Proposition 92 - Senseless Funding for Colleges
Among the propositions that California voters will decide this Feb 5, is Proposition 92, community college funding. Do a search on Google fo...
http://www.menifee247.com/2008/01/proposition-92-senseless-funding-for.htm
Among the propositions that California voters will decide this Feb 5, is Proposition 92, community college funding.
Do a search on Google for "proposition 92 college" and you'll find lots of newspaper articles on the subject.
I was hoping Ann Motte would go in depth on this, but I haven't seen much detail from her. She did make a brief mention here, but it might create a conflict of interest for her to go into any detail, seeing that she's a board member for MSJC.
My Opinion
To sum it, Prop 92 seeks to raise funding for community colleges, but it does so in a very complicated way, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.
Prop 92 also does other things that doesn't make much sense to me either.
For one, it will actually require the State's constitution be modified to name "community colleges" as one of California's reasons for existence. In other words, a college education will no longer be our responsibility, it will be the State's. I don't understand why the Constitution needs to be amended. We already have a community college system without a Constitutional amendment.
The other thing to know in all this, is that the State of California limits its spending on public education to 40% of the General Fund. Public education includes K-12 schools, community colleges, and universities. Thus, if Mt San Jacinto College is to receive more State money, it'll have to be taken away from Menifee Union School District.
Remember that last week the Governor called for a 10% reduction on public school spending as a result of the budget shortfall.
Another thing that makes absolutely no sense to me is the formula by which community college funding is based. Instead of being based on how many people are attending community colleges, it'll be based on how many young adults reside in California, whether they attend college or not. So if the population increases (which it always does), community colleges will get more money, even if college attendance goes down. Does that make any sense?
Does this mean community colleges will benefit from having more illegal aliens cross our borders?
Proposition 92 will also require community college tuition to decrease to $15 per unit, from the current $20-$26 per unit. Even at $20-$26 per unit, California's community colleges are the cheapest in the nation. If Prop 92 is trying to raise more money for community colleges, then why lower tuition?
Keep in mind, the decrease in tuition is designed to boost enrollments. But considering that 90% of the per-student cost at community colleges is paid for by taxpayers, any boost in enrollment is going to create a bigger burden on you and I. Community colleges will argue that their education offers the greatest return on taxpayer dollars in terms of helping people find jobs.
But the cost of tuition isn't the problem with California's community colleges. Rather, it's time and complacency. Unskilled adults are either spending their time working unskilled jobs, or they're comfortable living off of their parents.
If young adults have enough money to buy iPods and Venti Frappucinos, then they have enough money for community college. Prop 92 should instead look for ways boost excitement, not money.
College education is the responsibility of each individual, not the State. Prop 92 creates more bureacracy, and does nothing to address complacency among young adults, especially when California's community colleges are already the cheapest in the Union.
I'm voting no on Prop 92.
For further reading...
Do a search on Google for "proposition 92 college" and you'll find lots of newspaper articles on the subject.
I was hoping Ann Motte would go in depth on this, but I haven't seen much detail from her. She did make a brief mention here, but it might create a conflict of interest for her to go into any detail, seeing that she's a board member for MSJC.
My Opinion
To sum it, Prop 92 seeks to raise funding for community colleges, but it does so in a very complicated way, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.
Prop 92 also does other things that doesn't make much sense to me either.
For one, it will actually require the State's constitution be modified to name "community colleges" as one of California's reasons for existence. In other words, a college education will no longer be our responsibility, it will be the State's. I don't understand why the Constitution needs to be amended. We already have a community college system without a Constitutional amendment.
The other thing to know in all this, is that the State of California limits its spending on public education to 40% of the General Fund. Public education includes K-12 schools, community colleges, and universities. Thus, if Mt San Jacinto College is to receive more State money, it'll have to be taken away from Menifee Union School District.
Remember that last week the Governor called for a 10% reduction on public school spending as a result of the budget shortfall.
Another thing that makes absolutely no sense to me is the formula by which community college funding is based. Instead of being based on how many people are attending community colleges, it'll be based on how many young adults reside in California, whether they attend college or not. So if the population increases (which it always does), community colleges will get more money, even if college attendance goes down. Does that make any sense?
Does this mean community colleges will benefit from having more illegal aliens cross our borders?
Proposition 92 will also require community college tuition to decrease to $15 per unit, from the current $20-$26 per unit. Even at $20-$26 per unit, California's community colleges are the cheapest in the nation. If Prop 92 is trying to raise more money for community colleges, then why lower tuition?
Keep in mind, the decrease in tuition is designed to boost enrollments. But considering that 90% of the per-student cost at community colleges is paid for by taxpayers, any boost in enrollment is going to create a bigger burden on you and I. Community colleges will argue that their education offers the greatest return on taxpayer dollars in terms of helping people find jobs.
But the cost of tuition isn't the problem with California's community colleges. Rather, it's time and complacency. Unskilled adults are either spending their time working unskilled jobs, or they're comfortable living off of their parents.
If young adults have enough money to buy iPods and Venti Frappucinos, then they have enough money for community college. Prop 92 should instead look for ways boost excitement, not money.
College education is the responsibility of each individual, not the State. Prop 92 creates more bureacracy, and does nothing to address complacency among young adults, especially when California's community colleges are already the cheapest in the Union.
I'm voting no on Prop 92.
For further reading...
- Sacramento Bee - against Prop 92
- San Francisco Chronicle - favors Prop 92
- California Voter Information Guide - neutral
I agree with your interpretation of Prop 92. Community college funding needs to be tied to actual enrolled FTES served, not population figures. No funding formula should be guaranteed...its just not in the interest of taxpayers. Who would provide their kids an allowance without accountability and automatic increases? No wise parent. Accountability is the missing factor of Prop 92.
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