Education investment is key to top 10 state ranking
There is no more effective investment than education if our goal is to become a top 10 state. If we use the U.S. News & World Report as an accurate measurement of state success, we can quickly see that no other measurable tide raises as many ships.
Six of the Top Ten Best U.S. States for Education also were ranked on the Top Ten Best States Ranking, according to the U.S. News & World Report, 2021. Of eight measurement categories — health care, education, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, crime and correction, and natural environment — there is no higher correlation with overall state success than education.
Gov. Kevin Stitt’s and the state Legislature’s collective decision to raise teacher pay in the K-12 system was an excellent first move in the right direction. We have been losing some of our best and brightest teachers to better pay across our state lines for decades. But more effort is needed.
Our state needs greater investment in higher education to make it into the top 10. Philanthropy has become the expected funding for higher education. Our public institutions, especially our two-year colleges, are relatively new to the challenges of private fundraising. Most need help to compete.
Last summer, the Regents State Endowed Matching program was discontinued. This state program has fostered the growth of almost $1.2 billion in endowment funding for our state higher education institutions.
The governor and the state Legislature have seemed to treat this matching program as an obligation instead of an opportunity. Both camps have concentrated on the amount the state of Oklahoma has to pay into the program rather than focusing on the match delivered by our donors for the benefit of our entire state.
This Regents State Endowed Matching program was an excellent program with an excellent track record for Oklahoma. It was shut down because it was too successful at generating endowed investment in higher education. We need to bring it back and embrace the opportunities this program offers. As Oklahomans, we need to lead with an investment in education if we are serious about becoming a top 10 state.