Everyday impact

The urgent need to train more nurses and teachers is a tangible example of the important role higher education plays in Kansans' lives.

Legislators and other Kansas residents who wonder how state universities and other Kansas Board of Regents institutions impact their everyday lives need look no further than their neighborhood schools or community hospitals.

The teachers and nurses trained in Kansas are a vital part of the state’s quality of life and economic engine. Unfortunately, state institutions that train teachers and nurses are having trouble keeping up with the demand.

Increased funding for state schools has opened new job opportunities for teachers in Kansas. At the same time, the state reports that one of four teachers in Kansas will hit retirement age in the next five years. That creates a strong job market for teachers, and state university programs say they aren’t keeping up.

Students are on a waiting list at the teachers college at Emporia State University, the interim dean told the Journal-World recently, because the school was unable to pay high enough salaries to attract instructors. “A large amount of money has gone into public schools, but higher education has been virtually ignored,” said Phillip Bennett, the Emporia dean. “We are really struggling on that.”

A similar situation is faced by nurses training programs in the state. Many community colleges offer nurses training, but the teachers for those programs must be provided by advanced degree programs available only at some state universities. Some additional funding was approved in the last legislative session to expand nursing programs, but more support will be needed.

In the meantime, Kansas school superintendents are traveling to the Philippines and other countries to recruit teachers to complete their staffs, and U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., is advocating reduced immigration requirements for foreign-trained nurses to help ease the U.S. nursing shortage. Perhaps these immigrants will become valued U.S. employees, but wouldn’t it be better to provide the programs needed to allow Kansas students to fill these important jobs?

Nurses and teachers are just a few of the thousands of Kansas university, community college and vocational-technical school graduates who drive our economy and improve our quality of life every day. It’s important for state lawmakers to recognize that contribution as they consider the ever-shrinking state support of the Kansas Board of Regents system.