"Where Fillmore County News Comes First"
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Wednesday, June 19th, 2013
Volume ∞ Issue ∞
- 8:58:04, Jun 18th 2013 - cabraden1 - I salute you Colonel Overland. Your were my c.o. at Rockville Naval Air ... [Read More]
- 7:10:46, Jun 13th 2013 - chipperlee - Seems to be a well written article, except maybe Silica Sand is used in ... [Read More]
- 12:02:15, Jun 9th 2013 - getthefacts - The problem here lies in the fact that girls were repeatedly told "if y ... [Read More]
- 10:45:32, Jun 7th 2013 - Jo mom for 6yrs - Mr. Ehler hit the nail on the head. I agree with the religious con ... [Read More]
- 2:47:58, Jun 7th 2013 - hello - Hello, it's time you wake up. There isn't a community nearby that doesn't offe ... [Read More]
- 9:06:21, Jun 6th 2013 - hello - Hello, it's time you wake up. There isn't a community nearby that doesn't offe ... [Read More]
- 2:05:29, Jun 6th 2013 - Kim Wentworth - The number one rule in a debate: 1) if the person from the opposite si ... [Read More]
- 12:42:18, Jun 4th 2013 - EW - For someone that is always spouting religious rhetoric, you try to come off as a ... [Read More]
- 11:32:18, May 31st 2013 - JO PLAYER - This is unfair to us girls. Morrie Miller is not getting canceled but J ... [Read More]
- 8:25:34, May 29th 2013 - RP - Why is Mr. Ehler involving himself with non-school activities? Is he going after ... [Read More]
A chicken in every pot
Fri, Jul 7th, 2006
Posted in Commentary
Posted in Commentary
Comments
Governor Tim Pawlenty, fresh from his Republican endorsement as a candidate for a second term to lead the state, proposed back in June to offer free tuition for the first two years to the top 25 percent of Minnesota’s high school graduating class at any of Minnesota’s public institutions of higher learning. Math and science majors would get four years free.
According to the governor’s press release, the program, called ACHIEVE (Academic Competitiveness Highlighting Individual Excellence and Valuing Education), is designed to encourage all high school students to attain good grades, keep the best and brightest graduates at home in Minnesota colleges and increase the number of home-grown graduates with science and math degrees.
Pawlenty says that he will ask the legislature to fund ACHIEVE at a price tag of $112 million for the biennium (FY08-09). To qualify, family adjusted gross income would have to be less than $150,000 and students would have to maintain a B average.
Where this new money would come from would be anyone’s guess. One thought is that the funds would come from anticipated revenue surpluses, as any new taxes, given Pawlenty’s past track record, would seem unlikely.
The irony in the governor’s proposal is that Pawlenty’s No-New-Taxes-Pledge over the past four years has led state colleges to increase tuition dramatically. In 2007, students will pay $136 million more in tuition and fees compared to 2003, the year Pawlenty took office (source: Minneapolis Tribune).
Why Pawlenty chose to target ACHIEVE at college, rather than K-12, students seems obvious - Kindergartners don’t vote.
In fact, Pawlenty’s priorities for K-12 education in the recently concluded legislative session focused on development of a Chinese curriculum and a study on how Minnesota students compare internationally.
As a parent of a high school senior who could potentially benefit from the governor’s plan - U of M tuition is approximately $9400 per year - I relish the notion of no tuition costs for two years.
But as any cynical voter will rightfully ask - what is the governor, if he is re-elected, going to do for the other 75% of high school graduates who don’t qualify for ACHIEVE - continue to help raise their tuition costs?
And, more importantly, what is he going to do for their younger siblings still attending elementary and high school?
ACHIEVE appears to be nothing more than a good old fashioned “chicken in every pot” election ploy. Pawlenty’s got a long way to go before he earns the title of Minnesota’s Education Governor.
According to the governor’s press release, the program, called ACHIEVE (Academic Competitiveness Highlighting Individual Excellence and Valuing Education), is designed to encourage all high school students to attain good grades, keep the best and brightest graduates at home in Minnesota colleges and increase the number of home-grown graduates with science and math degrees.
Pawlenty says that he will ask the legislature to fund ACHIEVE at a price tag of $112 million for the biennium (FY08-09). To qualify, family adjusted gross income would have to be less than $150,000 and students would have to maintain a B average.
Where this new money would come from would be anyone’s guess. One thought is that the funds would come from anticipated revenue surpluses, as any new taxes, given Pawlenty’s past track record, would seem unlikely.
The irony in the governor’s proposal is that Pawlenty’s No-New-Taxes-Pledge over the past four years has led state colleges to increase tuition dramatically. In 2007, students will pay $136 million more in tuition and fees compared to 2003, the year Pawlenty took office (source: Minneapolis Tribune).
Why Pawlenty chose to target ACHIEVE at college, rather than K-12, students seems obvious - Kindergartners don’t vote.
In fact, Pawlenty’s priorities for K-12 education in the recently concluded legislative session focused on development of a Chinese curriculum and a study on how Minnesota students compare internationally.
As a parent of a high school senior who could potentially benefit from the governor’s plan - U of M tuition is approximately $9400 per year - I relish the notion of no tuition costs for two years.
But as any cynical voter will rightfully ask - what is the governor, if he is re-elected, going to do for the other 75% of high school graduates who don’t qualify for ACHIEVE - continue to help raise their tuition costs?
And, more importantly, what is he going to do for their younger siblings still attending elementary and high school?
ACHIEVE appears to be nothing more than a good old fashioned “chicken in every pot” election ploy. Pawlenty’s got a long way to go before he earns the title of Minnesota’s Education Governor.