UHCN Article
“On The Same Page”

Joseph A. Kotarba
President, Faculty Senate
 

On October 26^th, the faculty senate held it fall retreat at the Hilton Hotel on campus.  The purpose of the retreats in general is to gather informally to thoughtfully discuss issues we do not ordinarily get a chance to address at our busy monthly meetings.  Ever since I joined the faculty senate several years ago, I heard about the importance of interacting with influential legislators to learn about the mechanics of higher education legislation and to impress upon them the importance of supporting the University of Houston up in Austin.  Since the legislature is not currently in session, we decided now would be a good time to invite several legislators to campus to discuss “The Texas Legislature and Higher Education.”  We asked the UH council chairs to join us, and we spent a wonderful morning with three special guests:  Dan Patrick, Texas State Senator, District 7; Garnet Coleman, Texas State Representative, District 147; and Scott Hochberg, Texas State Representative, District 137.  These gentlemen felt honored to be invited to our campus, and they were impressed that the faculty senate took the lead in establishing a fruitful relationship with them that we all hope will last a long, long time. 

            The legislators were quite frank and constructive.  Overall, their constituencies view UH quite favorably.  These constituencies may not necessarily see us as a major, urban research university—as we would like them to--but they do see us the source of an affordable and practical education.  All three legislators want UH to be a strong university, and have worked hard to obtain good funding for us.  To improve our standing with the legislature and to receive the resources needed to grow, we must accomplish the following tasks (among others):

·       “Get on the same page”  We heard this advice several times that morning.  UH faculty, staff, administration, students, alumni, and local constituents need to send unified, efficient, and impressive messages to legislators, who are inundated with communications from all directions.       

·     “Tell our story”  Sometimes we get so caught up in trying to figure out who we want to be that we forget all the good things we already are.  There are numerous strengths in being a predominantly commuting school that their constituents know and admire (e.g., students can attend classes while living at home, thus saving on expenses).

·     “Prioritize”  If we truly want major projects such as a medical school or a health science center, we set them as legislative priorities and be prepared to sacrifice other requests.

·     “Communicate”  We should regularly and forcefully interact with legislators across the state, not just our local senators and representatives.  We should invite legislators to our events, lectures, exhibits, and performances.

·       “Motivate Alumni”  Our guests told us repeatedly that UT and Texas A&M are so successful with the legislature largely because their extensive and motivated network of alumni lead the charge in Austin, not just as legislators, but also as lobbyists and concerned citizens.

            The legislators met with us for almost two hours, then left to resume their busy schedules.  After lunch, we were joined by Grover Campbell, VP/VC for Governmental Relations, and Richard Murray, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center for Public Policy, to help us make sense of all the good information we had just heard.  Clearly, the challenge for UH is to become a top priority for the legislature.  To accomplish this, we need to develop personal relationships with influential legislators to tell them our story-—not just send email messages to them!  We also need to assemble our local support and convert our needs into urgent priorities for them.  We do need, however, to constantly monitor the ever-changing local political scene to make sure we understand who our constituents are and what their needs in higher education may be.