DUSTIN GAWRLOW: HIGHER EDUCATION REFORM DISCUSSION NEEDS TO HAPPEN
Should Not Be 'Shouted Down' As The Fargo Forum Suggests
There are some in this state, including newpaper editorial boards, that believe any discussion of changing the way the North Dakota University System operates should be 'shouted down'.
Hopefully, that anti-intellectual opinion will be ignored for a more academic approach to addressing the challenges faced by the higher education establishment in North Dakota.
Last week, the issue of how the state of North Dakota subsidizes non-resident students came up during a segment on KFGO in Fargo (click here to listen to the clip). The premise during that discussion was that the issue was a matter of xemophobia, when in reality it is an economic issue.
The overall issue regarding the costs and benefits to subsidizing non-resident students while North Dakota kids struggle to pay their college debt, is one I have studied since long before NDTA existed.
Recently, the North Dakota Policy Council commissioned an academic study of the issue.
See their brief summary by clicking the YouTube link below.
It is sad that newpaper editorial boards, and many legislators, are so afraid of the discussion of reforming higher ed, they stoop to the level of declaring the conversation should be 'shouted down.'
So much for civility.
What kind of a stance is that for a newpaper to take?
Hopefully, members of the legislature have a more rounded understanding of the situation and the need for this discussion to happen.
Of course, all indications point to the opposite being true as last week House Bill 1470 failed by 7 votes to pass the North Dakota House of Represenatives. (House Bill 1470 would have placed final oversight of the setting of tuition prices in the hands of the legislature, as used to be the case.)
Help us tell legislators to elevate the discussion on higher education. Please reply to this article with your thoughts on this issue as well as your name and address so we can pass that information along to legislators.
DakotaBeacon