Huddleston Speaks on USNH State Funding Cuts

"We now have in New Hampshire the dubious distinction of having experienced the largest single cut to a public higher education system in the history of America, period. And there's not even anybody close to what we absorbed this year," said UNH President Huddleston in his recent interview with the Portsmouth Herald.

I am a US History major and I can tell you that this is not a historical achievement we should be proud of. In the interview, which was on the state budget cuts for USNH, President Huddleston provided startling facts and he let his emotions show.

The article continued by saying how the Senate "got lobbied really hard by private sector institutions and was persuaded to give funds Lynch intended for the USNH to private schools like Dartmouth College, Colby-Sawyer College and Southern New Hampshire University."

Really?! Really?!?!

So, if I'm reading that right (and since I go to a public state school I may not be edumaketed enough to interpret that quote) the New Hampshire Legislature cut funding to the PUBLIC schools and gave those funds to the PRIVATE schools. Oh yeah, because that makes sense. Does the New Hampshire state government understand what the difference is between "public" and "private"? This is a great, and local, example of how the government is being influenced by the private business sector all while hurting the general public. I don't mean to get so political, but this actually happened. Let me repeat that and really think about it for a moment: Private schools received state funding do to "pressure" from the private sector, while the public state schools received the largest cut to public education in the history of the country. If this doesn't prove how influential lobbyists can be towards legislators, I don't know what can.

If this interests you at all, especially if you are a UNH student or New Hampshire resident you should  read the entire article I linked to above. UNH really had no choice but to raise tuition this year. When you lose that much funding there isn't a choice. UNH froze salaries (when professors want more money), they had layoffs (Dear Senate, you cost more NH residents their jobs by cutting UNH funding, how'd you not see that coming?) and cut other expenses. The next few years or more could be very tough financially for UNH and our state is only making things worse.

This picture I took back in January says it all. First with a cheap goal in the Riverstone Cup and now with state funding, Huddleston and UNH get screwed by officials while Dartmouth benefits. 

Stay classy, not UMassy.

Riverstone Recap

So last night I went out to Manchester to watch the annual Riverstone Cup between UNH and Dartmouth. In short, Dartmouth outplayed, hustled and skated UNH and got the 5-4 upset win. UNH looked slow, sloppy and with a few questionable calls lost the game. With just over a minute left in the 3rd period Dartmouth scored what would be the winning goal on what appeared to be a shot deflected in by a high stick. Apparently everyone saw it except the referees and the Verizon isn't equipped with proper replay review cameras and video. The goal was good and there was nothing that could be done about it. Of course all of UNH, their fans and especially Coach Umile were livid, probably the angriest I've ever seen him. Yelling at the refs after the play, during the following timeout and well after the game ended. In all honesty, whether the goal was good or not, UNH shouldn't have been in a situation against Dartmouth were a late goal could have cost them the game. UNH got out played by a lesser team and, I hate to say this because it is so cliche, but Dartmouth looked like they wanted it more...

Anyways, I was sitting in the last row of the lower bowl and had some pretty good seats, but for the second and third period I was invited to sit in a family friend's company suite. The New Hampshirite has connections... so what do I see when I move up there?

This:

(click photo to enlarge)

My phone has a lousy camera, but that is President Huddleston with his own personalized UNH jersey. (insert your own joke about him sitting by himself, this was during an intermission after a bunch of people got up.) I got to sit in a suite when he was down with everybody else. He was also "selected" for the trivia question and correctly answered that Paul Thompson has three career hat tricks. Thats right Huddleston, you tweet creepy pictures of Philip Seymour Hoffman and I post a picture of you. New Hampshirite 1 Huddleston 0.

Stay classy, not UMassy.