{"id":2173012,"date":"2024-02-10T09:16:05","date_gmt":"2024-02-10T14:16:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-sympathetic-but-cautious-of-shapiros-higher-ed-plan\/"},"modified":"2024-02-10T09:22:12","modified_gmt":"2024-02-10T14:22:12","slug":"republicans-sympathetic-but-cautious-of-shapiros-higher-ed-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-sympathetic-but-cautious-of-shapiros-higher-ed-plan\/","title":{"rendered":"Republicans are supportive yet wary of Shapiro&#8217;s higher education proposal"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frepublicans-sympathetic-but-cautious-of-shapiros-higher-ed-plan%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2173012&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Republicans Intrigued by Gov. Shapiro&#8217;s Higher Education Proposal<\/h2>\n<p><strong>The Center Square<\/strong> &#8211; Gov.\u200d Josh \u2064Shapiro&#8217;s plan to revamp Pennsylvania&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wisconsin-gov-tony-evers-sues-legislature-after-republicans-block-raises-for-university-professors\/\" title=\"Wisconsin Gov. Evers sues legislature over blocked professor raises.\">higher education \u2062system<\/a> has caught \u2064the attention of legislative Republicans, who are cautiously considering the\u200d proposal.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;List me as sympathetic but cautious,&#8221; said Sen. Dave Argall, \u200bR-Mahanoy City and chair of the Senate Education Committee. &#8220;It&#8217;s still in its \u2064very early stages.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Shapiro&#8217;s\u200b blueprint aims to merge the community college and PASSHE systems, increase PHEAA grants for all students by $1,000, implement\u2064 a\u200d $1,000 per semester limit\u2062 on \u200ctuition and\u200b fees, and establish a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rumored-biden-successor-tries-to-fix-his-states-poor-record-on-higher-education\/\" title=\"Biden's potential successor aims to improve state's higher education reputation\">performance-based funding<\/a> model\u200c for\u2064 state-owned and state-related\u200c universities. Additionally,\u2064 the plan includes a \u2062$279 million funding increase to \u2063alleviate \u2064student costs.<\/p>\n<p>While the public and legislators have a general \u2064idea \u200cof the proposal, they are eagerly awaiting\u200d more details.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;In terms of combining the\u2062 community \u2062college and the state\u200c system, \u2062I&#8217;m not against it and I&#8217;m not for it because I need \u200bto see how it&#8217;d work,&#8221; \u2064said Rep. Jesse Topper, R-Bedford and Republican\u200b chair of\u200c the\u2064 House Education Committee. &#8220;But I admire &#8211; the No. 1\u2062 thing I&#8217;m pleased about is\u2062 that \u2062the governor sees\u200b the need for\u2064 transformational change in how we do higher education in this state and I agree. Now the devil&#8217;s in \u2062the details.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Topper, who previously proposed \u200blegislation for \u200bperformance-based funding, appreciates Shapiro&#8217;s inclusion of a similar concept. The push for\u200b higher \u2064education reform \u200dcomes as \u2062Pennsylvania&#8217;s\u2063 college-aged student population has significantly declined in the past decade. In \u2063response, PASSHE\u200c has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-struggles-to-pick-winning-electric-vehicle-companies\/\" title=\"White House faces challenges in selecting successful electric vehicle firms.\">implemented cost-cutting measures<\/a>, university \u2064mergers, \u2064and initiatives to attract \u2063adult learners \u200bseeking\u200b new credentials or unfinished degrees.<\/p>\n<p>PASSHE Chancellor Dan Greenstein views the university \u2063system\u200d as a solution \u200dto \u2062bridge the &#8220;talent gap&#8221; and educate high-demand professionals like \u2064teachers and nurses. The \u2063governor&#8217;s support for a partnership with Google to develop certificate programs further emphasizes\u200c the goal of enhancing economic competitiveness.<\/p>\n<p>However, \u2063some education experts express skepticism about the governor&#8217;s proposal. Neal McCluskey,\u200c director of the Cato \u2062Institute&#8217;s Center for Educational Freedom, argues that focusing on graduation rates and enrollment boosts may overlook the importance of valuable skills and knowledge.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;This will put\u2062 a lot of focus \u2062on getting \u200bmore \u200dpeople degrees, but\u2064 gives no incentive, at least that\u2063 I can see from the press release, to provide valuable skills and knowledge,&#8221; McCluskey\u2063 said. &#8220;It basically\u2064 incentivizes\u200c getting more students in and awarding more diplomas no\u200c matter what students \u200blearn.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Uniting community \u2062colleges\u200b and PASSHE may also face political obstacles.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;I think the idea of eliminating duplicative programs makes sense, and \u2063in theory \u200bconsolidation could create \u200cmoney-saving \u200defficiencies,&#8221; \u2064McCluskey said. &#8220;But I am not optimistic about actually\u2062 cutting duplicative\u2063 programs &#8211; \u2062people \u2063they\u2064 employ will work very hard \u2062politically\u2062 to \u2062keep them and may well\u200d succeed.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>McCluskey suggests cutting subsidies as a means \u2064to achieve more\u2062 efficient\u2062 higher education. He believes that schools should rely on \u200bfunding\u2062 from\u2064 students \u2064who pay with their own money or voluntarily given funds.<\/p>\n<p>The \u200bresponsibility to improve \u2064Pennsylvania&#8217;s \u2064<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/education-department-unveils-nearly-5-billion-in-student-loan-relief\/\" title=\"Education Department reveals B in student loan relief\">higher \u200deducation system<\/a> does not solely rest on the General Assembly.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;This \u200dis not just\u200c a state government problem\u200b to fix: the universities \u200cand the colleges need to also be heavily engaged in creating degrees\u200b to lead \u200bto career paths here in Pennsylvania,&#8221; Topper said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Despite the challenges, recent changes have fostered trust.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;The reason we saw increased funding for PASSHE is because they showed a willingness to engage in \u200dtransformational reform,&#8221; Topper said. \u2063&#8221;As \u200dlong \u200bas institutions show a willingness to do that, I \u200cthink we can continue \u2063our relationship \u200dwith them.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>However, \u2062the governor&#8217;s budget proposal of $48.3\u2062 billion, a 7% increase \u200dfrom last year, \u2063may pose difficulties.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;The\u200d most difficult issue \u200dis going to be \u200ddetermining \u2064what we can afford. The governor&#8217;s numbers are very different from the \u200bIndependent Fiscal Office&#8217;s,&#8221; Argall said.\u2064 &#8220;And we do not want to repeat the mistakes made in\u2062 California and New York where\u200c they spent themselves into deficits, they\u200b blew through their reserves &#8230; we need to look at the numbers and \u2064see what&#8217;s realistic and what&#8217;s phony.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> What legislative \u200cmeasures does Shapiro plan to introduce in \u2062support of his proposal, and how might the Republican-controlled Legislature respond?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  \u2063 They know or can do.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Despite differing\u2063 opinions, most agree that the proposal has opened up a necessary\u2064 conversation about \u200cthe future of higher education in Pennsylvania.\u200d<\/p>\n<p>Shapiro plans to introduce\u200d\u2064 legislation\u200c to support\u200b his proposal, and it remains to be seen \u2062how the Republican-controlled Legislature will\u2064 respond.\u2062 Regardless \u2064of party \u200baffiliation, the focus should be on creating\u200b a higher education system that equips students with \u2063the skills and knowledge\u200c they need to succeed in \u2063an\u2063 ever-changing workforce.<\/p>\n<p>As the \u2062proposal \u2064continues to evolve, it is crucial for \u200ball parties involved to carefully examine \u2063the details and consider the potential impact on students, \u2062universities, and \u200cthe\u2063 state as\u200c a whole. Only \u200dthrough thoughtful analysis and collaborative\u2063 decision-making \u200bcan we ensure that Pennsylvania&#8217;s higher education system\u2062 remains strong and responsive to the needs of its \u200ccitizens.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gov. Josh Shapiro&#8217;s plan to revamp Pennsylvania&#8217;s higher education system has caught the attention of legislative Republicans, although they remain hesitant. Sen. Dave Argall, R-Mahanoy City and chair of the Senate Education Committee, expressed sympathy but caution, stating that the proposal is still in its early stages. Shapiro&#8217;s blueprint aims to merge various aspects of the system<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2173013,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/ap23345669121358.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2173012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/wex-s3.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/ap23345669121358.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2173012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2173012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2173012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2173013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2173012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2173012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2173012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}