Palomar, MiraCosta back college funding initiative
By: NOELLE IBRAHIM - Staff Writer | ∞
Palomar College student Dane Sanderville works on math schoolwork while having lunch with friends at the student union on Thursday. A proposed community college ballot measure that would roll back student fees from $20 to $15.
DON BOOMER Staff Photographer
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NORTH COUNTY ---- Both Palomar College in San Marcos and MiraCosta College in Oceanside plan to pledge their support for a statewide initiative that would cut tuition from $20 to $15 a unit, establish a minimum level of state funding for community colleges and grant the state community college chancellor more autonomy from the governor, college officials said this week.
The initiative would also make any future fee increases "fair, moderate and predictable," said Scott Lay, president and chief executive officer of the Community College League of California, a nonprofit association made up of the state's 72 community college districts.
"We're certainly supporting it," said Palomar President Bob Deegan, who said student and faculty groups plan to raise about $50,000 to back the initiative campaign. So far, $10,000 has been sent in, he said.
A coalition of community college leaders, students and employees submitted more than 900,000 signatures in January to place the initiative on the statewide ballot Feb. 5.
At MiraCosta, officials said they are generally very supportive of the tangible benefits the initiative means to students, though trustees said they had not yet discussed fundraising.
"The initiative helps underline the importance of community college as a higher education provider in the state of California," said Dick Robertson, vice president of student services at MiraCosta.
The colleges have experienced a boost in enrollment this year after the state Legislature agreed last summer to reduce fees per unit from $26 to $20.
A 136 percent increase in tuition between fall 2003 and fall 2004 helped cause a nearly 20 percent decline in community college enrollment, according to state figures. The hike meant 314,000 fewer students between spring 2003 and spring 2005, with overall enrollment dropping from 1.75 million to 1.44 million.
"When fees more than double, that's when you see students leaving community colleges," said Lay.
Student fees ballooned to $26 per unit in fall 2004 before they were rolled back to $20 a unit this January.
After years of slow and steady increases, enrollment at Palomar dipped about 2 percent after the tuition hikes, from 30,469 in fall 2002 to 29,843 in fall 2004. The recent fee rollback has brought enrollment back up by 5.5 percent this spring.
MiraCosta had also seen steady enrollment increases until the fees went up, which pushed the numbers down 5 percent, to 9,674 in fall 2004. But MiraCosta enrollment increased 2.8 percent over the same time last spring and 4.6 percent this semester over the same time last fall.
"Community colleges across the state have reported a significant rebound in enrollment," said Lay. "That's a direct response to a policy of affordable fees."
Rolling back fees
The ballot initiative would set fees at $15 per unit, increasing access to higher education for everyone, said Nancy Chadwick, a Palomar trustee.
A student taking a full 12-unit load now pays $240 per semester, down from $312 last fall.
"This ensures access to any student who wants to go to college," Chadwick said. "There's no such thing as a student who has too much money. For many students, even a flat tire can put them out of commission for awhile (educationwise)."
Robertson said he believes the initiative would stimulate prospective students who perhaps think that college might be out their reach because of finances.
"For those people who fall through the cracks by not qualifying for fee waivers or federal grants, they would be helped greatly by the reduction," he said.
The initiative also ties future fee hikes to no more than the cost of living, which would amount to an increase of roughly a $1-2 per unit annually, said Lay.
In the past, fee hikes have been "arbitrary and capricious," and subject to the whim of state officials, Chadwick said.
That unpredictability puts an additional burden on students, she said. The initiative would allow students to pretty much know what they'll be paying for their complete community college education going in, she said.
"There won't be any willy-nilly capriciousness on the part of the governor's staff to raise fees," she said. "There needs to be some stability where people can plan."
The rollback would especially benefit working students who are more apt to stick with their education if fee hikes are gradual and controlled, Deegan said.
"It's a little easier on students whose pocketbooks are tight," he said.
While the rollback would be beneficial to students, Herman Lee, director of enrollment services at Palomar, said he is not sure what its effect would be on enrollment, as tuition is not the only factor that plays a part.
"While enrollment fees are dropping, the cost of textbooks is going up," said Lee, adding that offering additional course sections can also bolster enrollment. "Students look at the overall cost of education."
A new funding system
The heart of the statewide initiative is the stability it would create by designating a funding pot for community colleges, said Chadwick.
Community college funding under Proposition 98, which set a minimum level of funding for public education, would no longer be tied to public school districts, so enrollment declines in public schools would not starve community colleges of their entitled funding, said Chadwick.
Instead, the initiative would require minimum levels of state funding that increase as enrollment grows, she said.
Currently, all fees received by any community college go directly to the state and come back to the college in the form of state apportionment, which is based on the number of full-time equivalent students a college has, she said. However, funding has swayed during state budget wrangling, she said.
"We've never had the ability to know how much money the community college system would get," she said, adding that the current funding system is arbitrary and unrelated to enrollment, unlike the University of California and California State University funding systems. "This will put us on solid footing."
The change is necessary because projections indicate that many public school districts will experience enrollment declines during the next few years, while strong growth is projected at community colleges, Chadwick said.
"This initiative will take no money away from the K-12 system," she said. "There's nothing that will change for them."
The Legislature will have to determine where the money under the new funding system would come from, Chadwick said.
"That's part of the legislative process ---- that's their problem," she said.
Community colleges are "terribly" underfunded by the state, she said. While community colleges on average receive $4,500 per full-time equivalent student in state apportionment, K-12 schools receive more than $8,000 per student and universities in the University of California system receive roughly $23,000 per student, she said.
"It really shows you how inequitable that funding mechanism is," said Chadwick. "We're supposed to get our fair share based on enrollment. This is not surplus funding, this is equitable funding."
The new funding system could mean an estimated $6 million in extra funding for Palomar, Deegan said.
However, the boost would not impact MiraCosta to the same extent because they are not part of the Prop. 98 equation, said Jim Austin, the college's vice president of business and administrative services. The property tax revenue is so high in MiraCosta's district that the college does not receive such state aid.
"It's very good for the system, very good for our students and very good for our sister colleges," Austin said.
More independence
The third key element of the initiative would grant the state community college chancellor more autonomy from the governor, including the ability to hire his own senior staff, as UC and CSU systems do, Chadwick said.
"Community colleges have a board of governors, but they have no power," she said, adding the chancellor's office is completely run by the governor. "We want to put a stop to that. You've got to have an independent, free-thinking board."
A separate, distinct funding system and some independence from the governor's office will help community colleges become a confident player in the political system, said Robertson.
"Community colleges, I believe, don't have the clout in Sacramento they would if this prevails," said Robertson.
Early polling indicates that support for the initiative is around 60 percent, Chadwick said. The measure only needs a simple majority to be approved, she said.
"We're hopeful we can get this done," she said.
Contact staff writer Noelle Ibrahim at (760) 740-3517 or nibrahim@nctimes.com.
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One has to ask wrote on Sep 30, 2007 6:40 AM:What will this cost the taxpayer? Bottomline.
Which ballot ? wrote on Sep 30, 2007 9:31 AM:Will this initiative be placed on the February 5 ballot or the November 2008 Presidential ballot, if it qualifies, and does it have the 180 days for collecting signatures ? We need to have our colleges affordable to students. Sign the petitions. Isn't this a statewide measure. It makes more sense to educate our young than to expand our casinos.
Kristina wrote on Sep 30, 2007 12:19 PM:I think California needs to stop moaning about how much college costs. In Colorado we pay over $80/unit.
jvc wrote on Sep 30, 2007 1:27 PM:Are you now backtracking on the voter initiative of 1978 that change the constitution of the state of california? This initiative called the People's Initiative to limit Property Taxation is responsible for underfunding schools, libraries, police and firefighters! And to keep california's property owners wealthy, nobody cares about the lack of equity and efficiency of the state's tax structure! Warren Buffett was right when he said that our low property tax assessment is keeping us from a balanced budget!
To JVC wrote on Sep 30, 2007 4:27 PM:Proposition 13 was put in place by the voters to stop the unfair reappraisal of homes when someone in a neighborhood improved their home. It was also put in place to prevent ousting seniors out of their homes as well as others. Most homes have been sold and resold, so that is NOT the problem. One problem occurrs when a muniocipality runs amuck with other forms of taxation, Mello-Roos or Redevelopment Taxes are perfect examples of this "taxation without representation" to make the city coffers fatter. The small amount that any bond issue would create for education is nothing compared to some of those other tax bills. Also, remember that the school bond does good work. It helps educate us. PS the redevelopment tax is what is taking money away from libraries and other county funded programs.
Good start wrote on Sep 30, 2007 4:42 PM:A drop in per unit fees will certainly help students. The issue of exorbitantly priced textbooks is what ultimately makes college affordable or not for most students though. When will the state and local districts address this problem and come up with a workable solution?
Reardon wrote on Sep 30, 2007 5:29 PM:To JVC: Please be advised that you may voluntarily pay as much tax as you please. There is no law in California, or any other state, that limits in any manner your ability to write a check to your local fire district, or school distraict, or library. if everyone who favors higher taxes would simply write a check, there would be no need for more taxes. WRITE YOUR CHECK TONIGHT!
jvc wrote on Sep 30, 2007 6:16 PM:Your and my check is NOT going to balance the state budget! Our schools have gone from 1st to 49th in funding!Please offer a solution rather than a condemnation of my comment!Should we settle for anything less than being number one in education?
Reardon wrote on Sep 30, 2007 7:56 PM:Jim: Wrong again, Jim. We rank 49th in Reading and Math -- not funding! Our teachers rank #2 in teacher pay, and overall we rank 29th in expenditures per student -- but that number is bogus for all states because it does not include capital expenses (bond issues and their interest) where California is particularly generous. Including community colleges, this nation spends $1 TRILLION a year on education. We are not getting our money’s worth.
jvc wrote on Sep 30, 2007 8:20 PM:Reardon! Thank you so much for your blog- now we are getting somewhere with a solid discussion of where we are at and where we need to go! Forgive me for saying so but when you say we are not getting our money's worth, I am saying our educational systems are a dysmal failure!
Reardon wrote on Sep 30, 2007 8:36 PM:JVC: On another portion of this Blog, I recently posted my formula for success in education: Left hanging from the previous blog, was the question of what to do about the sorry state of California schools, as evidenced by the National Report Card ranking of California, may I suggest the following: First, let no one in the ESL category attend "regular" classes until they are fluent in English. Second, Disassociate EVERYTHING not academic (sports, band, "mandatory volunteerism" etc.) from schools. Third, Pay beginning teachers $100,000 a year -- not to reward the current bunch but to offer an incentive for bright students in Computers and Engineering to come into teaching. Fourth, do no permit ANYONE with an educational degree near a classroom -- require teachers with math degrees to teach math, and English degrees to teach English, etc. Fifth, do away with tenure --- good teachers don't need it, and bad teachers should not have it. Sixth, strengthen the CBEST test. Any test with a 100% passing rate is, by definition, too easy! Seventh, elect me as the State Czar of Education.
jvc wrote on Sep 30, 2007 9:14 PM:As to supporting the present initiative, community colleges do not need more power,what they do need is an accountability of academic performance!The power should be with the student who should demand that academia is providing him or her with all the tools for success! It is tragic that these schools are spending all this money in lobbying for this initiative when students are in desperate need of funds for texts! I have personally witnessed so many poor instructors that I now believe that our educational institutions are doing nothing more than providing jobs to these schools! Poor instruction is a great dilemma for those in pursuit of knowledge!
jvc wrote on Sep 30, 2007 9:21 PM:Reardon! Where do I cast my vote?
Kismet wrote on Sep 30, 2007 10:10 PM:Finally, in February, the voters will have the opportunity to ensure that every Californian can go to college. Affordable higher education means access for everyone. The community college system is the bedrock for access. Support the initiative and make sure we all can go to college for a reasonable cost.
jvc wrote on Oct 1, 2007 12:53 AM:This initiative will give a cut in tuition by 5 dollars which amounts to a total of 60 dollars for a full time student! This saving amounts to about half the cost of one textbook! Are we to believe that these colleges are offering this initiative to save the student 5 dollars per unit? No, this initiative is about these schools wanting more money and power! This is about more money for everyone BUT the student!What a masterful selling pitch!-
Reardon wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:42 AM:To JVC: If nominated I will not run. If elected, I will not serve. (I want to be annointed, with unlimited power!)-
Reardon wrote on Oct 1, 2007 9:55 AM:When I was teaching computer science at a local university, I wrote a textbook for my class and placed it on my website -- for free! (It is still there, which reminds me that I need to update it.) Textbooks are an unconscionable scam because there is no standardization and no continuity from year to year -- in computers the lack of continuity is understandable because the knowledge base grows by the second and changes by the nanosecond -- but Chaucer's Canterbury Tales will NEVER change! ALL Profs should provide their knowledge for their salary -- and NOT write expensive textbooks. Their textbooks should be on their website, as mine was. (Expensive because of low sales...) BTW, there is a new printing system called Expresso that will print and bind a one-off book in 5 minutes in a bookstore!-
Reardon wrote on Oct 1, 2007 10:06 AM:To JVC: I became a debater for Prop. 13 when many retired people in the "Golden Ghetto" lost their homes to taxes. They bought on fixed incomes at $14,000 and the value of their homes exceeded $150,000 -- and their taxes had gone up by a factor of six, and were still rising toward 10x. Obviously the market value could only be realized by selling. Hundreds of retireds in RB were on food stamps just to pay their fast-rising taxes -- so I got involved as a debater for Prop. 13. Can you imagine the elderly dislocation that would have resulted from the recent run-up in home values? Prop. 13 has saved this state, and continues to do so!-
"Accountability" Nuts wrote on Oct 2, 2007 9:53 AM:make me nuts. They rant about a "student bill of rights" and offer the students gobbledygook, i.e. pages of statistics that do NOTHING to improve teaching and learning. Any "accountability" or "assessment" process that does not help individual teachers help individual students learn better is a canard and a HUGE WASTE of taxpayer funds.-
jvc wrote on Oct 2, 2007 12:33 PM:Accountability nut: just what do you suggest for measuring the effectivenees of academic instruction? Please offer solutions rather than rantings!
jvc wrote on Oct 2, 2007 3:20 PM:According to this story, community colleges are underfunded but both Palomar and MiraCosta have seen some very large building improvements and these colleges have faculty members that are well paid even though presently Palomar is striving for a pay scale to match MiraCosta's. Please be more specific about how this initiative will improve not only a " proper funding" of community colleges but including how the quality of education will improve for the student! Please build your case for the need of this initiative around the improvement of the quality of education of students,explicitly!Will this initiative offer us better instuctors, better graduation rates, better retention rates and better student success in their studies? Or, are community colleges a hoax by offering false hopes to the student as I have come to believe?
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