Clemson University president James Barker has roundly rejected Gov. Mark Sanford’s offer to privatize the Upstate school.

“Clemson is proud to be a public university, and we have no plans to abandon the public mission that has served the state well for 115 years,” Barker said at the school’s biannual faculty meeting Wednesday.

“Is a private Clemson University in South Carolina’s best interest? The response to this question from every corner of this campus and every corner of this state is a definite ‘no’,” he said.

Barker said Clemson officials wanted to keep the school affordable, and feared that tuition would increase too steeply if it pursued privatization.

His remarks were sent to media outlets on Wednesday.

The remarks were a response to Sanford’s announcement this month that he wants to allow public four-year colleges an “exit valve” from state control.

Sanford, who has railed against duplication at colleges, two weeks ago said Clemson was particularly resistant to his call to revamp the state’s 33-school higher education system.

Because Clemson receives nearly a quarter of its budget from the state, Sanford said its leaders should join his effort to better coordinate the system or consider becoming a private school.

Sanford spokesman Will Folks said Wednesday that the privatization offer was a “tactical” move designed to foster discussion on how best to target higher education resources.

“This administration will continue to throw out new ideas,” he said. “Some folks will agree with them and other won’t. The fact that were having a conversation on the direction of the state is critical.”

On Monday, USC president Andrew Sorensen told the school’s board of trustees he had no plans to pursue the privatization offer, either.

It’s not clear whether Barker consulted with the board of trustees before Wednesday’s announcement. Trustee chairman Bill Hendrix could not be reached for comment.

Clemson officials have repeatedly said state budget cuts have changed the school into more of a hybrid than strictly a public university.

And while Barker reaffirmed the school’s status Wednesday as decidedly public, he warned it was becoming “a private university by default” and challenged lawmakers to better support higher education.

“If we in South Carolina truly value a public Clemson, we must find the collective will to support a public Clemson,” Barker said.

Reach Stensland at (803) 771-8358 or jstensland@thestate.com.