From Sen. Amanda Ragan –
I believe Iowa’s public universities are some of the best in the country. They help expand Iowa’s middle class, grow our economy, provide an excellent education to our students and build partnerships that improve communities in every corner of the state. The investment we make in our universities and our students is an investment in a prosperous Iowa future.
Professional graduates from areas such as medicine, law, nursing, education and pharmacy are employed in all 99 counties. ISU Veterinary Medicine graduates account for nearly 80 percent of the state’s practicing veterinarians. The University of Northern Iowa has educated 11,200 of the teachers in Iowa.
Providing adequate funding to our universities helps more students get the training and education they want and find a good job, without being saddled with a mountain of debt. A high-quality, affordable college education should be an option for every qualified Iowa student. To ensure the opportunity for education, presidents of the Universities of Iowa, Iowa State and the University of Northern Iowa are looking to freeze student tuition.
Last year, the Legislature worked together to provide an additional $23 million to keep Iowa tuition increases far below the national average of seven percent for in-state undergraduate students. This year, the universities say they can freeze in-state undergraduate tuition for next year if the Legislature can provide an additional $21 million.
13 thoughts on “Ragan: “A high-quality, affordable college education should be an option for every qualified Iowa student””
I don’t know where you all get the idea that people get “free college tuition”. Any Pell Grant money has to be paid back. If you drop out you forfeit and have to pay back 1000’s to the school. Which means any tax return you think you’re going to get back will be with held and given back to the gov. that funded you.
I know ditch diggers that can make $30/hr. doing a gov. job. High Sch. dropout waitresses can make $10-15 or more/hr. Tho they like to make you think they get menial pay. You can make good money tax free doing on line sales.
College is not necessary to making good money. It depends on the field you go into and if you’re willing to move to areas employment is open in your area of skill.
@bodacious – Ms Ragan stated that last year an additional 23M was provided by the legislature, and this year, the univ. are asking for an additional 21M to help with costs. This will be 43M more to what was given prior to the first 23M. And you don’t think we are paying for people to go to college? Try this. Cancel the 23M, the 21M, and the help that was initially given, and make the students pay their own way. I am beginning to fear that Ms. Ragan is trying to spread her welfare concept of the community kitchen into the education area, and I wonder how far it is going to spread. People need to be responsible for themselves, and not just be welfare leeches.
@A Citizen-Completely agree with you here. Sadly, I think personal responsibility is dead. Everyone seems to want something for nothing. It doesn’t seem to bother young people at all that they have to start their lives deep in debt. Look at all the young people who have graduated and can’t find jobs. They still owe the debt.
There are many qualified high school graduates who have to forgo college because of the high costs. I don’t think Ms. Ragan was saying we need to send everyone to college – “A high-quality, affordable college education should be an option for every qualified Iowa student.” Note that she says ‘an option’. No where does she says we need to pay for every person who wants to go to college.
A high quality, affordable college education is an option. All the student has to do is to get some kind of job in high school, save his/her money, borrow a portion, work while in college to support themselves, get good grades, and look very hard for a job when they graduate. Why does Ms. Ragan think the govt. has to pay for so much? College is also supposed to teach responsibility and self reliance. Not be the recipient of another welfare handout which the taxpayers will again have to fund.
Or be a farm kid and have daddy save his “subsidies” for your education.
Ok, let me get this straight in my mind. We have a great deal her in Iowa, Amanda stated, “This year, the universities say they can freeze in-state undergraduate tuition for next year if the Legislature can provide an additional $21 million.”
That doesn’t sound like they are freezing anything, they are getting an extra $21 Million Dollars! Don’t you just love how these political hacks like Amanda put these kind of spins on the truth? This is sick and dishonest. We are paying this extra $21 Million and the kids are still strapped for most of their life with college debt.
I agree with Tim, not everyone needs a degree to succeed in life. I know many graduates sitting on the sidelines with no job and huge college dept and people like Amanda sit there and slap themselves on the back thinking they are doing something.
Qualified is the operative word here. Someone needs to step up to the plate and tell below average students that they do not qualify for a free college education! A lot of them shouldn’t have been granted high school diplomas. I suppose no one read to them in the womb.
Please tell me how many “below average” high school students that don’t dunk basketballs or score touchdowns get a FREE college education. I havn’t met any.
Katie, Matt Rezab is right here, this isn’t free. I know people in their 40’s still trying to retire their college debt. I make more than they do in the industry because I went right to work out of high school. College could not teach me what we need to know in this industry. Trade schools and individual job training programs are the way to go, no a college degree that is worthless for some people.
Sorry you base everything on the people YOU have met. Most of these people eventually flunk out, but they still waste our money because their parents or some dogooders have told them they can be anything they want to be. Some even struggle it through a trade school only to never make the cut with an employer.
Instead of giving more money to the Universities. The legislature should cap tuition and cap the tax revenue going to the universities. This would force the universities to become better money managers. Right now the Universities think they can spend and the public will pick up the cost. Not everyone needs to go to college and the colleges need to become better money managers.
@Tim-I completely agree with your statements. Not everyone is college material and shouldn’t be. It is the high school councilors that are at fault here. They tell all the kids that they have to go to college to succeed. They can be plumbers, machinist, electricians, carpenters and all kinds of trades without racking up massive debt and still make a decent living.