September 18, 2009
Tuition increases could jeopardize Minnesota’s economy
This month, Minnesota’s college students began another year pursuing their degree. As always, they’ll face the normal academic challenges higher education brings—attending lectures, writing term papers, and passing exams. Unfortunately, this year students face an additional challenge in determining how they will pay their tuition bill.
Earlier this year, the Legislature passed a balanced budget, which the governor rejected, instead opting to unilaterally cut the state budget through his unallotment powers. His plan contained $2.7 billion in cuts, including $100 million from Minnesota’s colleges and universities. Unfortunately, this $100 million cut is expected to increase tuition at the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Colleges and Universities system between 7 and 8 percent.
I’m very concerned that making college less affordable for students and their families is the wrong direction for Minnesota. For years, our state led the nation in job and wage growth due to our highly educated and well-trained workforce. This brainpower gave Minnesota a competitive advantage for attracting new business investments and jobs. If we make it more expensive for students to pursue a higher education, we may lose this competitive edge.
Sadly, this isn’t the first time our higher education institutions have had their budgets reduced in recent years. When Gov. Pawlenty took office, Minnesota paid 67 percent of the cost of educating a college student and the student picked up the other 33 percent. After years of cuts to higher education, that ratio is now closer to 50-50. This means that college tuition has nearly doubled since 2002!
I’m sure many fellow parents have felt the pinch of these tuition increases. My older daughter attended the University of Minnesota for her undergraduate degree during this time period and earned her Master’s there in 2008. While in the end we were able to tighten our belts to cover these increased costs, our family budget certainly felt the impact of the state’s cuts to higher education. However, in many cases, skyrocketing tuition has caused many talented students to leave school or else take on a tremendous amount of debt to earn their degrees.
This is troubling, not only for student and family budgets, but the state economy as a whole. Our exceptional workforce is what will bring in jobs, attract new businesses, and move our state towards economic recovery. However, to do this, we must ensure we have a high-quality and affordable higher education system.
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February 4, 2009
Report cannot determine student achievement goals for QComp
The nonpartisan Office of the Legislative Auditor recently released a report that said it had insufficient data to determine if the teacher pay/staff development program known as QComp was directly enhancing student achievement in Minnesota. They also found that the Minnesota Department of Education needs a better application and review process for the program.
The report was presented in the Senate’s E-12 Budget Division this week. It noted that large school districts were the dominant participants in the four-year-old old QComp program, and that Minnesota’s small districts had neither the time nor money to set up the program.
Currently, 72 school districts and charter schools participate in the voluntary program. Minnesota has 341 school districts and 150 charter schools. Minnesota spends $64 million on the program. In his recent budget proposal, the governor advocated spending an additional $49 million and making the program mandatory. Districts currently participating receive $260 per student; the Pawlenty plan would increase that funding to $300 per student.
“The Legislative Auditor’s report shows that we need to learn more about QComp before we expand the program or make it mandatory for all districts,” said state Sen. Rick Olseen, DFL-Harris, who is a former member of the North Branch School Board. “We’re not sure if the
program is having an effect on improving student’s academic performances. When facing a
budget crisis, we must make sure that the money we spend delivers the results we need.”
The Legislative Auditor’s report found that both school administrators and teachers felt more positively about QComp’s staff-development benefits than about the pay-for-performance requirement.
“The best way to improve a student’s classroom achievement is with excellent teaching,” said Sen. Olseen. “The staff development, teacher evaluation, and mentorship components of the QComp program have provided great opportunities for both students and teachers.”
The report also outlined four key recommendations tied to Education Department review and changes in the QComp application process.
“With better review of the program, we’ll have more information on its results to help us determine how the state can best use QComp,” said Sen. Olseen. “Budgets are tight, so we should have complete and accurate data before we dedicate additional resources to the program or expand its scope.”
Sen. Olseen noted that he was concerned that the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) commissioned and released its own report on QComp while the Legislative Auditor was also studying the program. The MDE report cost $180,000 to conduct.
“During this budget crisis, we need to be responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars,” said Sen. Olseen. “It was well known that the Legislative Auditor was working on a QComp report, so I question why the Department of Education would duplicate these efforts.”
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February 29, 2008
Moving forward on school bus safety
As the co-chair of the Senate Subcommittee on Student Transportation, I’ve previously mentioned how ensuring that our kids get safely to and from school will be a focus of my attention during this legislative session. In January, the Office of the Legislative Auditor released a report that analyzed school bus practices in Minnesota. In response, I am authoring legislation based on many of the Legislative Auditor’s recommendations to improve student transportation safety.
The Legislative Auditor recommended that the Legislature increase the licensing requirements for school district Type III (vans, cars) vehicle drivers. Currently, unlike regular school bus drivers, Type III vehicle drivers are not required to have driver training, pass a physical, undergo a background check, receive annual training on how to work with children, or submit to drug testing. They are only required to have a valid class D license.
I have introduced legislation that would make these Type III drivers subject to similar licensing requirements as school bus drivers. I think this is only appropriate, given that they, too, are transporting our students. The bill follows most of the recommendations of the Legislative Auditor and also makes it a crime for a Type III vehicle driver to have any evidence of alcohol consumption while operating a vehicle.
This week, this bill passed both the Senate Education and Judiciary committees. It now awaits consideration by the Transportation and State and Local Government committees. Joining me at these hearings and speaking on behalf of the bill were Bill and Karen Berglund of Scandia whose daughter Amanda was tragically killed in a Type III vehicle accident last spring. After the accident, it was found that the driver, who was also killed, had marijuana in his system and drug paraphernalia in the vehicle. I, along, with other safety advocates, hope that stricter licensing requirements for these Type III drivers will prevent such a tragedy from occurring again in our state.
Beyond Type III bus driver legislation, the Legislative Auditor also recommended improvements that could be made within the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. DPS is in charge of inspecting all of the state’s school buses, amounting to 14,000 annual inspections. They are also allowed, but not required, to conduct driver inspections. Currently, there is only a limited review of driver files, and only 3 percent of inspections include drivers. The Legislative Auditor feels that DPS should conduct more inspections that include the bus drivers as well as improvements to the tracking and recording of inspection results, and I agree.
In order to take on this increased responsibility, DPS would need increased staff levels. I am working with the department on legislation that would establish an Office of School Bus Safety. This office would have a minimum of four state troopers and at least an additional three school bus inspectors entirely dedicated to monitoring school buses in Minnesota.
Rest assured that school bus safety will remain a priority for me, and the entire Legislature, during this session. As it should be, there is no partisan divide when it comes to the safety of our schoolchildren. I’m optimistic that significant progress will be made this year.
