| Lawmakers doubt college plan AIKEN - The University of South Carolina at Aiken, Aiken Technical College and other small state universities will have a difficult time accepting Gov. Mark Sanford's offer to become private institutions, state representatives say. Mr. Sanford's deal would allow schools uncomfortable with a higher degree of state control to become nonprofit, private institutions, but they would be forced to turn down state money to do so. "I don't think very many schools could survive going private," said Sen. Tommy Moore, D-Clearwater. "There is no way schools like USC Aiken could do that because they don't have the funds; it would be detrimental to them." Mr. Sanford said this month that he wanted to stop waste and duplication in higher education by strengthening the Commission on Higher Education. He said giving the state's 33 public colleges the option to become private might free up state money that could be used for schools that remain public. Mr. Moore said Wednesday that the governor might just be putting the issue into play to create discussion for the upcoming legislative session. Some said putting the issue on the table would help, given the strong undercurrent of discontent among lawmakers who feel that money spent on higher education should be diverted to the state's cash-strapped public schools. "Everybody has been looking for a solution to give schools more money, and it's always good to have a healthy discussion," said Barbara Nielson, a senior fellow at the Strom Thurmond Institute at Clemson University and a former South Carolina education superintendent. State Rep. Roland Smith, R-Langley, the chairman of the K-12 subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee, said some colleges could benefit from the deal if they remained public. "If you can cut the pie into bigger pieces, those colleges will have more pie to eat," he said. "But I don't see the smaller schools becoming private." Mr. Smith said South Carolina's smaller technical schools and historically black colleges would have a tough time gathering the money needed to operate without the state's help. "I would think the smaller minorities would find it difficult to attract private investors," he said. But even if schools decide to remain public, Mr. Smith said, that wouldn't necessarily give those schools more state money. "The General Assembly may decide to allocate that money elsewhere," he said. "And with the short budget, that decision could be made." "I don't think very many schools could survive going private. There is no way schools like USC Aiken could do that because they don't have the funds; it would be detrimental to them." - Sen. Tommy Moore, D-Clearwater Reach Peter G. Gilchrist at (803) 648-1395.
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