Sunday, September 06, 2009
Deeds and McDonnell have ambitious plans for Va. education
Creigh Deeds and Bob McDonnell both propose doing more for four-year and community colleges.
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RICHMOND -- Virginia's candidates for governor insist that the state's public colleges will play vital roles in reviving the economy and preparing students for careers in high-demand professions and emerging industries.
Republican Bob McDonnell and Democrat Creigh Deeds have plans to increase the number of college degrees issued in Virginia, steer more students toward studies in high-need areas such as science, engineering, technology and health care, and strengthen work force training at community colleges.
Their proposals are remarkably similar, though Deeds' is somewhat more specific than McDonnell's and McDonnell also speaks of the need for colleges to cut costs and eliminate redundant programs.
Their ambitions are tempered by a stagnant economy and revenue shortfalls that have driven Gov. Tim Kaine and state lawmakers to slash funding for Virginia's public colleges. Three straight years of state budget cuts and subsequent tuition increases have put the system's accessibility and affordability at risk, according to a July report produced by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia.
So McDonnell and Deeds say they also recognize the need to slow the escalation of tuition increases, which threaten to put college out of reach for low and middle-income families.
"I hear all the time that middle-class students are having more and more challenges and pressures in order to go to college, and are coming out of college with more and more debt," said McDonnell, the former attorney general.
Deeds, a state senator from Bath County, said he hears similar stories on the campaign trail. He has voted for budgets that cut funding to state colleges, but acknowledged that "tuitions have skyrocketed because we've disinvested in higher education."
With Virginia looking to gain a competitive edge as it emerges from the recession, Deeds said, "It's just clear to me that we run the risk of falling behind if we don't address higher education."
Tuition and mandatory fees for in-state students at four-year colleges have increased by 80 percent since 2001-02, the final year of a three-year tuition freeze. The tuition freeze was implemented when the economy was flourishing and the state had the revenue to adequately fund its colleges.
But during two economic downturns in the past eight years, successive Democratic governors and state lawmakers have cut funding for colleges to help balance the state budget. The schools were given the ability to raise tuition rates and fees to make up part of the difference, shifting a greater burden of the cost to in-state undergraduate students.
"Right now, when general fund dollars are cut, the burden is passed on to students or parents," said Steven Jones, the executive director of Virginia21, a Richmond-based advocacy organization that represents students' interests.
Virginia Tech received $190.1 million from the state's general fund for instruction and equipment in the 2000-2001 year, but is expected to receive $159.1 million for the current fiscal year despite having a higher enrollment. Funding could be reduced further when Kaine announces another round of budget cuts Tuesday.
An in-state undergraduate student at Tech now pays 46 percent of the cost of his or her education, university spokesman Larry Hincker said. That's far greater than the targeted goal of 33 percent that a joint legislative committee established in 2003.
Both candidates have pledged to do more for four-year and community colleges, but they acknowledge that the next governor will face difficult spending choices early in their term. Federal money from the economic recovery act -- which helped mitigate budget cuts and tuition increases at state colleges this year -- will expire in 2011.
"I think we need to have a serious discussion about the state's relationship with higher education," Deeds said.
Deeds' higher education program calls for guaranteed loans, increased financial aid and specified loan forgiveness plans to help in-state students.
Deeds said he would put $40 million annually into a partnership fund that allocates money to schools based on need, and create a reserve fund to help curb tuition increases during economic downturns. He would have the state guarantee loans of up to $4,500 for community college students and $15,000 for four-year college students.
Deeds' plan also calls for loan forgiveness for college graduates who teach in high-need areas and either teach or work in science, technology, engineering or math disciplines.
McDonnell said he also supports loan forgiveness for students who earn degrees in those disciplines and teach in Virginia schools for a sustained period. His campaign said he wants to increase financial aid and make it more available to middle-income families, but has not identified a specific amount.
McDonnell said he would restructure the higher education system with an eye toward access and affordability. While he favors increasing state support for colleges, he said he also wants the institutions to reduce operating costs to help drive down tuition rates.
"I think a combination of additional general fund support and getting more internal operating efficiencies at the universities hopefully can begin to stem the tide of the increases that we've seen over the last 10 years," McDonnell said.
McDonnell said he wants the state to award an additional 100,000 bachelor's and associate degrees over the next 15 years at an estimated cost of about $30 million annually. The colleges "ought to be thinking about expanding in the areas that are going to have the most significant impact on work force development and the job needs, the economic needs of the commonwealth," he said.
Deeds wants to increase the number of degrees by 70,000 over the next 10 years and expand capacity at four-year and community colleges. He said he would begin by expanding capacity at community colleges because "they are within an hour's drive of every single Virginian and they're the access point for most Virginians."
Deeds has estimated the cost of his entire higher education package at $86 million for the first year and said the price tag would increase in later years.
Deeds has said that transportation funding will be his first priority if he gets elected, though he has not laid out a specific plan to pay for road and transit needs. An upgraded transportation system will accelerate economic growth and generate revenue for other priorities, he said.
The next governor will confront difficult budget decisions that could scuttle some of the more ambitious proposals that Deeds and McDonnell are promoting on the campaign trail. But both candidates have voiced concerns about the long-term impact that further cuts could have on state colleges.
"It's like eating your seed corn," Deeds said. "You don't do that."
