Governor Jennifer Granholm accomplished little stopping at CMU
Gov. Jennifer Granholm came to Central Michigan University at 9:15 a.m. Thursday to rally students for the Michigan Promise scholarship.
The idea is great in theory. Having the Governor put herself in front of students for an issue as important as this is always a plus.
The visit, however, was nothing more than shameless lobbying on Granholm’s part, as she failed to answer student questions or adequately describe how she would bring back the scholarship.
In the end, Granholm was “preaching to the choir” when she said the scholarship is important and did not accomplish much by coming to CMU.
The event was poorly planned from the beginning, as it was announced only days before Granholm came to campus. At 9:15 a.m., some students are on their way to class or work. The forum was held at the Charles V. Park Library Auditorium, one of the smallest venues on campus. And despite the forum being open to the public, students were turned away because there were too many people.
Only one question was answered, coming from a student who refused to sit down and be still.
The little talking Granholm did had no progress in bringing back the Promise. From the importance of higher education to families losing jobs, she delivered the same old rehash students have been hearing since the cut was proposed.
If Granholm really wanted to have an effective forum at CMU, she should have announced the visit further ahead of time. Plachta Auditorium at around 7 p.m. would have attracted a bigger crowd as opposed to a cramped auditorium early in the morning, even if she is busy.
Answering more questions from the audience would have made for progressive conversation. Instead, all she did was highlight the benefits of the Michigan Promise without giving a clear solution on how to bring it back.
And she spoke for 11 minutes.Too much time was spent on other speakers such as Student Government Association Vice President Brittany Mouzourakis which, as touching as her story might be, is the same sort of story we’ve heard from hundreds to thousands of other students. We want more higher ed funding; that’s nothing new.
Realistically, the forum itself was a useless idea. It’s a no-brainer that the governor will draw the most support to rally for scholarships at a college campus. But it’s not the students who make the laws and balance the budget. Granholm’s best advice was to get a hold of state representatives and let them know they want the Promise back.
As if no one already knew to do that.
Granholm would be much more productive rallying lawmakers in Lansing to ring the scholarship back and taking real action.
Leading by example will bring the scholarship back. Traveling from campus to campus and doing the same song and dance she did at CMU will not.
