Gov. Jim Doyle brought out the big guns last week at the annual State of the State address, touching on health care, stem cells and just about everything else gubernatorial voters might want to hear.
The speech discussed numerous proposals that, if properly administered, would benefit the people of Wisconsin. Then came the so-called Wisconsin Covenant.
Gov. Doyle's latest plan to address skyrocketing tuition figures would guarantee financial aid to all Wisconsin eighth graders who promise to "stay in school, take challenging courses, stay out of trouble" and maintain a B average.
Essentially, don't screw up too bad and the state will pay for your college education. Of course, as the saying goes, the money must come from somewhere.
And if the state rewards all students who meet an average academic standard with a full ride to the UW campus of their choice (minus whatever money they collect from federal aid and outside scholarships, of course), this proposal will cost the state a great deal of money.
If Mr. Doyle truly plans to follow through on this extravagant proposal (and he will only be able to do so if voters grant him another term in office), he must either raise taxes, cut funding to outside programs or reduce funding for need-based financial aid to cover this dramatic increase in merit-based aid.
Each option is potentially troubling, and the third approach is severely misguided. Financial aid is a program aimed at providing access to higher education for those who could not otherwise afford it. It should not be handed out as a prize for decent grades and vaguely defined good behavior.
If the state adopts some form of the Wisconsin Covenant proposal at the expense of need-based aid programs, it will essentially steal from the poor and give to the mediocre.
Such a proposal must not be adopted without major adjustments. To ensure that merit-based aid is given only to those who have actually demonstrated extraordinary merit, the eligibility standard must increase to a grade-point average of at least 3.75.
The governor must also define the "stay out of trouble" clause — which was not further explained in the State of the State address — as a requirement that eligible students maintain a disciplinary record free of arrest, expulsion or repeated suspension.
Even with the aforementioned modifications, the Covenant proposal is entirely unnecessary and — to the extent that it requires a reduction in state funding for need-based aid — entirely misguided.
While all politicians fall into a bit of pandering with an election on the horizon, we hope the governor comes to his senses on this rather hollow proposal before the next budget comes around.
