As the economy heads into a cooling off period, lawmakers would be wise to make sure that the state keeps faith with workers by funding post-secondary education at a level that will ensure the growth of high wage jobs.

The latest revenue forecast offers the Legislature a final chance to adjust budget figures that will determine Oregon's priorities for the next two years. As of mid-May, news reports anticipate that $249 million could be returned to taxpayers, an average of $133 per husehold. Most tax payers would get less, and only high income people would benefit. The amount of the kicker is too small to be individually meaningful.

These funds should be spent in the state. It's easy, but short-sighted, to portray higher education as just another special interest group clamoring for funds.

Some may think of professors and students as a privileged group, living apart from the
hustle of the economy. In fact, decisions we make about a state system of higher education affect the lives of ordinary people across the state. Campuses at every level are moving into a world of entrepreneurial education designed to give students the tools they need to survive in an economy that changes quickly and unpredictably. Forest-products workers who need job training in mid-career depend on our community colleges to equip them to support their families. So do high-school dropouts seeking general equivalency programs. Recent graduates who seek jobs as medical technicians, teacher's aides, aircraft maintenance workers, or call-center operators must acquire specified skills. We cannot rely on the private sector to fill these needs.

The demands on Oregon's budget are many. While we must ensure stable and adequate funding for K-12 education, now is also the time to make a far-sighted investment in our universities, colleges and community colleges. Higher education repays this investment.
According to Jim Johnson, Vice President of Intel Corp., we've had ten business spin-offs from higher education during the last ten years, including Oregon Health Sciences University, which is a separate entity from the Oregon University System. The state of Washington, which invests significantly more per capita in colleges and universities than Oregon does, has had more than ten times that number of high tech spin-offs.

Oregon historically has not funded higher education generously. Our universities and community colleges have proven adept at providing quality education at bargain prices. But the higher education market is changing rapidly. Most forward looking states began to ramp up funding for higher education during the 1990s, and some, like Washington, have begun to reap the rewards. Oregon has not kept up, and the signs of strain are showing. In the economy that has emerged during the 1990s, higher education has become the most significant single engine of economic growth. Workers at all levels - and students in our public schools today - will find their road to advancement and economic security harder if the state does not provide the education and training they need.

Oregon's larger companies offer their employees on-the-job training programs; but managers look carefully at educational opportunities in a community before deciding whether to relocate or expand existing operations there. And local entrepreneurs launch new operations best where they can hire skilled workers from the day they open their doors. The need for education and training is particularly pressing in the service and high technology sectors that will provide the bulk of new jobs in the decade ahead. The computer sector is an obvious example. Employers like Intel in the Portland area must hire new engineers, technicians, and technical writers every year to fill entry-level and experienced openings. Consider the other sectors expected to grow in the next few years: health care, communications, energy and environmental technology, to name a few. These businesses must count on a tech-savvy, literate workforce at every level, from customer service to marketing, to delivery.

We expect to build a high skill, high wage economy. We can't achieve that without bringing up reading levels, lowering the high school drop out rates, and increasing the number of college graduates in our society. Today, only about 26% of Oregon residents have college degrees. We need to educate more people in our state. Higher education
gives a person a broader sense of the world and nurtures appreciation for history, art, music, science and research in every field. We cannot have an informed democracy without people who participate and are educated to do so. We are not competing with the less industrialized countries with low labor costs. But we can compete with other industrialized nations if we support a strong technical, vocational and collegiate education system.

Pressure is growing to fund the system through tuition increases at both community colleges and four-year institutions. Though this offers a short-term solution, in the long run it threatens to push education out of reach of Oregon's working families. Lawmakers
should, in the words of the old song, keep their eyes on the prize -- a dynamic economy that provides opportunities at all levels. Historically, Oregon has been rich in natural resources. Generations lived well by making use of the forests and rivers. In the 21st Century, however, these precious resources must be protected.

The new resources - the ones that will sustain us through lean times as well as good - are our productive citizens and workforce. If we give them the tools, they will carry us through.

Pete Sorenson, of Eugene, Oregon, is a Lane County commissioner and former Oregon state senator.

Reprinted on this web site with permission.