FVCC braces for state cutbacks

Montana’s community colleges are grappling with the possibility of losing several million dollars as lawmakers work to balance the state budget. Since Flathead Valley Community College is the largest school in the mix, the college could experience as much as a $2 million hit over two years.

If current funding formula proposals survive through the Legislature, FVCC, Miles Community College and Dawson Community College would experience a roughly $3 million total deduction in state dollars.

“We understand the state has a lot of constraints this year — we want to be part of the solution,” said FVCC President Jane Karas. “We just hope that when the dust settles at the end of the session, we don’t have the drastic cuts that we’re seeing right now.”

The state House Appropriations Committee is scheduled to hear suggestions from the Joint Appropriations Subcommittee on Education today at 3 p.m. to discuss those cuts.

Karas said if the college absorbed the proposed cuts through student costs alone, it would mean a 23-percent tuition fee hike by this fall.

She said instead of relying on tuition to carry the hit, she is looking at ways to reduce college expenses. That may mean fewer program choices for students or cutting the number of classes by offering a course every other semester or year instead of consecutively.

“Our goal is to have the least impact on access for students,” she said. “... As president, my job will be to sit down and go through the budget item by item.”

THE STATE’S three community colleges had more than 2,000 full-time-equivalent students last year.

While together the schools have seen more than a 10-percent decrease in enrollment over the last decade, FVCC has seen a jump by nearly 8 percent since 2006, according to the Montana University System.

Karas said while a large portion of the state funding formula is shaped around full-time students, more than 62 percent of FVCC students in 2016 were part-time.

“And that’s the case at most community colleges,” she said.

In recent years, state funding has made anywhere between 35 to 45 percent of the college’s budget, Karas said.

The community college funding formula is based on each school’s number of full-time students, the cost of education per student and a baseline budget from a previous year.

Those numbers form the total cost of education and in recent years, the Legislature has agreed to pick up 50.8 percent of that tab.

Over the 2016 and 2017 fiscal years, that translated to more than $17 million, according to the Office of the Commissioner for Higher Education.

During that time, Dawson Community College received roughly $3.5 million and Miles Community College saw about $4.8 million.

When Gov. Steve Bullock released his 2019 biennium budget proposal last November, his formula changes sought to reduce state spending on community colleges by roughly $1.7 million over the biennium.

When the budget went before the Legislature, the Joint Subcommittee on Education proposed another roughly $1.3 million less in funding for community colleges.

Karas said even before lawmakers proposed the cuts, FVCC prioritized being a “lean operation.”

As she sat in her office Monday afternoon, Karas pointed to lights in the ceiling without light bulbs. She said the college replaced most ceiling lights with either cost-effective bulbs or removed the bulbs years ago.

“Anything to save money,” she said.

DURING A February hearing, Rep. Frank Garner, R-Kalispell told the subcommittee that as a police officer, he was able to finish his degree at FVCC while raising his family in the Flathead.

“Please consider … how important it is to us who are raised in those communities to be able to stay there, be productive members and finish our education and improve professionally,” Garner said.

During the hearing, Karas asked lawmakers to use the current formula this biennium.

She said the formula is due for review in the interim to determine if it’s still a valid way to fund colleges.

“I know it’s unlikely we’ll get the whole formula,” she said. “But I’m hoping there’s some understanding of the fact that we are also providing services to Montanans … we certainly want to provide the quality education we’re known for.”

To listen to the House Appropriations online, visit http://leg.mt.gov/css/default.asp

Reporter Katheryn Houghton may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at khoughton@dailyinterlake.com.