Gov. Ted Kulongoski, left, speaks at the Capitol in Salem on Thursday, as former Gov. Neil Goldschmidt listens. Kulongoski said he will make Goldschmidt chairman of the state Board of Higher Education and also will replace most of the remaining board members. AP Photo

SALEM - Gov. Ted Kulongoski said Thursday he is revamping the state Board of Higher Education by asking five members to quit and that he wants former Gov. Neil Goldschmidt to head the panel.

Kulongoski appointed Goldschmidt to one of two vacancies on the board, which chooses its own president, and said he plans to appoint other new members by January.

The move puts one of the state's best know public figures at the helm of the board that governs the seven-campus state university system.

Kulongoski said he's not dissatisfied with the current board but that he wants one familiar with his own ideas and goals, which include enabling more young people to have access to university educations.

Two student members, a faculty member and Pendleton lawyer Henry Lorenzen, who was named to the board by Kulongoski in August, will remain on the part-time, 11-member panel.

Kulongoski made the announcement in a joint news briefing with Goldschmidt. His appointments are subject to Senate approval

"I am committed to making a complete change," he said.

Kulongoski said university budgets have fared poorly in recent years, and he compared the college system to a ship that "takes on water" in each legislative session.

The schools must better compete with other state programs for available money, he said.

"One of the things that governors haven't done very well is they haven't sat down with the board and told them what they want," Kulongoski said.

Goldschmidt, a Democrat and former Portland mayor, served one term as governor from 1987-91. He is an attorney and international trade consultant in Portland and a former U.S. transportation secretary.

Kulongoski served under Goldschmidt as state insurance commissioner and at Goldschmidt's request headed a panel that crafted major workers' compensation reforms.

Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, called Goldschmidt a political "juggernaut" who's bound to cause change.

"Other states have done remarkably well in supporting higher education. Oregon hasn't done that," said Courtney, a longtime lawmaker who teaches at Western Oregon University.

He said there isn't a solid connection between the Legislature and the university system.

Courtney said Kulongoski's move "is also going to bring the Board of Higher Education into the Capitol. I haven't seen that in the past and it's long overdue."

Goldschmidt said change in higher education has to be driven by the executive. The core issue is: "How many years beyond high school will the average Oregonian get?" he said.

Kulongoski said he hopes to build interest in an idea he pitched to the Legislature, asking voters to put a tuition aid trust fund program into the state constitution.

Kulongoski often emphasizes education as key to job development, and he said something should be done so students don't leave college with huge loan debts.

"First and foremost, we must provide an opportunity for every Oregon citizen to go to a college or university in Oregon of their choice," he said.

The tuition aid could be used at public or private colleges.

Kerry Barnett of Portland, one member leaving the board, said he knows of no hard feelings among outgoing members.

"It's the governor's prerogative," said Barnett, who was legal counsel to former Gov. Barbara Roberts and now is a health plan executive.

"Him naming a high profile individual like Goldschmidt to head the board is a sign of the governor's strong interest in improving higher education," Barnett said.