A major change in state funding support for Kansas universities occurred in 2001. The six universities, including the University of Kansas, are now funded by block grants and full tuition ownership, allowing all tuition paid by KU students to remain at KU.

With the advent of tuition ownership, each of the six universities was required by the Kansas Board of Regents to develop a five-year tuition strategy. At KU, an Ad Hoc Committee on University Funding was appointed by the University Council to review the alternatives and to recommend a course of action.

In April 2002, the committee recommended a plan to generate $43 million over five years for educational enhancements and $8.6 million in scholarships for students with unmet financial need as a result of the tuition increases for the Lawrence campus. The amount of the tuition enhancement is $16.50 per credit hour for each of five years.

Over the five years of plan, 100 new faculty will be recruited to augment KU's scholarly and research expertise and graduate training, and to keep undergraduate classes small. Compensation for graduate teaching assistants, graduate research assistants, and student hourly employees has significantly increased. Other improvements include the addition of support staff for various student service programs and expanded opportunities for undergraduate research and international experiences.

Below are links to copies of the documents including the ad hoc committee report, the annual tuition proposals, and a summary of the resulting allocations.