As the new academic year kicks off, University of Wisconsin students have high hopes for an enjoyable start to the semester. As penny-pinching college students, we are always looking for a bargain. Unfortunately, our tuition is still mounting, and relief is nowhere in sight. It is my belief that all aspiring students should have access to a noteworthy education after high school, and the UW System should be the first to offer it to aspiring undergraduates. The state budget is not what it used to be, but there is still some time to consider a few remedies to get our finances back on track.
According to a UW report, our university ranks No. 1 in the Assembly General Purpose Revenue funding. With a whopping $45,454,500 proposed in budget cuts to current academic programs and student services, our fair school will suffer. Moreover, proposed budget cuts at all UW System schools total $119,202,500, not to mention $2,126,400 worth of miscellaneous reductions systemwide.
Yet Bucky's bank account is not the only one taking a hard hit when it comes to general funding. According to a press release from Sen. Judy Robson, D-Beloit, state Assembly Republicans would provide $125 million less in funding than the state Senate budget offers. According to Sen. Robson, this adverse and undesirable scenario must be improved, and fast, or universities in the UW System will be forced to turn away almost 23,000 college-bound students.
As I count the blessings of being able to receive an outstanding education from UW-Madison, it saddens me to think of all the university hopefuls who will be left high and dry if we permit these unreasonable circumstances to persist. The UW System should not grant admission only to a select few; it should provide right of entry to superior instruction for the masses. After all, grooming young, eager minds to be the leaders of the future is what college is all about.
According to a report that highlights the building programs and educational changes given by the Assembly budget, a required general fund structural balance is in the works for both fiscal years in a biennium. In plain English, no university can spend more money than what is readily available for those two years. Also, the report sets out a plan to delete $7,935,200 of funding from tuition in 2008-09.
Despite the sense of satisfaction and stability these ideas may appear to guarantee, we must remain somewhat wary. The UW System will be forced to eliminate certain administrative positions and cut back on university relations and communications functions. These negligent propositions will undoubtedly harm the accessibility of a UW System education and will single handedly crush the dreams of future collegiate intellectuals statewide.
Finally, we should celebrate Ms. Robson's solemn promise to keep the education of Wisconsin students at the top of her priority list. Robson appropriately dismisses the ideas of her Republican counterparts, who want to eradicate all augmentations in financial aid awards and "compromise the ability of campuses to hire additional security and police officers."
Robson's rejection of these and other proposals tells Wisconsin that access to higher education at safe and secure campuses in "the cheese state" may very well continue to be feasible.
Be happy, if only for a moment, that you were chosen to be Badger. Rejoice in your ability to receive a superb higher education, and beg for a change of the status quo. The state budget may be on the down-and-out, but I encourage the adoption of a more optimistic view when it comes to accessing a quality undergraduate education.
Meredith Togstad ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in journalism and French.
