Tuition Hikes in Tennessee Raise Questions About the Purpose of College

By Uloop Editor on June 18, 2012

I’m not an idealist.  I don’t believe everyone in America has a “right” to attend college.  In fact, I’ve written many times before that college isn’t right for everyone.  That said, I’m starting to get a little bothered by the inconsistent messages that my state’s legislators are sending to students, especially at my alma mater, the University of Tennessee.

Tuition is Going up…No Surprise

The state of Tennessee, like many other states, is going to increase tuition at public colleges across the board.  Some as high as 7%.  The University of Tennessee has deemed it necessary to up tuition 3% to 6% at its system of universities in the wake of Governor Bill Haslam’s $19.3 million budget cut for education.  All these funding cuts come while only one in four 8th graders in the state are proficient in math or reading…yes, that’s actually true.  ONE in FOUR.

Let’s Penalize Success!

Another even more bothersome fact about UT’s tuition is how it is unfairly distributed it is becoming.  In a time when America ranks 27th in math and science degrees awarded, the University of Tennessee has decided to put a stumbling block in place for students pursuing high-potential majors like Engineering, Business, and Nursing.  Students in these fields will pay around 10% to 50% more per credit hour than their peers in majors like English, Art, and Elementary Education.

Come on, People. Let’s get Logical

Let’s think about this for a minute.  We are making the state of Tennessee less and less appealing for long term success in the hopes that we will shave a few bucks off the budget.  Why would any successful, well-educated parent want to send his or her child to school here?  Our grade schools are failing, we can’t fire teachers who suck, and we penalize college students who want to be financially successful someday.  What’s not to avoid, right?

The problem is similar to the problem in the rest of the country.  Every time a politician talks about “improving our economy,” they talk about jobs programs, tax cuts for industry, or new infrastructure.  I’ve got news for you: these are short-term, band aid fixes for a much bigger problem.

Education Needs to Shift its Focus Back to Education

We need to get real and remember the point of education.  It’s clear that an educated population is the only way that America can compete on a global scale with rising super-powers like China and India.  If we continue to undervalue and underserve our brightest minds, we’ll lose our next generation; if we continue to lower educational standards and discourage high-potential majors, we’ll never stabilize our $1.3 trillion deficit.  Let’s put our focus back on education.  Let’s reward those who work hard.  Let’s get logical, people.

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