JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – If things seemed a little more black and yellow at the Missouri State Capitol on Wednesday, it might have something to do with the fact that it was the annual legislative day for the University of Missouri System.
Members of the UM System flocked to Jefferson City in hopes of highlighting the work of the four universities (Columbia, Kansas City, Rolla, and St. Louis) and demonstrating the value to Missouri’s citizens and communities.
Among those from the UM System included UM System President Mun Choi and other leaders, as well as the mascots from each respective school. Members of the Mizzou Athletic Department like Football Coach Barry Odom, QB Drew Lock, Head Wrestling Coach Brian Smith, and Olympic bronze medalist J’Den Cox were also in attendance for the showcase held at the DoubleTree Hotel.
Legislative Day 2018 is underway! University and legislative leaders have met today to discuss #highered and the University’s value to the state of Missouri and its citizens! #ShowMeUM #moleg pic.twitter.com/JjvfPMqLIX
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Thank you to the legislators from our campus districts and state agency leaders who shared with our constituents their support of #highered and the important contributions our faculty, staff and students make in their communities. #ShowMeUM #moleg pic.twitter.com/AI45Xl7wzk
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
The University of Missouri System looks to educate more than 70,000 students each year, granting more than half of the degrees given out across the state.
In the FY 2018 budget, the UM System is requesting $456 million, $419 million of which is for the “continuance of core operations.”
To do so, the UM System presented an entire showcase of more than one dozen exhibits
Exhibit 1: @MUExtension educates Missouri crop producers and their advisors on the use of precision agriculture technologies and drones. #ShowMeUM #moleg #FeedingMissourians pic.twitter.com/ueXRXdvoO2
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 2: Soybean Cyst Nematodes (SCN) cost MO producers millions a year as 75%+ of fields suffer from this damaging pest. Dr. Mitchum and her lab are tackling the micro terror head‐on by moving science from the laboratory into the field.#ShowMeUM #moleg #FeedingMissourians https://t.co/Ji02RghS7k
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 3: The Show-Me-Select Program is recognized nationally as a land grant model for translational research & provides cattle producers with tools to enhance reproductive performance, genetic potential & profitability of cowherds #ShowMeUM #moleg #FeedingMissourians @mucafnr pic.twitter.com/sdqdsMbGQa
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 4: @MUExtension developed an interactive website to provide a searchable inventory of faculty & student programs, activities and educational opportunities that bring knowledge and resources directly to MO. https://t.co/SIHr2ER8qZ #ShowMeUM #moleg #EngagingMissourians pic.twitter.com/ZlWNhT6Efl
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 5: @UMKansasCity has led collaborative energy efforts under a large defense program including the development of a neutron detection instrumentation for military & commercial use, licensed & transitioned by a Missouri company. #ShowMeUM #moleg #ProtectingMissourians pic.twitter.com/RI1vPMppes
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 6: INSPIRE UTC, a 10-university consortium, addresses various challenges in the highway and railway system, including aging infrastructure. #ShowMeUM #moleg #ProtectingMissourians pic.twitter.com/QDfoB0Ar1l
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 7: #TPMC will take advantage of @Mizzou‘s longstanding culture of multidisciplinary teamwork by integrating biomedical research & translating scientific advances into new drugs, devices & treatments to improve health and well-being. #ShowMeUM #moleg #CaringForMissourians pic.twitter.com/R1cNHxgg32
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 8: @UMKansasCity Pharm to Farm program trains pharmacy students who plan to return to their rural communities how to deliver on-site farmstead medication assessments, lead public health outreach and collaborate with practitioners. #ShowMeUM #moleg #CaringForMissourians pic.twitter.com/1zmp7fUwto
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 9: @mumedicine is addressing Missouri’s physician shortage through the Rural Track Pipeline Program, the Springfield Clinical Campus Expansion and the Shelden Clinical Simulation Center. #ShowMeUM #moleg #CaringForMissourians pic.twitter.com/E3H2epBhGD
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 10: @muhealth serves MO through the Health Network of Missouri, MPact Health, Charity Care, Outreach Clinics, Unique Patients Served, Medicaid Patient Count, Missouri Telehealth Network, Show-Me ECHO, Ellis Fischel Cancer Center’s Mamm Van. #ShowMeUM #CaringForMissourians pic.twitter.com/SKL2Zj2zfH
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 11: With @MUHealth & @Cerner, the Tiger Institute for Health Innovation improves the health of Missourians by connecting providers with each other and with patients to improve quality, lower costs & increase access to services. #ShowMeUM #moleg #CaringForMissourians pic.twitter.com/nvkQswmZsY
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 12: A MO-based company, @moscicorp commercializes high-tech glass products to benefit health care, energy, automotive & defense industries. Proud company built from a @MissouriSandT technology #ShowMeUM #moleg #EnhancingInnovationThroughPartnerships pic.twitter.com/a8NHbXLLcV
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 13: .@missourisandt is proud to be a leading affiliate university with #PLTW to help educate the next generation of our state’s STEM leaders – the students in elementary, middle and high schools. #ShowMeUM #PreparingMissouriansForLifeAndWork #moleg https://t.co/XFXna9Q03t
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 14: @muengineer students share innovations from SURF (Student’s Underwater Robotics Foundation) and 3-D printed laparoscopic training units designed to aid surgical residents & transmit images from inside a body #ShowMeUM #moleg #PreparingMissouriansForLifeAndWork pic.twitter.com/dignP7Pe34
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 15: Entrepreneurship opportunities are vast across our campuses and expose our students to experiences that will prepare them through curriculum, extracurricular activities and community programming. #ShowMeUM #moleg #PreparingMissouriansForLifeAndWork pic.twitter.com/8VGYnjP6lF
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Exhibit 16: Our four campuses invest in programs to support the success of veterans, which pays off as they enroll and succeed at markedly higher rates and are among our best students and graduates. #ShowMeUM #moleg #PreparingMissouriansForWorkAndLife https://t.co/NX9QuSbpMM
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
But the legislative day also comes as the University has notified some non-tenure faculty that their contracts will not be renewed, citing the proposed cuts to higher education by Gov. Eric Greitens, as well as uncertainty regarding the efforts attempting to reduce those cuts during the legislature’s work on the budget.
“Despite our best efforts, the University of Missouri continues to face significant budget challenges,” Interim Provost Jim Spain said in a letter Wednesday. “While we work productively with our legislators, it remains prudent for us to plan on a potential significant drop in state revenue for the upcoming fiscal year.”
The Governor’s 2019 budget proposal would decrease the higher education funding by $70 million from the prior numbers in 2018.
“As the budget picture is clarified, we will be able to make additional decisions, including potential renewals of (non-tenured) faculty later in the spring,” Spain wrote in his letter. “If that happens, we could hire some of these individuals back; however, we’re not in a position currently to renew all contracts for next year.”
Thank you to @UMKansasCity Jazz Studies students for providing entertainment for this evening’s Legislative Showcase. Under the direction of Bobby Watson and Dan Thomas, these talented musicians make up a trio with string bass, guitar and saxophone. #ShowMeUM pic.twitter.com/W0XF2jzGl2
— UM System (@umsystem) February 28, 2018
Benjamin Peters was a reporter for The Missouri Times and Missouri Times Magazine and also produced the #MoLeg Podcast. He joined The Missouri Times in 2016 after working as a sports editor and TV news producer in mid-Missouri. Benjamin is a graduate of Missouri State University in Springfield.