By Rachel Sawicki

DOVER — Delaware State University President Dr. Tony Allen presented ambitious budget requests for fiscal year 2023 in front of the General Assembly’s Joint Finance Committee on Thursday.

Like many colleges and universities, DSU is working to boost health care programs but also seeks additional support for its renowned aviation department, Dr. Allen said.

“We produce more pilots of color than any other place in the country,” said Dr. Allen, who was joined Thursday by two DSU aviation students. “We have a 100% placement rate, and upon graduation, they are usually flying within six months of graduation.”

He added that DSU recently secured a significant partnership with Alaska Airlines, which is on a mission to employ more pilots of color and women over the next five years and asked DSU to be its only historically Black college or university partner to do so.

Gov. Carney’s proposed operating budget for DSU is $39,900,600, up from $39,153,600 in 2022. Downtown DSU — the former site of Wesley College — comes with acquisition costs, for which the governor set aside $195,700.

Dr. Allen asked for $2.56 million instead.

“We wanted to match our growth with the facilities we found at Wesley,” he said. “That is 50 acres of land and 21 buildings. We also wanted those students, … their profiles are very similar to ours as it relates to in-state and out-of-state population, demographics and financial need. And we wanted to be an economic engine. If Wesley actually ended, and there was no suitor to take its place, there would have been a significant economic hole in the city of Dover, and we couldn’t stand that.”

That economic abyss would have amounted to $85 million, according to Dr. Allen. But he believes that DSU can bring in double that over the next five years, as well as double the number of students on that campus. In the fall 2022 semester, he predicts that close to 2,000 students will be situated in downtown Dover.

Dr. Allen added that, specifically, the requested acquisition funds would kick-start the aptly named Wesley College of Health and Behavioral Sciences at DSU.

“It serves all of our health and behavioral sciences programs, but it also affords us a unique opportunity to build capacity and be a significantly situated health sciences program in the region,” Dr. Allen said. “Think of this as the 62 new faculty and staff that we gained from the Wesley acquisition. That’s about 60% of the Wesley staff that actually came over to DSU.”

Dr. Allen said that Wesley’s Master of Occupational Therapy program was exceptional and that the nursing classes would “rival any nursing program in the state.” Both are now under DSU’s purview, and they need money to keep it going, he added.

The expansion of the registered nurse degree to the Bachelor of Science in nursing will require close to an additional $1.5 million, up from the $195,800 the governor recommended, Dr. Allen said. While DSU expects to graduate 72 nursing students this spring, an infusion can put that number over 100, he added.

Junior nursing student Liana Harris — who transferred from Wesley to DSU after the acquisition — gave comments to JFC in support of the expansion.

“I’ve made long-lasting relationships with my fellow students and even our nursing faculty. Some were even kind enough to be listed as my reference, helping me earn the position as a student nurse at ChristianaCare hospital,” she said. “I am on a steady track towards becoming a competent, safe and compassionate nurse with our junior class. … I am more than confident that the state of Delaware will have 82 amazing nurses that will graduate DSU in 2023. I thank you for breaking me out of my shell and giving me a true college experience.”

Dr. Allen said another $475,000 would support additional faculty for the Master of Occupational Therapy program, which graduates just under 80 students per year. He predicted that it could rise to about 125 with more funds.

Robert Overmiller, who graduated from DSU 34 years ago, publicly supported this, imploring the committee to approve the monies.

“The reality is we have multiple students in our schools that need these (occupational therapy) services, and we’re extremely short on personnel to provide these services,” he said.

Dr. Allen said he also hopes for additional staff positions and course development to implement a Master of Clinical Psychology program, which would focus on school psychology and neuropsychology, positions that are experiencing shortages in Delaware. He requested an additional $621,000 for this initiative.

Finally, another $465,000 in further support would expand workforce development at the Office of Adult and Continuing Education, as well as six additional staff for the Office of Distance Education and Learning. The total increase requested for these offices is $4,565,800.

“Two years ago, we had about four programs and six pathways, and we have not asked for any additional funding before,” Dr. Allen said. “But today, we have six new programs and 27 new pathways, so that is significant for us.”