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Penn State’s legacy is at risk
Even though Penn State is the largest higher education institution in Pennsylvania, most people are surprised to learn that in spite of the University’s name, excellent reputation and size, state appropriations now account for only 9% of our annual operating budget. In fact, Penn State derives its income from a variety of sources.
The percentage of Penn State’s General Funds Budget supported by the state appropriation has eroded substantially over the last three decades. At the same time, the percentage supported by tuition has increased just as substantially. As shown in the graph below, appropriation and tuition have reversed positions in the the share of the General Funds Budget each supports. In 1970-71, the appropriation supported 62 percent, and tuition 32 percent. In 2008-09, the appropriation contributed 20 percent, and tuition 72 percent.
With state support accounting for less than 10 percent of Penn State's total operating budget, the University vigorously seeks philanthropic support to meet academic needs for which public appropriations are inadequate or unavailable. Although the amount of private support received by Penn State has increased over the last few years, it continues to lag behind those of the Big Ten.
Please review the following page to learn how you can be a major leader in shaping the future through education.
We invite you to contact Jean Wolf, Director of Development, at jaw57@psu.edu or (814) 372-3038.
