Higher Ed Recommendations–Elitist?
Some of the recommendations coming out of a higher education advisory committee seem to show more desperation, which then turns into a lack of vision, and worse, provides an air of elitism. Among the recommendations that would be quite damaging is that of prioritizing recipients of need-based state grants by academic merit. Let’s face it, because Texas continues to teach to a test our kids are not leaving K-12 college-ready. Just look at the number of students required to take remedial courses. Anyone who does not see this as a crisis is out of touch with the realities of higher education, and that seems to include the THECB chief.
During Thursday’s discussion, Texas Commissioner of Higher Education Raymund Paredes wondered aloud whether community colleges – yoked with the burden of remedial education – could afford to keep their doors open to everyone.
“I am not suggesting students with meager academic skills should be excluded, but do we need to find some other way to deal with basic literacy and computation skills? The community college, as an institution of higher education, is not the appropriate place to deal with these issues,” Paredes said.
Well, of course not, K-12 should have taken care of that, but someone has to do the heavy lifting. But since community college systems are controlled locally, investment is easily curtailed by anti-tax groups which usually care less about educating the community. This blogger believes that the state should invest more in community colleges for the mere purpose of bringing students to college-level.
Another is a proposed requirement that 10% of a degree plan be completed outside of the classroom by way of internships and online courses. This seems more like a push for online education. As someone who completed a Master’s degree online, I am a strong believer in online education, but for undergrads? Successful completion of such a course requires maturity and a commitment that many undergrads do not have. But it is obvious what the main reasoning is. As colleges and universities are about to experience a 5% cut, thanks to Gov. Rick Perry, and can expect another 5% cut in the near future, institutions are attempting to increase enrollment substantially in order to bring in added tuition revenue.
The bottom line: Rick Perry has damaged Texas colleges and universities to a point where, if the damage continues, could affect our workforce creation efforts for the next generation. Now, higher education professionals and leaders are having to grasp at brittle straws which do little to improve quality, but do just enough to keep things afloat. Rick Perry is out of touch.
Riddle is Still At It
Yes, we know the story. Debbie Riddle is as hateful as she wants to be. Her Latino-targeted legislation is dangerous and would be costly, but she doesn’t care. She’s a wasteful waste of space. And YES, she has an opponent in Brad Neal.
Neal gave it a run in 2008, which allowed us to see a more realistic view of District 150 when voter participation increases. He’s doing it again in 2010 with the help of some good friends of mine, a shiny office which is set to open on the 14th of August, and the mere fact that Debbie Riddle continues her rampage against people short on defenses–the poor, minorities, etc. This is one race I’ll be following because District 150 is one of those districts with a rapidly changing demographic–an opportunity now and in the future.
Rick Perry: A Failure at Mediocrity
That’s right, Rick Perry could care less about educating Texans and preparing them for the workforce. Forcing the issue of added cuts to state agencies, including Texas colleges and universities, Texas could cut as much as $108 million in student aid to appease Perry.
Just because Rick Perry strives for mediocrity (and fails at every attempt) doesn’t mean we need to follow him. Vote Bill White for Governor!
More…Later!
Imagine him saying, “When the Mexicans Invaded Us…”
Actually, we’re already warehousing Latinos; it’s not much different than this video.
