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Message: [QUOTE="CCSU97, post: 5324364, member: 7844"] [B]Absolutely![/B] It is simply a matter that CCSU has never been a State priority and has lacked adequate investments. UConn has maintained a stranglehold on political influence and State resources at our expense. In 1986, UConn had about 13K full-time undergrads at Storrs, while CCSU had just over 6K. By 2024, UConn grew to 19K (4.6%) while CCSU remains the same. Similar growth has happened for UConn in its graduate programs, as well as its branch campus locations (Stamford has nearly doubled and now has campus housing). CCSU has not seen any measurable growth and is on an enrollment decline from the 1990s. The investment in physical campuses is not even close to comparable. The amount invested in UConn campus is at least 10x more than the modest improvements made in New Britain. The CSU System hasn't made things better for Central. There have been many promised made, but few delivered. CCSU (which is older than UConn) was established as a teachers college and is known to produce the majority of school teachers (as well as blue collar careers like nurses, accountants, etc) for decades. Then in the 1990s, when they wanted to offer a Doctorated in Education for School Administrators, UConn leaders lobbied against its approval. While CCSU was allowed to establish such a degree program, UConn in return got further support from the State for other programs. Simply put, UConn has always tried its best to put itself ahead of the CSU System and had the political clout to do it. They simply did not want any competing academic programs and established ensured the State put all its eggs in one basket. Look at a Utah, a state with a similar population (3+ Million) and economics. They have a national private university that dominates the State (BYU), very similar to this historical and cultural/political impact of Yale. They have two public research universities (Utah and Utah State) similar to UConn's role. They also support a 4 additional public D-I schools (Weber State, Utah Tech, Southern Utah, and Utah Valley). Now we know this region is historically filled with private universities, so most non-flagship universities will always be at a huge disadvantage compared to other regions of the US (but this is no different than UConn comparisons to Michigan, North Carolina, or Texas). But the look at Maryland, they can support their flagship in the BigTen, and yet have Towson in the CAA and UMBC in America East. The question I have for you and others that live in CT is -- shouldn't the State build and invest in an affordable public university for students that can't or don't want UConn? Instead what has happened is that Quinnipiac and Sacred Heart saw the market opportunity left vacant by the State's willful ignorance of middle-class families who wanted something in-state other than UConn. Thousands of CT high school graduates that would have gone to CCSU if we invested just a little more to be competitive in academics, campus/residential environment, and athletics, instead took the "private school" option at 3x the cost. [/QUOTE]

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