Advocates speak out for merit-based scholarships

Anyone who thinks Gov. Sean Parnell's scholarship plan is about the money is mistaken.

At least, that's how state Education Commissioner Larry LeDoux and two experts in similar plans framed the topic when Parnell's plan was formally rolled out before a joint meeting of the House and Senate Education Committees on Wednesday morning.

It's about a contract between Alaska's high school students and the state, a deal that offers an incentive to graduate and offers a ladder up and out of whatever circumstances a student may find herself in, LeDoux said.

And it's about jacking up graduation rates -- 67.5 percent statewide and 55.4 percent among Native students in 2009.

"This is a contract with young people, and I think that is very important," LeDoux said. "I hear people talk about what kids can't do. I want them to believe that they can. This is about attitude, and this is about what kids can do."

Yes, there is money involved, and lots of it -- annually, the interest on $400 million of state funds, or up to roughly $20 million per year, depending on how many students apply. To avoid the state's constitutional ban against dedicated funds, Parnell is asking lawmakers to appropriate that amount from the general fund each year.

That would cover tuition scholarships for Alaska high school students -- regardless of income, regardless of life goals -- to attend accredited in-state universities or vocational schools. Those scholarships would come on top of any federal need-based aid for which students are eligible.

And that's the key for the Governor's Performance Scholarship -- to add to existing federal need-based scholarships so any student who wants to achieve more can have that chance. Participation could keep more students enrolling at Alaska universities, and in other states similar programs have been used to prevent "brain drain," keeping motivated, strong students near the communities they may help lead after college.

Nationally, 80 percent of students who leave a state for higher education never return, said James Callier, executive director of the Patrick F. Taylor Foundation and president emeritus of the University of Louisiana system. Students away at school meet future spouses, find jobs and build ties to other places they may choose to call home for years. That's a loss to a state like Alaska, especially as leaders look to ways to diversify the economic base, now largely settled on mineral extraction.