| For Release: IMMEDIATE | Contact: Public Affairs |
| Date: February 11, 2000 |
Community Colleges and UNC System to Develop New Bond Proposal
RALEIGH –
When the North Carolina General Assembly returns for its budget session, a major issue before them will be higher education facility needs. The North Carolina Community College System is working with the University of North Carolina to develop a bond proposal to present to the General Assembly that would address critical needs for both educational systems. The North Carolina Citizens for Business and Industry (NCCBI) encouraged this partnership to develop a strategy for short-term and long-term capital funding needs."We appreciate the leadership of NCCBI taking such a direct interest in the future of community colleges," says NCCCS President H. Martin Lancaster. "The business community has been a valuable supporter of the mission of our institutions. This latest initiative is necessary to focus on existing facility needs and to deal with the anticipated enrollment explosion in our system."
Latest projections estimate that by 2008, curriculum student enrollment will grow by 43,000 at North Carolina’s community colleges. That figure does not include the very large number of students who take short-term training through occupational extension courses.
"Resources are already strained at many of our campuses," says Lancaster. "Students attend overcrowded classes in dilapidated classrooms and labs. We desperately need additional funding to continue to provide the quality educational services our students deserve. We look forward to working with the University to create a proposal that will prove favorable before the General Assembly."
Durham Technical Community College President Phail Wynn, who is also president of the North Carolina Association of Community College Presidents, is on the team that will devise the funding proposal. "We appreciate the invaluable and ongoing support that NCCBI has provided to the Community College System," says Wynn. "We look forward to working with our UNC System colleagues in developing a collaborative strategy for addressing the critical facilities needs faced by public higher education institutions in North Carolina."
"The last session of the General Assembly was very productive for community colleges," adds Lancaster. "We hope this budget session provides the additional resources so critical to the success of our institutions."
The North Carolina Community College System, with more than 747,000 students, is the third largest community college system in the United States. The System is the state's primary agency for delivery of job training, literacy and adult education programs.
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