Higher education headwinds: Why Idaho needs to invest through the storm | Opinion
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- Proposed $10M cut could leave about 1,250 Idaho Launch students out.
- Budget cuts likely mean faculty and staff reductions at Idaho institutions.
- Higher education linked to higher wages, needed skills and better retention.
Protectionist policies that discourage international students. Budget cuts that lead to staff cuts. Threats to Idaho Launch, a scholarship program that helps Idaho students go on to higher education. The misperception that a college degree isn’t worth the investment. A demographic enrollment cliff that means fewer students go to college.
These are just some of the challenges facing Idaho’s institutions of higher education.
At a time when Idaho’s colleges and universities are facing some of the most challenging headwinds, Idaho’s leaders should be doubling down on investing in higher education, not pulling back.
Why? Because higher education — whether that’s a four-year degree or more, an associates degree or some sort of certification beyond just high school — benefits not just the students who go on but the state as a whole.
It means higher wages for college grads. It means Idaho students staying in Idaho (a high-ranked goal of Gov. Brad Little). It means a greater economic impact as Idaho competes with other states for students — and businesses.
That was the upshot of a City Club of Boise panel discussion Tuesday at the Idaho State Museum. Panelists were David Douglass, president of The College of Idaho; Chandra Zenner Ford, CEO, University of Idaho Boise and Southwest Idaho; and Wendi Secrist, director of the Idaho Workforce Development Council.
Here are some of my key takeaways.
Idaho Launch
Idaho legislators are proposing a $10 million cut to the state’s $80 million scholarship program for Idaho students to learn skills beyond high school to prepare for hard-to-fill jobs.
That means about 1,250 students will be left out of the program, Secrist said.
Zenner Ford noted that the Idaho Launch program has helped improve Idaho’s “go on” rate, or students going on to higher education beyond high school.
Douglass pointed out that Idaho’s go on rate had dipped into the 30% range before climbing back to around 40%, where we were before. But 60% is the ideal target.
Budget cuts
Zenner Ford said the University of Idaho has gone through budget cuts before, and that meant cutting faculty and staff. Any budget cuts for fiscal year 2027, which the Legislature is considering now, and “there will be consequences,” she said, likely in the form of more faculty and staff cuts.
It’s worth noting that these budget cuts aren’t necessitated by an economic downturn, but by lawmakers’ decision to enact year after year of major tax cuts.
In addition, Zenner Ford said the University of Idaho already faces competition for faculty and staff from its neighbor in Pullman, Washington, at Washington State University, which pays more.
Enrollment cliff
Fewer babies born in the U.S. in the past 20 years is catching up to colleges and universities.
While the demographic cliff hasn’t been as steep in Idaho compared with other states (upstate New York has seen a 25% decline in college-age students, according to Douglass), the competition for students is hot.
Douglass noted that he saw an ad at the Boise Airport for Clemson University.
Value of higher education
Douglass said that, in addition to the demographic cliff, there’s a “precipitous loss of confidence in higher ed” and a growing misperception that the cost of a college education isn’t worth the investment, with two-thirds of high school students and even college attendees saying it’s not worth it.
Nothing could be further from the truth, Douglass said.
A college degree equates to well over $1 million in earnings over the course of a career. Unemployment is much lower, and the social impacts are huge: improved quality of life, lower infant mortality, community and civic engagement and charitable giving are higher and addiction rates are lower, among other positive effects.
“If you think of what would you do to improve the quality of life in any community, what do you start with?” Douglass said. “The most productive and predictive factor you could possibly come up with would be to increase the fraction of college education.”
As far as whether it’s a good investment, Douglass pointed to kids graduating from high school “who think nothing of the investment of a $75,000 Ford Raptor pickup truck.”
Future workforce
A recent study showed that Idaho will create 103,000 jobs per year for the next three years, Secrist said. And 66% of those jobs will require postsecondary education. Of those, 9% will require a graduate or doctorate degree, 19% a bachelor’s degree, 12% an associate’s degree, and the rest some sort of certification, she said. Only 34% of those new jobs will require a high school diploma or less.
Keeping Idaho kids in Idaho
Secrist noted that recipients of an Idaho Launch grant (up to $8,000) are not required to stay in Idaho, but Zenner Ford quickly added that Launch helps Idaho students stay in Idaho. After Launch started, Idaho colleges and universities saw an 11% increase in Idaho student enrollment and a 12% decrease in Idaho students going out of state.
Plus, 75% of Idaho students who go to an Idaho institution of higher education stay in Idaho after graduation.
International students
Not only are international students finding it more difficult under the Trump administration to receive a student visa to come to the United States to study, there’s an increased perception that the United States is just no longer a welcoming place, Douglass said.
But other English-speaking countries, namely Canada and Australia, are welcoming those students with open arms.
Douglass said College of Idaho has had students from as many 100 countries over the past few years. That benefits not only those students but also kids from Parma or Wilder or Melba who might find themselves rooming with someone from Somalia. The exposure to different cultures, food and religion is immeasurable, and much is lost when international students don’t come here, he said.
Economic impact
A new report out last month showed that Boise State University generates a $2.2 billion economic impact, up from $1.6 billion just a few years ago. That represents approximately 1.9% of Idaho’s total gross state product, an impact greater than the state’s entire utilities industry, according to the report.
Zenner Ford pointed out that the federal dollars that Idaho’s universities and colleges receive are tax dollars flowing back into Idaho.
Idaho’s institutions of higher education are going through tough times right now, and they promise to get tougher.
Idaho legislators should recognize that the success of Idaho’s universities and colleges is Idaho’s success.
Scott McIntosh is the opinion editor of the Idaho Statesman. You can email him at smcintosh@idahostatesman.com or call him at 208-377-6202. Sign up for the free weekly email newsletter The Idaho Way.
This story was originally published March 4, 2026 at 4:00 AM with the headline "Higher education headwinds: Why Idaho needs to invest through the storm | Opinion."
