In Georgia, the budget crunch has prompted one state senator to propose closing some public colleges, but not the ones you think.

Despite such bona fides, Harp is a far cry from the stereotypical White, racist Republican that he’s being painted as in some media circles. To the contrary, at least at first glance, Harp appears to be more of a contradiction in terms.

Case in point: Harp calls himself “a conservative Republican who happens to be progressive.” And he sees nothing wrong with that.

Last month, as the Georgia Senate chairman of the Higher Education Committee, Harp caused a bit of a firestorm when he suggested merging two of Georgia’s historically Black universities with nearby majority White campuses.

But this son of the South doesn’t want to shut down the Black colleges; he’s going after the White ones. He calls it, “eliminating the competition.”

“There will still be historically Black colleges and universities. I just want to bring the quality of education up and make them very desirable schools,” he says. “I can’t dilute the history of these schools; the history is written. It’s there.”

Political Will Versus Economic Reality

Georgia, like many other states, is facing a budget shortfall of about $2.5 billion, according to the Georgia Budget & Policy Institute. To help cope with its money woes, the state’s university system alone has to make at least $200 million in cuts, if not more.

With a current operating budget of $2.3 billion, this could mean up to 12 percent in cuts for each of the state’s 35 public colleges and universities, Harp tells Diverse. Many schools have already identified about 7 percent in cuts through layoffs, increasing class sizes, offering fewer courses and leaving job vacancies unfilled. State education officials have also proposed merging 14 of Georgia’s 34 technical colleges, which they say will yield up to $1.5 million per school.