Weary of unreliable public funding, two of the University of Minnesota's premier schools are planning for a future without it.

The U Law School and the Carlson School of Management are both looking at trading what little is left of their state funding for private fundraising that could give them more control over how they operate.

The two are poised to join a handful of elite schools nationwide in seeking self-sufficiency instead of state support. It might happen in a year, or longer. But already, the U is assessing the idea's merits. Being self-reliant could accelerate the schools' fundraising. But some university leaders, students and alumni worry that it could also weaken their commitment to Minnesota.

The final word will rest with new President Eric Kaler, who took charge of the U Friday along with its $3.7 billion budget, millions of dollars in budget cuts and public pressure to tamp down tuition increases.

Newly departed President Robert Bruininks lamented the privatization trend but considers it "inevitable" that a few of the U's schools will break from state funding.

"By having some state funding in each of our colleges, it encourages all of us to be more self-conscious about our public mission, our public responsibilities, our public commitments," he said in a recent interview. "When you get in a strictly revenue-driven model, there could be temptation to think of yourself as something separate from the whole of the university."

Deans of the Law School and the Carlson School of Management say they have not sought this change and that their schools would remain as committed to the public as they are now.

"We will be, in every respect, a public law school," Law School Dean David Wippman said. "Our tuition plan has to be approved by the regents. We are not opting out of our financial obligations to the university. Nothing really changes -- except where your revenue comes from."

Turning to tuition, alums

More of that revenue could come from tuition, which worries some students.

In 2006-07, state money constituted about 17.6 percent of Carlson's operating budget. This year, under a budget approved in June, it will account for just 3.6 percent. The Law School's share will drop from 22 percent as recently as 2008-09 to single digits.

For the coming year, first-year resident tuition for law students is $32,928 -- about 20 percent less than the nonresident rate of $41,496. But the school plans to shrink that discount to 10 percent in coming years, documents show.

"We want to maintain the advantage for Minnesota residents," Wippman said. "But given the decline in state support, we thought it should not be as large as it was."

While students might not notice much change in the classroom or on their ID cards, they will in their tuition bills, said Sanjiv Laud, a third-year law student and president of the Law Council.

Making the school more expensive for Minnesotans "fades the purpose of being a state school," said Kelly McNabb, a third-year law student who also earned her bachelor's degree at the U. The law school previously focused on training students who would practice law in Minnesota. Now, without state money and with a greater focus on national rankings, "we don't really care if we're going to throw the residents under the bus," she said.

Laud put it this way: "If the state doesn't pay the law school to train Minnesota lawyers, the school can only train lawyers."

Wippman said that switching to a private-funding model could actually help more students pay for law school -- through scholarships. This spring, the school launched a fundraising campaign called Generations. Of the $70 million goal, $30 million would go toward scholarships, internships and stipends.

Schools that have shifted to a private-funding model have had more luck fundraising. The Law School is expecting the same.

"If we get to a very small amount of state funding, it's actually better for us to have none," Laud said. "That would maybe get a few more people to donate."

'Everything we hoped for'

It's been done elsewhere.

The University of Virginia School of Law gained financial autonomy in 2005 under an agreement that eliminated state funding in exchange for freedom to operate with minimal state and university oversight.

"It's been everything we hoped for,'' said Terry Ross, a Washington, D.C., lawyer who helped spearhead the change as an alumnus and former university Board of Visitors member.

Self-sufficiency has led to lower expenses and reduced bureaucracy, he said. Tuition has risen, but increases are still approved by the Board of Visitors. In-state students receive a discount of about $5,000. Loan forgiveness programs and scholarship aid keep the school open to students of lesser means -- which was key to getting people to accept self-sufficiency, Ross said.