Montana State University
The Bozeman area is ready to put its money where its mouth is and support a local tax hike if that's what it would take to create a two-year community college here, community leaders said Monday.
Bozeman needs a full-fledged community college, Mayor Jeff Krauss said at a "listening session" held by Sheila Stearns, Montana commissioner of higher education, and Montana State University President Waded Cruzado. About 50 people attended the meeting at the GranTree Inn.
Krauss said he really appreciates the progress made this year with the two-year Gallatin College Programs at MSU, but more needs to be done.
The program has a new name, a new home in MSU's Hamilton Hall with more space and visibility, and a clearer mission, now that it's being run from Bozeman instead of Great Falls.
Bozeman is "the fastest growing urban area in the state," Krauss said, and it needs a community college that can offer night and weekend classes, training in medical and many other fields, and offer an alternative for high school students who don't fit the four-year university model.
Krauss said that he personally was ready to find 1.5 property tax mills in the city's budget and write a check to Gallatin College Programs Dean Bob Hietala, if that's what it would take.
"I think this community is hugely supportive," Krauss said. "I'm willing the lead the effort any way you choose."
Yet it won't be that easy.
Stearns said a committee has been brainstorming since last summer to figure out how to craft a state law that would allow Gallatin County to vote on a community college tax.
Five other counties already have a local 1.5 mill tax to support their two-year colleges in Missoula, Helena, Butte, Billings and Great Falls.
One problem is that the money raised by those 1.5 mill taxes does not go directly to the community colleges but to the state's general fund. That made sense historically, but would make it harder to pass a mill levy in Gallatin County, Stearns said.
She said she expects some kind of solution will be introduced as a bill in the 2011 Legislature, which meets in January.
Chris Kukulski, Bozeman's city manager, pointed out that when the Montana Board of Regents voted in May to move control of MSU Great Falls' satellite classes in Bozeman to MSU Bozeman, they stated that Bozeman's programs couldn't expand until there's an equitable local mill levy. Kukulski asked how the Bozeman community, where more than half the population has a college degree, can show the state it's ready to step up and contribute.
Hietala said he'd like to add new job-training programs to the four already offered by the Gallatin College Programs, but can't do much until the funding issue is resolved.
Also supporting the Gallatin College Programs was Bozeman Schools Superintendent Kirk Miller. He said Bozeman High and Gallatin College Programs are collaborating to offer their first "dual enrollment" class, which this fall is giving 30 high school students the chance to earn three college credits in math and get a head start on college.
Wendy Lewis, former Bozeman Public Library fundraiser, said this community supports lifelong learning. As a career counselor, Lewis said, she knows many people over age 40 who would love to return to school, and a community college would be perfect place for those who want to change careers.
Pam Fisher, who worked for 30 years with California community colleges, also supported the Gallatin College Programs.
"A community college can turn around, not just people's lives, but a county, a region," Fisher said. "What can we do to make it happen?"
Mike Simmonds, a physicist and founder of high-tech companies in California and Montana, said this area "needs a little help" so its engineers aren't "half a step behind." He said a community college could offer mini-courses and workshops where engineers could broaden or update their skills.
Monday's meeting was one of 18 community listening sessions Stearns is holding around the state as part of an effort, supported by a $1.7 million grant from the Lumina Foundation, to get more Montanans to earn a college education and to upgrade the image of Montana's two-year colleges.
Reposted from the Bozeman Daily Chronicle
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