TOPShas lost oringinal intent

Our legislators are once again reviewing the funding for the TOPS program.  However, the Louisiana TOPS program has indeed lost its way.  It was originally funded by Mr. Patrick F. Taylor, a Texas born oilman, to reward students who had outstanding academic performance, coupled with limited family resources, with a college education.  The original proposal was offered to the students of an intercity public school in New Orleans.

TOPS now violates both intents of the original Taylor plan.  In 1989, TOPS had an income cap of $25,000, about $47,850 in today’s dollars.  Today, thirty-seven percent of TOPS recipients come from homes with an annual income of $70,000 to $150,000.  One in five comes from a family that makes more than $150,000 a year. 

 Academically, the original standard for TOPS set by Mr. Taylor was a 3.0 GPA, a B average.  When the state took over it immediately lowered the academic requirement to 2.5, a C plus, hardly outstanding academic performance. It also added the requirement of a composite score of 20 on the ACT, a national college test taken by high school seniors.  This score falls at the 50^th percentile nationally, again simply an average, non-noteworthy score.

The most startling finding that clearly indicates just how bastardized the Louisiana TOPS program has become is the fact that if the GPA qualification for TOPS were returned to the original 3.0 and the ACT requirement was raised to 22 corresponding to the 63^rd percentile, 80% of this year’s crop of TOPS recipients would no longer qualify.

Thanks to our esteemed legislators TOPS has become nothing more than an entitlement program for average performing students from middle and upper class families in Louisiana and a cash cow for our state’s junior colleges, trade schools, and universities.  Additionally, its present implementation is an insult to the students currently receiving the program’s benefits that would have initially qualified based upon their high academic performances, higher ACT scores, and family needs.

Originally, it was a respected, prestigious honor to be selected as a TOPS candidate.  Now it’s just an expected God- given right of Louisianans.

Once you give the masses an expected financial handout, it’s almost impossible to take it away; the downside of all entitlement programs.  TOPS continues to drain our state budget and I doubt that it will ever return to its original intent, for there’s no genuine desire to do so among our legislators and a very vocal part of the public.

If in fact this is a true assessment maybe our legislators ought to put the funding for TOPS to a vote of all their constituents to determine if they would be willing to add a special tax to fund it.  Good luck with that!