§ 18A:64O-2 — Findings, declarations relative to urban research universities.

2. The Legislature finds and declares that: a. Kean University is a State university located in Union, Toms River, Manahawkin, and Jefferson, New Jersey, and Wenzhou, China, currently operating pursuant to the authority granted to State colleges by N.J.S.18A:64-1 et seq. and P.L.1994, c.48 (C.18A:3B-1 et seq.). b. An urban research university is defined as an institution of higher education having one or more campus locations based at an urban center that reflects the diversity of the region's urban centers, serves as a hub for urban economic development by collaborating with policymakers and business leaders throughout the State, and applies education and research to inform urban public policy. Urban research universities provide high quality education at the undergraduate and graduate levels to underrepresented and underserved populations, predominantly commuter students, who would otherwise encounter numerous obstacles to advance beyond secondary education. By doing so, urban research universities play a vital and unique role in changing the face of professions that have historically been homogenous and monolithic, such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, architecture, clinical sciences, and medicine. Urban research universities enrich the diversity of college student demographics, promote inclusion, and nurture diversity of thought to the problem solving of society's most challenging issues. c. Building on a distinguished 166-year history, Kean University is a leading institution of higher education in New Jersey. The university's eight colleges and schools serve 14,000 undergraduate and graduate students in more than 50 baccalaureate programs and more than 60 programs of graduate study, including six doctoral programs. d. Kean University is currently comprised of the College of Liberal Arts, the Michael Graves College, the Dorothy and George Hennings College of Science, Mathematics and Technology, the College of Education, the College of Business and Public Management, The New Jersey Center for Science, Technology and Mathematics, the School of Kean Online Education, and the Nathan Weiss Graduate College. e. Effective December 4, 2017, the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education officially changed Kean University's programmatic mission to a doctoral degree-granting institution. f. Since its founding in 1855 as the Newark Normal School, Kean University has evolved from an urban-based teacher education school into a comprehensive, doctoral-granting urban-research university with a global reach. Since the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, access to higher education has been viewed as a right by states, to prepare an educated citizenry as a foundation of social and economic development of their communities. g. Kean University has more than 30 research centers, including the John S. Watson Institute for Urban Policy and Research that engages the New Jersey Urban Mayors Association that works with state and federal agencies, lawmakers, and nongovernmental and community-based organizations to develop and advance progressive and effective public policy to benefit urban communities. Partnership with the New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus allows Kean University to create innovative and sustaining policies to unite thought leaders, decision-makers, and higher education to address the systemic and structural need for equity in urban communities. h. Kean University is recognized for its diversity and social mobility by the U.S. News and World Report, with an enrollment of 61 percent students of color. Kean University is designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution by the federal Department of Education, exceeding the requirement of 25 percent of full-time equivalent status, with Hispanic students comprising 34 percent of the enrollment. The preponderance of Hispanic and African American students reflects the rich diversity of the proximate urban centers of Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey to Kean University's main campus in Union. i. More than half of the students at Kean University are supported by Pell Grants and are the first in their family to attend college. j. Kean University graduates, from undergraduate to doctoral programs, reflect the diversity of New Jersey's urban centers. Kean University's Hispanic and African American graduates represent 38 percent of baccalaureate degree recipients, 43 percent of Master's degree recipients, and 31 percent of doctoral degree recipients, far exceeding the nationwide averages for this group among baccalaureate degree recipients (25 percent), Master's degree recipients (24 percent), and doctoral degree recipients (17 percent). Such diversity ranks Kean University among the most diverse urban research universities in the nation. The five-year graduation rates for Hispanic and African American students (at 77 percent and 63 percent respectively) in the combined Bachelor of Science and Master of Science at Kean University's New Jersey Center for Science, Technology and Mathematics are more than triple the national average. Kean University qualified for State funding through the New Jersey Office of the Secretary of Higher Education's Outcomes-Based Allocation, with 43 percent academic degree completions by underrepresented minorities and 5,717 Pell Grant recipients for the 2019 to 2020 academic year. k. Kean University's mission statement, "to serve as active and contributing members of their communities," along with goals to continue to evolve as a "doctoral university with rigorous research activity" and to position Kean University as a "cultural, economic, and educational epicenter for the entire community" in "Beyond 2020: Kean University Strategic Plan 2020-2025," are consistent with criteria for urban research universities in the nation. l. Kean University recently launched the Kean Scholar Academy Innovative, an innovative dual enrollment program for high school students. Students from urban districts in Union, Essex, Passaic, and Middlesex counties can earn college credits in a selected major and benefit from mentors and social-emotional support. m. Kean University has been recognized through awards of highly competitive research grants from federal agencies including the National Endowment for the Humanities, National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and the Department of Education. These grant awards have supported the enhancement of education and research for underrepresented and underserved students, including Spanish-speaking students seeking degrees in computer science. n. Kean University has established the Center for Clinical Laboratory Science and Pandemic Research that includes a federally certified laboratory for COVID-19 testing on campus. Kean University's COVID-19 testing and research capabilities result from a unique partnership between the University, Union County, the State, and private industry. Research seeks solutions to address public health issues and racial health disparities experienced during the pandemic. COVID-19 vaccinations are available on campus in Union, New Jersey and mobile support is available for urban centers across the State. o. In light of Kean University's continuous contributions and commitment to the advancement of important research initiatives, it is appropriate at this time to designate Kean University as a public urban research university. L.2021, c.282, s.2.