Ignorant decisions are indicators of flaws in the decision-making process. But the Idaho State Board of Education’s decision to remove “flagship” from the University of Idaho’s mission statement indicates a flaw within the board itself.
All public education in Idaho is governed by the SBOE, including K-12 education and higher education institutions. It is the Board of Trustees for Boise State University, Idaho State University, Lewis-Clark State College and the Board of Regents for UI.
The preamble to the SBOE’s mission statement reads, “The goal of the State Board of Education is to provide an effective, integrated educational system which serves the needs of all Idahoans.”
But in serving the needs of all Idahoans, the specific needs of students at each university are being ignored.
Public education from kindergarten to college is too broad a spectrum for the SBOE to oversee effectively, and this all-encompassing system is not one other states, like Washington, employ.
Washington State University is governed by a Board of Regents that is specific to WSU. It is comprised of 10 members, one of whom is a student. A state statute generally describes its responsibilities as “to supervise, coordinate, manage and regulate the WSU system.”
A Board of Regents for each individual university or college would understand the specific needs of that particular institution and know that designation as Idaho’s flagship university makes UI special. The SBOE’s method of telling everyone they’re special is another way of saying no one is.
Each four-year institution in Idaho has specific areas of strength — strengths that should be highlighted not neutralized through decisions to “improve collegial relationships” with political correctness.
The education system in Idaho has more pressing worries than revamping university mission statements: Inadequate funding and a decline in teaching jobs are only two. The SBOE should take a look at its own mission statement and get back to work making decisions that actually matter. Better yet, Idaho should take a slice from its peers and reevaluate the system to include a separate Board of Regents or Board of Trustees that has each universities’ best interest in mind.