Congressman Mark Green, Candidate for Governor, put out a press release today, Higher Education Day, touting his “Wisconsin First” plan for the UW system.

On Higher Education Day, Green Again Calls for “Wisconsin First” Plan at UW

Here is a portion of the release:

(In) a recent analysis of UW-Madison’s admissions process that found that the percentage of UW-Madison freshmen from Wisconsin has dropped from 65 percent to 59 percent, while the percentage of non-resident freshmen has risen from 21.5 percent to 25.9 percent. The analysis goes on to point out that UW-Madison freshmen from Wisconsin had an average high school rank at the 91st percentile and an average GPA of 3.8, while non-resident UW-Madison freshmen had an average high school rank at the 87th percentile and an average GPA of 3.5.

“UW administrators are picking out-of-state students with lower grades than Wisconsin kids to attend the UW. That should never happen,” said Green. “As I travel our state, I have heard from far too many parents that their son or daughter is not getting into the UW school of their choice, even though their grades and ACT scores are very good. I’ll put Wisconsin’s young people at the front of the line.”

Not to be out done Governor Jim Doyle also put out a press release on Higher Education Day and he chose to attack Congressman Green’s plan.

On Higher Education Day, Congressman Green Again Calls for $100 Million Cut to UW System

Here is a portion of the release:

Today, on what Governor Jim Doyle has proclaimed “Higher Education Day” in the state of Wisconsin, Congressman Mark Green again called for a higher education plan that would cut the University of Wisconsin System by at least $100 million and continue to put college education out of reach for thousands of Wisconsin families.

So lets just get to the heart of the issue here…under the current Governor there are fewer qualified Wisconsin students getting into the UW system. Governor Doyle thinks that is OK because to allow these students in versus out of state students would be a difference of $100 million.

I guess that the almighty dollar is more important to “Diamond” Jim Doyle than educating the children of this state.