John Casteen
“For 20 years, our state has put essentially every other priority ahead of education. It has done this for so long that most people simply take it for granted now that the state can dodge this most basic of its obligations. The rankings include many sub scores. Again this year, these emphasize how very far behind Virginia is in its support for its public colleges and universities—support that is now very probably the lowest in the country.”
—President John T. Casteen III, commenting on the latest U.S. News & World Report rankings of America’s Best Colleges, in which U.Va. slipped to the No. 64 spot in the “financial resources” category
Comments
I certainly understand educators frustration with the level of public support for higher education in Virginia. Having worked in health care in Virginia for about 16 years, the problem is not that Virginia funds other public services better than education, it’s that the State does not fund many, if any, public services adequately. It has relied on the private sector and philanthropic support to fill the gaps (many times inadequately). For example, Virginia is ranked 48th nationally for Medicaid eligibility and, as a result, we have among the most free clinics nationally. However, the private & philanthropic communities can no longer make up the gap in light of the current recession and the inadequecies of Virginia’s current public taxation system is showing. I hope that the long-term ramifications will not be as severe as most predict they will be without leadership on this issue.
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