House, Senate offer two versions of a bill to replace HECB

Hearings continued this week on House and Senate bills that would transfer many of the responsibilities of the Higher Education Coordinating Board to a successor entity – either a Council for Higher Education or a Student Achievement Council.

The public hearings for these bills were held last week, when inclement weather prohibited many interested parties from attending. To enable a full discussion, the chairs of the House Higher Education Committee and the Senate Higher Education & Workforce Development Committee scheduled additional public hearings this week.

The House bill, HB 2483, under a proposed substitute, would create a Student Achievement Council as a state agency with a director appointed by the Governor from a list provided by the citizen members of the council.  This bill and its Senate companion bill, SB 6232, are based on the Higher Education Steering Committee recommendations.

SB 6269, an alternative to the Governor’s request legislation, would create a Council for Higher Education with a director selected by the council.

Legislative staff have prepared a comparison of key differences in the bills. Briefly, the House bill would create a nine-member council with five citizen representatives and the Senate bill would create a 14-member council with eight citizen representatives.  Institutional or sector representatives would be named to each council.

The House bill focuses on coordination and collaboration to increase statewide educational attainment; the Senate bill focuses more on policy development and coordination in higher education. The Senate bill would require the council to conduct a study and make recommendations on how best to expand its duties to include coordinating transitions from secondary to postsecondary education.

Testifying before the Senate committee Tuesday, Don Bennett, HECB executive director, said the proposed legislation would provide new emphasis on getting the relationship right between the legislature, the executive branch, and the institutions of higher education as they work to achieve the important central goal of raising statewide educational attainment.

The board has, over the years, served as a focal point for these discussions, Bennett said. A non-partisan entity is needed as the state attempts to guide institutional priorities toward meeting current and future economic and workforce needs while helping institutions fulfill their ongoing teaching, research and public service missions.  The new office or council should be expected to continue this important work, he said.

Bennett said additional attention would be needed to clarify how data needed to measure progress toward goals is gathered and analyzed – especially in light of the national movement to fund higher education on the basis of outcomes achieved rather than by student enrollments.   He also emphasized the need to fully integrate student financial assistance administration within the overall work of the new council.

Bills focus on improved efficiency, student success

Faced with a continued revenue shortfall, legislators have introduced a number of bills to promote cost efficiencies in higher education and improve student success. Many of these bills would impact the workload of the public colleges and universities, the HECB successor agency, and the public schools. However, most specify the additional work should be carried out within existing resources.

Student Auditing Committees

HB 2478 would create a seven-member student auditing committee at each four-year higher education institution to review at least one major institutional project annually; identify programs, practices, and processes that could be improved; and make recommendations to achieve cost reductions. The committees would be required to consult with the staff of the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee and HECB successor for guidance on choosing appropriate projects, methodology, and presentation of information.

Completing a Baccalaureate Degree in Three Years

SB 6029 would amend the Launch Year Act by adding a requirement that all public high schools inform students and their families about opportunities to complete a baccalaureate degree in three years. The bill would require each higher education institution to publicize information on accelerated bachelor’s degree programs and any additional opportunities to complete a bachelor’s degree within three years and to provide this information to the HECB successor agency for distribution to OSPI.

Financial Aid Counseling Curriculum
SB 6121 would require the HECB or its successor to provide an online financial aid counseling curriculum to higher education institutions that includes an explanation of State Need Grant program rules; information on campus and private scholarships and work-study opportunities; an overview of student loan options (including the consequences of default); an overview of financial literacy; and average salaries for a wide range of jobs. Institutions would be required to take reasonable steps to ensure each State Need Grant recipient participates and completes the counseling.

Quarterly Academic Advising for Students

HB 2436 would direct higher education institutions to require students to meet with an academic adviser at least once per quarter to ensure they remain on track to complete a degree or certificate.  The student’s goals, degree program requirements and academic progress would be reviewed during the advising sessions.   

Financial Literacy as a High School Graduation Requirement
HB 2268 would require Washington high school students to successfully complete a half-credit course in financial literacy to qualify for graduation. The course would cover concepts such as saving, credit, insurance, inflation, and household budgeting.  The requirement would not add to the total number of credits students must have for graduation.

Requiring School Districts to Provide Remedial Postsecondary Education
SB 6438 would require school districts, under certain circumstances, to provide remedial education for recent high school graduates or pay the cost of providing state-supported remedial education for those students. Average instructional costs for remediation would be established and reports from public higher education institutions would be provided annually showing the number of students enrolled and the types of remedial courses taken. School districts would have the option of conducting remedial courses themselves or paying for the cost. The act would be applicable to students who earned their high school diplomas within three years of enrolling in remedial courses.

Creating Laboratory School Partnerships

 SB 6348 would create laboratory school partnerships that bring together Washington's institutions of higher education and low-achieving public schools to collaborate and implement plans to accelerate student achievement and deepen the knowledge and skills of educators. The synergy of the collaboration is expected to advance educator preparation and student learning practices within both the public school and higher education systems.

Statewide online transfer and advising system back on legislative agenda

In 2006, the state’s two- and four-year colleges and universities piloted an online transfer and student advising system designed to make it easier for students who attend two or more postsecondary institutions to earn a degree.

Subsequently, a proposal to fund full statewide implementation of the system was not approved by the Legislature and the initiative has been on the shelf since.

However, legislation introduced in the first week of this session would require state education agencies and the higher education institutions to create and maintain such a system under the direction of the Higher Education Coordinating Board or its successor agency.

A little more than two weeks into the current legislative session, this is one of a number of bills focusing on student success that would assign new duties to the Higher Education Coordinating Board or its successor agency.  

The bill, HB 2258, would establish a statewide online transfer and student advising system that “integrates information related to programs, advising, registration, admissions, and transfer.”

The system would improve service delivery to students by providing easy access to information on programs, resources, and transferability of courses, the bill states.  

Featuring an inventory of postsecondary degrees and certificates available in the state, including online options, the system also would outline educational requirements for various occupations, including labor market information.

Other required elements of the system:

• Specify educational requirements, admissions requirements, and prerequisites for all postsecondary programs.
• Identify course options that meet the requirements of selected path toward a degree or certificate.
• Provide registration and admissions information for institutions of higher education.
• Provide a method for students to assess which courses and programs are transferrable from one institution of higher education to another and which programs will transfer with credit towards completion of their chosen degree or certificate.

Key legislator supports maintaining SWS program funding

The chair of the House Higher Education Committee said last week that some money should be preserved for the State Work Study program in the final year of this biennium because it is highly effective in helping students achieve their educational goals.

Rep. Larry Seaquist said he would propose restoring some money for the SWS program in 2012-13. The Governor has recommended suspending the program’s funding to help offset the state’s revenue shortfall.

“Even though we are looking at ways to shrink the budget, we might want to add back some work study money because of its high effectiveness,” Seaquist said during a hearing on the SWS and State Need Grant programs before the House Education Appropriations Committee last week.  

Rachelle Sharpe, director of Student Financial Assistance, said program is helping more than 7,500 Washington students to support themselves while earning a degree. SWS also provides students marketable employment skills and reduces their debt upon graduation, she said.

The SWS program will distribute $20.6 million in state and employer contributions this fiscal year in the form of student wages.  About 2,000 public and private employers will provide $6.3 million of the program’s total expenditures.  Fifty-five public and private two- and four-year institutions participate.

Washington’s SWS program is more than 35 years old, making it the second oldest program of its type in the country. Prior to recent reductions, it was also the largest in the nation. SWS eligibility is based on student financial need, and it is the state’s only need-based program open to both graduate and undergraduate students.

Whenever possible, SWS students fill positions that relate to their academic and career interests, making the work study experience a potential springboard to jobs in their chosen fields after graduation. Many graduates ultimately are hired full-time by the same organizations that employed them as SWS students.

Two years ago, state funding for the SWS program was cut by two-thirds and employer match requirements were increased significantly. Other policy changes were implemented to continue providing as many SWS positions as possible in light of reduced funding. Sharpe said the program has experienced a decrease in off-campus placements, but it is unclear whether that is the result of increasing employer contributions or the decrease in the size of the program overall.

Career pathways legislation among higher education bills introduced as 2012 session gets under way

Bills introduced during the first week of the 2012 Legislative Session focus to a great extent on finding ways to increase the number of students participating and succeeding in areas of study that meet critical workforce needs — especially in the areas of computer and information science, engineering, and the health professions.

A new Career Pathways Act calls for a comprehensive statewide information effort by education institutions and state agencies to inform students, beginning in middle school, of the wide range of career preparation options available that lead to middle-income jobs.

These include skilled trades, pre-apprenticeships, apprenticeships, industry certifications, and workforce training programs as well as one-year certificates, associate, bachelor’s and advanced degrees.

A Washington Works bill is designed to create a reward system for improvements in completions at all levels of education with a particular focus on improvement in specific high demand occupations. 

Following is a summary of the key pieces of legislation introduced so far.

1.    SB 6029 amends Launch Year Act to require notification of three-year baccalaureate programs.

2.    HB 2209 amends RCW 28A.150.260, the K-12 Act covering contracted alternative learning experiences.  Running Start is excluded as a contracted alternative learning experience. State assessment testing is mandated for full- and part-time students. Contracted alternative learning experience programs are exempted from a proposed 15 percent budget cut for 2012-13.

3.    HB 2254 – Continues the Passport to College program beyond the six-year pilot phase. The bill allows foster youth who are younger than 18 to receive the Passport scholarship.  In addition, all foster youth would be automatically enrolled by DSHS as College Bound Scholarship participants. This means that Foster Youth in grades 9-12 would be allowed to participate in the College Bound program. OSPI is required to identify six to 10 school districts with the highest number of dependent students – districts in which certified staff navigators can be placed to focus on improving school graduation. 

4.    HB 2155/SB 5982 – Creates a Joint Center for Aerospace Technology Innovation under the authority of the UW and WSU to offer all levels of programs to advance research on new technologies that might result in innovative products for the aerospace industry. The bill calls for the enhancement of the engineering departments at UW and WSU – and any other institutions that want to participate in industry-focused research. The center would seek additional private, federal and non-profit grant support and would sponsor at least one annual symposium on aerospace research in Washington. An advisory board composed of five institutional and industry representatives would be appointed by the governor.

5.    HB 2156/SB 5976 – Creates a Center for Aerospace and Advanced Materials Manufacturing under the authority of the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) with responsibility for data collection and analysis. The Center would be required to conduct skill gap analysis with EDRC. An advisory committee composed mostly of industry representatives would be developed.  The Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board (WTECB) would be required to evaluate programs annually, including employment outcome analysis. The WTECB also would evaluate, every four years, the Center’s net outcomes and cost benefit.

6.    HB 2170 – Creates a Career Pathways Act to build and reinforce awareness among middle and high school students and their parents about the availability of postsecondary pathways to non-baccalaureate career opportunities and about the remuneration and job opportunities available in those career pathways.

The act would require that materials and communications used by state education agencies include information about multiple career pathways and emphasize the value of each pathway, including employment prospects and earnings.  

The Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board (WTECB) would be required to identify and publicize online tools that students and parents could use to explore multiple career pathways, as well as to create an annual list of promising careers.

The act also would establish Career Exploration Partnership Zones to increase connections and access to internship, employment, and training opportunities and facilitate information exchange among schools, businesses, labor communities, apprenticeship councils and higher education.

7.    HB 2265 – Creates Washington Works to provide a reward system for improvements in completions at all levels of education with a particular focus on improvement in specific high demand occupations.  

The bill lists occupations with critical skill shortages as aerospace, biology and biomedical sciences, computer and information sciences, engineering and engineering technologies, health professions and clinical sciences, mathematics and statistics, and physical sciences and science technologies. It stipulates this list should be revised annually to include areas of additional shortage.

Success would be measured by assigning points to each educational entity for increasing student success, numbers of graduates, and numbers of graduates from disadvantaged populations.   Institutions meeting or exceeding numeric goals would be eligible for rewards from a Washington Works fund established to promote improvement.

State Work Study provides students career skills, experience

State Work Study, a program that enables students at 55 public and independent institutions in Washington to earn part of the cost of their education, faces suspension in the Governor’s proposed 2012-13 supplemental budget, although it appears to have escaped the initial round of cuts being proposed by the House and Senate during the current special session.

Just a few years ago, before it was reduced by two-thirds, the program served nearly 9,500 students. Now it is projected to serve 3,500, many of whom report they won’t be able to stay in school if the remaining program funding is cut, said Rachelle Sharpe, director of student financial assistance at the HECB in testimony before the House Higher Education Committee on Monday.

Sharpe highlighted key facts about the program, emphasizing its role helping students nearing graduation gain critical skills, experience and employment opportunities while increasing the productivity and profitability of state businesses.

As an example of how the program benefits both students and employers, Sharpe cited the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute focused on curing infectious diseases, which has hired 200 work study students over the last decade. Fifteen of those student employees continue to work for the company as permanent employees after graduation, and the firm continues to praise students’ contributions to its progress. 

About 2,000 employers statewide participate, paying a percentage of the students’ wages as well as all benefits costs. Washington recently increased the amount employers must contribute to the program in an effort to offset funding reductions to needy students. Off-campus, for-profit employers now must pay 60 percent of student wages, on-campus employers pay 40 percent of wages, and off-campus non-profits as well as STEM employers pay 30 percent.   

Sharpe indicated that two rounds of increased match rates since 2009-10 have been challenging for employers in terms of maintaining previous levels of program participation. The state program pays a somewhat higher wage rate than the separate federal work study program, which also is available to participating institutions. Both programs provide institutions significant flexibility in making individual awards.

State Work Study program funds are used, in many instances, to assist upper-level or graduate students who are progressing toward or nearing completion of degrees. Federal work study funds, on the other hand, are often used by institutions to assist students in their first year or two, Sharpe said.  

State Work Study funding for 2010-11 totaled $20.6 million for 7,500 students. Of this, $14.3 million was state support and $6.3 million was employer support. In 2011-12, 3,500 students are slated to receive a total of $11 million – of which $3 million is employer contribution.

Sharpe said SWS funding is distributed mostly to full-time students, who are limited to 19 hours of work per week. Research has correlated part-time work with increased levels of student success, she said, as long as student workloads remain between 15 and 19 hours per week. 

Two Evergreen State College students who participate in the State Work Study program testified at the hearing. One, Cory Frye, said he enjoyed working hard in a business embedded in the community that is doing good work. The other, Emily McKown, said she would not be able to go to college without the program.

“It’s a good program,” McKown said. “It furthers my career experience, and having a couple of days a week with hands-on work helps me understand and have time to work through ideas presented in the classroom.”

Legislature moving on proposal to whittle down some of budget shortfall

The House Ways & Means Committee this morning recommended passage of an “early-action” supplemental budget measure that would make nearly $480 million in spending cuts and other adjustments as a first step toward closing a projected $1.4 billion revenue shortfall for the remainder of the 2011-13 biennium.

PSHB 2058 and the Senate version, PSSB 5883, include no additional cuts to higher education for now. However, significant reductions are likely to be on the table when the Legislature convenes in January for its regular 2012 session.  That’s when legislators will attempt to finish work on resolving the state’s latest budget crisis.

Today’s House committee action, and a Senate committee vote that could come this afternoon, move the Legislature a step closer to adjournment, possibly this week.  Gov. Gregoire called the Legislature into special session to address the budget after revenue forecasts projected the state would fall well short of revenue assumptions contained in the biennial budget passed earlier this year.

A supplemental budget plan offered by the Governor would cut $2 billion in state spending over the balance of the biennium, including $160 million in support for the state’s public colleges and universities.

The proposal also would suspend the State Work Study program in 2012, saving about $8 million.  Under that proposal, approximately 3,500 low-and middle-income college students would lose money they earn working to help pay college expenses.

The Governor also has proposed a temporary sales tax increase to buy back cuts to higher education institutions and other key programs.

Differences over how to deal with the bulk of the budget shortfall apparently mean the Legislature will be unable to complete the work during the special session. 

One bright spot in the House and Senate budget bills is a provision to add
$1 million for the Aerospace Loan Program. The program was established by the Legislature and Governor earlier this year to provide low-interest loans to students studying aerospace production at two training centers in Everett and Spokane.  The HECB administers the loan program.