LCC Board of Education passes resolution in support of legislative priorities

EUGENE, Ore. — The Lane Community College Board of Education passed a resolution in support of the Oregon Community College Association’s (OCCA) legislative priorities at its meeting on Wednesday, March 1, 2023. The resolution, numbered 678, highlights the critical role that community colleges play in providing education and training to students of all backgrounds and skill levels.

OCCA represents the state’s 17 publicly chartered community colleges and their locally elected board members. The priorities identified for the 2023 Legislative Session include:

• $855 million in ongoing funding and $50 million in one-time funding for the Community College Support Fund. While colleges would need a roughly 44 percent increase to fully maintain current services and capacity, the state’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC) recommendation ($855 million plus $50 million in one-time funding) provides a funding base from which colleges can continue to meet their students’ and communities’ changing needs. However, at the HECC-recommended funding level, many colleges will still be making program reductions that are reflective of reduced enrollment and tuition revenue as well higher-than-usual inflationary cost increases.
• A minimum increase of $200 million for the Oregon Opportunity Grant program, Oregon’s primary source of state need-based financial aid for college students. Oregon’s two financial aid programs, the Oregon Opportunity Grant (OOG) and Oregon Promise, delivered $657 per full-time student in 2020, which is below the U.S. average of $830, and less than half of the $1,489 provided in Washington state.
• Legislation clarifying that community colleges may offer Bachelor of Science in Nursing degrees. The legislature granted community college the authority to award Applied Baccalaureate degrees in 2019, however the HECC needs additional statutory language to clarify that the agency may approve a Bachelor of Science in Nursing for community colleges. The colleges would otherwise have to title the degree as an Applied Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Because the nursing industry does not recognize that degree title, students with such degrees would be at a significant disadvantage making the degree much less valuable.

"We are proud to support the Oregon Community College Association's legislative priorities," said Lane Community College Board Chair, Rosie Pryor. "Community colleges are uniquely positioned to serve all students, regardless of their education and skill level, and to provide the training and education necessary for students and local businesses to thrive. The priorities outlined by OCCA will ensure that community colleges continue to fulfill their vital role in our communities."

LCC President Stephanie Bulger, Board Chair Pryor and members of the LCC Board of Education will travel to Salem next week for OCCA’s annual Legislative Summit.  The delegation will use the two-day event to meet with local legislators to advocate for community college priorities.