The past year has not been an easy one for public universities and colleges in the state of Illinois. State legislators were locked in a stalemate over the 2016 fiscal year budget from July to April. As a result, public colleges and universities did not receive state appropriations during that period.
While all institutions were affected, Chicago State University, a public university situated in South Chicago, has felt the impact of funding issues particularly strongly. Typically, CSU receives approximately a third of its annual funding in state appropriations, an amount that does not include state funding for the MAP (Monetary Award Program) grant funding. MAP grants go to tuition assistance for the state’s neediest students and are a crucial source of tuition-driven revenue dollars for many public institutions.
When Illinois doled out a $600 million package to universities and colleges in April, Chicago State received $20 million. That amount still fell short of what the university typically receives. As a result, layoff notices went out to 300 CSU administrators and staff shortly thereafter. As the budget difficulties look to potentially carry forward into 2017, the university is awaiting the coming fall with trepidation.
Although it is not technically an historically Black university, CSU serves a predominantly Black student population. In its 150 years of existence, it has produced many prominent Black leaders in Illinois and beyond. Janice Jackson, a Chicago State alum, was named chief of education for Chicago Public Schools in 2015, and Kanye West, although not technically a graduate, attended the school in the 1990s.
