You have turned this university around. The university system also saw more federal money come in, he said, and a spike in private contributions. Those improvements came from having more matching money to attract funding sources, Hamilton said, as well as an improvement in pride and morale. That's why students came, that's why they are staying. That's why people are giving.
People like to join a winner.
The question is whether they can convince their colleagues. Bunde, a former University of Alaska Anchorage professor, said awarding the university such an increase again this year would leave the Legislature with two options. One is politically irresponsible and the other is fiscally irresponsible. Sen. Gary Wilken, a Fairbanks Republican who sits on the Senate Finance Committee, said it is too soon to predict the fate of the university's funding request. But he was encouraged by the number of legislators who turned out to hear Hamilton's presentation.