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• UW System president outlines 'silent crisis'
• Change of location for Parent memorial
• River Falls man leads Stillwater police on high-speed chase

By Doug Stohlberg, RiverTown Staff

Kevin Reilly, president of the UW System, spoke at a recent joint meeting of the Hudson Rotary clubs and said the state's educational system is facing a "silent crisis."

"The problem is what I call 'our 70 lost kids,'" Reilly said.

Surveys show that if current trends continue, for every 100 eighth-graders today, in 10 years only about 30 will be college graduates.

"My question is, What are the other 70 kids going to do?" Reilly asked. "We live in a knowledge economy, driven by a higher order of skills. This could be the first generation that is less educated than their parents, and it couldn't come at a worse time."

He also noted that Wisconsin is behind the national average in residents holding baccalaureate degrees.

"Currently Wisconsin is at 25.5 percent," Reilly said. "The national average is 27 percent and Minnesota is at 32 percent. Just 10 years ago we were tied with Minnesota."

Less education also means less income.

"Minnesota's per capita income is about $4,000 ahead of Wisconsin's."

In response to the problem, Reilly said he has met with chancellors from around the UW System and has developed a "Growth Agenda for Wisconsin." He describes it as a plan to achieve access and affordability for UW students and boost economic growth for the state.

Reilly outlined three basic items to change in the years ahead.

-- Enroll more Wisconsin residents and graduate more four-year college-degree holders.

-- Attract college graduates from other states to Wisconsin.

-- Use university resources to grow knowledge-economy jobs for Wisconsin's future.

He said, however, the state's high school graduation rates are essentially flat.

"We need to do a better job with schools to get more students into post-secondary programs," Reilly said.

Among the ideas is what he called a Wisconsin Covenant.

"We could work with schools and families in getting seventh- and eighth-graders to make a pledge to get good grades and be good citizens," Reilly said. "In return, the state could cover the financial gap with financial aid when the student is ready to attend college."

Another idea involves getting more adult students involved in college programs.

"We must do a better job of delivering our course work to adults," Reilly said.

Of course, all of these ideas come with a price tag. The UW System would use an ongoing state investment of $120 million in the general purpose revenue and fees in the 2007-09 biennium. As part of the plan, tuition would increase less than 2.5 percent per year over the biennium -- the lowest requested average increase in a quarter century.

"That is where we need your help," Reilly said. "Contact your local legislators and the governor's office. We need you to reinvest in the University of Wisconsin in order to stay competitive -- it's a race in which we are slipping. This is a way to end the state's economic problems and keep Wisconsin kids in Wisconsin."

The UW System includes 13 UW colleges/universities and 26 campuses counting two-year colleges and UW-Extension sites.

Betz remarks

Also on the program was UW-River Falls Chancellor Don Betz.

Betz reaffirmed the need to educate more students in Wisconsin and create more job opportunities for degreed citizens.

Betz, who recently traveled to India, said people in that country are "hungry" for education.

"The United States has about 4,100 colleges and universities -- India has over 17,000. Many who want an education in India still can't get a seat in a university," Betz said. "But these are the people our students will be competing with in our compressed world. That's why this 'Growth Agenda' is important."

He said UW-River Falls is filled to capacity (almost 6,200 students), but he said the university will offer help to students and reach to non-traditional segments of society.

"If institutions were ever ivory towers, we can't be that anymore," Betz said. "We have to look at the full educational spectrum, including service, if we want our communities to grow and prosper. What we are doing is good, but not good enough.

"We have to be part of the solution. We have to invest in people who may not yet be born."

Doug Stohlberg is the Editor of the Hudson Star-Observer and can be contacted at hsoeditor@rivertowns.net

The funeral service for Tom Parent of River Falls, who died earlier this week, has been changed becaused of an expected very large turnout.

The 10 a.m. Tuesday funeral will be held at St. Bridget Catholic Church, instead of the United Methodist Church, to better accommodate a sizable crowd.

Visitation is still at Cashman Mortuary, 225 S. Third St., from 4-8 p.m. Monday.

St. Bridget Church is located at 211 E. Division St., just off of North Main Street, in River Falls.

Parent, 52, operated the Whole Earth Grocery co-op on Main Street. He had served on the City Council and ran unsuccessfully for State Assembly against Kitty Rhoades. She still holds that position.

An 18-year-old River Falls man led Stillwater Police on a car chase last Saturday, Nov. 11, when after he failed to pull over for a speeding violation.

Police clocked the man driving his car at 91 mph on in a 60 mph zone in the westbound lanes of Highway 36 in Stillwater, according to the police report. Rather than pull over when a Stillwater patrol car turned on its semaphores, the man continued driving at a high rate of speed, turning right onto Manning Avenue and turning off his driving lights before leading officers on a circuitous chase that ended several minutes later on the 3200 block of Staloch Place on Stillwater's west end.

After stopping the car, the driver fled on foot before a Washington County Sheriff's Office canine unit caught up with him near the Curve Crest and Brewer's Lane intersection.

The man was charged with fleeing police in a motor vehicle, fleeing police on foot, reckless driving and underage drinking and driving.

A breathalyzer test measured his blood-alcohol level at .10. Stillwater Police held his vehicle for possible forfeiture.

According to police, the man was later very remorseful for his actions. Before the chase, he was reportedly en route to a job in Oakdale.