Fla. universities need radical work

By CHARLES REED, Special to the Times
Published August 26, 2007

If I have to sum up everything that lies ahead for Florida's system of higher education, I would simply say, we have a LOT of work to do.

We need to shape up the governance system. We need to improve funding stability. We need to assert priorities for the future.

But before we undertake any of these projects, we have to be clear about what our ultimate objective is. Why do we need to do anything? What is the "prize" we have to keep our eyes on?

The simple answer is that Florida's future economic and social prosperity is at stake. Florida, the choice is yours: Do the hard work now and yield dividends for the future, or do nothing and watch all of that potential slip away.

Let me start with the first big task ahead: governance.

Try explaining to an outsider that there was a Board of Regents, then the regents went away, then voters passed a former governor's initiative that brought back the regents, but they are now called governors, and we still haven't settled once and for all who has the right to set tuition.

This is not the kind of governance that will allow us to build quality for the long term. We need to have a cohesive plan in place for a stable, functioning system of higher education.

Having a university system allows us to avoid costly competition and duplication between the universities. It allows us to leverage the institutions' collective strength in Tallahassee and Washington.

Most importantly, it allows us to keep the focus on the educational mission of the institutions and build the kind of quality that establishes a national reputation.

As an independently governed university system in California, we are not subject to the whims of the legislative process and we are able to operate relatively free from partisan political intrusion. In 10 years no legislator has ever called me to hire someone - or put a building in the budget.

Of course the Legislature and governor should have some involvement in university affairs. But political leaders with a partisan agenda can do harm to these institutions, and by association, have a negative effect on the state's economy.

That is why California's university systems - and those in many other states as well - have benefited from strong governing boards that operate with only the best interests of the university in mind. What might be best for one university may not be best for the state.

Florida needs to chart a direction for its universities that cannot be swayed by political winds and one that will last for generations.

That leads me to the next issue: stability of the university system.

Why is the investment in Florida higher education so poor? Because it is subject to the quirks of the legislative cycle.

In California, the University of California and the California State University systems have shaped long-term financial agreements with governors called the "Compact."

These agreements all provide specified base budget funding increases as well as defined increases for enrollment growth, and they allow the governing boards to set tuition.

We certainly could use more funding, but the Compact provides the foundation from which we begin negotiations each year. What it allows us to do is to ensure quality, student access and affordability. It is a floor.

Taken from a broader perspective, the Compact is an up-front commitment to higher education's significant role in the state's economy.

California did not become the world's sixth-largest economy on its own. It got there in large part due to the research, development, creativity and a work force emanating from the University of California and the California State University.

When a state invests in its public university systems, the state as a whole receives a lifetime earnings boost. Per capita income is higher in places like California where a large percentage of the population has a university degree.

In Florida, where funding for higher education has been spotty, per capita income relative to other states is on a downward slope.

The LeRoy Collins Institute's 2005 "Tough Choices" report notes that Florida declined in comparison to national and regional averages from 1989 to 2005. That's in part due to a low-wage economy and the lack of high-wage jobs being created.

And that's why the report says: "Florida has a long way to go in pre-K-12 results, college degree production, and investment in top-level university research before it can put a world-class labor force together with a dynamic high-wage segment of the state economy."

That leads me to the third major task ahead, which is asserting priorities.

Beyond governance and stability of the university system, we need to pay attention to funding for our universities. I believe that Florida universities are under-funded, tuition is way too low and the financial aid system is broken.

We need to set a higher priority for better funding and adequate and affordable tuition levels.

We also need to look critically at programs like the Bright Futures scholarships. Scholarships should be based on need, not solely on merit.

Why are we financing higher education for students from families who can well afford the tuition many times over?

I called it "one of the dumbest public policies" when it was created when I was chancellor here. I think today I'd call it "the dumbest, not just one of the dumbest."

The effect is that Florida's universities are not educating the growing populations of under-served students, particularly those of color and the most needy. It is these students whose educational levels will ultimately shape the direction of the state's economy.

Florida must disconnect from the Bright Futures program. You can't afford it, and it is just plain wrong.

I'm going to take the liberty of proposing that the Board of Governors have a conversation with Gov. Charlie Crist; that we establish a commission to develop a master plan for the future of Florida's higher education system. The challenge for such a master plan is to articulate a forward-looking vision, one that recognizes that education is an investment in the future.

One university getting something at the expense of all the others - based upon who is House speaker or president of the Senate - will never work!

Our students and all of our citizens deserve the very best effort we can put forward.

Charles Reed is chancellor of the California State University System. He served as chancellor of the Florida State University System from 1985-1998. This is adapted from a speech he delivered Monday at Florida State University in Tallahassee.

[Last modified August 25, 2007, 23:19:33]