2008 Annual Report June 11, 2008

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1 2008 Annual Report June 11, 2008 Introduction Fiscal 2008 was a combination of significant achievements with some disappointments. MACC continues to be both an effective voice for community colleges in State government and a representative for the colleges on a wide range of other issues through various committees and workgroups. Major issues for 2008 included: Adult Basic Education, the nursing shortage, articulation and transfer, workforce creation, and early college access. Although there was a substantial increase in capital funding, we still have major challenges in this area. Legislative Session The Governor called a special session in November to consider a combination of tax increases and budget cuts designed to eliminate the structural deficit. The legislature was unable to agree on a slots proposal after several years of debate, and finally decided to put the issue to the voters this November. MACC successfully defeated proposals to restrain increases in State funding to community colleges by altering the Cade Funding Formula. The special session passed legislation creating the Higher Education Investment Fund (HEIF). The Governor proposed that HEIF would have a dedicated source of funding through an increase in the corporate income tax. As passed, HEIF is limited to two years of funding from the corporate income tax, after which appropriations to HEIF are discretionary with the General Assembly. In all likelihood, the future of HEIF is dependant on the outcome of the slots referendum. During the regular session, $2.6 million was transferred to MHEC for higher education BRAC-related initiatives. The regular legislative session began well for MACC with the release of the Governor s budget, which included full funding of the Cade and BCCC funding formulas, and a record level of capital funding for community colleges. When the session ended in April, the Cade Formula funding had been reduced by $8 million, although this still resulted in a net increase of 8.4% on the formula over fiscal Funding of additional community college grants, such as the small college appropriation, was not reduced. Given the pressure to trim the budget, particularly after the tax on computer services was repealed, an 8.4% increase is a good result for community colleges and an indication of the value members of the General Assembly place on the contributions the colleges make to their local communities and the State. We were pleased that the Governor s capital budget allowance for community colleges of $81 million (compared with $56.4 million in fiscal 2008) was not reduced by the legislature. The Governor introduced legislation to transfer responsibility for Adult Basic Education (ABE) and corrections education from the State Department of Education (MSDE) to the Department of Labor Licensing and Regulation (DLLR). Community colleges are the largest providers of ABE 1

2 in the State, serving nearly 70% of all students. MACC worked closely with the Governor, DLLR Secretary Thomas Perez, and legislative leaders to secure passage of this legislation. The challenge now will be to put in place the necessary elements to ensure a smooth transition from MSDE to DLLR. The legislation establishes a Transition Council co-chaired by Sec. Perez and the State Superintendent of Schools to work through any issues so that the transfer can occur on July 1, MACC has published a Legislative Report, which is available online, that contains a complete analysis of budget issues and other legislative matters. Operating Funding As mentioned above, the Governor fully funded the Cade Funding Formula, which provided for 26.25% of the dollars per full time equivalent student (FTES) appropriated to the University System of Maryland in fiscal During the regular session, the Department of Legislative Service (DLS) proposed, and the General Assembly adopted, a new formula not found in law. The DLS formula limited increases in funding for all higher education institutions, public and private, to 4% of the prior year s funding per FTES. This formula had the appearance of fairness, since all institutions were subject to the same funding cap, but it was, in fact, unfair to community colleges. We need to address the implications of this new formula with DLS and members of the General Assembly before the next regular session in January. Capital Funding During the 2007 legislative session, the Senate Budget and Tax Committee and the House Appropriations Committee agreed on language that was published in the Joint Chairman s Report (JCR) for 2007 to require the 15 locally supported community colleges (all except BCCC) to submit their annual joint capital budget request in priority order. MACC was directed to develop a process for prioritizing capital projects and to report to the two committee chairs on the results of the prioritization and the process used to arrive at the list of projects. The JCR directive caused a radical shift in the process for submission of the joint capital budget request. Historically, MACC had submitted a list of projects in alphabetical order and explicitly stated that all projects were equal, i.e., not prioritized in any way. This process worked well as along as there was sufficient State money available to fund all or nearly all the projects on the list in any given year. In the 2007 legislative session (for the fiscal 2008 capital budget) for the first time, there was a substantial gap between the funding requested by the colleges ($134 million) and the funds available from the State ($50 million). This funding shortfall coupled with MACC s refusal to prioritize the projects resulted in significant frustration by the legislative committees and led to the JCR requirement that projects be submitted in priority order. The Maryland Council of Community College Presidents established a capital funding committee with equal representation from small, medium and large colleges, chaired by Cecil College President Steve Pannill. The committee worked throughout the summer of 2007 and developed a model for prioritizing capital projects, which was reviewed with staff at the Maryland Higher Education Commission (MHEC), the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), and the Department of General Services. At their annual retreat in August of 2007, the 2

3 presidents unanimously approved both the model and a prioritized list of projects, which was submitted to MHEC and DBM. Although the process of prioritization was difficult, the end result benefited the colleges through a record level of capital funding ($81 million) and an increase of $20 million per year over five years (for a total increase of $100 million) in the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for locally supported community colleges. The primary (though not the only) disappointment in the capital appropriation was that Prince George s Community College was the only college (out of 14 with projects on the list) that did not receive any funds. Despite a concerted effort, we were not able to get the PGCC Health Sciences Building construction funding in the amount of $23.2 million. The presidents agreed that this project will be the number one priority for fiscal Assuming the Governor s budget allowance for community college capital will be $80 million for 2010 (the current CIP number), this one project will consume almost a third of the available funds. Clearly, MACC must continue to press for increased capital funding for community colleges in order to meet the current and future enrollment demands. Trustee Leadership Conference The annual Trustee Leadership Conference and Legislative Reception were held on January 14 at the Calvert House in Annapolis. Almost 100 trustees, plus foundation board representatives, presidents and other college staff attended. The luncheon featured Secretary of Higher Education, Dr. James Lyons, Sr. who gave remarks on behalf of the Higher Education Commission. The student speakers are always a highlight of the luncheon. This year, we had two outstanding students: Shannon Chiles from Prince George s Community College and Joe Rice from Harford Community College. We were honored to have Lt. Governor Anthony Brown as the keynote speaker. The Lt. Governor is a former Board Chair at Prince George s Community College and has a deep appreciation of the importance of community colleges to our State. Our trustees and staff were joined at the Legislative Reception by about 100 members of the General Assembly, including Speaker of the House Mike Busch. The highlight of the evening was an appearance by Governor Martin O Malley. The Governor spoke briefly to the assembled group and emphasized the importance of community colleges to his Workforce Creation initiative. He also announced that community colleges would receive a record $81 million in capital funding for 13 projects at 13 colleges, and that the locally supported colleges would receive full funding under the Cade Formula, a 12.8 percent increase in total aid. We were honored to have the Governor and the Lt. Governor join with the trustees and presidents of Maryland s community colleges. We very much appreciate their support, as well as the many members of the General Assembly. Student Advocacy Day Despite adverse weather conditions in many areas of the State, 300 community college students braved the elements to come to Annapolis on February 13 for our annual Student Advocacy Day. The following colleges were represented: Anne Arundel (AACC), Baltimore City (BCCC), 3

4 Baltimore County (CCBC), Cecil, Chesapeake, College of Southern Maryland, Howard, and Prince George s. Presidents Marty Smith, Carolane Williams, Sandra Kurtinitis, Steve Pannill, Brad Gottfried, Charlene Dukes, and Kate Hetherington joined the students. We were honored to have the Speaker of the House Michael Busch, along with Senators Thomas Mac Middleton, Jamie Raskin, and Nancy King join us and address the students. All four legislators stressed the importance of community colleges and urged the students to get involved in the political process by contacting their representatives in Annapolis and expressing their concerns. Heather Sterling, Student Government Association President at Chesapeake College, gave an excellent speech on behalf of all the students. MACC Welcomes Senator Mikulski We were very pleased to have Maryland s senior Senator, Barbara Mikulski, visit the MACC offices on March 3. A number of college presidents, including MCCCP Chair Ray Hoy, and other staff joined with the Senator in an extensive discussion on a number of federal issues. We also took the opportunity to thank Senator Mikulski for her long standing support of community colleges, and for a recent Congressionally-directed grant of $2.24 million to MACC to improve and expand nursing programs at community colleges. I presented the Senator with a customembroidered MACC stadium blanket as a small thank you gift from our colleges. MACC Upgrades Website We have a new and improve website at MACC. The site had to be completely rebuilt in order to make it compliant with rules relating to access by persons with disabilities. While we were at it, we have added a number of new features, including one on the home page called your legislators which organizes the members of the General Assembly by college. This allows you to send an to your entire House or Senate delegation with one click of the mouse. We hope you will use this to advocate on behalf of MACC. Emily Lagana designed and built this feature. Other Areas in Which MACC Has Been Active Increasing the Number of Registered Nurses. MACC has worked closely with the Maryland Hospital Association (MHA) and other interested groups to increase the capacity of community college nursing programs. The MHA initiative entitled Who Will Care? is attempting to raise $20 million in private funds. MACC was fortunate to receive through Sen. Barbara Mikulski a federal grant of $2.24 million to expand and improve community college nursing programs. This grant will be distributed to the 15 colleges that have nursing programs during the coming school year. MACC is also partnering with the Maryland Nursing Commission on increasing the number of nurses. Early College Access. MACC is represented on a workgroup of what was formerly known as the PreK-16 Leadership Council. This workgroup has been analyzing other models from around the country and will develop proposals to increase the number of high school students attending college while still in high school. This is an important alternative to Advanced Placement courses, which has the potential to significantly increase the number of high school students who go on to college. 4

5 Improving Transfer and Articulation. MACC works closely with a joint committee on transfer and articulation of the MACC/USM Leadership Council. This committee is co-chaired by Stuart Bounds, President of Chesapeake College, and Robert Caret, President of Towson University. The committee is working toward developing more transfer degrees like the successful Associate of Arts in Teaching (AAT) degree. MACC is part of a committee led by MHEC of community college and university representatives developing an Associate of Science in Engineering (ASE) degree. The MACC Staff: Jody Kallis Emily Lagana Brad Phillips Clay Whitlow 5