The Board of Regents and the State Office of Education have sent a strong message to the legislature: education in Utah can not take any more cuts next year and the regents have asked that the $60 million in federal stimulus money replaced.
The University Journal Editorial Board applauds the assertive efforts of the Board of Regents to protect higher education, and we think students need to rally behind this effort and support administrators’ work to protect education in our state.
University administrators, including our own from SUU, have been working hard to keep budget cuts as low as possible, and the regents’ decision to demand no further cuts will greatly impact this endeavor.
Higher education students from across the state must now take up this effort as well.
Students need to demonstrate to legislators that education is a worthwhile cause that deserves the large amount of funding it receives, and deserves even more in the future.
All citizens of Utah who believe in the importance of having institutions of higher education must apply pressure to their senators and representatives in the legislature to not cut their respective budgets.
Cuts to those budgets can equate to downsizing or eliminating academic programs, cutting vital student services and even further layoffs of faculty, staff, administrators and student employees.
With the work of education administrators and pressure from legislative constituents, higher education might continue to have the funds necessary to provide quality learning experiences.
The opinions expressed above are the collective perspective of the University Journal Editorial Board. The editorial board meets every Monday at 5:45 p.m. and Thursday at 5 p.m. in room 176C of the Sharwan Smith Center.
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