A member of USC’s Board of Trustees has gone rogue.
In her most visible public addresses, she has rarely, if ever, mentioned the school or even higher education in general.
When she last spoke at Russell House last October, her remarks concerning education were predominantly about K-12 schooling and rarely mentioned the institution in which she was speaking.
We are talking, of course, about Gov. Nikki Haley.
OK, her seat on the Board may be honorary and allotted to every elected South Carolina governor, but the sentiment behind that position is anything but meaningless.
It symbolizes the idea that the highest state-level government official has a vested interest in the success of higher education in the state.
And her remarks in the past simply haven’t reflected that idea. (In last year’s State of the State address, she mentioned American Idol more times than higher education.)
Haley’s inauguration Wednesday is the start of her next four years in office, and reflects the trust that many South Carolinians have in her decision-making abilities.
And, admittedly, we understand that her plate is full. With corruption scandals rocking statewide institutions like the Department of Social Services (DSS), her emphasis on “ethics reform, creating more training programs for the workforce, improving DSS …” among other issues reflects her ability to target active problems and address them.
Nevertheless, just because the majority of South Carolina's colleges aren’t physically rotting where they stand — like some of the state's K-12 schools — doesn’t explain her lack of a clear stance on higher education. Just because we’re not a wrong that she needs to right doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be acknowledged.
She holds a position that can directly affect how many people are able to afford college. Her action, or inaction, can be the difference between someone attending a South Carolina university or being pushed into the workforce at 18, delaying, if not eliminating, the chance for higher education.
Haley is going to have four more years in office, and her annual State of the State address looms. Her term length means that her decisions will affect every prospective four-year USC student, as well as all of those currently attending college in the state.
The number of these college students alone warrants at least one mention of the state of USC’s colleges in the first address of her new term.
We’re not asking for much, here, but some sort of goal for higher education would set her new term on the right foot.