UW branch not a slam dunk
Published 3:02 pm Friday, January 18, 2008
While most area legislators are focused on deciding whethere to build a UW branch campus in Everett or Marysville, some of their colleagues from other parts of the state are inclined not to build at all.
I’ve spoken with a few of them this week who don’t outright oppose another UW branch campus but they are not sold on it either.
It’s not that their ambivalent. They are unconvinced as of yet that another four-year university is needed and the state can afford it. While some express other concerns that are more political in nature, the need and the cost are of most concern.
The UW’s point man in this process offered a reality check for advocates last night.
Randy Hodgins, director of the UW Office of State Relations, who led off a Thursday morning hearing on sites in the Senate Higher Education Committee, wrote on his blog:
Not sure if anyone’s opinion was changed by the testimony but while the Everett site has gained some additional support this week, deep divisions remain in the legislature on the issue. More importantly, I believe a number of legislators are beginning to question the wisdom of moving ahead at all on the new campus given the cost projections and what appear to be concerns about how this really fits into the entire higher education system.
