Budget not all tuition

One of the most important factors in a Pitt student’s academic life is made during the summer… One of the most important factors in a Pitt student’s academic life is made during the summer – when most students have gone home.

This summer, Pitt’s board of trustees approved a $1.55 billion budget for the 2007 fiscal year. The money from the budget will provide additional academic funding for research development, technology and infrastructure upgrades and student life enhancements, according to a press release.

Chancellor Nordenberg said in the press release that the budget allowed Pitt to “continue to invest in excellence.”

“Many of our successes can be seen in trend lines charting changes in our performance over time – with far greater numbers of applicants seeking admission, with far better qualified students enrolling, and with dramatically elevated levels of research support being three key examples,” Nordenberg said.

Some of the money will go to upgrading Pitt’s wireless network. Jinx Walton, the director of Computing Services and Systems Development said that Pitt plans to implement wireless Internet in all of the buildings on campus.

“Student focus groups identified academic buildings as the first priority for wireless installation,” Walton said.

Walton also said that although Pitt will work toward making wireless available everywhere on campus. Pitt will also try to offer the most advanced high-speed wired network infrastructure.

Pitt also replaced approximately one-third of its computers and upgraded new equipment with the latest technology.

One component of Pitt’s budget is tuition, which for most in-state students has risen again by 5.9 percent and for most out-of-state students by 3 percent, according to the press release.

Another component of Pitt’s budget is Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth appropriation. The University Times said that state legislators granted Pitt a 4.7 percent increase, bringing the total to approximately $164.6 million for the 2006-07 academic year.

But the budget’s largest revenue component comes from research funding. According to a press release, Pitt legislators expect approximately $625.7 million in funding for the 2007 fiscal year.

Arthur G. Ramicone, Pitt’s vice chancellor for budget and controller, said in a press release that research funds pay for salaries, goods and services in the local area.

“For every invested in Pitt by the Commonwealth, [Pitt] brings in more than $3.50 in external research support,” Ramicone said.

John Fedele, a Pitt spokesman, said that most research funding comes from government or philanthropic groups that want to further their missions.

He said that another source of the budget’s revenue comes from donors, who will give to Pitt for a variety of personal reasons, including loyalty to a cause or to an institution, a desire to create a legacy and sometimes for tax deductions.

Part of Pitt’s budget will pay for the 3.25 percent faculty and staff increase that Pitt plans to implement this year, according to the press release.

Nordenberg said in the press release that the salaries helped to retain Pitt’s “high-performing employees.”

“What really distinguishes this university is the talent and commitment of our people,” Nordenberg said.

Pitt’s budgeting committees spend nearly a year planning and making recommendations to Chancellor Nordenberg and the planning and budgeting committee before Pitt’s Board of Trustees approve the new budget during the summer.