Crist sends right signal

By A TIMES EDITORIAL
Published July 1, 2007

Letting Florida's three major research universities charge more in tuition won't suddenly provide financial stability for the state's overburdened higher education system, but Gov. Charlie Crist sent an encouraging signal by signing into law this important tool that would start addressing the problem.

The governor had all but assured his veto for the tuition differential for the University of Florida, Florida State University and the University of South Florida. He publicly expressed the same concerns he voiced in his recent veto of an across-the-board 5 percent tuition increase about the burden it would place on students and their families. But he sat with the 11 university presidents and showed he is willing to listen to their plight. Perhaps even more important, Crist looked beyond his one-dimensional tax ideology to the rolling landscape of public education. After all, the "people" with whom he identifies want their daughters and sons to enroll at great universities.

The tuition differential is modest in scope. It would allow UF and FSU to charge up to 40 percent more than other state institutions, and the University of South Florida to charge up to 30 percent more. But the tuition could increase by no more than 15 percent in any single year, and Crist exacted a promise from the presidents to wait until 2008.

The money raised from the extra tuition will be directed to undergraduate programs, and UF president Bernie Machen says it is essential to his institution's goal of reaching the nation's top 10 public research universities.

Unfortunately, the higher tuition represents only a down payment on the mortgage that is coming due on Florida universities. In recent years, the universities have lost $120-million merely to cover the cost of new students, and Board of Governors chairwoman Carolyn Roberts this month urged her colleagues: "We have a promise to keep with citizens of the state for affordable, high-quality education."

Crist, a product of FSU, told university presidents he supports them in the larger endeavor to restore financial health and build academic quality. "It's incredibly important for the future of Florida that we have the very best universities that we can provide for the people of our state, " he said.

The governor is right, but he will need to bring more than vague assurances to the appropriations process next year. He already has been directing agencies to consider 10 percent budget cuts in light of a projected $1.2-billion revenue shortfall for this year and next. If voters approve an increased property tax exemption in January, state budget writers also will have to come up with another $7.1-billion for public schools over the next several years. That gloomy financial picture is precisely why FSU already has declared an enrollment freeze for 2008. Universities have been down this road before, and it usually leads to a dead end.

Crist's budget recommendations next spring will demonstrate whether he means what he says about future university funding. For now, he is to be commended for reaching out to the three research universities. If this signals that he is broadening his definition of populism and recognizing that quality comes at a price, then higher education could yet blossom under his tenure.

[Last modified June 30, 2007, 22:24:04]