VSU, 2 colleges fall short on state-mandated performance goals

Virginia State University and two colleges were told today to come up with remedial plans to address why they have failed to meet certain performance standards required under state law.

VSU, Richard Bland College and the University of Virginia's College at Wise were at risk of losing their certification for falling short of benchmarks related primarily to their graduation rates.

After impassioned appeals from the heads of the three schools, the State Council of Higher Education of Virginia adopted a compromise resolution that allowed them to remain certified with the provision that they present a progress plan by October.

The resolution also calls for the presidents and rectors of the University of Virginia and the College of William and Mary to become more proactive in helping the College at Wise and Richard Bland reach their goals. Richard Bland is a junior college affiliated with W&M.

The goals -- which the schools had set for themselves -- are mandated under the state's Higher Education Restructuring Act of 2005.

Decertification would not have affected the schools' accreditation, but it would have cost them thousands of dollars in interest earned on tuition and fees. The interest is held by the state treasury, and its release is tied to certification.

"It seems if your goal is to make us meet our standards next year, you don't take money from us this year," VSU President Eddie N. Moore Jr. told the council.

Through the third quarter of this fiscal year, VSU stood to lose nearly $250,000 and Richard Bland about $11,500 in interest.

Moore maintained that a mathematical error in how VSU computed its goals caused the university to forecast that a higher number of degrees would be awarded.

Moore told the council that the three schools before the council are the ones that accept students at the "absolute bottom" of the social and economic ladder.

VSU has never failed to admit a Virginia resident who met the university's admission standards and did not plan to start rejecting them in order to meet the goals, he said.

Moore said he was "not pleased in the least way" by the compromise resolution, which could get a second look when the council meets again Tuesday.. The council has scheduled two panel discussions with university presidents, one of which will address the effect of higher-education restructuring.

The 2005 act allowed for greater autonomy for schools such as U.Va. and W&M, but it also required SCHEV to develop performance standards for all institutions and evaluate them annually.

Richard Bland came up short in its goals when it awarded 174 degrees for 2007-08 instead of between 204 to 215 that it had anticipated. Its retention rate that year was 53.9 percent, below its target of 58 percent.

"I really don't apologize for these numbers," Richard Bland President James B. McNeer told the council. He said 70 percent of Richard Bland students work and that the college draws from the economically stressed Petersburg area.

Because his students can't afford more, the college increased tuition for next year by just 2 percent, he said.

College of Wise Chancellor David J. Prior said his school had missed its student retention goal by less than 1 percent. Chasing that goal would continue to be a struggle "for all colleges other than those that are highly selective."

He noted that Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, the college's commencement speaker, just two weeks ago had called Wise "a model for access and affordability."

SCHEV member Alan L. Wurtzel said although he felt conflicted by the issue, it needs to be viewed in the broader context of the "major national challenge" of raising the graduation rate.

Wurtzel, a retired Circuit City chairman, said holding colleges accountable is part of the restructuring act, which he compared to the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

The compromise resolution was adopted unanimously.

Contact Karin Kapsidelis at (804) 649-6119 or kkapsidelis@timesdispatch.com.