Public higher-education groups ask for 15% increase in Governor’s budget proposal

The PA-AAUP Conference Board has joined with over a dozen unions and higher education advocacy organizations this week to urge Pennsylvania’s governor, Josh Shapiro, to increase funding by 15 percent. In a letter sent to the Governor by the AAUP, the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties, the American Federation of Teachers, Higher Education Labor United and other groups, the signatories pointed to the corrosive effects of long-term under funding on students, faculty, staff, and the public.

The signatories highlighted stagnant salaries, reduced staffing, increased workloads, and sparse replacements of faculty and staff. They wrote that, “Given the urgency of these issues for all of us, unions representing higher education are joining together for the first time to advocate for full public support for all of our institutions. We all urgently need new investment from the Commonwealth. We ask you to include a 15% increase in your FY27 budget proposal for every public college and university in Pennsylvania, including community, state system, and state related institutions. We recognize that this is a substantial request, but it reflects the scale of the problem, as we begin the long project of protecting, funding, and rebuilding a higher education system that truly addresses the needs of Pennsylvanians.”