Free community college proposal praised in Iowa

A national movement nearly a century ago made high school widely available to America's youth, and a push is on to do the same in the higher education realm.

Federal lawmakers on Wednesday unveiled a proposal to make good on President Barack Obama's vow earlier this year to provide two years of free community college for eligible students, easing their transition to a four-year degree or getting them into the workforce at no cost.

America's College Promise Act of 2015, as proposed, would provide a federal match of $3 for every $1 invested by the state to waive community college tuition and fees for eligible students. States could choose to opt in or out, but Iowa community college officials believe the opportunity is unique and invaluable and they're hopeful the state gets on board should the proposal pass.

'I think it would be a mistake not to take advantage of the opportunity,” said Bill Lamb, vice president of academic affairs for Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids. 'If the federal government is going to pay three-quarters of it, and the state can pick it up, we can get more people into careers that are better paying and more sustainable over time, and that is going to be a positive for Iowa.”

Under the act, a full-time community college student could save an average of $3,800 in tuition a year. And, if all states participate, about 9 million students could benefit - maybe more, according to U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan.

'I'm hopeful those numbers are low and could be significantly higher,” he said.

Duncan stressed the importance of ensuring everyone has 'skin in the game” and said the proposed measure would do that by requiring community colleges strengthen their programs and increase the number of students who graduate; requiring states to invest more; and requiring students to earn good grades and stay on track.

'The only folks who seem to have skin in the game now are taxpayers and students and parents themselves,” Duncan said, adding that states would have the right to opt out of the program. 'But that doesn't make any sense to me. There would be tremendous pushback.”

Because the program does require financial commitment at the federal and state level, however, some Iowa experts say the bill's passage and local participation are not assured.

'That has the potential to hold it back,” Lamb said.

Budgeting principals and tight resources, for example, prompted Gov. Terry Branstad last week to wrap up the Legislative session by vetoing several budget line items - including $2.5 million in one-time moneys for community colleges.

Lamb said that was a 'significant” loss for Kirkwood of about $400,000.

'For us to operate, that $400,000 has to come from somewhere,” he said. 'So we will be cutting back on programs we offer that are more expensive or trying to find alternative funding sources.”

Lamb said an opportunity like the one proposed Wednesday doesn't come around every day, and fiscally-conservative lawmakers should look to some early adopters of similar programs - like Tennessee and Chicago - to gauge the potential for return on investment.

'It really does work to get people into good-paying jobs,” Lamb said. 'If you can get people faster into a career, they are going to be productive taxpaying citizens. And, to me, that is a real positive and an investment in our future.”

Kirkwood has researched outcomes related to student scholarships and found recipients are more likely to complete their degrees than those without the aid.

'You have this money, and it's dependent upon making good grades,” he said. 'That's a motivator.”

Mark Warner, assistant provost and director of financial aid for the University of Iowa, said he sees the proposal as a 'win-win” for everyone - as it expands access for students, supports the community college mission, and increases the pool of students in the pipeline for bachelor's degrees.

But he too has concerns about the financial requirements and the hurdles they pose for implementation.

'The partnership thing here could be a challenge,” Warner said. 'We have seen diminishing appropriations for higher education, and that includes community colleges. This comes at a time when I'm not sure there is state money available to invest in a partnership program like this.”

Rob Denson, president of Des Moines Area Community College, said he thinks the proposal is an exceptional opportunity to grow the state's skilled workforce and increase its taxpayer base, and that should be more than enough justification for any upfront cost.

'Any time we provide funding for more people to access training and information, the number of people in the pipeline goes up and the jobs increase,” he said.

Denson expressed some concern about tying graduation rates and other performance metrics to the program.

'Graduation rate is always difficult because of the life issues we have,” he said.

Many community college students are non-traditional, working one or multiple jobs, single parents, or simply don't have strong support systems, Denson said.

'We are not going to have beautiful or high graduation rates,” he said. 'But all who do graduate should be worth 10 points. Those are home runs in a very hard ballgame.”

Despite recent fiscal moves, Denson said, he believes Iowa is a pro-education state with a pro-education governor, and he's hopeful it would take advantage of any program that passes.

'I have faith in Iowa's leadership to give this a fair go,” he said.