Gov. Bill Walker says that education is still a high priority for his administration. According to Alaska Dispatch News, at the Dec. 15 Anchorage Chamber of Commerce meeting, the new governor said, "We will figure out how to have the absolute best education (for) our students at a cost we can afford." That's good news.
I know that Gov. Walker is committed to K-12 education, but I wonder if his commitment extends to university education, which includes community college, career and technical education. They are all keys to Alaska's future.
We need to prepare our students for good jobs and for lives as productive and well-informed citizens. That requires an education system whose importance transcends the fiscal problems of the day. It's crucial to our state, in fact. Our failure to support education today can put the future of our children and grandchildren at risk.
Alaskans are fortunate to have many natural resources. Yet our most important asset is our people -- our professionals -- engineers and technicians who create our infrastructure, doctors and nurses who keep us healthy, and skilled workers who contribute in many ways to build our state. Just as important are our well-informed citizens who elect government officials and are engaged in community affairs.
Outsiders are sometimes attracted to Alaska. Maybe they'll stay and maybe they won't, but Alaska-grown college graduates are likely to stick around and help us succeed. Education is the key to any successful society, and that's another reason a healthy university system is critical to our future.
In my work as a professor, I teach foreign students, sometimes in the United States and sometimes in their home countries. These students and their parents know that a high-quality education is needed to compete in an increasingly global economy, and that's why education is such a big deal in the many countries where I've worked and lectured. I hope it's a big deal for Alaskans, too.
A quality university education need not be unreasonably expensive. In fact, bricks and mortar are not the most important ingredients. Modern classrooms and laboratories are helpful, of course, but what's most important is what goes on between students and professors.
A professor is a guide and a counselor. She should not be just the "sage on the stage," merely lecturing in an attempt to impart knowledge. No, the professor should guide students through the maze of audio, video, written books, journal papers, magazine articles, lectures and other resources available on the Internet and elsewhere. The "sage on the stage" is part of the past. The academic guide, also a counselor, is leading students to the future.
At the University of Alaska, I've met many professors who know how to teach a generation of smartphone- and laptop-toting students. These young professors understand the new ways to teach. I've used the new methods myself (even though I'm now an old professor) and, believe me, they work!
And the required technology isn't that expensive. Although some infrastructure is needed, most students have their own laptops and/or smartphones, and valuable learning materials are free on the Internet.
Embracing technology will help us move forward, but it's most important that we retain and nurture our professors and students. We need to help them use modern, proven learning methods. And we need to reward and encourage them when they succeed.
All of this points to a bright future, but we face the danger that fiscal pressure will push the University of Alaska budget below what is needed to attract and retain great professors and students. The university is not just another government agency. In times of fiscal difficulty, the university should be regarded as the unique entity that it is. Applying across-the-board budget cuts to the university will not serve us well.
I hope that Gov. Walker agrees.
Dr. Alex Hills, who lives in Palmer, is Distinguished Service Professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania and Profesor Extraordinario at the Universidad Austral in Chile. He is also an unpaid volunteer at UAA, where he has been named Affiliate Distinguished Professor. Last May, UAA awarded him an honorary Doctor of Letters degree.
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.