Huntsman must create Utah vision

If Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. stays true to his word, it is indeed a new day.

The governor has laid out some fundamental principles that will guide his administration, not unlike what good leaders do. They realize that while issues will change, principles do not. They are driven to promote the common good, rather than personal gain, appeal to the best in people, encourage risk taking and have a sense of humility.

Call it good karma, harmonic convergence or anything you want, but it looks like we have the right leader for the right time.

Our nation faces challenges that require bold leaders who want to drive change rather than react to it. At a time when the United States' primacy as a world leader in the global economy is being challenged by other nations, we are fortunate to have a leader who understands that and how Utah must help meet that challenge. He can think globally and act locally.

Our nation's dominance was the result of an educational system that made it possible to create the technologies and industries that were faster and more innovative than other nations. The Internet has leveled the playing field, and the center of technology is moving to Asia where countries are now investing more in higher education and graduating more engineering and science students than the United States.

"Americans don't do science anymore. (and) . . . The dirty little secret about America's scientific edge is that it's largely produced by foreigners and immigrants." In 1975 the United States ranked third in proportion to the number of college students majoring in science and engineering. Last year it ranked 17th (Newsweek, Nov. 29, 2004). Our competitive edge will depend upon our scientific innovation, technical entrepreneurship and greater investment in research and development (R&D) by our universities and private sector.

In the meantime, Utah appears to be in a time warp and, like the old bank commercial that called for 80 percent effort from its employees as a spoof, seems content to run education on the cheap. We don't seem to appreciate the intellectual capital we have in our universities and the R&D that produces the technology and innovations critical in today's new economy.

We are seeing university faculty leaving for higher pay and presidents having to juggle salaries with fuel budgets at a time we should be shoring up higher education. Utah has no coherent education system that connects K-12 with higher education, and Utah students continue to score low in the sciences in comparison to other nations.