We need to support higher education as weoo as public education if our children have any chance to compete in an increasingly technical world. This is just a downpayment, but a critical one.

More funding for the Applied Technology Colleges--ATC's--would also serve. Students gain employment training at the ATC's, and the skills they learn prepare them for further education. It's a shame the ATC's can't give credit. If that were changed, many grads of the ATC's would continue on at either the community colleges or the universities. Utah does not know how to leverage the power of their ATC's.

I believe a majority of students who decide not to enter the colleges are scared off by the rising costs of the tuitions and books. They are ridiciously HIGH!!! I am so glad I went to college years ago when they were affordable. I supported myself through the community college days and still have enough to cover my room and board. At the costs SLCC and other colleges are now charging, I would never make it past the first semester. I did check the current rates online. YIKES!!! So you, President Bioteau have something to think about...LOWER those tuition and book costs!!! You will get more students back.

I have to agree on the ATC comment.. as well as SLCC handling the whole aviation program fiasco deal. Airlines are hiring like madman and SLCC kills their own flight program as far as aircraft :P and displaces 100+ students and they wonder why their airport numbers are down.

Yes you can fly at 2 outsourced location but you sure pay a HIGHER price for business's operating a profit (instead of non-profit). Nobody in the valley could beat SLCC's aviation prices and they shut it down.

Finally, SLCC needs to try their best at tuition rates being lower. I have friends who are living comfy without a degree selling cell phones, and i'm sitting here working part time, full time student and i'm barely getting by paying $1200 a semester for just a A.S. degree. I can't make money because of the time commited to school. I keep saying it's worth it.. but wow friends in california pay waaay lower tuition rates at their community college :P

President + regents should be worried because numbers are down and they shut down the wrong program. Hopefully they'll fix it!

The time has come for the ivory tower university regents to realize that 80% of the workforce does not need a university bachelors degree. The bulk of the workforce works in the trades and technical areas, which pay much more than college graduates get, unless they go on for a masters or a doctorate. Why the legislature mandated increased graduation requirements that are so strict in math and science that takes away the opportunity for students to take the Career and Technical courses in High School is beyond me. All it has accomplished is causing a higher drop-out rate. The community colleges are struggling because they have lost the vision of what they were created for, to provide associate degrees and technical training. By converting to universities, they have failed their mission. You also created UCAT, a function that the community colleges could serve if they maintained their focus. Now the whole post secondary system is so fragmented that nobody gets ahead. Time to trash the whole thing, and start over.The legislature and regents talk out of one side of their mouths encouraging Career and technical education, and they take away all the opportunities students have to get into them by forcing extra math and science on them that prevents them from taking CTE classes.Why can't they wake up and see what is going on in the real world? Tom

Totally agree with Tom, SLCC is known for difficult math (1050 and higher) classes required for degrees who won't use any of that Math level in their career.

This causes students to break down and give up in frustration with high SLCC rates. I'd like to see the regents and the president take my school schedule and my income and see how they like it in the real world.

Sometimes I think they just protect their position as best they can. Which is doing nothing.