Kennebec Journal, June 21, 2002

'It's time' for community college system

President of technical college network says $18.8M needed to herald new era of education

By DAN McGILLVRAY Staff Writer

AUGUSTA — Creating a community college system in Maine will cost $18.8 million over seven years and generate greater opportunities for students pursuing associate's and bachelor's degrees, the leading supporter of the proposal said Thursday.

"Clearly, when you take a look at Maine, what you see is a lack of community colleges," said John Fitzsimmons, president of the Maine Technical College System.

John Fitzsimmons, president of the Maine Technical College System, supports recasting Maine's technical colleges as community colleges, a move he said would bring the state closer to the systems of 45 other states.

The incoming governor and Legislature early next year are expected to debate whether Maine should enter the community college arena, a system of higher education already embraced by 45 states. Community colleges are two-year schools that offer transfer programs to universities along with career training programs.

Fitzsimmons on Thursday pitched his plan to transform the technical college system into a series of community colleges to Kennebec Journal editors.

School names would change. For instance, Kennebec Valley Technical College in Fairfield would likely be called Kennebec Valley Community College. The six other schools in the network also would get new names.

The technical college system this year enrolled about 6,400 students. Fitzsimmons said the community colleges would educate from 10,000 to 11,000 students each year with no additional space necessary.

But the schools will need to undergo renovations, and additional faculty members must be hired over a seven-year phase-in period.

"Our hope is that for the incoming governor, this will be his priority. It's a governor's initiative we want. It's time for Maine to have a true community college system," Fitzsimmons said. If the new governor is unsupportive, proponents will target legislators for support.

Nearly all of the gubernatorial candidates have expressed some level of support for the proposal.

Initially, $6.3 million will be needed to get the community college system going. The remaining $12.5 million will be required from the Legislature in subsequent years.

Even with Maine mired in a revenue crisis, Fitzsimmons said he is optimistic that funds can be secured. The amount that will be requested is a small portion of the overall two-year state budget of about $3 billion, he said.

Separately, the system will seek from $15 million to $20 million in long-term bonds to update and renovate classrooms at the seven colleges. That referendum is expected to appear on the November 2003 ballot.

The initiative to establish a community college system in Maine started to take shape in 1998 when the technical college system and the University of Maine System formed the Community College Partnership of Maine. The following year, the technical colleges awarded associate's degrees for the first time.

This spring, 1,439 technical college graduates were enrolled in Maine's universities.

Fitzsimmons said the community college plan has broad-based support, but could face opposition from some faculty members and legislators who believe the primary role of technical colleges is to prepare students for jobs after two years.

If the current system is converted to a community college network, Fitzsimmons said occupational courses — those designed to get students into trades and technology careers —will remain an important component of the schools.

"Some of the older community colleges (in other states) started out with associate's degree programs and now they're going to occupations," he said.

Fitzsimmons on Thursday shrugged off a suggestion that community colleges in Maine could hurt freshman and sophomore enrollments within the University of Maine System. Instead, the community colleges would attempt to attract high school students who might otherwise never consider courses in higher education, he said.

Approximately 55 percent of Maine high school graduates this year will enter college. With a community college system in place, Fitzsimmons wants to increase that number significantly.

"To go from 55 to 75 percent, that's only 2,300 more students, and to go to what would be the best percentage in the nation, that would be 2,900 more students," he explained.

If the community college network takes shape, Fitzsimmons said additional advisors will be hired to assist students with their career choices and possible transfers to four-year universities.

Fitzsimmons said the state's existing floor space in the technical colleges will be adequate to accommodate an increase of 4,000 students through day, night, weekend and summer programs. But at the end of seven years, the schools should be at capacity, he said.

This year's budget for the technical college system is about $41.4 million. Fitzsimmons said he supports keeping the system's tuition at $68 per credit-hour for as long as possible.