A bill before the Kansas House of Representatives would allow the Kansas Board of Regents to consider innovative student recruitment proposals, including a KU proposal to grant partial tuition waivers for academically qualified out-of-state students from KU families.

The House Higher Education Committee on Feb. 10 passed House Bill 2007, forwarding it to the full House for consideration.

In testimony before the committee Feb. 3, University and KU Alumni Association leaders said the bill would enable state universities to maintain stable enrollments and perhaps increase the state’s workforce during an era when the number of Kansas high school graduates is declining.

“The bill makes it possible for state universities to create incentives to attract a larger number of qualified out-of-state students to Kansas,” said Provost Richard Lariviere. “At KU, we would use those incentives to target out-of-state students who already have a family connection to Kansas and who may be more likely to remain in Kansas after they graduate, thus contributing to the state workforce and our economic future.”

KU officials described how a “Jayhawk Generations Tuition Plan” could be instituted for students whose parents, grandparents or legal guardians graduated from KU and who meet certain academic requirements. Currently, about 450 students admitted to KU each year would be eligible to be Jayhawk Generations students.

Officials emphasized that the program would not reduce tuition for these students below the actual cost of providing their education, meaning their tuition would still be above the current in-state rate. This would ensure Kansas tax dollars would not subsidize out-of-state students.

Oklahoma, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa have similar out-of-state legacy programs, putting KU at a significant competitive disadvantage in recruiting students to Kansas, they said.

Lariviere said the number of Kansas high school graduates has begun a decline that will continue over the next decade and could lower the number of Kansas-educated college graduates entering the state workforce.

In addition to Lariviere, those testifying included Danny Anderson, vice provost for academic affairs; Marlesa Roney, vice provost for student success; and Kevin Corbett, president of the KU Alumni Association. Following the testimony, the Alumni Association rallied members of Jayhawks for Higher Education, the Association’s statewide alumni advocacy network, to contact their lawmakers in support of the bill. Alumni efforts will continue throughout legislative consideration of the measure.

To read KU leaders’ full testimony from Feb. 3 and the latest legislative news, visit www.govrelations.ku.edu.