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After four years on the job, Colorado Mesa University President John Marshall felt he needed to break ranks.
Colorado higher education leaders have made it a tradition to sign a letter stating how much more money they need beyond the governor’s November request, including this year. The unified financial requests have led to far more money for all colleges and universities in recent years.
But Marshall said he couldn’t sign onto this year’s letter for the sake of the students he serves. He hopes his absent signature sparks a conversation about the challenges the Grand Junction school has faced — not a disagreement that Colorado universities need more state funding.
Colorado Mesa gets the lowest state funding of all universities statewide despite enrollment growing over the years, he said. That’s at a time when more students are sticking with college at Marshall’s school, requiring his staff to do far more with less than Colorado peers.
“Signing on to this letter every year, going along, getting along, and just not rocking the boat — How’s that going?” Marshall said. “The answer is not well.”
This year, other Colorado university leaders have requested $80.2 million more for their operations, plus another $15.1 million for student financial aid. They’re also asking for the authority to raise tuition 2.7% for resident undergraduates.
Comparatively, the Polis administration proposed in November a $12.1 million increase for university operating budgets and financial aid. The request slightly raises the $1.6 billion the state spends on students and colleges.
In their December letter to the Joint Budget Committee, which has the most say on the budget, school leaders said additional funding would help maintain student access to higher education and help compensate workers to keep pace with inflation.
Yet Marshall said that money still leaves Colorado Mesa well behind others.
In the 2024-25 budget year, Colorado Mesa received $2,264 less per student than the state average, according to a CMU presentation.
The school has grown enrollment by 68% in almost 25 years, but lower funding has been compounded over many years, Marshall said.
Historically, smaller regional public colleges in Colorado have been funded at lower levels than other schools.
Despite the school serving a large number of students who are the first to go to college in their family, the state’s finance formula doesn’t set enough money to offset that historically lower funding from the state. The school also doesn’t get additional money for being designated by the state a First Generation-Serving Campus.
And tuition and fees are lower than many other schools, which amounts to the lowest funding of any university, the presentation said.
Marshall presented to JBC members that $14.7 million more annually would bring the school to near the average in state spending.
The funding would be critical for Colorado Mesa because it would go toward helping more students get to and through college, especially those with no college background, Marshall said.
Last year, Gov. Jared Polis challenged schools to find efficiency in their operations. Marshall said he’s done that out of necessity, educating more students with fewer staff. That has consequences for students when there aren’t enough staff members to help them during college.
Marshall added “these decisions we’re making have these very direct consequences on a student’s education.”
“I would argue, ethically, we have got to do a better job.”
Marshall also said he couldn’t ethically stay silent.
It’s unclear whether Marshall will be able to get much more funding this year for his school. The JBC is wrangling a $1 billion deficit and must make cuts. It’s also unclear how much funding higher education as a whole will get.
He said he knows Colorado leaders have inherited the complex funding system that over time has tried to incorporate social, cultural, economic, and political considerations. He’s not assigning fault to anyone, but wants lawmakers to understand that the funding reality has left CMU students behind.
Jason Gonzales is a reporter covering higher education and the Colorado legislature. Chalkbeat Colorado partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage. Contact Jason at jgonzales@chalkbeat.org.
