Wyoming Constitution; Section 1, Article 23...the right of the citizen to opportunities for education should have practical recognition. The legislature shall suitably encourage means and agencies calculated to advance the sciences and liberal arts.

 

 

 

February 10, 2005

 

 

            As many people know there are several sets of railroad tracks running through the City of Cheyenne, but did you know that one set of those tracks runs right through the Capitol building?

 

            Yes indeed! Bills that have special political momentum and have very little chance of being stopped as they run down the political tracks are called trains. Every legislative session has some, and one of the seemingly unstoppable trains this session is House Bill #329; Executive training institute/graduate school of business.

 

            One component of legislative momentum is who is sponsoring the bill in question; this one is sponsored by the Speaker of the House and a probable future Speaker of the House, as well as by the a past President of the Senate and the current President of the Senate.

 

            It is also true that the President of the Senate is from Jackson, and the Speaker of the House is from nearby Star Valley.

 

            The bill in question proposes to start the process of locating a taxpayer supported graduate school of business in Teton County, specifically. This facility would essentially be a satellite campus of the University of Wyoming. Is it just me, or does that idea have some inherent flaws in it?

 

            Let’s see here:

1…do we even need a graduate school of business in Wyoming?

2…shouldn’t we decide that first?

3…if we do, does it make sense to locate it where the cost of living is the highest in the state?

4…what is the estimated cost of such a campus?

5…is there more of a need for additional curriculum and degrees in other areas, say health care for example, than in business?

6…most graduates of Wyoming schools leave and find employment elsewhere, why would this be any different?

 

            Providing education opportunities is a legitimate function of the government, but the scope and breadth of those offerings is a matter of public policy debate. I detect the modern day conservative’s obsession with meddling in the private economy behind this effort.

 

            Ever since the mid 1980’s the Legislature has been sticking its nose into the economy where a conservative nose doesn’t belong, and the result has been the waste of 10’s of millions of taxpayers dollars.

 

            Will this be any different?  

 

Keith