Boise State presents budget and student‑success priorities; president says university used non‑taxpayer funds to defend lawsuit

Boise State University President Marlene Tromp told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on Jan. 29 that BSU’s FY2026 priorities emphasize student access through the LAUNCH program, workforce alignment with industry (including semiconductor‑related training), and continued emphasis on academic freedom and civil discourse through the Institute for Advancing American Values.

Tromp said 1,300 students are enrolled in the LAUNCH program at Boise State, and that for roughly 600 of those students LAUNCH constitutes their only financial support. She highlighted program pathways into high‑demand fields such as nursing, computer science, radiologic sciences and engineering, and described BSU’s responsibility‑centered management model as a driver of fiscal discipline and low administrative cost per student.

On campus climate and curriculum, Tromp described the Institute for Advancing American Values as an effort to “bring in a wide variety of voices to the campus” and to help students form their own views. She noted Boise State’s faculty senate and student government have adopted the Chicago principles to affirm free expression standards. Tromp told the committee that sections of required first‑year courses (UF 100/200) offer a variety of topic options and that no student is required to take a specific “gender” section; students choose from multiple sections.

Senators and representatives pressed Tromp on DEI‑related staff reductions and program changes following state board directives. Tromp said Boise State had reduced staff in prior years—“initially we had 8 staff” in certain centers and the net reduction stated in the presentation was five—but that the university has restructured work around serving student success broadly (examples included veterans, rural and first‑generation students). Tromp said the university has seen substantial graduation‑rate gains after several years of these student‑success reforms.

On litigation, Senator Tom Carlson asked whether state funds were used to defend the university in the Big City Coffee‑related lawsuit. Tromp said the university “used only non‑taxpayer funds to support the defense of that lawsuit,” citing Idaho statutory obligations to defend employees acting in the scope of employment; she estimated the defense cost at about $1,500,000 and said she did not expect the appeal to add a “significant amount” at this time.

Tromp also described BSU’s engagement with semiconductor‑related training and research in light of Micron’s expansion and federal CHIPS‑era activity. She said BSU operates unique lab equipment used in semiconductor research, offers expanding engineering and computer science programs, and sees opportunities to expand partnerships with community colleges and industry for technician and engineering pipelines.

Committee members asked for written assurances that courses and curricula comply with Idaho law related to nondiscrimination and expenditures; Tromp agreed to provide requested detail and budgets showing fund sources for litigation defense and other items.

Clarifying note: several committee members sought itemized breakdowns of litigation costs and the university said it will provide that data to the committee. Tromp described program‑level staffing and enrollment figures in round numbers as presented to JFAC.