Platform
Reflective Representation
The average age of the current Southeast Community College Board of Governors is approximately 65. The majority of students at SCC are under the age of 25. At 31 years old, if I were elected to the Board of Governors today, I would be the youngest by a margin of 12 years.
Of the 12 members on the Board, zero have graduated from SCC and only two have ever even attended even a single quarter/semester. Of my opponents running for this seat, neither have attended SCC.
Students at SCC deserve leadership on the board the represents and understands them. I attended Southeast Community College for two years, and graduated from SCC. As an alumnus of Southeast Community College, I still attend continuing education classes and benefit from SCC servings its mission.
If elected to the Board, I would draw on my lived experience as a student, role model, leader, and manager in order to best guide the institution in a direction that allows it to serve those it is meant to serve without leaving anyone behind.
Further, to ensure my actions best represent modern students and the staff at SCC, I would open myself up to my constituents, as well as students and staff at SCC. Once per month during my term, I would set aside time at a specific campus for public availability so that students and staff will have the opportunity to share their concerns and ideas with me that I could use to inform my action and decisions as a representative on the board. Towards the same end, I would also extend this opportunity to my constituents by hosting monthly town-hall style meetings within District 4.
Affordability and accesibility
Since I attended Southeast Community College in 2016 the cost per credit hour to attend SCC has risen by approximately $30.
In 2016, SCC was the most affordable community college in the state of Nebraska. Today, it is the 3rd most expensive, and only removed from the #1 spot by $5 per credit hour.
While increasing slowly in recent years, full-time equivalencies are still down compared to 2016.
In 2016, approximately 20,000 people were served by continuing education classes. Today, despite new programs, facilities, and learning centers throughout the service area, less than 10,000 were served through continuing education according to the most recently published figured.
All these figures show that people are being left behind, and that accessibility is decreasing. From a raw numbers standpoint more students are enrolled, but when you dig into the figures you see that overall they are paying more and utilizing the institution less.
If I am elected to the Board, I will make it my priority to ensure that the administration of Southeast Community College is doing its due diligence to ensure that those who need SCC the most are not being priced out, and that we are actively attempting to serve our students and residents by meeting them where they are.
financial security
As someone who attended SCC, I understood and still do understand the need for modernization and expansion. New, modern, and expanded facilities are necessary to accommodate growing demand for workers that are educated in technical occupations. I applaud the current administration and the board for taking decisive action to address a community need.
What we need to consider is what the future holds now that these projects are completed or started. I have two concerns for the financial future of SCC.
First: As mentioned above, the cost per credit hour to attend SCC has risen by approximately $30 since 2016 - skyrocketing SCC from being the most affordable community college in Nebraska then, to the 3rd most expensive (and only removed from being the most expensive by a slim margin) today. Money does not grow on trees. Revenue needed to be generated to cover the costs of operations, necessary expansions, modernization programs, and to pay staff a competitive wage. However, as we move into the future, I believe that with prudent leadership we can continue funding these important changes without borrowing from the future or passing on the costs to our students and tax payers.
Second: In the past few years, the unicameral passed reforms to how community colleges are funded. Instead of receiving a majority of funding from property tax levies, funding mostly comes directly from the state. However, there is no obligation in the current law for the state to actually fulfill its end of the bargain and provide funding equivalent to what the formula used determines should be provided. As we approach the end of a session dominated by desperate attempts to cut expenses to address a budget that initially fell short by hundreds of millions of dollars, it is important for us to know that nothing is guaranteed from the state for SCC. It is also important to consider that, in the new funding law, the SCC Board of Governors is given the authority to raise property levies enough to cover any budget shortfall caused by a shortage in state funding, by a simple majority vote. Through prudent financial decisions, SCC can avoid over extending itself and passing on costs to taxpayers and students should funding be targeted.
If elected to the Board, I will question and thoroughly examine every attempt to raise tuition, raise property levies, and borrow money, so that we can ensure that frivolous spending is avoided, afford to lower attendance costs, and provide the staff at SCC the wages and benefits they deserve.