The new flagship match program featured in your May 8 editorial (“Our View: Tuition relief for out-of-state students could pay off for Maine economy”) is a great first step in attracting quality students to the University of Maine but, by itself, is unlikely make much of a difference in encouraging these students to stay and work in the state after they graduate.
Out-of-state tuition rates at all New England state universities are prohibitively high, significantly reducing students’ choices as to where they can afford to go.
Maine’s flagship match program gives qualified students a choice of schools based on the quality of the program/curriculum, rather than cost (by removing cost differential as a factor). Currently the program is only offered to graduating high school seniors, but it really should be expanded to include qualified transfer students as well.
If Maine really wants to encourage UMaine graduates to stay in Maine to live, work and raise a family, more must be done.
Even with the flagship match program, Maine graduates (both in-state and out-of state) are burdened with significant student loan debt, and will go where they can find good-paying jobs (typically outside Maine).
To combat this, the Maine Legislature recently considered a bill (L.D. 1656) that would encourage graduates in science, technology, engineering and math to work in Maine by forgiving their student loans after working in-state for a certain length of time.
Unfortunately, this bill was never brought up for a vote. But these are the kinds of innovative approaches Maine needs to continue to explore and implement to attract and retain the young, quality workforce it wants! This includes doing more to attract employers and good-paying jobs to the state for this workforce, and lowering taxes so that Maine workers can keep more of their income.
Douglas Thacker
Brunswick
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