Last year students borrowed more than $100 billion, and total student debt is now over one trillion dollars, topping total credit card debt. Since 1985, the Consumer Price Index has risen 115 percent, while the cost of tuition and fees has risen nearly 500 percent.

One factor has been the star system, whereby universities recruit or maintain highly sought faculty. Besides higher salaries, the stars often require substantial investments in laboratories, equipment, and staff. Stars' salaries sometimes generate inequities, the resolution of which drives up the salaries of other faculty. Another factor has been the escalation of administrative costs. But perhaps the most important factor - in 1992 the federal government modified loan restrictions based on parental income, thus opening the floodgates. Higher education took advantage of this sea of cash.

The net result is not unlike nuclear escalation, except instead of bombs it is reputation and rankings that count.

Keeping up with the Joneses has not been easy because North Carolina is not a prosperous state. According to the Census Bureau median household income is $43,275 (ranks 42nd), while for our neighbor Virginia, it is $61,544 (sixth). Annual tuition and fees at Virginia are about $4,500 more than at UNC-Chapel Hill, but the typical Virginia household can manage that from the $18,000 difference in income.

Our poverty rate is 17.5 percent. For children it is nearly 25 percent (12th highest of 51). We also have a regressive tax structure. The poorest fifth pay 9.5 percent while the richest fifth pay 7.7 percent.

The overall picture is of a university system that has a well-deserved national and international reputation. The universities and hospitals are significant employers in their home counties. But research results are not being translated into public policy in a way that benefits all North Carolinians. A large proportion of our population is being left behind but still expected to fund the "jewel in the crown" from which they obtain little or no benefit.

Nationally, debt is forcing about half of students to drop out. Time to degree completion is increasing. Over 30 percent of Chapel Hill bachelor graduates leave with slightly less than the national average of $20,000 debt.

When good-paying jobs are not readily available, former students can place their loans in forbearance. This means that during periods when they are not paying down their loans, those loans continue to accumulate interest. That interest is added to the principal and the effects of compounding take over. It's not uncommon for an initial loan of $20,000 to escalate to $35,000 or $40,000. Student debt is not treated legally like any other form of consumer debt. Bankruptcy is not an option.

Student debt is degrading life opportunities. Former students are forced to delay purchasing homes and having children. Some are not marrying at all because they don't want to saddle their partners with debt. As quality high school students watch from the sidelines, many will choose never to attend college.

As the UNC Board of Governors considers tuition increases, I encourage them to take very seriously the concerns of students. Ending the arms race for collegiate reputation and ranking is now a moral imperative.

UNC can and should lead by opting out of this insane race and demanding a national solution.