Dissenting Opinion:An Appropriate Cut

Students in Florida are an unlucky bunch—but not because of the restrictions the state government has put on academic travel. Currently, no public funds may be used by students or professors at public Florida universities for travel to five states. But that limitation pales in comparison to the other roadblocks toward education in the Sunshine State: Its students are the victims of an underfunded education system that ranked 50th out of the 50 states in a 2008 U.S. Census Bureau report. Which is a greater injustice: College students unable to receive state funding to study abroad in Syria or fifth graders unable to receive the kind of education that will get them to college in the first place? While the college students and professors may be missing out on valuable experiences, the greater tragedy is undoubtedly that of the fifth graders. Florida's new restrictions on funding, therefore, should be applauded as a first step in the reorganization of budget priorities.

It is important to note that Floridian students and professors are not forbidden from traveling to Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan, or Syria—the restricted countries. They just will not receive state funding to do so. In its original text, the law did impose such restrictions, but in 2008 a judge ruled that the states could not so restrict privately funded trips. As it now stands, the law does not restrict students' liberty, only their means—a compromise that is completely acceptable. The same could be said for organizations at universities that do not receive university funding. Members of these organizations are ultimately free to do as they wish, even if they have to raise funds on their own. Travel to foreign countries, like participation in campus organizations, has many benefits to one's education but cannot be seen as a necessity such that the state must fund it.

On the other hand, basic education is a necessity that should be accessible to all. The statistics suggest that it is not adequately offered, particularly to students at charter schools, where a student's education is funded $2,749 less than his education would be if he attended a mainstream school. A 2009 study by the Alliance for Excellent Education found that only 58 percent of high school students will graduate high school, and a 2006 study by the National Center for Education Statistics found that only 60 percent of those graduates will go on to attend college. Meanwhile, the Alliance for Excellent Education predicts that high school dropouts “will cost Florida almost $25.3 billion in lost wages over their lifetimes." These numbers demonstrate a problem that needs to be addressed immediately. International study, while a valuable experience, is not nearly as pressing an issue.

It is unfortunate that a logical budget cut originated from an attempt to curb the liberties of professors and students. The original copy of the law, which restricted privately funded trips, would have represented a loss of liberty if it were allowed to stand. But so long as privately funded trips are legal, the state cannot be expected to fund trips of which it does not approve. There are more than enough noble uses for the saved dollars, and there are plenty of students in Florida who would appreciate a new set of textbooks. It is far more important for a state to provide a child with the means to get to college than it is for that same state to provide her with an international study experience in a country when she gets there.

Christina C. McClintock ’12, a Crimson sports writer, is a government concentrator in Adams House.