WVU 5, Marshall 1

Brian E. Noland, chancellor of the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, stopped by The Herald-Dispatch the other day to talk with a few of us about what's going on in higher education in West Virginia. He threw out a lot of information, but I've been thinking about one set of numbers he gave us.

I had seen something about this before, but I can't find it. I'll have to make a phone call sometime to check on this information. Assuming he's right, it's something the Huntington community should think about.

Noland said 70 percent of students who receive PROMISE scholarships attend WVU and 14 percent attend Marshall. Think about that. The "best and brightest" who stay in the state to go to school, and by a 5-to-1 ratio, they choose WVU.

I've written an editorial for Saturday about the big game on the Marshall campus that day. The main point I was trying to make was that most people in West Virginia identify with WVU, not Marshall. The game gives Marshall the chance to make up some room. But let's face it. As much as Marshall talks about how it strives to be equal with WVU, how many people outside Cabell and Wayne counties consider Marshall their university of choice? How many kids east of Charleston or north of Parkersburg even consider Marshall?

As we can tell by that 5-to-1 ratio, not that many.

Former Marshall President Dan Angel always talked about "national prominence" for Marshall. First, Marshall officials need to work on state prominence.

I need to see the long-term trends of how many PROMISE recipients choose Marshall, WVU and other state schools. I'll try to get that data, and I'll post it when I do. Feel free, as usual, to share any thoughts on this.