University education to prepare for the future

On Monday, tne Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on Education recommended unanimously to the Appropriations Committee that the biennial budget include a $3-a-year increase in funding for the University of Maine System. As a senator on the Education Committee, I attended the public hearing on the proposed budget for the univesity, and heard convincing testimony from students, faculty, and staff.

Chris Barstow and Jon Duke, student senators from Orono, told of crumbling buildings, broken desks, shortage of library materials, and the general lack of student morale. Duke, a freshman, said he went to UMaine to study broadcast journalims, but found upon arriving at Orono that the program had been eliminated in the latest budget cuts. Graduate student Karla Bosse praised her dedicated professors and asked us to make the university better for future students.

Chris McEvoy of the classified staff testified about his concern for maintaining the historic buildings on campus, and Daniel Williams, an admissions counselor, revealed that many students who want to study at UMaine tell him they cannot afford the tuition. Business leaders Jim Mullen of Bangor and Joel Russ of Portland stressed the link between higher education research and economic development, and Professor George Jacobson made an eloquent case for investment in research.

Despite widespread agreement that education is the cornerstone of a healthy, sustainable economy, reduced state funding and consequent tuition hikes are preventing Maine students from obtaining the skills they need now and in the future. In 1995, Maine had one of the top high school graduation rates in the country, yet ranked 49th in the percentage of our graduates that went on to college! As the 118th Legislature wrestles with the budget, it is imperative that legislators understand the necessity of investing in higher education.

For many Maine families, high tuition and insufficient finanical aid made college an impossible dream. Each time tuition goes up, students of limited means have to drop out, reduce their course load, or find an extra job. Tuition in the university system has increased 79 percent since 1990; while it is not high among state universities in New England, Maine’s tuition is well above the national average. Thus, it is difficult for Maine to attract out-of-state students.

Affordability is the key to access. To keep tuition stable, the state must pay a larger share of the total cost. We know that higher education leads to higher-paying jobs, but we have cut back dramatically on the percentage of general state revenues that go to our university. The state’s General Fund revenues have increased a total of 29.2 percent since 1990, but the university system actually was cut $2.5 million. Orono along has eliminated more than 425 positions, and our flagship campus continues to downsize and restructure, deferring maintenance, reducing programs and services, and losing key faculty to early retirement. Maine ranks 41st in the nation in per capita expenditure for higher education, and we are 50th in spending on research and development. Thus fewer students are able to pursue a college degree, and small enrollments contribute to the high cost per student.

The state of Maine, if we are to grow and thrive, must forge public policies that support access to higher education. Tuition hikes and state budget cuts have hurt the University of Maine more than other campuses in the system. We seem to have forgotten that we have a land-grant and sea-grant university that needs our support! UMaine deserves praise for continuing to provide high-quality education, despite year after year of devastating cuts. Orono still awards 43 percent of all four-year degrees, 64 percent of all master’s degrees, and 100 percent of all Ph.D.s and Ed.D.s in the state of Maine. The faculty, in particular, deserve our thanks for continuing to provide outstanding teaching and research for their students.

Efficiency is the key to affordability. The central office of the University of Maine System should be retained because it providess a vital link between campuses. Chancellor Terry MacTaggart has promised has promised to make more internal reducations in the system through consolidating administration on smaller campuses, and to deal swiftly with the problem of transfer of credits from one campus to another. He seems open to allowing the campuses more autonomy. We should give him a chance to prove himself, and stop blaming him for the lack of state support for education over the past few years. The 1996 Comission on Higher Education Governance recommended keeping the system. The Legislature will soon begin considering several bills that recommend changes to the system. This is a necessary process in our effort to provide increased access and accontability to our citizens.

The University of Maine System — and particularly the Orono campus — plays a vital role in Maine’s economy. More than 40,000 University of Maine alumni live in Maine, and many hold key positions in business, industry, and government. A significant investment in science and engineering research at UMaine would help faculty apply for, and receive, more federal and private grants, immediately creating jobs (paid for by out-of-state money) as well as stimulating long-term economic growth. If we want the next generation of Maine students to compete ina rapidly changing and technological world, we cannot afford to sell them short.

I ask everyone who cares about access to higher education to get behind our university. Please call or write to your state senator and representative and ask them to vote for increased funding. Hezre are some specific measures I urge you to support:

1. an immediate increase of 3 per year in General Fund appropriation for the University of Maine System;

2. legislastion to invest $20 million a year in research;

3. legislation to provide a $500-a-year higher education income-tax credit for middle-class families with a child enrolled in the University of Maine System;

4. legislation to createa a higher education savings plan to help Maine families save for future tuition costs for their children. (You can leave a message for your senator at 1-800-423-6900 and for your representative at 1-800-423-2900. If you aren’t sure who represents you in Augusta, your town office can tell you.)

The UMaine students, faculty, and staff who testified in Augusta last month were bright, articulate, committed to learning, and they love their university. Amid the crumbling buildings, the reduced programs, and the faculty retirements, something very promising is starting to happen at the University of Maine. Students are asking us to help them get a university education to prepare them for the future. How can we refuse? Mary R. Carthcart of Orono is a state senator from District 7. She formerly served three terms in the Maine House, and chaired the U.S. Commission on Child and Family Welfare. She serves on the Education Committee and chairs the Labor Committee in Augusta.