Starting his tenure in January 2018 for four years, Governor-elect Ralph Northam is looking to bring affordability, accessibility and innovation to Virginia’s higher education system by investing more funding, as explained in his plan published on August 29.
“Students should not have to shoulder the burden of large tuition increases, and every student should have an option to go without oppressive debt,” according to Northam’s campaign website.
Longwood Director of Government Relations Emily O'Brion said, “There’s a lot of issues around higher ed on the state level that are really then bipartisan issues that republicans and democrats really think are important of course for example, affordability."
Northam will look to establish a “four year promise” plan, in part trying to maintain the same financial package for all four years for students.
O’Brion said, “I think he realizes there is so much untapped potential for students with entrepreneurship. We are excited to think more about that and work with his team on what we can do at Longwood to also promote entrepreneurship."
In terms of innovation, Northam plans to increase cyber security programs in higher education.
“(The McAuliffe administration) passed language in the budget that creates a cyber scholars fund so that graduate students and other students if they are selected they are rewarded a really nice financial aid package and in exchange they agree to work with a state agency for however many of years they’ve been awarded,” said O’Brion.
In December 2016, Longwood seniors Tyler Chuba and Michael Moore were awarded the Virginia Cyber Security Public Service Scholarship, started during current Governor Terry McAuliffe’s administration.
“We would love to see that continued (and know) what else can we do to try to boost the number of cyber graduates that we are sending out into the workforce,” said O’Brion.
Northam also wants to establish equality in education for “students of color, students in poverty, and students with disabilities."
“There has been some focus on making sure that underrepresented student populations have access to two year or four year. I think that is something that all colleges are paying attention to especially in the last few years … It's not only making sure that students have access but also that everyone has an opportunity to complete as well,” said O’Brion.
Part of Northam’s plan is to have multiple “pathways” for higher education, ranging from technical schools to two and four year universities and online education, according to O’Brion.
“(Longwood wants to make) sure that we have opened up as many pathways as possible to help students complete in a timely manner,” said O’Brion.
When asked in reference to a timely manner, O’Brion stated some students have “obvious reasons” as to why graduating in four years isn’t going to work.
In addition, Northam plans to create a website with information pertaining to for-profit colleges so prospective families are aware of what each Virginia college is offering, according to Northam’s campaign website.
According to O’Brion, Northam has visited Longwood’s campus several times over past summers for Virginia’s Girls State.
O'Brion said, “We are certainly excited to be working with him and excited to see some of the folks that he will be bringing into his administration."
