Minutes of the Community Colleges Committee of the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York September 12, 2012 Pursuant to a notice of meeting duly given on August 16, 2012, the Community Colleges Committee of the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York held a meeting on September 12, 2012 at 8:00 a.m. at SUNY Global Center, New York, New York. Committee Members Present: Trustee Tina Good, Chair Trustee Dullea Trustee O’Brien Trustee Murad Trustee Rhea Trustee Spielvogel Others Present: Senior Vice Chancellor Duncan-Poitier, Committee Liaison Chairman McCall, Trustee Lewin, President Wood, President Brown, Mr. Mathis, Provost Lavalle, Mr. Hutzley, Ms. Bulluck, Mr. Quaintance, Ms. Lansing, Dr. Kesper, Ms. Brabham, Mr. Banister, Ms. Gilman and Mr. Anker Chairwoman Good convened the meeting at 8:00 a.m. Remarks of the Chair As part of her opening remarks, Chairwoman Good spoke about the new committee and the importance of its formation. Chairwoman Good emphasized that community colleges have become a part of the national agenda and, from a New York State perspective; they provide students critical open access to higher educational opportunities. Chairwoman Good turned to Chairman McCall for welcoming remarks. Chairman McCall indicated that given the size of this sector, one of the main reasons for the Board of Trustees establishing the new Committee College Committee is for the leadership of this sector to have an effective channel of communication to the Board of Trustees. It is a Committee where community college representatives will have an opportunity to participate and be a part of plans affecting community colleges. Chairwoman Good thanked Chairman McCall for his remarks and indicated that this first meeting would focus primarily on the community college chargebacks issue. A profile of community colleges and the Committee’s 2012-2013 planning calendar would be taken up at the December Committee meeting. Approval of Committee Charge and Purpose Chairwoman Good brought to the Committee’s attention that a Committee charge and purpose had been developed and asked for Committee approval. * Upon motion of Trustee Rhea and second by Trustee Murad, the Committee voted unanimously to approve the Committee charge and purpose. Report of the Senior Vice Chancellor Chairwoman Good turned to Senior Vice Chancellor Duncan-Poitier to lead the discussion on Community College chargebacks. Johanna Duncan-Poitier began the presentation by defining chargebacks: chargebacks are the “charges for the non-resident student portion of the ‘local share’ of the community college funding structure which are ‘charged back’ to the student’s county of residence.” The Senior Vice Chancellor continued the discussion with a quick profile of community colleges and how important this source of funding, totaling $102 million dollars in 2010-11, is to the community college sector. Quick highlights of the sector included: the number of community colleges (30), student enrollment (over 264,000 students), number of employees (27,000), number of degrees granted to date (1.1 million), annual net operating costs ($1.7 billion), total chargebacks costs and the fact that community colleges locally governed. The Senior Vice Chancellor asked Wendy Gilman, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Budget Planning and Analysis, to share additional information on the community college chargebacks report and the issue before the Board. Information was provided regarding: the statutory basis for the chargeback rate calculation; how the chargeback rate is calculated for a local sponsor’s contribution; how the chargeback rate is calculated for regional community colleges; and examples were provided of chargeback calculations for a local community college (Adirondack Community College) and a regional community college (Corning Community College) In addition, the presentation included a discussion of the similarities and differences between the funding of community colleges and State operated campuses. The Legislature has asked SUNY and CUNY to provide a report reviewing community college funding for non-resident students, including chargebacks of operating costs to the students’ county of residence and to recommend potential changes in associated law, regulation and policies. The Report was due to the Legislature on September 1; however, SUNY and CUNY were given a time extension until after both Boards of Trustees’ September meetings. The Senior Vice Chancellor pointed out that a large part the chargeback issue is related to the unique situation at Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). FIT, a SUNY community college, also offers upper division and graduate programs which, under current statute, are eligible for chargebacks. These costs amount to approximately $11.2 million. A main issue is the State statutory obligation regarding FIT funding. President Joyce Brown was also in attendance to provide additional information on the impact this situation is having on the college. Trustee Dullea recommended that the report include an endorsement by the Committee that the funding of community colleges is vital to the NYS’s educational system with the following wording: “The responsibility of local government to support the work of community colleges throughout the state has been a fundamental characteristic of New York State’s public higher education system since 1955. It has worked well, affording students the opportunity to attend the community college of their choice whether or not their county of residence offers a community college program.“ Committee Resolutions on the Chargebacks Report Chair Good indicated that the resolution before the Committee was to authorize the Chancellor to make further changes, as appropriate, to the draft report and submit it to the Legislature. * Upon motion of Trustee Rhea and second by Trustee Murad, the Committee voted unanimously to approve authorizing the Chancellor to make further changes to the report, as appropriate, and submit it to the Legislature. The Committee amended the resolution to provide that should substantial changes be made in the final report that they have the opportunity to review the report. * Upon motion of Trustee Murad and second by Trustee Rhea, the Committee voted unanimously that if substantial changes are to the draft report, as determined by the Chancellor, the Committee would be given the opportunity to review the revised report before being submitted to the Legislature. Remarks by President Wood and Trustee Mathis Since this was first meeting of the Community Colleges Committee, two key community college leaders were invited to address the Committee: Dr. Cliff Wood, President of Rockland Community College and President of the New York Community Colleges Association of Presidents; and Mr. David Mathis, Mohawk Valley Community College Trustee and Chair of the New York Community College Trustees. President Wood made the following points – there have been good conversations between the SUNY and CUNY community college presidents; community college support needs to come closer to the legislated one-third State contribution, one-third student contribution, and one-third local sponsor contribution in community college support; counties are in different places regarding their share in community college support; and community colleges need to focus more on advanced manufacturing and workforce development to help their students and their communities. Mr. Mathis thanked Chairman McCall and the SUNY Board of Trustees for establishing the Community Colleges Committee. He emphasized that chargebacks is an important issue for local community college trustees and training is essential to educate new trustees, in particular, about the issue. Motion to Adjourn Chair Good requested a motion to adjourn. * Upon motion of Trustee Murad and second by Trustee Murad, the Committee voted unanimously to adjourn at approximately 9:30 a.m. 1 | Page