Why legislators should let the University of Alaska Board of Regents do its work

On Sept. 20, the Senate State Affairs Committee heard from the UAA Faculty Senate. I was there and listened; however, the Board of Regents is still best suited to decide about structuring the University of Alaska at this time.

First a context, then a comment. In a break from normal procedure, the State Affairs Committee was used to hear additional faculty voices. Those voices were appreciated and I will consider them in this priority: first constitutionally, then statutorily, then budgetary.

The Board of Regents has the primary duty to own and manage our university. The legislators have a duty to fund and describe by law the outline of the university. The governor has the power of veto and proposal.

The state is small in population and large in geography, as well as diverse in its culture and economy. Each campus has taken on different missions that complement our communities and should complement a unified but diverse UA system.

The Sept. 20 hearing was informative, and there were many credible speakers (including Dr. Forrest Nabors, together with faculty). There is a general consensus on a few areas, namely that the Alaska Constitution, Article VII, Sections 2 (“The University of Alaska is hereby established as the state university…”) and 3 (“The University of Alaska shall be governed by a board of regents…”) represent the controlling authority.

Presently, under that controlling authority, information is being collected and circulated by relevant decision makers. The Board of Regents met in Anchorage on Sept. 12-13. Public testimony was collected, both from Anchorage and around the state. Additional opportunities for public testimony can be found online. On November 7-8, there will be a scheduled Board of Regents meeting in Fairbanks, too.

As we go through this period of history, it’s important to remember: This is about all Alaska, not just one community, or one community versus another. The University of Alaska, to be fair, just like all of us, should be looking for “how we can do it better.” But that’s a disciplined process, one found in our state constitution.

In my view, at this time, structural changes to our university system primarily rest with the decisions by the University of Alaska Board of Regents (which know the complexities of our university system). The Legislature has had a role, prior to Sept. 20, and that occurred when the Legislature inserted intent language in this year’s budget. The intent language tasked the Board of Regents with looking at all issues related to consolidation and the different campuses. The due date for that board report is Dec. 1.

Before the Legislature does anything, if it does anything at all, about restructuring, it may be wise to see what that report says. Allow the Board of Regents to do its work, pursuant to its authority, for the benefit of the entire University of Alaska system.

The views expressed here are the writer’s and are not necessarily endorsed by the Anchorage Daily News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)adn.com. Send submissions shorter than 200 words to letters@adn.com or click here to submit via any web browser. Read our full guidelines for letters and commentaries here.