Higher education 'better today,' Leavitt says

Utah colleges and universities seemed to come second behind public schools under Gov. Mike Leavitt's tenure.

But Utah System of Higher Education Commissioner Cecelia Foxley says Leavitt keeps a special place in his heart for the state's 10 public colleges and universities and often protected them from harm during recent budget cuts.

Indeed, Leavitt is proud of what he's done for Utah's 10 public colleges and universities.

"Is the system of higher education better today than it was when I became governor? I just don't think there's any measure you could look at that wouldn't say, mission accomplished."

His sentiment applies to initiatives from technology to funding.

But the latter is where things get a little sticky. Just ask a student, who paid anywhere from 7.3 percent to 23.5 percent more in tuition costs this year.

"He could have done a lot of things different," said Aaron Miller, student vice president of Southern Utah University — Leavitt's alma mater, where students this year shouldered the highest tuition increase in the state.

Leavitt considers technology a big part of his higher education legacy.

Online, TV and satellite courses account for 9.2 percent of all enrollments, he said. The Utah Electronic College, created under Leavitt's tenure, offers 650 courses to students in every county and 10 colleges and universities, Foxley said.

The Utah College of Applied Technology, established under a 2001 law, offers job training courses to more than 15,000 high school students and 45,000 adults every year, Governor's Office data show.

And Leavitt's brainchild Western Governors University has awarded 68 diplomas since December 2000, has 1,400 students and is growing at about 200 a month, WGU reports.

The initiatives represent a fundamental shift for colleges and universities.

"Instead of people coming to where the knowledge is, knowledge is going to where the people are," Leavitt said.

Still, some things never change for college students: money, or lack thereof.

On paper, higher education appears financially better off than it was when Leavitt took office.

State funding has increased from $478 million in 1993-94 to $644 million in 2003-2004, reports Dave Buhler, Utah System of Higher Education associate commissioner of public affairs.

Colleges have spent $1.6 billion on buildings in Leavitt's tenure. About a third of that — $517 million — came from state funds, the Utah System of Higher Education reports.

Yet overall, higher education's share of the state budget has held steady from 13.3 percent in 1994 to 13.4 percent in 2004, governor's office numbers show.