Hartford Business Journal

www.HartfordBusiness.com • March 25, 2019 • Hartford Business Journal 15 cut's Roberta Willis Scholar- ship, a need- and merit-based program that doled out $9.4 million to two-year students this school year. Pell and other aid cover all tuition and fees for about 22,000 community college students here (though the average student must still pay thousands of dollars more for housing and other necessities). Free-college advocates argue that using more state dollars to help cover tuition and fees for a greater number of students could boost the number of skilled workers unleashed into an economy that increasingly needs them. The state Department of Labor estimated last year that 56 percent of Connecti- cut's job growth through 2026 will be in positions that require more education than a high school diploma. Of that estimate, 13 per- cent will require "middle- skills" education, like an associate degree from a community college or other post-high school training. Connecticut proposals A handful of bills have emerged this legislative session that would take aim in varying ways at the financial burdens of higher education. One would provide tax incentives to employers that help employees repay student loans, another would allow graduates to make a down payment on a house using a portion of their state income tax liability, while a third calls for an amendment to the state con- stitution to specify that Connecticut residents are entitled to two free years of higher education. Meanwhile, a proposal that has advanced out of the higher-ed commit- tee this month, would see Connecti- cut take a similar approach to Rhode Island: Steer an additional pot of money to middle class community-college students who currently may have their tuition and fees only partially subsidized, or not at all. However, Senate Bill 273 envisions strict eligibility rules, which could curtail the number of students who'd be able to tap the aid. For example, only recent high- school graduates who enroll full time could participate. That's significant because two-thirds of the state's 50,000 or so community- college students attend part time, often because they must work to cover living expenses and family obliga- tions during their studies. For students who are able to get into the program, academic performance standards, like maintain- ing a 2.5 GPA, could make it difficult for them to hang onto the aid long enough to complete their degree. There's not yet any official estimate as to how much S.B. 273 would cost, but the Ocean State, which has ap- proximately one-third the number of community-college students as Con- necticut, spent about $3 million for the first year of its similarly structured Rhode Island Promise program. Based on that, and barring other variables that could influence costs, Connecticut could potentially see a $9 million price tag in the first year. In RI, NY, early results are mixed Rhode Island and another state that offers a tuition-free program, New York, have both reported enrollment boosts from their investments, but there's early evidence that eligibility re- strictions and academic requirements have limited how many students those states have been able to help so far. According to data published by the four-campus Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI), full-time enroll- ment of students younger than 20 years old grew by 58 percent in 2017 and 2018, the first two years of the Rhode Island Promise program. A total of 984 students qualified for the program in 2017, and 62 percent of them remained enrolled to start the 2018 school year, according to CCRI. How- ever, news website GoLocal- Prov published an internal CCRI presentation last year that called Rhode Island Promise's 2.5 minimum GPA and full-time course load re- quirements (the same types of restrictions proposed in Connecticut) a "barrier to advancement" for the ma- jority of students. While New York's Excelsi- or Scholarship has boosted enrollment since its 2017 launch, a report last year by the nonprofit Center for an Urban Future found benefit- ing students only make up about 3.2 percent of public university undergraduates in the state, and that nearly two-thirds of students who applied for the scholarship were rejected due to various program restrictions. Uniquely, New York also requires students to reside in the state after college for two or four years. If a stu- dent moves away, the state converts the Excelsior aid to a zero-interest loan. Connecticut's proposed program has no such repay- ment provision. Gennaro DeAngelis, dean of strategic enrollment management at Tunxis Community College, said it's difficult to project how much a free-tuition pro- gram would grow student enrollment. His best guess is a small increase, but it would depend on the design and how well the state markets the program. "Our internal data analysis suggests that tuition discounting has very little impact on students above a certain income threshold," DeAngelis said. Bad timing? Unfortunately for free-college advo- cates, momentum for such a program is ramping up at a time when the CSCU system is ailing financially, with a $57 million deficit projected next year, assuming flat state funding and no tuition increases. (CSCU is already weighing a tuition hike at its four-year schools.) CSCU has seen its state appropriations fall 19 per- cent since 2015, a challenge that's been exacerbated by an accompanying drop in enrollment, further shrink- ing its revenue. Meanwhile, as some push for free tuition, the state Free-college programs Here's a comparison of free-tuition programs in Rhode Island and New York with what is proposed under Connecticut's Senate Bill 273. New York Rhode Island Connecticut Must be state resident? Y Y Y Full-time course load required? Y Y Y Adjusted gross income eligibility cap $125,000 None $150,000 Must enroll Must enroll Enrollment deadline None semester immediately after within two years high school graduation of graduation Pays for student fees? N Y Y GPA requirement Maintain passing grades 2.5 GPA 2.5 GPA Source: HBJ research Continued on next page >> CSCU President Mark Ojakian is grappling with a structural deficit and declining enrollment at the community colleges and universities he oversees. 0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 2018* 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 Fall enrollment Community college fall enrollment * Projected Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS HBJ PHOTO | LOU RUSSO, LOU RUSSO PHOTOGRAPHY

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