Show 60 Standard-Examin- er Sunday Dec 31 1989 Issues Con From ID more funded research from the federal government than it receives in tax dollars from the state For fiscal 1989 our state tax appropriation was S6I million: and the nionev awarded to us through competitive grants and contracts exceeded S68 million When an institution is designated a universitv there must be an expectation of demonstrable scholarship on the part of the facultv and bv that I mean not tnerelv the number of facultv holding the PhD because for ntanv individuals acquiring the PhD is the terminal point in their intellectual venture I'nivcrsities should expect their professors to be effective tejchers but also they must be productive scholars as well I know there are many institutions in the United States that masquerade as universities but do not in fact present a high profile of graduate work scholarship or research It only confuses the public when those institutions are so designated In the disciplines it is well under- stood what the university designation involves It should be continually clarified in the public’s mind as well On the other hand as I have already indicated there are many prestigious colleges in this country which do in fact present a reasonable profile of scholarship and even graduate work but their fundamental emphasis is on undergraduate education The state of Utah is not adequately funding the Utah system of higher education as presently constituted A year and a half ago when the regents met at Utah State University in May of 1988 Gail Norris indicated there was a backlog of over $65 million in unmet needs and that it would take an investment of over $200 million over the next six years for the state to meet the minimal needs of the Utah system of higher education — again as presently constituted I am pleased to note that the fiscal analyst in his five-yeprojection published in June of this year that outlines the funding needs for fiscal 1991 through fiscal 1995 incorporates that funding deficit outlined by Gail Norris I appreciated (University of Utah) President Chase ar Peterson’s appeal for a five-ye- ar plan which should be even more responsive to our needs than that projected by the analyst If university status were accorded Weber State College and Southern Utah State College how could even a greater demand on state funding be ac- - Pro From ID tors throughout the United States and even abroad have in recent years come to use the term “university” to refer to a large higher education institution having a wide range of program offerings that is institutions that provide a wide “universe” of offerings Sometimes these offerings are essentially undergraduate offerings and sometimes a few or many graduate offerings are available The term “university” has ceased to be used to imply a research emphasis whereas the term "college” in most cases is used to imply a narrow program of a higher education institution as in the case of a college of science college of business or college of arts and humanities 4) To illustrate how ridiculous are some of the arguments proposed by those wishing to limit the use of the term “university” if the term “university” is not appropriate for a large higher education institution with a broad range of academic offerings then perhaps the term "college” should be prohibited from being used to identify many of the narrow program fields of our universities If the argument is valid that universities are more expensive than colleges and create greater expectations then perhaps by using the term “school” in the place of "college” when referring to programs in medicine business engineering and law both money and expectations might be reduced Though I do not propose such a change the argument would be just as strong 5) The argument that the designation of an institution as a “university” rather than a “college” increases its costs and broadens its programs is simply not valid particularly in context of the Utah system of higher cd- high-quali- ty sub-un- it high-quali- ty comphshcd? The chairmen of the institutional councils of Weber State College and Southern Utah State College indicated that all they were requesting was a change in name not a change in mission I submit that a change in name necessarily implies a change in mission Further I predict that if the regents were to give an affirmative nod to this request that both institutions will aspire to become universities in fact and this can only mean a dilution of the resource allocation desperately needed to achieve the quality we all desire The board has already approved the addition of two master's programs in accounting at these institutions and it would be easy to predict the next request will be for an MBA at each campus and a number of other graduate professional degrees if not in the liberal arts programs — leading in fact to a proliferation of these requests over the next decade Weber State College and Southern Utah State College are quality undergraduate institutions and such they ought to remain It would be more consistent with the primary goals of your recent master plan if you reaffirmed your commitment to the existing diversity in the designations of the institutions within the system Utah cannot afford four publicly financed universities certainly not now and not in the foreseeable future If the board were to act affirmatively on these requests it might as well in the same action make Dixie institution College a four-yeAfter all St George is growing and Cedar City is not Why not have two four-yeinstitutions within 50 miles of each other in a rurally populated part of the state? The logic for that action is as compelling as changing the designation of Weber State College and Southern Utah State College to universities It is not surprising that the constituents of Weber State and Southern Utah State would make this request The constituents of Utah State University the University of Utah and the community colleges from time to time make special requests in behalf of their institutions That is why the regents must maintain the larger vision to articulate what is best for the people of the entire state and what is best for the entire system of higher education I respectfully submit that at a time when we are so seriously underfunded and struggling to keep our institutional heads above water this is not the time for “academic drift” and expansion I would even appeal for reconsideration by the regents of the decision to study the issue Surplus helps make deficit look smaller (ffiUBngfuiTtiqaavGnriq Ihraiu College and university enrollment compared: Scnpps Howard News Service The US government has a surplus in its Highway Trust Fund while many of the country's roads and bridges are going to pot The surplus is around $15 billion By the end of this fiscal ar WSC enrollment approximately 13000 Source: National Data Service for Higher Education Fan 1967 Standard-Examine- r graphic Name From ID been difficult to get my Christ- university” said Weber County Commissioner Stephen Dirks noting that the commission also fully supports the proposed name change “It’s time the school’s name caught up with reality” Of all the people who support a name change the school’s institutional council chairman Richard Myers has to be No on the list He pushed the issue behind the scenes for more than a year before finally going public with it in September “In all my many years in community involvement I’ve never seen anything so wholeheartedly endorsed” said Myers “It’s even "I’ve taken my lumps for pushing the name change” he said “But not locally” Myers who had hoped a name change could be accomplished before this centennial year of the college ended has been called the impossible dreamer for his ambitions 1 mas shopping done this year for people stopping me and offering their help and influence” in getting the name changed But Myers said he believes the dream is very possible “It’s an idea whose time has come” he said optimistically year next Sept 30 it is expected to reach more than $17 billion Why is the money just silting there? Well it helps make the federal budget deficit look smaller If the Bush administration and Congress used it to fix roads and bridges the deficit would be $17 billion bigger unless government officials chopped that much spending from something else or found additional tax revenues to offset it tax which was raised a nickel in 1983 to 91 cents a gallon According to fiscal 1990 budget documents revenues of approximately $16 billion a year are going into the fund while outlays currently are running at about $14 billion If that situation remains the surplus will continue to grow A spokesman for the American Automobile Association recently accused the government of holding the surplus “hostage to help balance the budget” The American Petroleum Institute also issued a statement urging that the used surplus be 0 t There are plenty of places it can be used Only a third of US roads are considered in good conare fair to dition poor More than 40 percent of the nation's 576000 bridges are deficient A recent report said that more than 4000 bridges are closed for safety reasons and that on an average of every two days another bridge collapses Two-thir- But helping to create a budgetary illusion isn't the way the Highway Trust Fund was supposed to work The money that comes into it is supposed to go for improvements in the transportation system The trust fund is financed primarily by a federal gasoline ds ar ar ucation The Board of Regents in cooperation with the Legisla-tur- e determines the budgets appropriations and roles of the institutions Weber’s comparable institutions currently are primarily and perhaps exclusively institutions that carry the However these institutions were selected not because of their names but because their program offerings and roles were similar to those assigned to Weber The Board of Regents will continue to control and designate roles offerings and quality in Utah’s nine superb higher education institutions irrespective of the names they bear For the above reasons as well as many others I believe the time has come for Weber to be designated a university in the sense of a teaching university or metropolitan university — not a research university I also believe that the time is near when SUSC should also be considered for university status though the argument currently is not as compelling as it is for Weber I hope that you and your colleagues will regard the above points as having been made in the spirit of helpfulness My greatest desire is to see all institutions of higher education in the state of Utah achieve their highest level of excellence at the most reasonable cost name-"universi- ty" America First Credit Union has come up with a unique way for small investors to get big interest It’s call Dedicated Savings Automatic DepositHigh Earnings the monthly amount (as little as $1000) to be automatically to deposited your Dedicated Savings Account from your America First Checking or Share Savings Account Earn the same high rates as with an America First Certificate of Deposit (currently paying 780) At the end of one year you may withdraw your funds change the amount of monthly deposit or continue the same plan for another year You choose Start Building Your Financial Future Your best financial source America First knows that not eveiybody has the extra money to take advantage of higher interest investments like Certificates of Deposit That’s why they created the Dedicated Savings Account It’s a great way to start building financial security for you and your family Dedicated Savings Nobody else has it and it’s only for America First Members Of course America First Membership is a pretty good idea too! - AMERICA FIRST CREDIT UNION With Us You Belong Mmb Call Classified 394-167- 1 NCIJAAn Equal Opportunity Lndw 'Substantial Interest penalty tor early withdrawal |