As sure as storms in June, some North Dakota legislators'anti-higher education biases are blooming like thunderheads, apparently because of spending snafus at North Dakota State University and the University of North Dakota. More specifically, less-enlightened lawmakers have taken particular aim at NDSU because they have a convenient target in former President Joseph Chapman, who resigned and left the state.
Chapman, who could be prickly and autocratic, is an easy target. But the mini-scandal that developed at NDSU over the president's new house was not exclusively his doing. There were several other players, although most of them have scurried for the weeds while pointing their dirty fingers at the former president. It's been a text-book display of butt-covering.
Nevertheless, the house dust-up is a minor distraction when compared to the extraordinary progress NDSU has made in the past decade. The school's status as a top research university has never been better. Its graduate programs are world-class. Enrollment continues to rise because most undergraduate studies are second to none. Campus building expansion, including two units of the downtown campus, has filled needs that were neglected for decades. NDSU is among the most vigorous, most important economic engines in North Dakota.
Yet, small-minded legislators are focused on fleeting mistakes, most of which were made as NDSU evolved from a good school to a great school. At the end of the day, NDSU is a better school today than it was a decade ago in large part because focused and talented administrators, faculty, private-sector partners and the state's congressional delegation saw untapped potential and tapped it. That vision, which is not embraced by some legislators, changed the higher education picture across the state in ways that will benefit North Dakotans for years.
Certainly, mistakes were made as the pace of progress accelerated. But none rises to a level that justifies the myopic and punitive prescriptions coming from some legislators. Such approaches could stifle the creativity and investments that have spurred higher education's progress.
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Lawmakers should keep in mind that the appropriated state share of the higher education budget gets smaller every session. Campuses depend more and more on tuition and fees, research grants and private-sector investments to deliver a modern education. The results, especially at UND and NDSU, are new and needed facilities that were built at little or no cost to taxpayers. They are smart bargains that will serve students and faculty for generations.
Improve oversight so small mistakes don't become big ones. But don't erode a proven doctrine of flexibility and accountability that serves the campuses and the state very well.
