The University of Minnesota is not the only public higher education institution in the state casting a worried glance at the state’s economic future. Spread across 32 schools, with enrollment numbers ranging from more than 300 to almost 17,000, the schools that make up the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) system face the same challenges as those of the University — and are using some similar solutions.... MnSCU’s Chief Financial Officer Laura King presented a doomsday scenario of the effects such a cut could have on the system:
-If the cut was made up in only tuition revenue, tuition would increase 11 percent.
-If the cut was made up in only staff reductions, more than 1,000 people would lose their jobs.
-If MnSCU wanted to compensate for the cut by closing schools, one large university and one two-year college would have to be shut down — or 10 of the smaller schools would have to go.
