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Underfunding College Opportunity Constricts Jobs and New Jersey’s Economy
Because of the ailing economy and state revenue shortfalls, New Jersey has cut funding for higher education half a dozen times over the past decade, dropping appropriations to state colleges back to funding ten years ago. Association officials say that more cuts to higher education will constrict the number of graduates that state colleges can supply to the New Jersey business and nonprofit professional workforce.
New Jersey ranks near the bottom among the 50 states, on state spending for higher education, according to analyses conducted by Illinois State University Center for the Study of Education Policy. Higher education spending per capita, 34th; higher education spending as a percentage of general spending, 36th; and higher education spending per $1,000 personal income, 44th.
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The Association Today Outlined Steps That Can Be Taken to Help Keep College Affordable
November 23, 2009
The Association, today, outlined steps that can be taken, with the help of new leadership in Trenton, to help keep college affordable and institutions running at peak efficiency during a period of very high demand and very limited state resources.
- The state can free up the colleges from unproductive regulation to innovate and to help improve productivity. State colleges face burdensome regulations and millions of dollars in unfunded state mandates that tie their hands in contracting, purchasing, construction, personnel management and that drain time, energy and money that can be used to improve service and accountability. The more that can be done to free up the colleges to be directly accountable, and without being choked by Trenton's red tape, the greater will be the benefit to students, public service and transparency.
- The colleges and universities can continue to use their freedom to improve productivity, keep costs in check to preserve college affordability, and build new programs prudently to serve the state. The institutions can continue eliminating unproductive programs, recruit the best faculty and staff, raise private monies to support student financial aid and new technology, and continue to improve as national models for excellence, accountability and ethical best practices.
- The state should fund state-mandated costs such as labor contracts it negotiates, or eliminate such unfunded mandates. The state should follow the state mandate-state pay principles it follows for local government. Where the law requires that free service be extended to certain citizens, the state should simply reimburse the institutions in full for these costs.
- The state and its universities can create, immediately, a blue-ribbon study panel to examine the infrastructure needs of the state's public colleges and how these needs could be met through innovative funding approaches.
NJ Losing Out on $6B a Year When College Students Flee State
NJ.Com - October 30, 2009 (Mark DiIonno)
When it comes to K-12 education, New Jersey is usually A-1. The state is the nation's yearly valedictorian, or salutatorian. Certainly never less than fifth in the class.
So why then is New jersey at the bottom of so many higher education categories: 50th in per capita funding; 47th in college capacity, and therefore, worst, by far, at keeping students in-state.
In this economy, more and more New Jersey students want to stay home. At the state's 19 community colleges enrollment is up 12 percent, nearing 100,000 for the first time. The nine state colleges (not including Rutgers), are also tipping near 100,000, up 20 percent in the last decade.
Yet in real dollars, the state spends less on higher education than it did 20 years ago. That's one bottom line.
Here's another. About 35,000 kids leave New Jersey each year to go to college and take about $6 billion with them.
"When you factor in tuition, transportation and all other student spending, there is significant revenue leaving the state," said Paul Shelly of the New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities. "My calculations put it at $6 billion."
Shelly says the money isn't going far, either. Most New Jersey students stay in the Mid-Atlantic or New England.
"New Jersey does [not want] much research as to where the students are going. I don't think they want to admit our money is being exported just over to Lehigh Valley or down in Delaware.
"Studies show a very high percentage of students get their first jobs in the state where they attend college," Shelly said. "I don't think New Jersey can continue to lose our bright students, the very students we create."
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Association: Investment in Higher Education Needed to Make NJ a Better Place to Do Business
September 24, 2009
New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities released this statement today:
"With New Jersey's recently reported low rankings as a place to do business (e.g., 45th in a recent Forbes special report), the State needs to ensure that it has an educated workforce and it can ill afford to slice funding for higher education next year (Fiscal 2010-2011).
An example of an initiative that does all three is economic stimulus legislation recently signed by the Governor that, among other things, frees state colleges and universities, for a limited time, from strict contracting laws and gives them the option to contract with private developers to build facilities on campuses including dorms, dining halls and business research and support programs.
New Enrollment Heights Reached at State Colleges
September 22, 2009
Approximately 100,000 students are now enrolled at New Jersey's nine state colleges and universities for the fall semester, a new record that is over 2,000 more students than last year. These institutions are: The College of New Jersey, Kean University, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University, Ramapo College of New Jersey, Richard Stockton College, Rowan University, Thomas Edison and William Paterson University.
These four-year public colleges and universities are grappling with unprecedented demand especially among full-time, residential students and new students who are military veterans seeking the benefits of the new, Post 9/11 G.I. Bill.
There is evidence that, given the economy and the schools' increasing prestige, many are New Jersey residents reconsidering more costly out-of-state institutions and choosing to attend one or more of the nine. The schools, by various measures including SAT score sending decisions and college guide rankings are increasingly popular.
With about 2,000 additional beds on line, the eight traditional institutions now offer housing to about 21,000 students; by far, the most ever.
The New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities estimates that the colleges received about 60,000 applications (representing about 25,000 individual students) for the full-time freshman class at the eight traditional institutions, where there are only about 11,000 slots.
NJ Losing Out on $6B a Year When College Students Flee State
NJ.Com - October 30, 2009 (Mark DiIonno)
When it comes to K-12 education, New Jersey is usually A-1. The state is the nation's yearly valedictorian, or salutatorian. Certainly never less than fifth in the class.
So why then is New Jersey at the bottom of so many higher education categories: 50th in per capita funding; 47th in college capacity, and therefore, worst, by far, at keeping students in-state.
In this economy, more and more New Jersey students want to stay home. At the state's 19 community colleges enrollment is up 12 percent, nearing 100,000 for the first time. The nine state colleges (not including Rutgers), are also tipping near 100,000, up 20 percent in the last decade.
Yet in real dollars, the state spends less on higher education than it did 20 years ago. That's one bottom line.
Here's another. About 35,000 kids leave New Jersey each year to go to college and take about $6 billion with them.
"When you factor in tuition, transportation and all other student spending, there is significant revenue leaving the state," said Paul Shelly of the New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities. "My calculations put it at $6 billion."
Shelly says the money isn't going far, either. Most New Jersey students stay in the Mid-Atlantic or New England.
"New Jersey does [not do] much research as to where the students are going. I don't think they want to admit our money is being exported just over to Lehigh Valley or down in Delaware."
"Studies show a very high percentage of students get their first jobs in the state where they attend college," Shelly said. "I don't think New Jersey can continue to lose our bright students, the very students we create."
New Enrollment Heights Reached at State Colleges
September 22, 2009
Approximately 100,000 students are now enrolled at New Jersey's nine state colleges and universities for the fall semester, a new record that is over 2,000 more students than last year. These institutions are: The College of New Jersey, Kean University, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University, Ramapo College of New Jersey, Richard Stockton College, Rowan University, Thomas Edison and William Paterson University.
These four-year public colleges and universities are grappling with unprecedented demand especially among full-time, residential students and new students who are military veterans seeking the benefits of the new, Post 9/11 G.I. Bill.
There is evidence that, given the economy and the schools' increasing prestige, many are New Jersey residents reconsidering more costly out-of-state institutions and choosing to attend one or more of the nine. The schools, by various measures including SAT score sending decisions and college guide rankings are increasingly popular.
With about 2,000 additional beds on line, the eight traditional institutions now offer housing to about 21,000 students; by far, the most ever.
The New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities estimates that the colleges received about 60,000 applications (representing about 25,000 individual students) for the full-time freshman class at the eight traditional institutions, where there are only about 11,000 slots.