Higher ed should be high priority, says UGA's Adams - LEE SHEARER, Online Athens

Higher education should be a high priority for the state, but state funding for higher education is lower than it’s been in more than a decade, according to University of Georgia President Michael Adams. The amount of money UGA gets from the state budget was about $500 million 10 years ago, but is about $380 million now, he said. The university system has made up for much of the cuts by raising student tuition, but the cuts have hurt, Adams said in a Friday meeting with the Athens Banner-Herald/OnlineAthens editorial board. “We’re down something between 600 and 700 (employees) right now,” he said. Adams said the university has been able to keep quality up despite the cuts. The university has reached a point where it doesn’t need to worry about whether it’s ranked No. 17 or No. 19 on any particular list, he said — “As long as we don’t disappear.” http://onlineathens.com/uga/2012-10-05/higher-ed-should-be-high-priority-says-ugas-adams