• Successes that we enjoy.

• Faults we suffer.

• Goals we must attain.

• Activities that we have to carry out.

Achievements and Challenges of Puerto Rican Institutions of Higher Education

By Francisco A. Tomei Torres, Ph.D.

11 CaliforniaCalifornia 35,893,79935,893,799

22 TexasTexas 22,490,02222,490,022

33 New YorkNew York 19,227,08819,227,088

44 FloridaFlorida 17,397,16117,397,161

2727 Puerto RicoPuerto Rico 3,894,8553,894,855

Source: U.S. Census – 2004 estimatesSource: U.S. Census – 2004 estimates

Population levels

• PR: Ranked 27th by population among U.S. jurisdictions• PR: 1.3 % of the U.S. population

Persons Living Under the Poverty Level

Puerto RicoPuerto Rico 48.248.2

District of ColumbiaDistrict of Columbia 20.220.2

MississippiMississippi 19.919.9

LouisianaLouisiana 19.619.6

New MexicoNew Mexico 18.418.4

U.S.U.S. 12.412.4

Source: U.S. Census 2000Source: U.S. Census 2000

PR: The poorest U.S. jurisdiction, by far.

Pell Grant Distribution (2003-2004)

JurisdictionTotals

Grants Funds

California 551,533 $1,409,026,316

New York 375,386 991,147,458

Texas 396,214 983,294,248

Florida 296,443 721,814,422

Puerto RicoPuerto Rico 196,058196,058 597,378,182597,378,182

Source: U.S. Department of EducationSource: U.S. Department of Education

• PR: Ranked 5th among jurisdictions receiving Pell Grants.• PR: 1.3 % of the U.S. population• PR: 3.8% of Pell Grant recipients.• PR: 4.7% of awarded Pell grant funds.

• Tripled the college population.

• Contributed to the expansion of the regional colleges of the University of Puerto Rico.

• Converted the private institutions into the main providers of higher education in the Island.

• Encouraged the establishment of schools of medicine, engineering and nursing, among others.

Effects of Pell Grants on Island Education

• The impact and (qualified) success of Pell Grants for higher education in the Island are a model for the Nation.

Let us compare ourselves with Hispanics on the Mainland

U.S. Hispanic Population

U.S. total population 293,655,404

U.S. Hispanic population 45,216,925

Puerto Rico 3,894,855

Source: U.S. Census – estimates for 2004

• PR: 8.6% of the U.S. Hispanic population• PR: proportion declines rapidly due to

accelerated growth of the Hispanic population on the Mainland.

Source: Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC)

• PR: Less than 10% of the Hispanic population.

• PR: produces around a quarter of Hispanic physicians in the U.S.

• PR: Less than 10% of the Hispanic population in the U.S.

• PR: The Island has 18% of all Hispanic physicians in the U.S.

• PR: Ratio even higher when Island graduates who reside in the Mainland are taken into account.

Source: Interamerican College of Physicians and Surgeons

Hispanic Physicians in the U.S.

Mainland-32000-82%

Island-7000-18%

Engineering graduates of institutions on the Island

• The Island’s economy needs several hundred engineers.

• The engineering schools on the Island graduate over 1,000.

• Most get job offers on the Mainland.

• The island produces more than half of Hispanic engineers in some fields.

Internships – Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities (HACU)

19991999 20002000 20012001 20022002 20032003 20042004

TotalTotal 539539 590590 632632 611611 613613 564564

Puerto RicoPuerto Rico 219219 219219 227227 201201 163163 124124

%% 4141 3737 3636 3333 2727 2222

Source: HACUSource: HACU

PR: A disproportionate number of HACU interns are students on the Island.

• We are experts at producing professionals in excess of our needs.

• We produce professionals in excess of our proportion in the U.S. Hispanic population.

• We excel in programs aimed at Hispanics.

In a Nutshell

Let us compare the consequences of receiving resources

against the consequences of having to search for them.

Funds and Proposals Awarded by NSF to Universities on the Island (2004)

RankRank JurisdictionJurisdiction Funds (millions)Funds (millions) No. of proposalsNo. of proposals

11 CaliforniaCalifornia 671671 2,5632,563

22 New YorkNew York 363363 1,5391,539

33 MassachusettsMassachusetts 313313 1,1531,153

44 PennsylvaniaPennsylvania 211211 1,0131,013

5050 Puerto RicoPuerto Rico 1515 3434

5151 South DakotaSouth Dakota 9.59.5 3232

5252 West VirginiaWest Virginia .22.22 55

Source: U.S. National Science FoundationSource: U.S. National Science Foundation

• PR: Few research proposals submitted by the faculty of universities on the Island

Prestigious Scholarships Awarded to Island Residents (2005)

AwardAward Nominations*Nominations* NominatedNominated AwardsAwards

GoldwaterGoldwater 2-42-4 00 00

MadisonMadison -- 00 00

NSF NSF N/AN/A N/AN/A 00

TrumanTruman 4-74-7 00 00

UdallUdall 66 00 00

*Maximum allowed for each institution of higher education.*Maximum allowed for each institution of higher education.Source: Respective organizations.Source: Respective organizations.

• PR: A jurisdiction with a population greater than 200,000 college students is unable to nominate a single student to prestigious programs.

Goals to Achieve in Graduate Programs

• Equating the achievements of undergraduate and professional programs.

• Joining the national university community on an equal footing, not as a minority attachment .

• Elimination of intellectual insularism.

• Geographic desegregation of the student body.

• Geographic desegregation of the faculty.

• Achieving that the power and initiative arise from within each faculty member; not from above.

Nature of the Problem

• It is not a not a problem of lack of talent – there is an excess of first-rate students and, hence, of faculty.

• It is not a problem of lack of funds– the Federal government is (relatively) magnanimous.

• It is a problem of initiative.

• It is a problem of outstanding faculty recruitment.

• It is a problem of making responsible and recognize each faculty members for its shortcomings and achievements, respectively.

• The success of academic programs rests on the shoulders of every member of the faculty;

- not on those of the departmental chairs, deans, chancellors, presidents or members of the board of trustees.

Foundation for Success

Action Plan

• Infrastructure

Proposals to federal agencies.

Faculty recruitment incentives.

• Students

Prestigious scholarships and fellowships.

Internship programs on the Mainland.

Recruitment in Latin America.

Retention and career track.

• Faculty evaluation based on outstanding work.

Proposals.

Research.

Publications.

Graduate students.

Student evaluation of the faculty.