A request made by an Arkansas senator last week into how much public colleges are spending on advertising was not directed at UCA, President Lu Hardin said on Monday.
“This is not aimed at UCA,” Hardin said. “It’s more accounting of higher education.”
Sen. Dave Bisbee of Rogers made the request. Bisbee is a Legislative Joint Budget Committee co-chair.
According to an article posted by the Associate Press, the report will look at expenditures, how much advertising affects enrollment and where newly enrolled students come from.
When asked if he thought the timing of this report had anything to do with the recent enrollment shortfall at the University of Arkansas, Hardin said he couldn’t speculate on that issue.
“You can, but I can’t speculate on all the factors that lead to this becoming an issue,” Hardin said.
The University of Arkansas is expected to experience a $4.24 million revenue shortfall this year due to enrollment figures not being as high as expected.
School officials asked its schools, colleges and offices last week to trim their budgets in order to make up for this shortfall.
UCA is currently the second largest public university in the state behind the University of Arkansas.
“There are bigger issues the senate needs to focus on, such as graduation rates,” Hardin said. “Limiting marketing and branding may be one of the most short-sided ideas I’ve heard in many years.”
Hardin said he and Bisbee don’t see eye-to-eye on university marketing.
“Bisbee is a friend of mine,” Hardin said. “We’ve worked very closely on several issues. On university marketing and branding, he and I disagree.”
Hardin said UCA currently spends $920,000 on advertising and promotion, which is up from $220,000 three years ago. He also said he doesn’t plan on making any advertising changes anytime soon.
“Our forumla is working,” Hardin said. “We are not going to change anything. I will be an outspoken opponent of limiting [university]branding.”
In a letter to Sen. Bisbee from Hardin dated Oct. 5, Hardin said: “Having dedicated my entire life to higher education, I am pleased to see ads from UALR, UAPB, UAFS, ASU Beebe, as well as ads from other institutions. We have to change the culture in Arkansas and these ads are succeeding. This is supported by the fact that 20,000 more students are attending higher education in Arkansas. The intangible benefit from advertising may be that Arkansans will place more value on higher education.
“The future of this state is higher education,” Hardin said. “Marketing can help us achieve that goal.”
Hardin also notes in the letter that he estimates public university marking spending in Arkansas at $15 million, less than one percent out of a budget of $1.6 billion.
Hardin said UCA’s recent advertising directly affects the brand image of not only the university, but the graduates as well.
“Branding increases images so that when a student graduates and can say ‘I graduated from UCA’ their chances of employment increase,” Hardin said. “When I market, I’m not just looking for students, I’m branding [the university.]”
Hardin estimated 65-70 percent of UCA’s success in growth is a direct result of its marketing.
“I expected growth,” Hardin said. “I did not anticipate 50 percent [growth]in four years.”
Hardin said UCA can not allocate additional money for scholarships because Arkansas state law only allows an institution to allocate 30 percent of general education funds for scholarships.
“We’re maxed out on the number of scholarships,” Hardin said.