Perry’s bold plan for higher education commendable and unrivaled

Rana Harvey
Columnist

This semester, national college debt nearly reached the one trillion dollar mark. With no other solutions that reach the scope of his proposal on the table, Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry’s proposal is undoubtedly the most attractive.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has arguably become the leading GOP presidential candidate, perhaps because of his reputation of longevity as The Lone Star State’s longest serving governor to date or his rash statements deeming him a political populist. While fellow party members, such as Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, are limited in scope when it comes to proposing new solutions, Perry seems versatile and willing to change the minds of members of both parties. Most recently his “bold, Texas-style solution” for the insane cost of higher education has put him in a league of his own. His proposal: a four year bachelor’s degree that costs no more than $10,000 – including textbooks.

Other Republican candidates don’t seem to be as concerned with the high cost of college. Bachmann, a foe of “No Child Left Behind,” began the “A-Plus Act,” which allows states to develop their own curriculums for the education of children. And Paul, also not too fond of NCLB, feels that the Department of Education is an unnecessary cost that should be cut immediately to eliminate debt. But neither proposal directly seeks to aid the huge number of students graduating from college with crippling amounts of debt.

And that’s where Perry comes in. His 2008 proposal stayed under the radar until last fall when his alma mater, Texas A&M, showed signs of progression. He’s now asking universities to become more like businesses and increase their productivity and efficiency.

According to the New York Times, Perry suggested that individual faculty members be measured as profit or loss centers, that research budgets be separated from teaching budgets and that evaluations help determine how much professors get paid. And he wants Texas’ leading public universities to become the prototype.

Of course, it is no coincidence that Perry has chosen to become vocal about his plan as the Republican primary heats up and November 2012 looms closer into sight. He just may be stirring up yet another buzz for a bigger political platform, and his proposal is potentially overly simplistic, unrealistic and impossible. No one, however, is proposing anything better.

Perry’s intentions are commendable, as his plan directly addresses the affordability of college, seeking to reduce the expense of college and increasing the probability that students will want to attend, as well as creating a debt-free future for college graduates.

Perry is filling a void and offering solutions to a problem that few candidates care to talk about. He seems to be the only Republican candidate truly concerned with making higher education accessible for all students. He’s giving students a voice like never before, and I commend him.