* The following is a speech to be given at the Rally for Higher Education in Frankfort by UofL SGA President Kurtis Frizzell in the coming Spring. Feedback is appreciated.
Education Cuts: Kentucky’s Attempt to Fulfill It’s Own Stereotypes
In the early years of Kentucky, a man would study by candlelight in his own home. The same man, paying nothing for his education, could become a State Senator and President of the United States of America. One man in that circumstance helped end slavery and preserved the union. Abraham Lincoln commented upon the subject of education, “I can only say that I view it as the most important subject which we as a people may be engaged in.” In each of our respective positions whether they be; students, citizens, statesmen, are we living up to the importance of education expressed by our own self-educated, Kentucky Statesman, and former President, Abraham Lincoln. If Lincoln were here today, what would he say to the inability for our citizens to gain a job in our state due to the increase in the cost of education? More inflation occurred in costs of education than in any sector of our economy over the last 30 years. It is time for all of us to do our part and regain hope in the slogan, Kentucky: Where education pays!
Today, the Presidents from all Public Universities in the State of Kentucky come together to fight to keep our state’s Education slogan. Together we warn that college affordability is the most important item needing focus in our state’s near future. Together we warn that with the federal government failing at Pell Grants that the state most focus to help our own citizens. Together we warn that without action our state will continue to receive its yearly grade of “F” on college affordability. What if our teachers worked in the classroom as hard as our state works on college affordability? What if our students worked on their homework as hard as our state worked on college affordability? If they did, we would have uneducated doctors, lawyers, and engineers.
We should all thank our Governor, senators and representatives that are knowledgable on this important issue. We should send out greater thanks to the senators and representatives that stand up and sponsor the bill as written by the Student Government Association of the University of Louisville. They join us in believing that Kentucky should raise its grade so that we are no longer failing our students. The bill defines college affordability and focuses on the state’s duty to keep our students out of overwhelming debt. The bill helps ensure that the state strongly tries to remain in the scope of the rubric presented by the Council on Postsecondary Education, an organization put into effect by the Kentucky Postsecondary Education Improvement Act of 1997 and charged with monitoring tuition rates and recommending state funding for state education institutions. These and many more goals sponsored by our state will help reform college affordability to that slogan our state once envisioned. Lincoln would be proud of the engagement that this bill places on education.
We must also emphasize that, we understand that our legislators are doing a great deal, but they need to be reminded in a big way how important education is not only to this Commonwealth, but to the people in it. Eleven budget cuts in eleven years is not something we should be willing to accept, and it is not something that we should write off as a side effect of poor economic times. If our state wants to require more and more out of our universities, then we must have adequate funding with which to succeed.
If the state demands we produce higher-quality research, we need adequate funding for technology. If the state calls upon us to graduate more and more students with degrees, we need adequate funding to keep those students in college. If the state requires programs for diversity, we need adequate funding for those programs. If the state requires higher admission rates, we need adequate funding for recruitment. If the state wants more scholarships, we need adequate funding to counter yearly tuition escalation. Kentucky ranks 47th in the nation on residents holding a bachelors degree or higher, we need adequate funding if we want to improve Kentucky’s standing within our nation.
The University of Louisville alone has faced $15 million in budget cuts from the state, while the state has demanded more and challenged the institution on terms of diversity, admission rates and test scores. The state further challenges the institution on research achievements, scholarships and degrees.
Specifically, UofL has been called by the Kentucky Legislature to become the premier metropolitan research university, not only in our state, but in our nation. I can understand why the University of Louisville students are upset, I can understand why the University of Louisville students wrote this bill, and I can understand why the students march in barefoot to warn this state that our citizens grow poorer with the rise in cost of education. They march to encourage the passing of the College Affordability Bill! Senators take note, that the students have written this bill because they realize if they don’t act the state will never scrutinize itself on this issue. These students are from all different backgrounds and political affiliations, but they share one common message. “Education Cuts, Kentucky’s attempt to fulfill it’s own stereotypes!”
What we have here today is NOT merely an Occupy Frankfort movement. It is a movement to ensure that some day, we will be able to have an occupation. In a 10 year span, Kentucky’s median family income went down 20%, while Four year colleges and Universities escalated tuition by 105%. Kentucky was the second highest tuition escalation in the nation. Thus, Kentucky is almost last in terms of college affordability in the nation. Additionally, students have paid more for tuition and fees per full time student than the state has allocated since 2008. The state used to fund more dollars than student’s paid for education before 2008. Kentucky is digressing its standards and placing more burden on students with education cuts. The facts about Kentucky’s dedication to education are not helping recruit the best and brightest students to Kentucky’s universities.
An area of great concern with the rise of tuition is families with lower incomes. Middle Class families in Kentucky must pay between 10-17% of their total income for the cost of tuition at a Public University. Why have Kentucky legislators allowed institutional tuition revenues to grown 66% since 2004, while the state financial aid has only grown 15%? Kentucky law makers must battle these statistics by focusing on lower income families and the importance for our citizens to have a college education. Sixty-two percent of eligible applicants for the need-based aid programs,—were denied assistance in 2011. The College Affordability Bill will inspire lawmakers to change these statistics in the future by passing laws to completely fund the CAP grant so all students who are eligible receive funding, prioritize CAP, KTG and KEES funding in the budget process in order to prioritize aid to those in poverty, and re-direct funds from the Postsecondary Tuition Tax Credit to need-based aid.
As students, what greater calling could you have than to fight for college affordability, and what greater let down could there be than to remain neutral? As senators and representatives, do you not have an obligation to college affordability in our state, and would you not be letting down the states slogan if we continue to make Kentucky, a state where education costs. Kentucky must pass the Higher Education Affordability Act, or we will be fulfilling Kentucky’s negative stereotypes in the future by forcing our students to be shoeless and poor in exchange for their needed education. We are not here in protest. We are not here in anger. We are here to raise awareness, to give our constituents a voice, and to fight to keep education affordable for all people in our state that wish to achieve it. The Barefoot Campaign serves as a warning to our legislators, that if they do not want to be responsible for our state’s stereotypes then THEY MUST ACT NOW! Thank you.
Education Cuts: Kentucky’s Attempt to Fulfill It’s Own Stereotypes
In the early years of Kentucky, a man would study by candlelight in his own home. The same man, paying nothing for his education, could become a State Senator and President of the United States of America. One man in that circumstance helped end slavery and preserved the union. Abraham Lincoln commented upon the subject of education, “I can only say that I view it as the most important subject which we as a people may be engaged in.” In each of our respective positions whether they be; students, citizens, statesmen, are we living up to the importance of education expressed by our own self-educated, Kentucky Statesman, and former President, Abraham Lincoln. If Lincoln were here today, what would he say to the inability for our citizens to gain a job in our state due to the increase in the cost of education? More inflation occurred in costs of education than in any sector of our economy over the last 30 years. It is time for all of us to do our part and regain hope in the slogan, Kentucky: Where education pays!
Today, the Presidents from all Public Universities in the State of Kentucky come together to fight to keep our state’s Education slogan. Together we warn that college affordability is the most important item needing focus in our state’s near future. Together we warn that with the federal government failing at Pell Grants that the state most focus to help our own citizens. Together we warn that without action our state will continue to receive its yearly grade of “F” on college affordability. What if our teachers worked in the classroom as hard as our state works on college affordability? What if our students worked on their homework as hard as our state worked on college affordability? If they did, we would have uneducated doctors, lawyers, and engineers.
We should all thank our Governor, senators and representatives that are knowledgable on this important issue. We should send out greater thanks to the senators and representatives that stand up and sponsor the bill as written by the Student Government Association of the University of Louisville. They join us in believing that Kentucky should raise its grade so that we are no longer failing our students. The bill defines college affordability and focuses on the state’s duty to keep our students out of overwhelming debt. The bill helps ensure that the state strongly tries to remain in the scope of the rubric presented by the Council on Postsecondary Education, an organization put into effect by the Kentucky Postsecondary Education Improvement Act of 1997 and charged with monitoring tuition rates and recommending state funding for state education institutions. These and many more goals sponsored by our state will help reform college affordability to that slogan our state once envisioned. Lincoln would be proud of the engagement that this bill places on education.
We must also emphasize that, we understand that our legislators are doing a great deal, but they need to be reminded in a big way how important education is not only to this Commonwealth, but to the people in it. Eleven budget cuts in eleven years is not something we should be willing to accept, and it is not something that we should write off as a side effect of poor economic times. If our state wants to require more and more out of our universities, then we must have adequate funding with which to succeed.
If the state demands we produce higher-quality research, we need adequate funding for technology. If the state calls upon us to graduate more and more students with degrees, we need adequate funding to keep those students in college. If the state requires programs for diversity, we need adequate funding for those programs. If the state requires higher admission rates, we need adequate funding for recruitment. If the state wants more scholarships, we need adequate funding to counter yearly tuition escalation. Kentucky ranks 47th in the nation on residents holding a bachelors degree or higher, we need adequate funding if we want to improve Kentucky’s standing within our nation.
The University of Louisville alone has faced $15 million in budget cuts from the state, while the state has demanded more and challenged the institution on terms of diversity, admission rates and test scores. The state further challenges the institution on research achievements, scholarships and degrees.
Specifically, UofL has been called by the Kentucky Legislature to become the premier metropolitan research university, not only in our state, but in our nation. I can understand why the University of Louisville students are upset, I can understand why the University of Louisville students wrote this bill, and I can understand why the students march in barefoot to warn this state that our citizens grow poorer with the rise in cost of education. They march to encourage the passing of the College Affordability Bill! Senators take note, that the students have written this bill because they realize if they don’t act the state will never scrutinize itself on this issue. These students are from all different backgrounds and political affiliations, but they share one common message. “Education Cuts, Kentucky’s attempt to fulfill it’s own stereotypes!”
What we have here today is NOT merely an Occupy Frankfort movement. It is a movement to ensure that some day, we will be able to have an occupation. In a 10 year span, Kentucky’s median family income went down 20%, while Four year colleges and Universities escalated tuition by 105%. Kentucky was the second highest tuition escalation in the nation. Thus, Kentucky is almost last in terms of college affordability in the nation. Additionally, students have paid more for tuition and fees per full time student than the state has allocated since 2008. The state used to fund more dollars than student’s paid for education before 2008. Kentucky is digressing its standards and placing more burden on students with education cuts. The facts about Kentucky’s dedication to education are not helping recruit the best and brightest students to Kentucky’s universities.
An area of great concern with the rise of tuition is families with lower incomes. Middle Class families in Kentucky must pay between 10-17% of their total income for the cost of tuition at a Public University. Why have Kentucky legislators allowed institutional tuition revenues to grown 66% since 2004, while the state financial aid has only grown 15%? Kentucky law makers must battle these statistics by focusing on lower income families and the importance for our citizens to have a college education. Sixty-two percent of eligible applicants for the need-based aid programs,—were denied assistance in 2011. The College Affordability Bill will inspire lawmakers to change these statistics in the future by passing laws to completely fund the CAP grant so all students who are eligible receive funding, prioritize CAP, KTG and KEES funding in the budget process in order to prioritize aid to those in poverty, and re-direct funds from the Postsecondary Tuition Tax Credit to need-based aid.
As students, what greater calling could you have than to fight for college affordability, and what greater let down could there be than to remain neutral? As senators and representatives, do you not have an obligation to college affordability in our state, and would you not be letting down the states slogan if we continue to make Kentucky, a state where education costs. Kentucky must pass the Higher Education Affordability Act, or we will be fulfilling Kentucky’s negative stereotypes in the future by forcing our students to be shoeless and poor in exchange for their needed education. We are not here in protest. We are not here in anger. We are here to raise awareness, to give our constituents a voice, and to fight to keep education affordable for all people in our state that wish to achieve it. The Barefoot Campaign serves as a warning to our legislators, that if they do not want to be responsible for our state’s stereotypes then THEY MUST ACT NOW! Thank you.