Bismarck, North Dakota News

" To Bismarck voter:
Huh?? Zero out each Institution of Higher Ed budget. Check. Give each person in ND a $10K voucher to spend on any Institution, public or PRIVATE, in ND. Check. Watch free market system weed out the unnecessary colleges and universities. Where to begin? 1st, I am not in favor of taxpayer money going to private colleges and universities for tuition. 2nd, tuition would be prohibitivly high (imagine what it costs for normal maintainance at, say, NDSU) as to drop enrollment even at our larger universities to triple didgets. That is throwing the baby out with the bath water. Lastly, it would hardly be "market forces" that cause the Valley City, Mayville, Williston, Dickinson, et. al. to close. It would be neglect and the abdication of the state's constitutional obligations that causes those campuses to close.
It is simplistic to cite per capita funding statistics. They do not tell the whole story as each state, depending on population, will have different statistics. If you are trying to make the point that ND overspendes on Higher Education, you have missed your mark. "

" I agree with the Tribune. The North Dakota University System's proposed budget request and the response by members of the Board of Higher Education is obscene. In comments to a related letter, a poster by the name of 'Potential Actions Needed' wrote " According to Census Bureau State and Local Government Finances, ND ranked 1st in the nation in per-capita spending on higher education in 2004 - 2005 at $997 per person. SD ranked 38th in the nation at $543, Montana was ranked 22nd at $656 and Minnesota was ranked 30th at $610. Number 2 to North Dakota was Vermont at $945 per person. Vermont also is ranked towards the top in the country at state / local tax burden on it's citizens". We simply have too much higher education for our population of 640,000. Until the system is trimmed, there simply aren't enough resources to pay faculty and staff at a rate equal to national averages. A good solution would be to stop all state funding to public colleges and universities. Instead give each ND resident a $10,000/year voucher to spend at the ND college or university of his/her choice (public or private). That way, market forces would determine how many colleges and universities would survive and the quality of those that survive would be would be much better. "

" To Former college Professor:
It sounds like your experience with college grads has not been positive. For every horror story, though, I'll bet that there are 100 success stories. That said, I agree that there are many kids going to college that would be better served elsewhere. We hear colleges and universities complain about that frequently yet they take everyone with a 13 on their ACT. Of course they are going to struggle and probably drop out after their 1st year. Very, very few of those kids get through 4 years of college.
The cost of educating our young is rightly shared by the people of this state including the parents. It is a small price to pay for an enlightened population prepared to meet the many fiscal and social challenges that our state and nation will encounter.
The fact that we are tax poor only reflects that we are wage poor. Our "right to work state" has discouraged competitive wages and limited our ability to transcend social classes while a few top-dogs get rich. ND needs more and better Union jobs and the right to organize. University professors do not even have collective bargaining, if I'm not mistaken. A recent job posting at VCSU for a professor of Mathematics (PhD preferred) listed the starting wage at $33,000. Overpaid professors? Not in ND! "

" Since they already asked for a 19% increase I believe the correct western would be "For a few dollars more". However, I like "The good, the bad, and the ugly" better, but I don't know what would be "the good" in this proposal. "

" All these postings about the importance of education. And I agree as a businessman and former college professor. Education is crucial...if done in a serious way.

But just what kind of education are we talking about? Quality education? Maybe.
And at what cost? An increase of 53% to 730mm for so-called "higher-ed" just because we have a surplus and "higher-ed" wants a big part of the spoils?

As a former community college English professor I saw way too many students who had no business being in college. They should have been in trade school. Or they were there just to party. The serious students stood out and made a difference, but they were, alas, not the majority.

As to my experience as a business owner, I have hired many college graduates with degrees from ND state institutions, and one private, that being the University of Mary, our local "Leadership University," who could barely write a sentence or do basic math. Most memorable was my hiring a young accounting graduate from Minot State "University," who could not even add or subtract, forget about producing a P&L and balance sheet! Even weeks of tutoring at our accountants accomplished nothing. We finally had to let her go.

Please! I want my tax dollars spent in the same frugal and efficient way that I spend my money in my business. There is no room for bloat or crap in my business. Why should it be any other way in so-called "higher-ed?"




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" So, according to you, we taxpayers are supposed to continue to fund a bloated, constitutionally mandated, but outdated system of higher education to save the likes of the towns of Mayville, Williston, Valley City, etc.? As a taxpayer, I say, "Let the chips fall where they may!" If they cannot make it without my nickel and yours...let them fend for themselves! As a whole good ol' ND is doing quite well, thank you. But my tax dollars --and yours -- should not be used to preserve abject inneficiency, which is what we are currently stuck with. If the next Legislature gives so-called, "Higher Ed" one more dollar than they got in this last bienniem, there should be a total taxpayer revolt. "

" To KK: The State has not saved any money. The State just spends money. The surplus is the result of the oil boom and $14 wheat. Our temporary surplus is based on two commodities, two industries, both of which could (and have in the past) go bust in any given year. The 600 to 900 million in temporary surplus should be put in saving and spend the interest.... If you spent it all on education for on budget period, how are you going to fund education when oil goes bust??? Think 1980s. Deja Vu.... We need to learn from past mistakes, and the Board of Higher Ed I expect better of. "

" and let loose with some of that 600 million they have saved~ can you believe a state like ND has that much money saved and still wants to keep on taxing and taxing? I am telling you~ something needs to be done about these politicans~ don't care what color~red or blue~they are all the same~ politicans "

" A clear thinking board would not try for a 53 percent increase. Maybe they left out a decimal and it should be 5.3 percent.

This board is so arogant to think this state can afford to educate all the Minnesota kids going to UND and NDSU, and then hit the North Dakota taxpayer up and say it is good for economic development.

Hit the out-of-state students with a 53 percent tuition increase instead of trying to do it to the North Dakota taxpayer. "

" to NORM~ it is not that people are cheap~ they are tax poor in this state! Low wages and high taxes so although education is vital~ it shouldn't always cost the taxpayers. These students go to school and then become frustrated with high education and low wages so they go to other states and never return. Those that have are frustrated with the high taxes and low wages and so it goes "

" Norm, is this education you are worried about or state-funded (read taxpayer, ie you & I) civic welfare?? Take one for the team? What does that mean? Do I have to "take one for the team" and pay taxes while I can't afford to pay my own children's way through college. Explain that.

I am all for higher salaries, but not when there are too many salaries than necessary. Get it? "

" What is arrogant and obscene is that ND thinks it can get by on the cheap in all things all the time. If you think that education is expensive, try ignorance. That is also an expense shared by all tax payers. Are there really too many higher education opportunities in ND? For which shall we ammend the constitution and close? Should the communities of Williston, Dickinson, Mayville, Bottineau just bite the bullet and take one for the team as their local economies falter and their population decreases? Will that appease the cranks and editorialists who ignore the importance of education? Will it really make North Dakota a better place to live and raise our children? "

" Gas is over $3.00/gal. We are facing a recession. Most taxpayers are lucky to get raises. But we are asked to foot this increase? Where is the return-on-investment of taxpayers subsidizing a college education only to have the graduate leave the state? Or worse, where is the ROI of taxpayers subsidizing the higher education of out-of-state students?

This had better be DOA when it is presented to the Legislature come January. In fact the Higher Ed representative should be summarily heaved out of the committee room. "

" Don't like the argument, argue something you can win on. You are right, I mad a mistake at the end of the sentence it was meant to read:: "The Board of Higher Education is simply doing their job; if you don't like the situation, stop making it worse. " However, for the record it is the "worst." "

" Did you mean to write "worse?" Hope you are not a higher ed professor.

We could attract more qualified eductors, staying within the current budget. How? Change our outdated Constitution that mandates this ridiculous number of institutions and get rid of the Mayvilles, Willistons, Bottineaus, ad infinitum! No business would continue this insanity.

Higher Ed, beware! I hear a great number of taxpayers saying this proposal is arrogant and obscene. If you are doing this for shock value, you have succeeded. "

" One would think the Board of HIgher Ed would strive to set an example for the rest of the State (afterall they are the "educated") by being fiscally responsible, efficient, streamlined management, seek to control costs, etc. To the contrary, this Board is the most out of control, greedy, and arrogant of all. The numbers requested are simply out of this world. The Board needs a wake up call. "

" This editorial leaves out some very important information. ND Higher Education has suffered from stagnant budgets and tight fisted policies since forever. 19% might seem like a lot but keep in mind that higher ed has gone without for a very long time. If the state had properly funded higher education all along, such a dramatic increase would not be called for now. When I first moved back to ND, Ed Schafer said that it did not bother him that teachers were the lowest paid in the nation because the doctors, lawyers, and plumbers were also paid lower than the national average. That Antoinette attitude has become the mantra of the Republican super majority and editorial writers of ND. Ignore the problem until it either dies on the vine or becomes so huge that it cannot be ignored any longer and something drastic has to be done. Go look at the Prison, YCC, higher education, etc. Years of neglect will always require a large and usually inconvenient infusion of cash. If you don't like it, fund it reasonably from the start. "

" The request is hardly arrogant when the state is literally in last place among the nation amongst salaries; to recruit qualified faculty and staff it is essential to have equitable compensation, we all know the weather isn't a keen selling point. If you hope to recruit the Nation's even mediocre (let alone the best and brightest) it is time to align ND to that end. Increased research, talent, and support of scholars has intangible and tangible impacts to the state's overall economy as seen in attractiveness to industry, and research. The Board of Higher Education is simply doing their job; if you don't like the situation is, stop making it worst. "

" Bill Goetz is the University System Chancellor and he makes a statement, "...depends on who you ask?" Sir, if you knew anything about grammar, you should have said "...depends on WHOM you ask." Well, if you ask me as a taxpayer, no way are you going to get $730mm. Not even close.

I have written this before on another blog: why in the name of sense is a state with a mere 640,000 people saddled with at least eleven insitutions of so-called higher learning? I simply refuse to continue footing the bill for this insanity, and I will make this very clear to my local legislators after the election this fall. I am a campaign contributor. To WHOM do you think they are going to listen?!
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" This editorial is right on the money. Higher Ed is getting greedy and needs to be put back in reality. Let's hope the Legislature will stand up and deny this arrogant request. "

" and the people get the higher education and find that they cannot afford to live in ND because of low wages and high property taxes and move to other states~ so what is the benefit to taxpayers for all of this? c'mon people~ let's start getting involved and asking the right questions and expecting honest answers "