College is not for everyone, but everyone benefits when tax dollars are spent on higher education. We need people with better thinking skills to tackle the many vexing problems we face. In fact, most societies agree the more citizens with a college degree, the better.
Not in Wisconsin! Apparently, our leaders believe Wisconsin will be better off with less education. Their rationale: it will save money. But a few minutes’ thought about the people in your circle who have a college degree, and about the innovative thinking that has led to new businesses and thriving communities in Wisconsin, reveals how much we gain from higher education. A hypocrite like Robin Vos forgets how much his own life was improved by attending college at a public university.
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When UW leaders asked for $845 million, a fraction of the total amount cut from the UW budget under his watch, Assembly Speaker Vos said, “I just know that some of these numbers, where they ask for the moon, are unrealistic.”
When Vos graduated from UW-Whitewater in 1991, Wisconsin’s higher education appropriations per student were $11,028. In 2023 it was $9,277. So the “moon” was realistic when he personally benefited from taxpayer support, but is unrealistic when it is your turn to benefit?
Let us fully support the Universities of Wisconsin, Wisconsin’s gateway to a better future.
Ken Menningen, Stevens Point
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: UW system in Wisconsin helps drive thriving communities | Letters