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MCC Daily Tribune Archive

President's Wednesday Message


On Monday, both the Assembly and Senate submitted amendments to the Governor’s 2012-2013 Executive Budget via their respective “one house” budget bills.  Given that we just talked about the state budget and its impact on MCC, I thought I’d share the elements from each legislative body that have an impact on community colleges; an initial glance as this information suggests that many of our predictions regarding the budget proposals have come true, especially as regards a growing emphasis on accountability, remediation reduction, and workforce development.  At this point, the conference process to reconcile the proposals begins, so stay tuned—and share your comments on the blog.

Community College Base Aid:

The Assembly is recommending a $205 per FTE increase.

The Senate is recommending a $100 per FTE increase. The Senate’s recommendation is for a four year phase-in of increased base aid ($100/$150/$200/$250), and states that any increase will be provided only if the community college does not increase tuition by more than the consumer price index (FYI—as of Jan. 12, this was 2.9%).  The Senate also ties the funding increases to performance reporting from the colleges on measures including operational efficiencies, remediation reduction, improved transfer and graduation rates, and increased student employment upon graduation.

Community College Child Care:

The Assembly is recommending full restoration to 2011-12 levels with a $653,000 appropriation.

The Senate did not include this restoration.

Chargebacks:

The Senate is calling for the SUNY Board of Trustees to examine community college chargeback laws and policies.

Remediation:

The Senate is calling for the creation of a Task Force on College Remediation to examine the growing need for high school graduates to take remedial courses at the college level. Membership is defined in the proposal as the Commissioner of SED, Chancellors of SUNY and CUNY, President of CICU, and one representative each from a SUNY and CUNY community college chosen by their respective Chancellors.

NY-SUNY 2020:

The Assembly amends the NY-SUNY 2020 statute, defining the "SUNY Challenge Grant Program" as a long-term economic and academic plan submitted by a college, university or community college, excluding university centers, subject to the approval by the Governor and the Chancellor of the State University of New York.

The Senate amends the NY-SUNY 2020 statute, adding a new subdivision providing that awards granted under the expansion of the program to four-year campuses (other than the university centers) and community colleges shall not be awarded to more than one institution within the same region of the state.

Economic Development

The Assembly calls for a request for proposals for programs that support the development of partnerships between the state’s centers of excellence and nearby community colleges and between the centers for advanced technology and community colleges.  The goal is to encourage curriculum alignment for local industry needs; create an internship program between the centers of excellence and the community college to boost high-tech training; attract high quality research and faculty; and encourage high-tech clusters.

The Assembly proposes legislation to authorize a request for proposals to create an employment opportunity and job development program. Community colleges are eligible to operate these programs, which will coordinate employment events for hard to fill positions in small businesses, STEM-related companies, and startup and early stage technology companies; advertise and organize employment events, collect information on job openings, receive resumes, and coordinate job interviews at such events.

Anne Kress
President
03/14/2012