University must remember role as state’s public servant
At times, topics for this column are difficult to find. Not so this month.
I considered babbling about a recent birthday. My AARP card has arrived, and my sons find great humor in asking what it’s like to be half a century old. My mother hardly believes her firstborn is 50. The memory of that cold day in February 1957 is still clear in her mind. Yet, an “I cannot believe how the years fly by”column did not appeal.
The city council races could provide lively debate. Some major sucking up is going on by the anti-establishment candidates, but this topic is better left to next month. Discussions of real pay for our city council, a revamped council meeting process and a need for more accessible city council members also can wait. A near civil war in Columbia’s Special Business District has been averted with the aid of Blake Danuser’s deft diplomacy.
But what of Gov. Matt Blunt’s life sciences funding proposal?
The Lewis and Clark Initiative, commonly referred to as MOHELA, is quite a tale. Now well over a year old, this effort has ballooned into a full-grown conflict. The ever-contentious interaction of Republicans and Democrats is white hot. Rep. Jeff Harris, a competent lawyer who many times resorts to a chest thumping bandy rooster style, is quietly observing the action. He knows full well that the posturing of the Senate is politics at its best and is waiting for a concrete bill to be handed to the House before he engages in verbal sorties now dominating the headlines. However, Sen. Chuck Graham scurries about, convinced the sky is falling. He has chosen stem cell research as the hill to die on. Though he possesses no particular legal training, Graham claims that funding guidelines that disallow the controversial research are unconstitutional. Goaded on by the Mizzou Flagship Council, he has taken such a steadfast stance that he has little opportunity to save face if the funding initiative fails.
The direct influx of $85 to $100 million to the Boone County economy threatens to be lost. Graham finds himself in the unusual position of opposing the Board of Curators, Pres. Elson Floyd and a large cadre of constituents. Although Sen. Graham is not alone, comrades in arms are thinly scattered. Certainly few are working-class citizens. Wealthy Flagship Council members and past curators can well afford to engage in ethereal debates. Their ability to meet mortgage payments and send their children to college is affected little, if at all. One curator asked me a couple of years ago, in regard to the uppity nature of our community: “What is it with Boone County?” The answer is simple: We no longer know which side our bread is buttered on. We have forgotten our land grant university roots. Precious few understand the personal sacrifices of Boone County citizens who labored to keep the University of Missouri in Columbia following the loss of Academic Hall. Higher education has become the goal of life rather than a tool to a better life.
Our university has forgotten that it is a servant. Missouri taxpayers are the master. As such, the university is a reflection of their priorities. We Missourians are a proud lot. We do not want an Ivy League university. We are independent souls who want a better life for our offspring. We are willing to invest in the fundamentals of higher education but hold disdain for the frills.
As Missourians wrangle over MOHELA, Boone Countians would do well to recall that our bounty is the fruit of fellow citizens across the state who pay no small amount to ensure opportunities for their children’s future. As a community we are entrusted a duty to assure the vitality of the University of Missouri. Partisan opposition masquerading as the protector of academic freedom must cease. MOHELA, or any other life sciences funding proposal, cannot be sidetracked simply to protect a political territory.