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The House Committee on Higher Education met on February 11, 2016 to hear invited and public testimony on the committee’s second interim charge, which concerns the state’s community college system.
 
Review the state's community college system, including a discussion of taxing districts, service areas and any barriers to access. Examine the governance structure to ensure that campuses in multi campus districts that are outside of a college taxing district receive fair and equitable treatment. Review the accounting and reporting requirements of community college districts to ensure open government and transparency.
 
Raymund Paredes, Commissioner of Higher Education

  • Community colleges are essential to education system
  • Generally open admission, so they carry bulk of education development
    • Around half of entering students need remediation, and 50% of the students needing remediation have been out of school for a while
  • Texas community colleges are affordable; about $2500 a year in tuition and fees
    • Only three states have  lower prices on average for community college tuition
    • Low price is important in higher education
  • 60×30 plan will not be achieved without the success of community colleges
    • 60% receiving degrees by 2030
  • Challenges to community colleges
    • Developmental education
    • Community colleges need to improve completion rates which are around 15% for two year programs over two years
      • Need for better majors
      • Looking at dual enrollment programs that guarantee admission to four year university
    • TX has the largest number of hours accumulated towards an associate’s degree
      • Need for expanded advising
      • Better tracking of how students are advancing and not waiting for them to seek help
  • Notes again that TX needs to maintain affordability through local support, financial aid, and state appropriations
    • TX needs to fund success points to reward community colleges for good work
  • Rep. Alonzo asks about diversity in higher education
    • “We have diversity going in, but we do not have diversity coming out” of the higher education system
  • Rep. Raney asks if the Coordinating Board does anything to follow the expenditures on formula money
    • We have determined that we do not have the authority to track how institutions spend formula money
  • Only 27% of students graduating from high school are seen as “college ready;” this is better than 22% in 2007, but we need to be making larger strides in increasing this number

 
Julie Eckland, Higher Education Coordinating Board

  • Texas has one of the most comprehensive higher education data systems
    • We know student characteristics, campus characteristics, employment rates after school, etc.
  • Community colleges submit wide variety of data to CB
    • CC report data by district and not individually for the most part
  • Board has general control over public junior colleges of the state
  • Every community college has designated liaison who ensures that each piece of communication from CB reaches the appropriate people on campus
  • Work with number of associations made up of community college administration
  • Asked how transparency can be increased to ensure tax dollars are being spent wisely
    • Legislature has said that we should simplify things but also says we should follow NACUBO standards which do not go to the level of reporting and transparency that people would like to see
  • Rep. Stephenson (sitting in on committee) comments that we should spend the money in K-4th grade as opposed to at “the end” in colleges; says students are not ready for college because of slow start

 
Dr. Betty McCrohan, Wharton County Junior College President, Texas Association of Community Colleges

  • 50 2-year community college districts in Texas, offering a variety of programs for certification and associates degree, 80,000 students enrolled
  • Community colleges are “strategically and uniquely” positioned to meet the goals of Texas,
  • We are building programs for students to have seamless, guided pathways into universities
  • Summer programs teach students that they can succeed and help them acclimate to student life to increase success
  • CCs have taxing districts and service areas
    • CCs are governmental subdivisions and have local taxing authority as special purpose districts
    • Taxing authority must be approved by voters; and if voted, it is a maintenance and operations tax
    • Taxing capacity of these districts varies significantly; rural areas are more and more dependent on student tuition and fees which is a problem if TX wants to keep CCs affordable
    • Students in service area outside of taxing districts where the CC is viewed as having primary responsibility; students pay additional fees to attend
  • No community college has the right to refuse services, but they are allowed to partner with colleges who share a service area

 
Dr. Brent Wallace, North Central Texas College (NCTC) President

  • CC districts are diverse
  • NCTC is growing quickly; local boards have commitment to students within and outside college taxing districts
  • CCs will be most successful with local governing bodies working on student-centered approach
  • CCs are integral part of 60×30 plan, and looks forward to conversations moving forward to support CCs

 
Dr. Mary Hensley, Blinn Community College President

  • Previously Executive Vice President at Austin Community College
  • Tax bases represent only a small portion of CCs total service areas and budget
  • “Blinn is committed to building strong, collaborative, and transparent relationships with all Texas Legislators”
  • Blinn has highest academic transfer rate and sets benchmark for transferring students into four year institutions
  • Blinn has partnered with Texas Workforce Commission and local businesses to obtain grants which primarily focus on skills and safety training for employees
  • Affordability and geographic accessibility are important to achieve 60×30 plan, but limited resources pose issues
  • Blinn’s service area includes 13 counties, but there is only one district that draws taxes is in Washington County
    • Taxes will provide only $1.8 million in revenue which represents less than 1.7% of this year’s operating budget
  • Students at Blinn hail from 1,533 different zip codes across the state and the United States in large part because they want to transfer to Texas A&M and other four year institutions
  • Outside of taxing district, but within service area Blinn is:
    • Just completed $10 million renovations at main campus
    • Several workforce sites throughout service area to provide career and professional development training
    • 1.8 million annual lease to provide Blinn with health science center with all of nursing programs
  • Balancing needs with limited tax dollars while trying to keep tuition and fees low is a daunting task
  • Blinn relies primarily on tuition revenue, but many CCs are primarily state funded
  • In conclusion, CCs play a significant role in higher education in Texas, and look forward to working with policy makers to ensure bright future for Texas schools, businesses, and communities

 
Questions for McCrohan, Wallace, and Hensley

  • Vice Chair Howard says the maps of service areas compared to taxing districts are very telling of issues faced by CCs and notes the critical importance of CCs in serving students
  • Vice Chair Howard asks where we go from here and what suggestions there are to make the system better in keeping it affordable
    • McCrohan says she does not have the answer to everything because every area is so unique, but her greatest fear is to lose service in rural areas; rural areas cannot be left out of the equation
    • Wallace says open communication between CCs and the legislature is critically important moving forward and suggests that ISDs be brought into the conversation as well
    • Hensley mentions that CCs do not receive line item funding like four year universities do
    • Hensley also mentions an upcoming hearing in regards to CC funding in March, and perhaps CCs and legislators can get in touch before that meeting to jumpstart conversation
  • Rep. Crownover recounts 10 years ago when we were trying to bring all counties as taxing districts with CCs which makes sense to her since they all rely on CC network
  • Rep. Clardy notes there are five categories of how CCs are funded and asks what what balance funding is for a CC?
    • Tuition Funded
    • Local and tuition funded
    • State and tuition funded
    • State funded
    • Balance category is
      • CCs that are funded with balance of tax base, tuition, and state at supportable rates
  • Rep. Clardy suggests that local solutions may be best route moving forward
  • Rep. Alonzo asks Hensley about annexation elections for CC taxing districts
    • CCs generally begin with rather small tax bases
    • Annexation generally begins with petition and then election process
    • In her time at ACC, 6 passed and 3 failed
      • Those that passed had participation across the board in the community
      • Of those that failed, some citizens did not see reason when they have four year institution nearby, people did not have children and did not want to be taxed, senior citizens do not want to participate despite exemptions, people who own large properties do not want to be taxed despite exemptions
  • Rep. Morrison says that joint meeting with appropriations will be important because CCs are struggling with lack of funding
  • Rep. Stephenson asks what role property taxes should play and asks if dual credit should be reimbursed by the state

 
Demetrio Hernandez, Legislative Budget Board, Resource Witness

  • Oversight is limited to state appropriations
  • Recently received reports from campuses with success point data per budget rider in 84th, which we are currently reviewing
  • Rep. Raney says he has received complaints that rider was not clear in what it wanted from CCs
  • Rep. Clardy asks what the change was from the last biennium to the current biennium in appropriations from state
    • ’16-’17 was 1.78 billion compared to 1.90 billion in ’14-‘15
  • Vice Chair Howard asks for clarification regarding funding or lack of funding of success points
    • Success points are metrics put in place by 83rd legislature as part of formula – 10% of funding with the other 90% being contact hours
    • Three year averages on success points
    • “funding success points” speaks to rate for meeting success points
    • State decreased funding rates per success points
  • Vice Chair Howard says in order to get back to previous funding levels which she believes is 17% increase

 
Public Testimony
 
Greg Poole, Barbers Hill ISD

  • We need progressive look at this dysfunctional system
  • Local control is best
  • ISD’s should have more ability to create their own CC district; it is less expensive for them than to pay taxes for the next closest district

 
Marcus De Leon, Austin Community College

  • Image of CCs is often very negative, but they are vitally important for our students
  • We need to put our minds together to be ready to serve our students
  • Rep. Alonzo notes importance of students taking pride in where they want to school and knowing that CCs are big and important; we have to back that up in the legislature

 
Study ways community colleges could offer accessible and affordable baccalaureate degree programs in areas where the state has a significant workforce shortage without compromising quality of education and training. Make recommendations to maximize efficient student pathways and to offer more affordable educational opportunities such as through dual credit and early college start programs.
 
Raymund Paredes, Higher Education Commissioner

  • Appreciates support for 60×30 Texas
  • In 2003, bill allowed certain colleges to distribute baccalaureate degrees, colleges have slowly expanded degree programs and will likely continue to expand reasonably
  • Rand Corporation presented report with 3 options to deal with
    • Leave things as they are
    • Allow community colleges to freely expand degrees as they see fit
    • Establish process that would allow colleges to propose baccalaureate degrees that would be approved as to need and quality
  • Higher Education Coordinating board would like to see the third option
  • Paredes has been wary of baccalaureate degrees, has wanted to see evidence that these degree programs work, Rand Corporation report helped convince him
  • Low cost baccalaureate degrees are “absolutely essential” to meet the goals of 60×30 Texas
  • Could be easily implemented next session, strict conditions on approval or targeted pilot programs would be a good first step, Dallas Community College has expressed interest in a pilot program
  • Texas should be able to approve and offer programs that do not compete
  • We have to aggressively intervene to help students make choices and follow through with what classes to take to get degrees in their field of interest
  • Success has been extraordinary in other states by allowing baccalaureate degrees from CCs
  • We could also look at “meta-majors” where you have concentration in general area where you take certain core classes and are guaranteed a transfer to a four year institution
  • Vice Chair Howard asks about issues present with who qualifies/subjective decisions that may penalize teachers in public education on who can achieve dual credit certification even when they meet prescribed criteria
    • Paredes asks for specifics and Vice Chair Howard says she will meet with him in person to iron out details that she is talking about
  • Vice Chair Howard asks how we can maintain quality of baccalaureate degree while increasing quantity provided
    • We have appropriately rigorous standards for the approval of baccalaureate degrees that would be maintained for CCs as they are for four year institutions
    • We will go through very careful process to make sure this is being done correctly
  • Rep. Turner asks if there is any data to suggest our capacity for dual credit in the state, whether it be expense, certified educators, has been an issue
    • We are at 130,000 students taking dual enrollment over 100,000 last year
    • We are expanding quickly, but we have not seen any issues and do not see any in the near future

 
Dr. Shirley Reed, President of South Texas College

  • We want to offer early childhood education and BSN education (both four year programs), but we cannot decide which is more critical for our community
  • Programs are expensive and have to be done in conjunction with employers, but they are very important to serve community needs
  • There are large numbers of women, minorities, and part time students in these programs
  • Larger community colleges have educators with doctoral degrees which helps quality
  • We are ready to move forward with BSN program in their area which has a hospital that is growing rapidly

 
Dr. Joe May, Chancellor of Dallas County Community College District

  • Demand for teachers is increasing as number of teachers produced is decreasing
  • Last session we proposed to work to add four year degrees at CCs to produce more teachers in elementary schools
    • This is not just to graduate students but also to serve a need in the community

 
Dr. Brenda Hellyer, Chancellor of San Jacinto College System

  • High demand in petro-chemical industry in Hellyer’s part of Houston
  • Students get degrees and go into the workforce with less debt and less obstacles associated transferring to four year institutions
  • We are also interested in BSN programs
  • These programs also benefit minority students, female students

 
Questions for Reed, May, Hellyer

  • Rep. Clardy says that it seems hospitals will require nurses to achieve higher certifications to work at higher tier hospitals; we need next step after getting RN, and these programs can help
    • While this should be looked on as a case-by-case basis as we see need, we need more nurses period
  • Rep. Clardy commends the panel for being on the right approach
  • Vice Chair Howard

 
Cesar Maldonado, Chancellor of Houston Community College

  • Number 2 in associate’s degrees to minorities in the United States
  • Great need for science and nursing degrees in Texas which is continuing to grow
  • High number of senior citizens and acceleration of population growth present needs for more nurses
  • We can help meet baccalaureate needs in Texas and in Houston

 
Dr. William Serrata, President of El Paso Community College

  • Baccalaureate programs at CCs are necessary for the 60×30 program
  • We have reduced total contact hours through partnerships with local ISDs who have offered dual credit programs
    • Dual credit students are much more likely to attend and graduate college
  • We work hard to ensure students receive financial aid they need
  • We should be able to offer baccalaureate degrees that are in need in communities

 
James Henry Russell, Texarkana College

  • 60×30 is a great program with great goals
  • Dual credit gives safe crosswalk and confidence for students to attend college
  • Dual credit has shown shift from “5th year seniors” to “3rd year seniors” and increased graduation rate
  • Community colleges are good investments because they do something with the money
  • We are working more closely with superintendents in collaborative effort

 
Dennis Brown, President of Lee College, Texas Association of Community Colleges

  • Dual credit and early college high schools have aided in transition of high school students to college
  • These are growing and will hopefully to continue to grow
  • Dual credit increases the number of students who stick with college and graduate
  • Technical education is expensive and poses a risk to dual credit especially in rural districts
  • We must not let down our guard and assume that dual credit will grow without additional guidance and resources

 
Richard Moore, Texas Community College Teachers Association

  • Teachers often feel disconnect with what is happening in legislature and how they can bring their insight to the discussion
  • CCs provide viable options to achieve comfortable lifestyle
  • Dual credit and early college high schools increase tools available to students
  • Collaboration is key

 
Public Testimony
 
Representative Helen Giddings

  • It is not my position to authorize all community colleges to offer 4 year degrees, but we should authorize it in communities in need
  • We expect shortage of 700 teachers between now in 2020 in Dallas and would benefit from educator production in community colleges

 
Charles Thielman, Self

  • Education by teleconference is the answer to expanding access to education