Last Thursday, the Board of Directors of the East Valley Partnership unanimously agreed to support the proposal that would increase the current budget amount for State Universities – included in Governor Ducey’s budget at $8M – to $32M.
The East Valley Partnership is a regional coalition of community, business, educational and government leaders, whose primary goal is to provide leadership and support to our community partners in their efforts to encourage economic development and improve the quality of life for our communities and the region.
As an organization, we recognize that higher education is a critical factor for the future of economic development in both the East Valley and Arizona. We need to ensure that our state is producing the trained and educated workforce necessary to grow companies and attract new businesses. In Arizona, two-thirds of all job openings in 2018 will require a post-secondary education. It is clear that economic development and a successful higher education system are necessary for Arizona to succeed. It will take an innovative approach and sound investments in our higher education system to see the results we need and our students deserve.
East Valley Partnership has also been supportive of increased funding for our K-12 education system and we applaud recent efforts by Governor Doug Ducey and the Arizona Legislature to direct more dollars into our classrooms and settle the inflation lawsuit. Strategic investments in higher education and K-12 systems can help us provide a world-class education system to our students at the lowest cost possible to Arizona families.
EVP is also on record as supporting the state investment model proposed by the Arizona Board of Regents that will move higher education forward in our state.
Given the state’s positive financial condition, we believe it would be reasonable to invest an additional $24M towards the post-secondary education of Arizona’s young people. With those funds added to the governor’s initial proposal of $8M, the state’s share of funding for in-state students would still be relatively low at 36.2 percent. Under the new funding model, this could be a symbolic first step towards a time when the state would fund half of an Arizona undergraduate’s cost of attending our public universities.
We urge the Legislature to continue to recognize the valuable role our universities and post-secondary schools play in the future of our state. We believe that investing in higher education is a wise and reasonable move that will pay future dividends for many generations.
Download Copy of the letter sent to the members of Legislature Here.