Education in Wisconsin: K through UW

Ostensibly about how short-sighted the legislative cuts are to the UW system, this guest MJS business op-ed addresses a few big issues affecting how we finance public education in general.
http://www.jsonline.com/bym/news/jun05/334962.asp
Of particular interest was this: "Working with a team of business leaders to explore strategies that would free resources to enhance educational outcomes. Do we need 16 school districts in Dane County? Could distance education better leverage UW's teaching stars?

Finding a lower cost health care benefits solution that mirrors private sector changes to build more consumerism into health care decisions.

Working with Doyle to find a better K-12 school financing system that also recognizes the need for some degree of spending limits in our schools.

We do not want to wake up and wonder what happened to the educational system that once made Wisconsin and its businesses so great. Businesses, not to mention our children, will pay the price."

UW deserves our financial attention

By KAY PLANTES
Guest opinion

Posted: June 19, 2005

I wish Wisconsin's legislative and executive leadership followed the example of great leaders who, in the midst of mandatory cost-cutting to avoid losses, understand their advantages and sacrifice everything else during tight budgets to ensure future success.

These same leaders charge premium prices when customers highly value their offering.

It's time Wisconsin business leaders explain these lessons to Wisconsin's legislative and executive leaders, who are allowing the next gubernatorial election's debating points to shape state budgetary priorities. Our state's education system, especially the University of Wisconsin, is bearing the brunt of their shortsightedness. Our economy will pay the price.

Our forefathers sacrificed much to build our exemplary higher education system. As a result, UW-Madison's education and research excellence survives in spite of the state's relatively modest income level. In fact, faculty research talents make the UW System one of Wisconsin's largest industries for bringing money into the state.

Higher education's importance will only increase in years ahead because of three macro forces:

Industry consolidation. With Wisconsin corporate headquarters closing, we need more start-up companies.

Increasingly competent global manufacturing competition. We need cutting-edge technology and workers to stay ahead of China and India before they move into Wisconsin-based capital goods manufacturing industries. Remember "Made in Japan"?

Knowledge economy. We need more, not fewer, adults with advanced degrees.

We will not make these shifts if we lose the competitive advantage that the UW System provides our business community. Yet, over the last 10 years, Wisconsin's support of the UW grew only 12.7% in total, compared to 87.9% in California, 52.5% in North Carolina and 47% nationally. We ranked last among Midwestern states, as well.

Put another way, we invested $13 in the UW per $1,000 of Wisconsin' personal income in 1995. Today, it's $5.

Despite this economically dangerous relative decline, the Legislature's Joint Finance Committee could not find $40 million out of the $12 billion plus in taxes and fees the state will collect to fully fund Gov. Jim Doyle's $50 million request for additional spending for the UW. The university had initially asked Doyle for $81.7 million, an amount to cover increased costs.

How can everything else in the budget be more important?

A UW economist I know told me colleges and universities are all over the UW System right now with offers to star faculty. Faculty stars are like the patents that create a business' revenue stream or the most valued employees that protect it.

Would you let your assets leave without a fight? Our elected officials are asking the UW to do just that. And don't invest in new faculty, either.

If our elected officials cannot find the money in the budget, I advise they raise the sales tax 1percentage point and expand its base, targeting the proceeds to education. An extra penny for our schools is a sound investment in our future, an investment Wisconsin residents would make if they knew the money went directly to education.

In exchange for more funding, Wisconsin's educational systems and teachers union should commit to:

Working with a team of business leaders to explore strategies that would free resources to enhance educational outcomes. Do we need 16 school districts in Dane County? Could distance education better leverage UW's teaching stars?

Finding a lower cost health care benefits solution that mirrors private sector changes to build more consumerism into health care decisions.

Working with Doyle to find a better K-12 school financing system that also recognizes the need for some degree of spending limits in our schools.

We do not want to wake up and wonder what happened to the educational system that once made Wisconsin and its businesses so great. Businesses, not to mention our children, will pay the price.

Kay Plantes is an MIT-trained economist and corporate strategist in Madison. She was the Department of Commerce's chief economist and director of policy development in the Dreyfus administration.

Posted by at June 19, 2005 10:29 PM
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