AFT Michigan Higher Education: A Michigan Platform
Every two years AFT Michigan puts together our Issue Platform. The purpose of the platform is to list the issues we think are critical needs that should be addressed in the legislature and other state bodies. The platform is shared with all candidates for public office on the state level and from the platform we focus our legislative action.
Overview:
The opportunities for a quality higher education in the United States has been the envy and model of the world Michigan, with its excellent public universities and community colleges, has played a major role in helping to establish that reputation.
Michigan has traditionally supported world class research facilities; provided students with innovative, effective instruction and measurable learning; served the needs of Michigan's workforce and employers in an increasingly technical and global economy; advanced the arts and cultural life of Michi- gan communities and residents; and prepared Michigan citizens to participate in the civic discourse and decisions of our times. Michigan's higher education institutions collectively award over 140,000 degrees and certificates each year.
This is a wide and daunting array of responsibilities, but with respect to higher education, Michigan's citizens expect and deserve no less. We should rise to the challenges presented by Lieutenant Governor John Cherry's Commission on Higher Education and Economic Growth. The first goal of the Cherry Commission was to outline a plan to double the percentage of residents who attain post- secondary degrees or other credentials that link them to success in Michigan's new economy.
To address the higher education needs and expectations of Michigan's citizens, AFT Michigan (AFT/AFL-CIO) urges consideration of the following principles and measures:
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