 And, lawmakers are not saying when, or if, they're going to pay
community colleges what the state already owes.Community college
officials learned of the proposed flat budget Wednesday.
The Illinois House is beginning the process of crafting a fiscal
2012 spending plan. One of the first steps is to figure out how much
the state has to spend, and then lawmakers must decide how that will
be spent.
Ellen Andres, chief financial officer for the Illinois Community
College Board, said she's working on a budget close to $400 million.
She said a flat budget won't help, and any cuts will definitely
hurt.
"We have increased class size. We have renegotiated with unions.
We have done everything we can at this point. We don't want to cut
enrollments or turn people away," she said.
Andres said the state is supposed to cover 33 percent of a
community college's costs. Students and local taxpayers are supposed
to make up the rest. But as the state has fallen behind in payments,
its share of community college funding has dipped to almost 20
percent.
State Rep. Brandon Phelps, D-Harrisburg, said community college
is supposed to be a less expensive alternative to four-year
universities.
"The bigger universities have almost priced themselves out,"
Phelps said. "And people are turning to community colleges. ... I
think we have some of the best community colleges in the state in
southern Illinois. ... You're going to have to go to the students to
get more in tuition," he said.
Numbers from the community college board show that's already
happening. Andres said the average community college tuition has
jumped from $1,700 in 2002 to $3,300 in 2010. Enrollment also is up.
Andres said that more than 60 percent of students taking courses at
a postsecondary school are enrolled in a community college. But the
local schools get only 14 percent of the state's higher education
dollars.
"Basically what's happening is that students are paying the extra
tuition to make up for what we don't have," said Andres.
That's just enough for some schools. Officials at Rend Lake
Community College, in Phelps' district, said the school can get by
with a flat budget. But President Charley Holstein said the school
only can just get by.
"Flat funding will make it difficult for RLC to grow new programs
or expand on past successes, but we will weather the situation," he
said. "We have not had to lay off any employees, and we will
continue to operate under the funding levels we receive."
[to top of second column] |
It's the same at John Wood Community College in Quincy. College
President Tom Klincar said he'd be happy if the state just sent him
a flat budget, on the condition that lawmakers also pay the college
what the state owes.
"I'm not nearly as worried about a flat budget next year as I am
the lack of funding for student aid and federal student aid cuts,"
he said.
State Rep. Jill Tracy, R-Quincy, said John Wood got the message
that funding would be tight and cut where it could.
John Wood "understands (their funding) is not going to be
increased, because the state doesn't have it at this point," she
said. "So they're willing to do their part."
State Sen. Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, said it's a shame that
community colleges have to do without, especially since more people
are turning to the traditionally two-year schools.
"We're talking about thousands of individuals that are getting
low-cost education and training," he said.
Republicans like Syverson are calling for billions in cuts from
the state budget, but he said the cuts need to be targeted at
priorities.
Nancy Chamberlain, a spokeswoman for Rock Valley College in
Rockford, said she hopes community colleges would be a priority.
"At a time when community colleges are serving more students and
having the most profound effect on the viability of our communities,
we are being asked to do more with less," she said.
While more budget hearings are planned by the House and Senate, a
final 2012 spending plan is due to Gov. Pat Quinn by the end of May.
[Illinois
Statehouse News; By BENJAMIN YOUNT]
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