Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s push for an investment in higher education got an official boost Thursday when the Oregon Senate approved all seven of the governor’s new appointments to the State Board of Higher Education.
Former Oregon Gov. Neil Goldschmidt, who is expected to lead the board and whose appointment drew intense scrutiny and criticism during a Senate committee meeting, was approved by a 25-4 vote.
The 11-member board is now composed almost entirely of Kulongoski’s appointees.
“This board is going to focus on ensuring that a college education in this state is not limited to those who have the means to afford it,” Kulongoski said in a press release. “It must also continue to ensure that the education and training of our graduates on Oregon’s public campuses are meeting the economic and work force needs of the state.”
Kulongoski announced a four-part initiative for focusing on higher education in November, saying the system needs to focus on being accessible to all Oregonians, training students in sought-after fields, investing in programs that spur the state economy and generally reinvesting in higher education.
When Kulongoski made his announcement, four board members stepped down to give the governor room to make new appointments.
“I think that the change in the board was to make a statement about the importance the governor wants to give to higher education in the state,” Vice President of Academic Affairs Lorraine Davis said. She added that the new members, who she said are strongly committed to education, will serve the state well.
The other confirmed members are: Donald Blair, vice president and chief financial officer of Nike Inc.; Kirby Dyess, private investor and former vice president and director of operations for Intel Capital; Timothy Nesbitt, chief executive officer of the Oregon AFL-CIO; John von Schlegell, managing partner of Endeavor Capitol; Gretchen Schuette, president of Chemeketa Community College; and Howard Sohn, chairman of the board of the Lone Rock Timber Company.
Kulongoski, who already appointed three members to the board last summer, also reappointed University chemistry professor Geraldine Richmond.
ASUO President Maddy Melton said she feels encouraged that the new appointees plan to focus on access to higher education.
“That’s what we down here in the ASUO talk about all the time, and to hear that echoed at the highest levels is really exciting,” she said.
Melton added that while she’s excited to hear about the new board’s goals, she will be watching to see if board members follow through on the comments they made in their confirmation hearing.
Oregon Student Association Executive Director John Wykoff echoed Melton’s thoughts.
“Obviously (the board members) are looking to do things in a totally different way,” he said. “We’ll just have to see in what way.”
Wykoff, who attended the confirmation hearings, said the board members seemed passionate about refocusing the state’s role on higher education and making it accessible and affordable. He said the cost of post-secondary education was of preeminent concern to the OSA.
He added, however, that the success of the board is tied to the Legislature’s own level of commitment to higher education.
“We’ve got to turn around the funding,” he said.
Oregon University System spokeswoman Di Saunders agreed that money was a major problem for Oregon universities.
“We’re excited that there will be a focus on reinvestment in higher education, because there has been such a disinvestment in the last biennium,” Saunders said.
While students evenly split the costs of their higher education with the state in 1999, they now pay 64 percent from their own pockets.
“It seems to be a national trend,” Saunders said. “States have not had the ability to support higher education as they have in the past.”
Low-income students in particular are suffering from a lack of state support, Saunders said. Tuition-sticker shock and fears of borrowing keep those Oregonians away from higher education, she said.
Despite concerns about factors outside the board’s control, support for the new members was cautiously optimistic.
“The OUS is looking forward to a new era of leadership in higher education,” Saunders said. “Hopefully it will mean lower costs for students.”