As chair of the Clemson University Board of Visitors and, more importantly, as a former Clemson and University of South Carolina parent, I felt compelled to respond to a Thursday letter, “S.C. colleges most expensive around.”

While I share the letter writer’s concerns about rising tuition costs, I’m proud to see institutions like Clemson and USC take a stand for academic quality. We must provide as many opportunities as possible for South Carolina’s students to attend a top-tier university without leaving our state. No one likes paying higher prices, but if price were the only driver of the college selection activity, Clemson would not continue to see record applications year after year. Quality is important to students, and quality costs.

The answers to the writer’s questions lie with our state lawmakers. While I certainly understand their job is difficult, they have cut higher-education funding significantly over the last seven or eight years. They have chosen to fund families with lottery scholarships. Even with the scholarships, it places a heavy burden on families.

Bordering states have taken a different approach. In 2006-07, North Carolina’s per-student state funding averaged $9,643, Georgia’s averaged $7,297, and Tennessee’s averaged $6,077. South Carolina’s per-student state funding averaged $4,650, ranking South Carolina 15th out of 16 Southeastern states, according to the Southern Regional Education Board State Data Exchange.

Clemson’s per-student funding is roughly 32 percent of the University of North Carolina’s and 48 percent of Georgia Tech’s.

We need to urge our state leaders to make higher education a higher priority. It is critical to the future of our state.

JACK CARTER

Columbia