More local news... UNC Tuition

Local newspapers have been all a-flutter regarding a new provision slipped inside the Senate Budget for 05-06 that would allow NC State and UNC control over its own tuition outside the control of the Board of Governors.

Several editorials (here, here, here, here, here, here) have been written condemning this idea, and if this had come up a couple years ago, I would probably be right there with them. However, I have started to change my tune somewhat regarding tuition at UNC. In general, I am a firm believer in keeping tuition low... not only is education the major factor that drives our economy, but North Carolina is in particular need due to the fact that is hemorrhaging jobs from the tobacco and textiles industries. As such, increasing the overall level of education of the population in the state is crucial to transforming the state's economy.

However, the state would be lost without the leadership of its two research institutions. This is particularly true regarding the crown jewel of UNC, which is consistantly ranked in the top5 of all public universities in the nation. Unfortunately, it takes a large investment to maintain such an impressive institution, and the legislature has been displayed abject unwillingness to pony up the requisite cash to keep this insitution as one of the top universities in the nation. Cut after cut after cut have been handed down year after year, and it is really starting to squeeze. UNC is losing top faculty like DHP's Wife loses her glasses (bygones), and that is going to have all sorts of downstream effects: reduced grant income, reduced educational quality, reduced ability to attract top undergraduates and graduate/professional students, etc.

UNC has to take care of itself, and if the legislature isn't going to do it, then I can't fault them from trying to give themselves a little more leeway on tuition. Look at UVA: they are essentially trying to become a pseudo-private university because they are sick of the instability of funding from the legislature.

Yes, I am worried that it will be abused (for grad/prof students in particular, who are far different than UG's but the Trustees rarely consider the differences), and while I am concerned about access to UNC by the less fortunate Carolinians, our in-state tuition is ridiculously low and we have excellent programs to help aid low-income students (like the Carolina Covenant). So IMO, I think the papers need to lay off, and perhaps devote a few scathing columns to the legislature which refuses to raise taxes in order to appropriately fund this great institution.

I don't like any of this, but I can't really blame UNC at all...

P.S.: One of the big reasons the editorals are all against this is in order to maintain the integrity of the UNC System. Perhaps there are some historical issues I am missing here, but this doesn't strike me as a big deal. The smaller schools apparently ride the coattails of UNC and NC State, but IMO the drag they cause outweighs the clout they would lose. California has two systems which are separated to a fair degree by quality and cost... not everyplace is going to be like UNC, nor should they be, so why not separate them some based on need?