We often act as if "The Economy" and "Education" are separate issues. The truth is, they aren’t: The backbone of a strong economy is a well-educated and skilled workforce. In the 21st century, educational training is crucial in preparing Americans to participate in the global economy.

Creating the conditions for both a robust educational system and a healthy economy should be paramount in the minds of those in our state government. This is one of the reasons I am running for state Senate.

Though we’ve fought our way back from hard economic times, too many find themselves walled off from opportunities in the new economy, unable to compete to their highest potential. Young people especially feel this burden. They often have the added stress of crushing student loans. Containing the cost of higher education and reducing student loan debt are going to be some of the most important economic issues we’ll face in the coming years.

Under Gov. Hassan’s leadership, we have made a promising beginning. We froze in-state tuition at public universities for the first time in 25 years. We reduced tuition at community colleges. Now, earned credits at community colleges can be accepted at public universities. The Duel Admission program, implemented in 2015, allows qualified community college students to transfer directly into the University System.

The "Running Start Dual Credit Program" allows New Hampshire high school students to take classes that give both high school and college credit. The aptly-named program gives young students a running start heading into higher education, reducing the total amount of time and classes required for a degree. This program is a great model for making college more affordable for low- and middle-income students.

All these improvements significantly reduce students’ cost for their degree. I have the honor of sitting on the Advisory Board of Nashua Community College. The Board has supported all the cost-saving programs outlined above. In addition, Nashua Community College has vigorously pursued working with the business community to match our educational offerings with their needs. Expanding this across the NH business sector is vital to our economy and job creation.

New Hampshire ranks last in the nation in support to its University System. With the goals of our students’ well-being and the robustness of colleges in mind, we must help drive tuition costs down by restoring and increasing funding to the NH University and Community College Systems. This is a key difference between my opponent and me. My opponent supported Bill O’Brien’s budget slashing these systems by more than 50%, significantly increasing costs for our students. This is no way to build our future. As your senator, I will make sure to continue the reversal of this defunding to get our university system and community colleges back on track.

To be sure, our university and community college administrators must be diligent in reducing the cost of tuition. Every dollar we invest must go towards reducing students’ tuition. As your Senator, I will make it clear to administrators that in return for more state support, they must find every creative and efficient path to lower costs.

These steps will help our students get through school with reduced debt loads. But this is only half the battle. Our next challenge is to keep our students in New Hampshire once they graduate. Too many of our brightest are moving away after obtaining their degree. They see opportunities in other states and cities where innovation and workers’ well-being are put at a premium. We need incentives to encourage recent graduates to stay. One such incentive is to reduce student loans in exchange for working in our state. Also, we need to encourage businesses to create incentives for graduates to stay. These measures will improve the educational level of our work force and, in turn, strengthen our economy.

There is a middle road. It’s responsible, measured, and exactly what we need in an era of intense partisanship. I intend to do my part to cut through the useless name-calling and the blind partisan voting in the Legislature by acting. Slashing budgets alone will not make good things happen. Creating a better future requires hard work from us all, as well as responsible, well-timed investments in the ingenuity of our citizens. The point of good governance is to make the lives and work of our people easier, not more difficult. That’s the spirit I’ll bring to Concord, it’s what the people of New Hampshire expect, and our workforce and education systems will benefit.

Peggy Gilmour, D-Hollis, is a candidate for the District 12 seat in the New Hampshire Senate.

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