THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, October 20, 1995 TAG: 9510200556
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SERIES: ELECTION '95
THE CITIZENS' AGENDA
The Virginian-Pilot has asked people around the state what their major
concerns are leading up to the Nov. 7 election. This is one in a
series of in-depth reports on those concerns: Today's topic:
Education
SOURCE: BY MARGARET EDDS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHANTILLY LENGTH: Medium: 69 lines
More than two-thirds of General Assembly candidates back the principles of a group of business leaders who want substantially higher funding for Virginia's colleges and universities, the group's chairman says.
John T. Hazel Jr., a Northern Virginia lawyer and developer, said Thursday that 71 percent of incumbents and 68 percent of challengers have pledged to back his organization's goals, including affordable tuitions, increased investment in higher education and better teaching.
The figures suggest that a reversal of fortune may be near for Virginia's institutions of higher education after half a decade of severe budget cuts and higher tuitions.
``We have a majority any way you slice it, no matter who wins,'' Hazel told a Northern Virginia business group, referring to the Nov. 7 elections in which Democrats and Republicans are vying for control of the General Assembly.
Results of the pledge campaign, in which 246 candidates were asked if they would sponsor or support legislation favored by the Virginia Business Higher Education Council, are to be announced at an 11 a.m. news conference today in Richmond.
The council, which was formed in August and whose members include about three dozen of Virginia's leading businesspeople, has called for an increased investment of at least $200 million in higher education next year.
That is the amount needed to bring Virginia up to the average for Southern states in per pupil investment in higher education, according to the council. Currently, Virginia spends $4,056 per in-state student.
It has slipped from about average nationally in the late 1980s to 42nd among the states in per pupil spending.
In contrast, North Carolina spends $6,307 and ranks seventh. The average among Southern states is $4,668.
In an interview after addressing the Committee for Dulles, a business group supporting the Dulles Airport region, Hazel acknowledged that the legislative candidates were not asked specifically to back the $200 million investment.
Still, he described himself as ``thrilled'' by the results. While the candidate pledges do not necessarily mean millions more for higher education, they mean ``we have a shot at it.''
There can be ``a lot of slips between the cup and the lips,'' Hazel said, referring to the possibility that a candidate pledge won't translate into a vote for funding. ``But I don't think we'll be blindsided like last time.''
Hazel, a Republican who supported Gov. George F. Allen's election, was dismayed by Allen's call for cuts in education spending during the 1995 General Assembly. His group, which argues that a strong system of higher education is vital to business growth in the state, was formed in response to those proposed cuts.
Members of the council include Joshua P. Darden Jr., Darden Properties Inc., Norfolk; Frank Batten, Landmark Communications, Norfolk; Clifford A. Cutchins III, Sovran Financial Corp., Virginia Beach; G. Robert Aston Jr., Commerce Bank, Portsmouth; James F. Babcock, First Virginia Bank of Tidewater, Norfolk; Frank Bowers, Cox Cable of Hampton Roads, Virginia Beach; Arthur Diamonstein, Paramount Industrial Cos., Norfolk; and Leonard R. Strelitz, Haynes Furniture Co., Virginia Beach. by CNB