DATE: Wednesday, October 22, 1997           TAG: 9710220711

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Public Life: Election '97 

                                            LENGTH:  268 lines

MAKING COLLEGE AFFORDABLE

The Question: How would you ensure tht college is affordable and accessible to all Virginians ? For complete copy of the text of this story, see microfilm CANDIDATE RESPONSE TO QUESTION [Grid] 76th District Southern portion of Chesapeake and most of Suffolk. Michelle Degnan (D)

It is important that a college education be affordable and available to every qualified applicant. We should not make college accessible by lowering admission standards; rather, we must educate our high school students regarding the standards they will be expected to meet to gain entry to the college of their choice.

All of our state colleges must have clear, although not universal, admission standards. This will ensure that a student who wants a college education will be able to choose the college that best suits his talents and goals.

An inability to pay for tuition, books, etc. should not prohibit a qualified student from attending the college of his choice. Financial aid and scholarships should be granted based on the student's own achievements and/or ability to pay.

No student should be denied the higher education of his choice because his parents cannot or will not pay the expenses or because he is an adult with a job but no money to pay for college. If a student has worked hard enough to earn admission to a college, it benefits us to ensure that he attend that school.

Community colleges are as important and as deserving of funding as four-year universities. A strong community college system provides a valuable alternative to the traditional higher education.

Aside from being a preparatory school for universities, community colleges provide continuing adult education specific to the needs of the work force. Community colleges and universities should be a priority in the commonwealth of Virginia. S. Chris Jones (R)

I have always been a strong supporter of public education, and I'm committed to ensuring that the decisions governing our children's education are made at the local level - by teachers and parents. That is why I have released my five-point plan to give our children the best education we can afford. My plan calls for stronger academic standards; smaller class sizes; zero tolerance for drugs, violence and threats of violence in the classroom; report cards on school quality; and increased scholarships based on merit.

Once our children have received a quality education that centers on the basics of English, math, science and history, they should have the opportunity to receive and afford college or trade-school education.

Before Gov. George Allen and the leadership of the Republicans in the General Assembly, skyrocketing double-digit annual increases in college tuition were forcing many young people and families in Virginia to mortgage their future. By 1993, Virginia's tuition costs had soared by nearly 50 percent in just 4 years. To ensure a college education is affordable, we must continue the pro-education policies of the Allen administration. By capping tuition increases to the rate of inflation - about 3 percent - in 1995 and 1996 and then freezing tuition increases altogether, we have controlled rising tuition costs. In this 1996-98 biennial budget, Virginia spent $260 million in additional funds for colleges and universities - a 15.3 percent increase over the previous biennium budget. The 79th District Northern Portsmouth and adjacent precincts in Chesapeake and Suffolk. D.R. ``Dan'' Evans (R)

Do all Virginians want to go to college? Is college always the best option? Those are the questions that should also be included.

The freeze on tuition should be kept in place to continue to make college affordable to those students that pursue a college degree. The College Tuition Program started by Gov. Allen is a great way for parents to plan for the future. Jim Gilmore's car tax reduction would give those parents $500-$1000 a year to help defray the cost of college. We should audit our colleges to be sure that money is being spent wisely and that professors and other employers are putting in the hours commensurate to their salaries.

We must also be sure that our educational structures are utilized to the fullest. Instead of new buildings for a community college that is mostly used at night, classes could be held in a local high school.

Back to my original point, with the high college drop-out rates and the fact that remedial courses are increasing at colleges across the state, maybe we are forcing students down paths that they are not interested in. My family business (Evans Electric) has a long history of participating in vocational education. Six of our managers started with us in high school vocational programs. There are other jobs with great pay and benefits that do not require a college education. Should we tell high school students about these options? Should we partner with business in vocational programs? I think the answer to both of these questions is yes, and I will pursue both after I am elected November 4th. Johnny S. Joannou (R)

We in Virginia must do what is necessary to keep college tuition low and give Virginians priority for admission to our state-supported educational institutions, keeping in mind that there should be a reasonable number of out-of-state students admitted to our schools.

As a member of the State Board for Community Colleges, I learned first hand the challenges our community college system faced. We should ensure that our state community college system receives the funding that is necessary to keep our community colleges viable and competitive. This will open the door of higher education to thousands of students who would otherwise be denied to further their education. 86th District Northwest corner of Norfolk. Don Williams (D)

According to an article that ran in The Virginian-Pilot (6/14/95), the commonwealth of Virginia ranks ``in the bottom tier of states in terms of state funding per student.''

The same article also stated that Virginia's public universities had the second highest in-state tuition rates in the nation. These trends are unacceptable and need to be reversed.

Our public universities and colleges boast some of the finest faculties in the country. However, it is difficult for many Virginians to take advantage of this asset because higher education is so expensive.

The commonwealth of Virginia needs to make higher education more affordable for our students. I do support the current tuition freeze because I believe it does offer working families some relief from rising education costs.

I will also say that I do not believe in throwing money at problems. I am convinced, however, that we need to spend more money per student, and that we must allocate more resources to our higher education system to bring tuition costs down.

My goal is to make sure that the average Virginia family is not locked out of our fine higher education system because of excessive costs. We need to keep Virginia's best, brightest and hardest working in Virginia schools, and not lose them to other states like North Carolina. Beverly ``Bev'' Graeber (R)

My experience serving on four different school boards has shown me that education is an investment not only in the lives of our schoolchildren, it is an investment in the future economic and social well-being of our whole commonwealth.

The more we educate our young children, the more competitive they'll become in the global economy, thus strengthening local job markets. Highly educated students are also less likely to engage in criminal activity. Providing our children with an affordable first-class education is therefore one of the most important responsibilities of our government.

Sound and selective increases in higher educational funding must be made. Our schools' infrastructure must be maintained and our students should have access to educational materials and equipment of the highest quality. Tuition Assistance Grants and student loans should be more readily available for the college-bound.

Innovative new programs like the Virginia Prepaid Tuition Program, which allows parents to prepay their children's future tuition costs at today's prices, must be expanded. The current freeze on college tuition must be maintained in order to control skyrocketing costs.

Those who aren't quite ready for college experience, yet wish to attend should receive the necessary remedial help to prepare them for the challenges and opportunities of higher education. Those who aren't college-bound must be provided with the proper vocational training to prepare them for the work force, enabling them to obtain good jobs and earn decent wages. 87th District Northeast corner of Norfolk Todd M. Fiorella (D)

Every Virginian should have the opportunity to attend college. Just as importantly, the future of the commonwealth depends upon creating an educated work force to attract new businesses and higher paying jobs. That's why I support the current freeze of tuition for state supported colleges.

There are many Virginians who cannot afford college at current rates. I support providing need-based tuition assistance in the form of grants and low-interest loans to students who maintain a B average throughout high school, and maintain a B average in college.

We all want to keep and attract qualified teachers to our public schools. Structured loan forgiveness plans for graduates who become public school teachers would be a way to do so.

Not everyone wants or needs a four-year college. The creation of community colleges designed to train students for jobs in today's technologically advanced market is a must.

Still, the legislature can only do so much. We need to encourage families to plan for the future. The Virginia Pre-Paid Education Plan does that by allowing families to make monthly payments, which guarantees that a family will pay today's tuition rates whenever their children are ready to enter college.

With sound financial planning and a continued commitment to higher education, we can make college affordable. Only then can we provide a mechanism whereby our residents join and remain members of a skilled and flexible work force, ensuring Virginia's competitiveness in a global marketplace. Thelma Drake (R)

Virginia's economic future will be decided in large part by our ability to provide affordable access to our fine colleges and universities. Because of this General Assembly's strong commitment to our community colleges, state universities and colleges, Virginia's higher educational system ranks among the top in the nation.

We created the Pre-Paid College Tuition Program, allowing parents to lock in today's tuition costs. Call 1-888-567-0540 for information.

In Norfolk, we have the Access Program, enabling students to obtain scholarship opportunities and grants. We also adopted Standards Of Learning, ensuring that parents pay tuition fees for rigorous college courses rather than remedial classes.

We increased the Tuition Assistance Grant (TAG) from $1,000 to $2,000 and eligible to every student attending an accredited college or university. Any public funds received should be contingent on minimum achievement standards, making sustaining funding available only to those students who take their continuing education seriously.

The most important factor increasing affordability was Gov. Allen's freeze of tuition increases.

It was irresponsible for past administrations or the General Assembly to abdicate their duty to control educational costs, ultimately placing these costs on the backs of Virginia's college students and their families. I was proud to support Gov. Allen's freeze on college tuition increases, and, as your delegate, I will certainly fight to see this freeze continue in the future. 88th District West-central Norfolk, including downtown, Colonial Place and parts of Ghent G.R. ``Bud'' West (R)

Is college not affordable and accessible in Virginia? Concerning accessibility, it could easily be argued that the routine rescheduling of classes at our universities due to low attendance and the overall low registration and attendance at the Tom Moss campus of TCC indicate that we have more than enough resources to carry us into the foreseeable future. Concerning affordability, between federally funded student grants and loans, scholarship and fellowship availability, work-study opportunities, and other creative forms of financing, I can only imagine very few situations where qualified students couldn't get a college education if they wanted one badly enough. In fact, many of the ``back-to-school'' guides inform us that millions and millions of dollars in scholarship moneys are left over after any given academic year. I believe we need to continue to do the right things we have been doing and not try to solve problems that don't really exist.

I know it can be financially challenging to go to colleges and universities, especially for those in the economic middle-class. My wife just finished a degree program in 1994 at ODU. At the time she attended school, our family of four found itself in the ``middle middle-class.'' If we had been less well-off we would have received increased funds in the form of federal grants. As it was, we had to take out student loans almost every semester and we are still paying them off. However, I certainly wouldn't have asked my neighbors to pay one penny more in taxes to relieve our personal burden. Thomas Warren Moss Jr. (D)

What we need to do is to reprioritize our state support for higher education. Virginia ranks in the very bottom 10 percent in state support for higher education. Under those circumstances, the universities and colleges in our commonwealth have had no choice but to increase tuition. If additional state funds are made available, two things would occur: One, the universities could meet the national average for hiring good, quality instructors and help their recruiting of these kinds of quality people. And two, they would then be able to lower some of their tuitions they've had to charge because of the lack of state support and put Virginia back in its position of preeminence that it has enjoyed in the past. ILLUSTRATION: Photos

Degnan

Jones

Joannou

Evans

Williams

Graeber

Fiorella

Drake

Moss

West KEYWORDS: ELECTION CANDIDATE Q & A HOUSE OF DELEGATES RACE

ISSUE EDUCATION

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu