MSU President M. Peter McPherson traveled to Waco, Texas, Tuesday to lend his voice as economic leaders met with President Bush to discuss the nation’s money woes.

Bush told the forum that “times are kind of tough.”

“We have heard from Americans who are concerned but not discouraged,” Bush said at the end of the four-hour session at Baylor University.

“We’ve seen problems, but we’re confident in the long-term health of this economy.”

McPherson took part in one of the day’s eight sessions aimed at boosting the nation’s economy. The session, “Technology and Innovation,” led by U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham.

“There were a lot of interesting people in the group,” McPherson said. “The CEO of eBay and the CEO of Verizon were there.”

Bush used the occasion to announce he will not release $5.1 billion approved by Congress for combating terrorism because lawmakers lumped in several unrelated projects. Bush said spending restraint is essential to economic growth.

McPherson said each group was comprised of more than 20 people. Vice President Dick Cheney also sat in for about 15 minutes on the session the MSU chief attended.

McPherson and Cheney both worked in the Ford administration.

During the hour-and-a-half session, McPherson said he was able to make a few points about issues he felt were important to helping improve the national economy.

One of his ideas concerned the Third International Mathematics and Science Study, or TIMMS.

“The study shows that U.S. students in our K-12 do not appear to be doing as well in their last few years of their K-12 in math and science as many of other countries,” McPherson said.

“That’s of a concern to me.”

TIMMS compares students from about 700 U.S. schools to pupils in 50 countries to show the differences among the U.S. education system and others around the world.

But the study applies to college students, as well.

McPherson said 6 percent of students who graduate from U.S. universities and colleges are science and engineering students, while 10 percent of students who graduate from institutions in England and South Korea go into those fields.

“We’ve got a situation where globally, despite technological advances in our society, we’re not in the high numbers of science and engineering graduates,” McPherson said.

McPherson also said he has been disappointed by slow growth rates in federal research.

“Basic research, in inflation-adjusted terms, is where it was 20 years ago,” McPherson said. “You have to continue to do that basic research to feed into the technology advances.”

MSU spokesman Terry Denbow said McPherson was one of a few university presidents invited to the meeting. He said Bush asked McPherson to attend because of his involvement in boards and committees across the country.

Trustee Dee Cook said McPherson is one of the most knowledgeable economic minds she knows.

“He’s quite an expert in the stock market,” she said. “He’s very conscious of economic issues.”

Cook said his role in the forum reflects well on the university.

“He’s a very good thinker, and he’s a very creative thinker,” she said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Amy Bartner can be reached at bartnera@msu.edu.