LBCC, Colleges to ask Legislature for $32 million to Support Student Success

LBCC President Greg Hamann

Linn-Benton Community College is joining the state’s 16 other community college to ask the Oregon Legislature to allocate an additional $32 million to the Community College Support Fund (CCSF) to mitigate tuition increases throughout Oregon and restore funding for student success in the second year of the 2017-2019 biennium.

At the end of the 2017 legislative session, the Joint Ways and Means Committee restored more than $70 million to the Public Universities Support Fund (PUSF) to support student success at universities, and allocated an amount thought to be proportionally the same for community colleges. It appears that the 11th-hour calculation for the two-year schools was off by $32 million. 

That shortfall means approximately $2 million less for LBCC. The funding would have substantial impact on programs to help students more quickly finish their programs, and either transfer to four-year schools or begin jobs in high demand fields in the local community, according to LBCC President Greg Hamann.

“We would rather provide more support to students sooner than later,” Hamann said. “We are better able to maintain predictable tuition increases and support to our students when legislators work with us to provide funding to do so.”

The college continues to participate in the highly successful Pipeline program, a partnership with local business and K-12 education to connect interested students with training to fill high-demand, high-wage jobs at local companies.

LBCC also plans to implement a Guided Pathways initiative this fall, which helps students take the right classes at the right time to save them both time and money.

“No matter what our funding, we’ll continue to work for our student’s best interests,” Hamann said. “But additional funding would produce profound benefits sooner for our students and community.”