funding of the university libraries, at about $8 million, or 1.5 percent of total expenditures. For the current budget year, MSU has increased funding for libraries by more than $450,000.
Public service and outreach represent a $78 million, 14 percent cut of the university's total expenditures for FY 2007. That includes the work of the MSU Extension Service, with a presence in every county of the state, designed to provide assistance to farmers, families, local governments, and youth, including the more than 100,000 members of the 4-H Clubs in 1,700 communities.
Direct support for students in the form of financial aid and scholarships represents $35 million, or more than 6 percent of the FY 2007 budget. That includes more than $16 million for merit-based academic scholarships.
Other student services, ranging from the university counseling center to the recreational sports department, account for more than $12 million, or a little over 2 percent of annual expenditures.
Operation and maintenance of MSU's $1 billion physical plant required almost $29 million last year, or a little over 5 percent of all expenditures. That funding provided for upkeep and major repairs to buildings, utility systems, and streets and sidewalks, along with campus landscaping. It also covered MSU's almost $11 million utility bill, primarily for electricity and natural gas. During the past year, MSU invested more than $1.8 million in repairs and improvements to its 15 miles of streets, sidewalks, and 140 acres of parking space.
"It takes a lot to keep an institution of this size and complexity running smoothly, and a lot of the investment is typically out of sight and out of mind," said MSU President Robert H. "Doc" Foglesong. "Not many people think about the condition of our underground steam lines or the acres of roofs we maintain, for example--until they stop working properly--but needs like those require substantial amounts of money."
Other aspects of running the campus are minimal in cost, by comparison, but are important to creating an environment conducive to learning and working and presenting the public face of the university in a way that encourages support, Foglesong said.
"People do notice the little things like new plantings in the flowerbeds or a new coat of paint on the signposts, and we've made a priority during the past couple of years of making the campus attractive and welcoming," Foglesong said. "The feedback has been tremendous and overwhelmingly positive. Alumni, prospective students and other visitors feel better about the university and have confidence in what we're doing here when they see the campus squared away as it is today."
One touch added during the past few months was erecting new brick and pre-cast stone signs to mark the major entrances to the campus. The new structures at six locations let visitors know they're entering Mississippi State territory and make a positive first impression, Foglesong said. The monuments, built to last for a century and featuring the university's founding year of 1878, evoke the historic welcome signs erected at major entrances in the 1920s.
The cost for materials and contract labor--$350,000--represents less than one-tenth of 1 percent of university expenditures for last year. MSU provided some additional in-house labor for the project. "That was a good investment in institutional visibility," Foglesong said. "It's done as much as any project in recent years to add to our 'curb appeal,' and that's important for recruiting, fundraising, and community pride."
Major new construction generally is financed by multi-year bond issues--either state or university--and by private support, rather than as part of the annual operating budgets. In addition to annual expenditures now approaching $600 million, MSU is investing heavily in new facilities.
Three new residence halls have opened in the last 18 months at a cost of more than $40 million, and will be paid for by rent revenue. A $23 million renovation of Colvard Student Union is nearing completion, funded by state and self-generated funds. A $10 million Agricultural and Biological Engineering Building is almost complete, and a $14 million Seal Family Business Complex opened this fall, funded by private gifts.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.