Kentucky is considering a bill that would require a declaration of financial exigency at Kentucky State University, the state's only HBCU.gettyThe Kentucky General Assembly is considering a bill that would declare financial exigency for five years at Kentucky State University, the state’s sole HBCU, and give unprecedented powers to the university’s president over many of the institution’s policies and operations. Sponsored by Senator Chris McDaniel (R-Ryland Heights), chairman of the Kentucky Senate budget committee, Senate Bill 185, would impose sweeping changes to KSU’s mission, academic curriculum, faculty employment, student admissions and financial management. Legislators have suggested that without the changes, they were considering ending state funding for the university, which would have almost certainly forced its closure. KSU has been troubled by serious financial struggles and leadership turnover in recent years, leading to mounting frustrations among state legislators over operations at the school and questions about its future viability. Its budget was recently found to be running more than a $20 million deficit, and its cash reserves have been severely depleted. It currently is on probation by its accreditor, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.A Mission Change Under the bill, which passed out of committee on March 25, KSU would become a polytechnic school that would focus “on highly technical, industry-based applied learning" and offer "programs aligned with the workforce needs of the Commonwealth.” After a review of its academic programming, KSU would be allowed to offer no more than 10 academic areas of study beginning in 2026-27, in addition to college of education programs, exclusively online programs and other curricula judged by the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education to be necessary to the university’s transformed mission as a polytechnic institution. A 5-Year Financial ExigencyIf it becomes law, the bill would declare that a state of financial exigency exists at Kentucky State University for five years or until the General Assembly declares, based upon the recommendation of the Council on Postsecondary Education, that the university's finances are stable, whichever occurs first.MORE FOR YOUIn its current form, the bill would also prohibit KSU from taking on any financial obligations or make any expenditure of more than $5,000 without prior approval from the Council of Postsecondary Education. (An amendment has been proposed that would incresase that amount to $20,000.)It also bars KSU students who have owed the school $1,000 for more than 30 days from being admitted, readmitted or enrolling in courses; and it authorizes KSU to intercept federal and state income tax refunds as it attempts to collect such debts.Unprecedented Presidential PowerThe bill gives KSU’s president the authority “to terminate employment of any university employee, including tenured employees, upon 30 days’ notice for the entire duration of the financial exigency.” It also specifies that “the university shall retain only the faculty and staff necessary to support the enrollment of one thousand (1,000) in-person students and the programs maintained by the university in accordance” with its new legislatively mandated mission. Currently, KSU enrolls about 2,000 students.The bill introduces new admission criteria for KSU applicants, requiring that in the future they have a high school GPA of at least 2.5 and an ACT, or equivalent SAT score, of at least 18. However, subject to those requirments, it also gives the KSU president “sole discretion as to the admission, readmission, or enrollment of any student or former student.”Dr. Koffi Akakpo, the current KSU president, appears to be on board with these extraordinary measures. “This is not a departure from who we are—it is an investment in who we will become,” Akakpo told local media adding, “Kentucky State University will emerge from this moment stronger, more innovative, and better positioned to serve our students and the Commonwealth for generations to come.” And Aaron Thompson, president of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, said the bill could serve as a "driver in getting us to that economic development place with the highly educated workforce that KSU can provide.” A Dangerous Precedent Official optimism notwithstanding, SB 185 could prove to be a risky intervention. Its concentration of power in the president; its control of curriculum; admission standards and enrollment targets; and its forced declaration of financial exigency along with other financial oversight essentially amount to a legislative takeover 0f a public university. That precedent is dangerous. Might a legislature pass similar mandates for an institution experiencing financial problems that are less severe than those at KSU? Could faculty’s traditional role in establishing curriculum and admissions criteria be prohibited at other institutions that a legislator decides needs reforming? Do we really want any university president to have unchecked power to admit students and fire tenured faculty?Given the political realities in Kentucky, something like SB 185 might have been necessary to save KSU, but it comes with potentially high costs — it could pave the way for additional legislative intrusions that may prove to be more problematic than the crises they are intended to solve.