Opinion

Letters to the Editor — 3/12/02

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Students, working families and Wisconsin’s economy are all in great danger, and unless we act now, the ramifications may be devastating.

Assembly Republicans met Saturday and voted to impact the UW System by an additional $60 million, $40 million through budget cuts and $20 million through additional fees.

This impact would be in addition to the $61 million cut to the UW System proposed by the governor and Joint Finance Committee to resolve the budget deficit. The governor tried to minimize the impact of the deficit on higher education and acknowledges the link between higher education and the health of Wisconsin’s economy.

Unfortunately, the Assembly Republicans have not demonstrated such insight. The Assembly Republicans’ actions will result in lower quality of the UW System and higher costs for Wisconsin’s working families. Furthermore, this will have long-term, detrimental effects on our economy.

Wisconsin held two economic summits in recent years in order to explore ways for the UW System to maximize its benefit for the economy. The conclusions were to increase enrollment of Wisconsin students and increase “brain gain” (e.g. out-of state enrollment). The Assembly Republicans countered the latter of these prescriptions. A 10 percent “surcharge” on non-reciprocal out-of-state students will only decrease our out-of-state applicants. Furthermore, a net $100 million cut will severely impact the quality of the UW System, its reputation and the ability of UW graduates to get hired.

The time to act is now. We must let our elected officials know that cuts to the UW System will hurt students, their families and our economy.

Please take three minutes to contact your representative’s office today and let him/her know that when the full Assembly meets Thursday, these cuts must be restored. Please call your senator’s office and let him/her know that these cuts must not appear in the Senate version of the budget resolve.

By working quickly and effectively, students can maintain a quality, affordable higher-education system in Wisconsin that both educates our citizens and contributes to a lasting, robust economy.

Matt P. Fargen, President, United Council of UW Students