Unit 3: Funding and Access Issues in Public Higher Education: A Community College Perspective

Professional associations such as the National State Directors of Community College (NCSDCC), an affiliate of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), can be considered opinion leaders when it comes to higher education finance. Geoffrey Obrzut, chair of NCSDCC, noted that "despite the differences in the structure and governance (of community colleges), members of the NCSDCC are well positioned to comment on issues of access and funding in their own sectors, other sectors of education, and in the state government" (Katsinas & Tollefson, 2009, p. v). Even though both NCSDCC and AACC offer comments for all sectors of higher education, they serve primarily as opinion leaders for community colleges. As an example, the NCSDCC along with the University of Alabama Education Policy Center recently released their 2009 report Funding and Access Issues in Public Higher Education: A Community College Perspective. This extensive report presents findings from the 2008-2009 survey of state directors that focused on funding and access issues affecting community colleges. The report is presented from the perspective of community colleges and covers such areas as enrollment, 2008-2009 funding, 2009-2010 funding predictions, tuition increases, and other issues. It is directed primarily to chief financial officers and other administrators in community collegegs. The following is a small sample of the information provided in the report.

During 2008-2009, 71% of states reported mid-year operating budget cuts in community colleges(Katsinas & Tollefson, 2009). This is compared to 19% in 2007-2008 and 4% in 2006-2007. The authors noted, however, that community colleges were treated equally with other higher education sectors when it came to mid-year budget cuts. Seventy-five percent of states, for example, reported that flagship universities took mid-year budget cuts while 74% reported the same cuts in regional universities. According to the report, community colleges should expect additional mid-year budget cuts during 2009-2010. The data presented in this report is the type of information that administrators and chief financial officers in community colleges commonly work with.

Katsinas and Tollefson (2009) also presented in the report survey information about how community colleges used thier ARRA funds. The majority of the states surveyed noted that their community colleges used stimulus funds to backfill revenue shortfalls. Eighty percent of the state directors expressed concerns about what will happen in community colleges when ARRA funds run out. Unfortunately, this type of data will only validate what many chief financial officers already know and that is the next few years are going to be financially challenging - especially for community colleges.

Professional associations such as NCSDCC and AACC can serve as opinion leaders in higher education finance. Members of such organizations tend to be scholars, administrators, and professionals that have experience with some aspect of higher education finance. The agenda of a professional association is generally to promote a cause and provide information from the standpoint of the area in which the organization represents. The NCSIDCC report, for example, presented its data from the standpoint of community colleges. That is, the majority of the information in the report was directed to community colleges. The authors, however, did include data from four-year colleges and universities so that comparisons could be made with community colleges.

Reference

Katsinas, S. G. & Tollefson, T. A. (2009). Funding and access issues in public higher education: A community college perspective. Findings from the 2009 survey of the National Council of State Directors of Community Colleges. Tuscaloosa, Al: The University of AlabamaEducational Policy Center. Retrieved October 4, 2009 from

http://education.ua.edu/edpolicycenter/documents/fundingandaccess2009.pdf