H. Martin Lancaster, President
North Carolina Community College System
Keynote Address
Durham Technical Community College
March 10, 2005
Thank you. I am delighted to be with you, although I can imagine that perhaps some of you are wondering whether a lawyer with a background mostly in liberal arts and humanities will find a way to communicate with accomplished mathematicians.
While it is true that I have made my living most of my life primarily with words rather than with numbers, it is also true that I understand the importance of a strong background in mathematics, and I know first-hand that deficiencies in math can limit life choices.
When I was growing up, working in tobacco on my family's farm in Wayne County, I dreamed of being an architect. I knew that NC State had a fine college of architecture and design. Unfortunately, that fine school required calculus of its applicants. My country high school didn't have anything beyond plane geometry, and we didn't have dual enrollment then! So I changed directions and prepared myself for the practice of law and found in that profession my open door into the public service that was my true calling.
Do I regret having given up the dream of designing buildings and houses? No -- because now I am in the business of building lives -- and I cannot imagine a more satisfying place to be. Do I remember how frustrating it was to do well in school but still come up short? Yes, indeed…and I admire more than I can say all of you who work every day to make sure that your students do NOT come up short.
I have been asked to cover three topics with you today: first, what plans are in the works at the System Level that will affect math instructors; second, what's going on in the General Assembly; and third, what you can do to help as individuals and through your association. I realize that the association may have some members outside the communities colleges, and I ask your patience as I cover topics specific to us.
I'll tackle the first two questions together , because until the General Assembly leaves town, dealing with requests for new money is our overwhelming task.
So speaking of numbers -- here are the ones associated with the Expansion Budget. That's the new money we request on top of the state funding that we count on year to year.
The State Board of Community Colleges has identified eleven System-wide expansion budget priorities for this session, divided into three tiers. The top tier has three items, starting with enrollment growth. As you know better than I, our full-time equivalent, or FTE enrollment has increased more than 30% over the last six years due in part to the tremendous pressure to retrain manufacturing workers displaced by drastic changes in the economy and in part due to the rapidly rising costs of university education. Many people think we simply get that growth money for next year automatically based on what we do this year. None of that is true. First, we have to ask for it EVERY time. Second, we have to ask for it BACKWARDS -- that is, next year we get the money for the students you are teaching THIS year. This is the money that pays for instructors, supplies, materials and more, and we need about $15 million more in each of the next two years just to keep up.
Also in the top tier is an item near and dear to the heart of every community college instructor -- faculty salaries. North Carolina's community college faculty salaries have consistently ranked near the bottom nationally and in the southeast. The first step toward improving the ranking and bringing salaries to the national average was taken in the 2004-05 budget. The request for the 05-07 biennium is to continue funding for the second and third year implementation of the Community College Faculty and Professional Staff Salary Plan. These are big numbers -- $27 million in new dollars next year, $54 million the year after. The Governor and the General Assembly have said that they are committed to staying on schedule -- we have to work together to make sure that happens.
The biggest number of all is the accumulated equipment needs across the system-- more than $231 million and counting. to supply the tools for learning and training. Of course we won't get all of that at one time, but we must be able to make a DENT.
The second tier of the expansion budget request consists of about $2.3 million in new dollars in each of the next two years for the System office. Our staff has declined by 80 positions (32%) since 1989. FTE enrollment has increased 40% during that same period, and we simply can't keep providing essential services without more support.
The third tier of the expansion budget request starts with an exceptionally important item…about $16 million per year in new funds for instructional support, which has suffered severe cuts in recent years. Additional personnel are needed on each campus to serve students from recruitment and enrollment, through retention, and to graduation.
We are also requesting about $30 million per year in new funds for economic development programs, including parity funding for continuing education, the small business centers and the customized training services provided to industry.
More than $15 million per year is in the request for new funds for a comprehensive financial aid plan to insure expansion, to replace lost Pell Grant dollars, and to encourage faculty and staff to pursue advanced degrees.
We are requesting our first significant funding for distance learning -$18.6 million the first year, more than $20 million the second. Many of you are probably involved in the growth of distance learning, scaling up 364 percent over the last six years.
The budget includes additional funding of about $4.5 million per year for multi-campus colleges and off-campus centers; $7.1 million per year to fund our exciting BioNetwork program in biotechnology; and $6.5 million as a joint request with the UNC System to fund new and expanded partnerships.
Governor Easley has addressed our top three requests -- enrollment growth, salaries and equipment -- in his budget, plus new money for financial aid and a million dollars for teacher preparation partnerships. We are still working hard to find ways to meet the rest of the needs.
So how does all of this affect all of you? It's probably obvious that better pay, up-to-date equipment and adequate supplies matter to math instructors just as they do to everybody else. I want to call your attention to efforts in which your expertise is particularly important -- with economic development at the top of the list. North Carolina's community colleges are now and have always been mostly about jobs -- attracting them, creating them, preparing people for them.
Under a mandate from the General Assembly, we are joined with the UNC system in a major consultant study of higher education's role in economic transformation - that is, helping our state create the economy of the future. It's certainly no surprise to me that everything we're hearing points to a workplace with much higher requirements for math and science literacy. Just look at the fastest-growing and highest-paid fields;
Biotechnology -- we're already tops in the south, third in the country, with employment expected to quadruple in twenty years. This is a field that demands precision and rigor -- and a very strong math foundation.
Nursing and other allied health fields -- North Carolina has a great combination of world-class medical research facilities, excellent regional hospitals, big pharmaceutical companies and a terrific climate for retirees. Demand for health-care and the nurses and technicians who deliver it is tremendous now and will only grow in the future. Our community colleges prepare a large percentage of these folks. They pass their exams and earn their licenses thanks in part to the great work YOU do in challenging them in class.
What about teacher preparation? The shortage of classroom teachers in public schools is one of the most dramatic workforce issues our state faces today. The latest numbers I've seen show that our state needs between eight and ten thousand new teachers every year. Full up, all of the UNC teacher prep programs together prepare about 3200 teachers, and usually about two-thirds of those actually go into NC classrooms. Our private colleges and universities do contribute some to that total, but it's not nearly enough. As they say, "Do the math." Our state can't bring those demand and supply curves together without drastic changes -- and community colleges are already helping make that change happen.
For more than ten years, many of our colleges have had successful "two-plus-two" programs that bring university degrees to community college campuses, so place-bound adults don't have to drive long distances to earn their credentials. Coastal Carolina and UNC-Wilmington boast one of the earliest and most successful programs; now the Appalachian Learning Alliance, Wachovia Partnership East, Surry's relationship with Lees-McCrae, Pfeiffer's great programs and many others are up and running. Governor Easley's budget calls for a major expansion of these programs, which are also reflected in our joint request with the University,
In general, that means more work for those of you teaching college transfer. I think soon we will also see a strong FOCUS on acute shortages -- including math, science and special education. Last week, I attended a national meeting on community colleges and teacher preparation, and I was most impressed by the focused program from for lateral entry in Virginia. That's coming for North Carolina, and I urge you to stay informed.
Another area of rapid change -- and potential challenge -- is less directly involved with the current budget request but certainly both interesting and important. It's the whole area of high school reform, driven in part by big grants from the Gates Foundation. In North Carolina, community colleges are partners in almost all of the efforts, whether they are called Learn and Earn, Early College High School or Middle College High School, and we continue our work with Huskins Bill, Dual Enrollment and College Tech Prep,. What these programs have in common is delivery of community college courses to high school students -- in the newer programs, often to students identified as "at risk." Several of them also have strong job-skill focus -- health, computers, and other high-tech fields with rigorous math requirements. It's a bit early for me to predict exactly where all this will go -- it's safe to say, however, that YOUR skills as experienced math instructors rank way at the top of the list of essential resources for success!
Which leads me to the last topic -- what can you do to support the system's work on your behalf?
The first thing is -- STAY WITH US! I know that you have chosen to teach in community (and perhaps junior) college because you love the challenge of adult students, working to overcome obstacles. (Or maybe it's for the big bucks, right?) I urge you to keep making that choice, because our system cannot succeed without you.
I also urge you to be active participants in the life of your college and of your association. I know you have almost no time in which to be active, given tremendous teaching loads and the level of involvement community college instructors have with your students. But yours are the voices we need to hear.
I also recommend that you be active in the Faculty Association. The Faculty Association is one of the youngest of our statewide associations, and in its few short years, it has established itself as one of the most effective voices for the community colleges in the General Assembly. I can't begin to measure the value of the Association's persistence, cooperation and flair for the dramatic in FINALLY inspiring the General Assembly to move on faculty salaries.
You should also educate yourself about how budget processes work on your campus. Some campuses use an open, bottoms-up approach to setting priorities; others work top-down through the trustees and the president. Either way, you should know how it works where YOU work and find out how to make your voices heard.
We need you -- all of you -- to help keep North Carolina moving FORWARD during these times of dramatic change. The last few years have been tough on a lot of people, particularly those who thought they could get by on just a little schooling, like their parents and grandparents did. But in community colleges, we are making a difference for them and for their futures.
Thank you. I will be glad to answer your questions.
RETURN TO TOP OF CURRENT PAGE
Last modified: Friday, May 20, 2011 01:56:18 PM
This page maintained by Chancy Kapp.