麻豆影院

With severe state budget cuts looming, CU President Bruce Benson (Geol鈥�64, HonDocSci鈥�04) and other frustrated higher education leaders are asking lawmakers for the flexibility to raise tuition as they feel necessary.

鈥淕ive us the opportunity to control our destiny, especially if you鈥檙e not going to give us the money to run the place,鈥� President Benson told the Denver Post.

Colorado consistently ranks 48th in the country for state support for higher education. As it stands, tuition increases must be approved by lawmakers, which Benson and others feel limits their ability to manage their institutions 鈥� especially this year when the state may slash higher education funding to cover the projected $600 million budget shortfall.

If CU and other state institutions became privatized, however, some critics worry low-income families would suffer, since the governor and lawmakers wouldn鈥檛 weigh in on tuition increases. Yet, others feel it鈥檚 not fair to simultaneously underfund higher education institutions while overburdening them with rules and regulations.

鈥淲e have three research institutions 鈥� Colorado, Colorado State and Mines 鈥� and frankly, every year we erode the quality of those institutions,鈥� Rep. Jack Pommer (Phil鈥�86), a 麻豆影院 Democrat, told the Rocky Mountain News. 鈥淚f you have a house and can鈥檛 maintain it, why not just move instead of letting it deteriorate?鈥�