UConn's Herbst: We're Not Broken; Don't Merge Us

CROMWELL--The University of Connecticut's new president said Monday that while she plans to work closely with the state's other colleges and universities, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy was right to exempt UConn from his sweeping higher education reorganization plan.

"Why would you fix something that's not broken?" incoming president Susan Herbst asked. "All the indicators show the university is headed in the right direction. So, I think the last thing you would want to do is change the governance structure when things are going incredibly well."

Herbst was the featured speaker at a Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce breakfast also attended by several top officials of the Connecticut State University System and the state's community colleges, which Malloy wants to merge under one board of regents. CSU and the community colleges oppose the merger.

Herbst herself currently works in Georgia's massive 311,000-student higher education system, which includes Georgia's flagship university. But she said Connecticut's higher education institutions don't all need to be under one umbrella to work together.

"I understand what you do. I appreciate it immensely," she said to the officials from the other colleges and universities attending the event. "Our community college system and the state university system is absolutely essential to the state of Connecticut. It is as important to UConn."

Gov. Malloy with incoming UConn President Susan Herbst, Lt. Gov. Wyman and current UConn President Philip Austin

After the breakfast, Malloy defended his plan to leave UConn out of the reorganization.

"If I thought [including UConn] was the right way to go, I would be arguing for it. I actually don't think it is the right way to go," he said. He said the fact that UConn is a research institution sets it apart, and that students transfer between the impacted institutions much more frequently then they do to UConn.

READ MORE