Gov. Scott McCallum recently told business people from the Eau Claire area that education is what Wisconsin needs to overcome its recent economic trouble and get out of its $1.1 billion deficit. However, his Budget Reduction proposal hardly resembles these words. He is calling for further reductions in the funding of the UW System from the state budget. This will result in further tuition increases.
McCallum’s original budget would have forced tuition increases for UW-Eau Claire students of 7 percent, but with the additional reductions the increase is now 8.8 percent or $122 per semester. Over four years that adds up to almost $1,000. That is $1,000 that will come out of students’ pockets. This decrease in funding will also result in fewer hirings of staff and faculty, fewer technological advancements and larger class sizes. UW System President Katharine Lyall said new program approvals will be slowed, the academic calendar will be adjusted to save energy costs and staffing improvements will be delayed. She also said students will feel the inconvenience of larger classes and longer delays in services, and faculty will have even larger workloads.
This is not right. Not only do we have to pay more to get an education, but the quality of our education is decreasing. There are better ways to reduce the state budget than to take away from higher education. Wisconsin has one of the lowest sales tax rates in the country. A simple 0.25 percent increase in the sales tax would bring in plenty of revenue to help balance the budget. I do believe it is important for the state to balance the budget, but I do not think it should be done at the stake of my education.
Also, being in debt is not just a state problem. Many students have to take out loans to pay for college. By the time they enter the workforce, they cannot use the money they earn to help support the economy because they are trying to pay off their loans. Students should not be forced to bear the burden for government overspending.
If education truly is the key to solving our economic troubles as the governor said, then maybe he should invest in education rather than take away from it. He should be trying to do anything possible to keep our funding. It will be very hard to attract students to UW schools if tuition keeps increasing and the quality of education keeps decreasing. The real key to overcoming Wisconsin’s economic trouble is to offer higher-paying jobs, not only to attract workers to the area, but to keep our own graduates in the state.
The governor believes that higher-paying jobs require stronger higher education. Then he makes higher education weaker by taking money away from it. It doesn’t make sense. He made a promise not to raise taxes and is even trying to lower taxes. But I believe education should come before tax cuts.
We do not have to stand idly by while our money is taken away. There is a bill coming up before the state legislature that would increase financial aid with increases in tuition. I encourage students to help support this bill. But there is more we can do. The budget reduction is not set in stone.
Remember the governor works for us. We must put pressure on him. He must know that we do have a voice. We can write the governor, call his office, and let him know that we are not going to let him run over us. The election for governor is not too far away and McCallum is not helping his campaign. Unless he starts putting more importance on the people of Wisconsin his chances of getting elected are dim.
