While the Tigers were on their way to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Jan. 9, hundreds of people gathered around the Old State Capitol to watch Gov. Bobby Jindal’s second inauguration ceremony.
During his inauguration speech, Jindal stated “our mission is not accomplished” when speaking about education reform within the state, though his focus was primarily on K-12 education rather than higher education.
With Louisiana public schools still lagging behind in performance, he emphasized his education reform package, in which he plans to improve both primary and secondary education.
“The simple truth is there are many children, very many, who do not have the same opportunities,” he said during the ceremony. “Here is the good news. We can fix this. All we need is the willpower to get it done, and the courage to stop doing things that have proven not to work.”
Jindal, the first Indian-American governor in the United States, has received high approval ratings since he took office in 2008, and while running for his second gubernatorial term, he also received two-thirds of the popular vote over his nine competitors.
Although budget cuts to higher education wrought havoc upon the University during Jindal’s first term, political science department chairman James Stoner said he believes voters understood the seriousness of the state budget crisis, and based on this understanding, Jindal’s approval ratings remained high.
“My guess is that voters understand that the state budget is in crisis, that raising taxes in a recession is not a wise thing to do, and therefore that all the agencies and institutions funded by the state must take a hit,” he said.
Since Jindal has vowed to prioritize primary and secondary education, Stoner said he does not expect any dramatic changes within the University system.
Many students support the governor’s strategy in improving primary and secondary education first.
Gabrielle Chabert, biology sophomore, said she has volunteered at local public schools in the Baton Rouge area, and the biggest problem is the quality of public schools for children in the state.
“There are a number of children who do not receive a proper education,” she said. “Without educating the younger generation, there’s no point in focusing on higher ed. You can’t focus on the older until you can fix the younger.”
Tina Broussard, 2010 University alumna, agreed.
“Primary and secondary education need more attention, but there’s still more that could be done about higher ed,” Broussard said.
But Sarah Swafford, pre-nursing freshman, said the governor should focus his attention equally on higher education as well as primary and secondary education.
“I feel like colleges are being left behind, and students are getting less and less support from the government,” she said. “There should be more of a focus on making college a more available opportunity for more people.”
 
____
Contact Kate Mabry at
[email protected]