Community college enrollments up 11 percent
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Additionally, many workers who have lost their jobs due to the economy are seeking training that will help them enter new professions. And the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is channeling billions of dollars into the economy through investment in growing industries such as renewable energy. These dollars are creating jobs that require special technical skills for which would-be workers must be trained. Many seeking employment in these sectors turn to community colleges for training because they are located in their communities, offer flexible hours for classes and generally are less expensive than traditional four-year colleges and universities.
Garcia called the mission of community colleges "very comprehensive," with their role to provide developmental education through adult education, in their traditional transfer role, through workforce training and through workforce retraining of people with degrees or skill sets so they can acquire new skills, refine their existing skills or "start over."
But while community colleges are doing their part to meet the educational needs of their communities at reasonable costs, they are also facing rising costs - for employees and their benefits, for student services and physical plant expansions and upgrades necessary to deal with their increased enrollments.
The two TACC officials note that if the current rate of enrollment increases continues into the start of the 82nd Texas Legislature in 2011, the community college funding formula costs would expand by more than $220 million. While they note that the state has in the past been able to fund formula growth, they add, "Given the constraints the economic downturn appears to be placing on state resources, the cost of these large increases in student enrollment presents a significant funding issue for the state during the 82nd Legislative Session."
Both officials point out that increasing tuition to help meet the financial needs of the state's community colleges is not a viable option. They cite the fact that flat and declining property values limit many of the institutions' ability to raise additional tax revenue. Additionally, they called proposed increases in tuition rates "counter-productive, given the extreme price sensitivity of community college students." Increasing tuitions, they noted, would simply further limit many individuals' access to educational opportunities.
TACC's 50 member colleges are facing a conundrum and are seeking feedback from the state's leadership as to whether they should react to the financial problems created by this huge jump in enrollment by working to slow growth or by continuing to add capacity and its associated costs to meet the current demands "with some certainty that the state will fund its share of this growth."
Many of the TACC member colleges have reached record enrollment numbers, said Garcia. The Dallas County Community College District has had to add several new facilities this year to meet its burgeoning student population, he noted, and Austin Community College is planning several new facilities.
These current expansions are being paid for with existing funds, said Garcia. "But if the current enrollment trend continues - and I don't see any reason it won't for the next couple of years - and if we don't get additional funding from the state, we'll have to say what other states have said - 'We can only serve so many students and the rest of you will have to wait your turn.'"
