WSU highlighted reinvestment in higher education, the establishment of a school of medicine and continued expansion of the Everett University Center as top state legislative priorities Friday before the House Higher Education Committee.
The 2015 legislative session begins Jan. 12 but lawmakers in the House of Representatives were meeting in Olympia last week to be briefed on key issues they’ll face next year.
Speaking to the committee, WSU Director of State Relations Chris Mulick pointed out that, even with last year’s higher education budgetary enhancement, the university’s state appropriation is roughly equal to what it was in 1999 in real dollars unadjusted for inflation. At the same time, enrollment and the costs to support additional students have been growing steadily.