Ohio college leaders need to fix their roofs. And their heating and cooling systems. And their elevators.
These are just some of the most common projects outlined in Ohio’s recent capital budget, which funds physical projects. It also offers one of the most comprehensive looks at the current infrastructure needs of the state’s 14 universities and 22 community colleges.
This latest edition suggests leaders of public institutions are navigating how to prioritize – and pay for – fixing aging buildings.
Many of the state’s college campuses have older facilities, which can be costly to repair or replace. Most are also facing ongoing financial challenges as costs rise and revenues shrink, including from declining student enrollments.
And though this biennial budget is one way colleges get money to pay for building improvements, state and local funding for Ohio’s public institutions has lagged behind the national average for decades.
State lawmakers earmarked more than $560 million for the Ohio Department of Higher Education in this budget, or about 15% of the full $3.7 billion. Some campuses get additional capital money through community projects or other departments, too.
Making updates may not be as exciting as breaking ground on a flashy new building. But leaders know they need efficient systems – such as roofs that don’t leak and elevators that work – to support the thousands of people working at and attending state institutions.
“These are the mostly unseen but fundamental parts of our infrastructure that are essential to run,” Cleveland State University President Laura Bloomberg said at a 2024 Statehouse appearance. “When they don’t run well, we all know it.”
Ohio’s college campuses grow older
“Aging” shows up throughout the campus project descriptions in a document released by the Ohio Legislative Service Commission. The word appears nearly two dozen times, describing a variety of things from dental chairs to chilling systems. Synonyms such as “outdated” and “modernize” frequently pop up, too.
Heating and cooling system upgrades rank among colleges’ most common requests. Cleveland State is getting $6 million to put towards ongoing improvements to its HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems. Officials noted these disrupt campus operations with frequent breakdowns.
“Most of these systems have reached severe levels of deterioration in recent years,” officials wrote in the LSC analysis.
Calls to repair roofs also appear repeatedly. Northeast Ohio Medical University (or NEOMED) will put $800,000 towards improving two structures that are now more than 50 years old. Officials said the updates will help “address leaks, reduce maintenance needs, and protect building systems and interior space.”
Youngstown State University is one of several institutions receiving money to update and standardize its elevators. The budget notes many were installed more than 25 years ago by different manufacturers.
Upgrading IT systems and networks is another popular request for institutions across the state. Bowling Green State University is getting $6 million to support ongoing “critical infrastructure rehabilitation” for the networks at its main campus. Its current systems are more than 20 years old.
Colleges nationwide face $5 trillion maintenance backlog
Close to half of all campuses are receiving money under the umbrella category of “basic renovations.”
Several budget descriptions note some or part of this money will go towards what’s known as deferred maintenance. One national higher education organization defines that as “preventive, predictive, or corrective maintenance that assets and systems should have undergone but have not yet done so.”
Kent State University officials estimate their deferred maintenance backlog clocks in at more than $398 million. They’re not the only ones. Higher education institutions nationwide face an estimated total maintenance backlog of nearly $5 trillion.
Kent State is getting a little relief in this budget cycle. Lawmakers are giving about $4.8 million to help with those costs across buildings erected in the 1960s and 1970s.
