Kasich Vetoes Controversial 
Voter Suppression Measure

On Wednesday, April 1, Gov. Kasich signed HB 53, the transportation budget bill, into law, but not before applying a line item veto to the controversial language that would’ve made it more difficult for college students to vote.

As we reported to you last week, HB 53 contained language that would have required people from out-of-state to obtain an Ohio driver’s license and register their vehicle with the state within 30 days to establish residency and thus be able to register to vote.

This measure, inserted by Senate Republicans prior to passage of the bill, appeared to be designed to create barriers to out-of-state college students from voting in Ohio just ahead of the 2016 elections. Reports estimated that over 100,000 students would have been affected.

We commend Gov. Kasich for doing the right thing and vetoing the language. We also thank our members for contacting members of the conference committee and governor to protest the provision!

OCAAUP Election Results

Congratulations to Martin Kich, Heather Howley, and Anita Waters for being re-elected to their positions of Vice President, Treasurer, and At-Large Member, respectively.

We appreciate their continued commitment to serving all Ohio AAUP members through their positions on the OCAAUP Board of Trustees. And we appreciate all of you who took the time to cast your vote.

Dayton Daily Reports How Much Students Pay for University Athletics Without Knowing

Last Sunday, March 30, the Dayton Daily News published this story about the price students at Ohio’s universities are paying to subsidize intercollegiate athletics.

Journalists at Dayton Daily were prompted to investigate this issue after reading our 2015 Ohio Higher Education Report and discovering that each university, save Ohio State, takes heavily from the academic side to pay for athletic programs that can’t sustain themselves.

The article revealed startling numbers of how much students will pay for – or how much debt they’ll accrue to pay for – athletics over a four-year college career.

For instance, each student at Miami will end up paying over $4,500 to subsidize their athletic programs and their new ice arena.

At BGSU, students will pay nearly $3,300 by the time they graduate, if they graduate in four years.

The article quoted the questions raised in our report:

“We have to ask ourselves if the athletic expenditures are worthwhile, especially when students are the ones footing a substantial part of the bill, probably largely unknown to them,” the report says. “This is an issue of priorities and whether we are willing to say it is acceptable for students to accumulate thousands in debt over a four-year period to pay for athletic programs that neither make money nor are self-sustaining.”

Contact Legislators Urging Removal of Student Voting Suppression Amendment

It has come to our attention that last week, the Ohio Senate inserted a provision into HB 53, the state transportation budget bill, which would require out-of-state college students to acquire an Ohio driver’s license and register their vehicle with the state of Ohio in order to be able to register to vote.  Clearly, such a last-minute amendment buried deep into a transportation funding bill is an underhanded attempt to create substantial obstacles to students exercising their right to vote and without the public being able to weigh in on the matter in any substantive way.

Consequently, we are asking you, our members, to advocate on behalf of all of our students by contacting members of the House and Senate Conference Committee to encourage them to remove this provision. 

The ConferenceCommittee is meeting tomorrow, so we need you to take action immediately in the form of e-mails and phone calls.

Below is a list of the Conference Committee members with their contact information, as well as a sample e-mail to send:

Rep. Ryan Smith (R-93): (614) 466-1366; rep93@ohiohouse.gov

Rep. Cheryl Grossman (R-23): (614) 466-9690; rep23@ohiohouse.gov

Rep. Alicia Reece (D-33): (614) 466-1308; rep33@ohiohouse.gov

Sen. Gayle Manning (R-13): (614) 644-7613; sd13@ohiosenate.gov 

Sen. Tom Patton (R-24): (614) 466-8056; sd24@ohiosenate.gov 

Sen. Capri Cafaro (D-32): (614) 466-7182; sd32@ohiosenate.gov

Subject: Don’t make it harder for students to vote

Body: Dear Representative/Senator,
My name is [your name], and I am a professor at [your institution]. I am writing to you today in your capacity as a House Bill 53 Conference Committee member. Respectfully, I urge you to remove the provision from the bill that would require an out-of-state college student to acquire an Ohio driver’s license and register their vehicle with the state in order to be able to register to vote. This provision will create additional barriers to my students engaging in the electoral process. I believe we should be trying to find ways to make it easier, not harder, for students to vote. We should be welcoming to our out-of-state students so that they feel like a part of our great state and stay here after they graduate. Please do the right thing and remove a voting rights measure from this transportation funding bill.
Sincerely,

[Your Name]

McNay Testifies on State Budget Bill

Earlier today, Wednesday, March 18, OCAAUP President John McNay testified to the House Finance Higher Education Subcommittee on House Bill 64, the state budget bill.

McNay began his testimony by emphasizing that faculty should be consulted on higher education policy proposals. He said, “We respect the work of our institutional presidents and the organizations that represent them, but you only get one of several important campus perspectives by consulting them.” He went on to say that the new college and university funding formulas are based on course completions and graduations, in which faculty play a key role, and yet, faculty were never consulted in any meaningful way about such a major policy shift.

His testimony pointed out that the new university funding formula gives a lopsided benefit to institutions like Ohio State and Miami that have selective admissions, while open-enrollment institutions are penalized. “One size doesn’t fit all,” he stated. President McNay also addressed the continuous decline in state funding, and pointed out that while Gov. Kasich is referring to his proposed higher ed appropriations as increases, even the proposed funding for Fiscal Year 2017 doesn’t restore funding to where it was before the governor slashed it in his first budget in 2011.

Additionally, he encouraged the committee to examine critically the College Credit Plus program – a program slated to receive additional funding under HB 64. He said that while the program is well-intentioned, it threatens the lifeblood of regional campuses, which exist primarily to offer introductory-level courses. 

Furthermore, McNay expressed quality concerns over the proposed funding to train “college-level teachers” at poorer high schools and using Western Governors University to award competency-based credit. 

He finished his testimony by referencing OCAAUP’s 2015 Ohio Higher Education Report, and briefly mentioning the issues of administrative bloat, athletics spending, and debt-incurring real estate spending. “When students graduate, employers judge them on knowledge of their field and being able to think critically, not by how well their college football team performed or how upscale their dorm was,” he said.

McNay received and answered questions from committee members for nearly an hour. 

For example, Rep. Ramos asked how the overuse of adjuncts might affect educational quality and even the local economy. McNay responded that adjuncts are often teaching courses at multiple institutions, and receive very little institutional support.
He explained that full-time faculty are in a better financial position to contribute to the local economy by buying homes, purchasing cars, and other spending. Adjuncts, he said, are more worried about piecing together a living wage.

Rep. Anielski asked how the faculty to administrator ratio could be improved. President McNay stated that it’s not something that could happen overnight, but there are places that have made an attempt to address the issue.

He used Iowa State University as an example, which he said has increased its full time faculty by over 40 percent over the last 10 years by shrinking its administration. “We should be looking at and learning from these examples,” he said.

Chair of the committee, Rep. Mike Duffey, called McNay’s testimony “thought-provoking” and asked him if he thought capping tuition by a percentage was the right idea or whether the legislature should cap increases by some dollar amount. He also asked whether addressing tuition was enough or if they should cap total cost of attendance.

President McNay said that he believes a tuition cap percentage makes more sense than a one-size-fits all dollar amount. He also stated that total cost, not just tuition, needs to be taken into account.

For a copy of the full testimony, click here.

OCAAUP Elections Information

The Ohio Conference AAUP is conducting its trustee elections electronically via Ballot Box Online.

On Thursday, March 19, all Ohio AAUP members should receive an e-mail with instructions on how to vote. The voting period will last for two weeks, through April 2.

The candidates appearing on this year’s ballot are:
-Vice President: Martin Kich, Wright State University – Lake Campus
-Treasurer: Heather Howley, University of Akron – Wayne College 
-At-Large Member – Public Institution with <100 or Private Institution: Anita Waters, Denison University

Thank you in advance for taking the time to vote! If you have any questions or concerns, please send an e-mail to sara@ocaaup.org.

Mark Your Calendar for Upcoming National AAUP Meetings

Please consider attending these upcoming National AAUP and AAUP-CBC meetings:

AAUP-CBC Spring Regional Meeting

04.18.2015

University of Cincinnati 
400B, Tangeman University Center
Cincinnati, Ohio 45220

The AAUP-CBC Spring Regional Meeting will be at the University of Cincinnati in 400B of the Tangeman University Center from 9:00am-4pm on Saturday, April 18th.

2015 AAUP Annual Conference

06.10.2015 to 06.14.2015

Mayflower Hotel
1127 Connecticut Avenue NW
Washington, District Of Columbia 20036

Join your colleagues for the AAUP’s Annual Conference on the State of Higher Education and the annual business meeting of the AAUP.

2015 Summer Institute

07.23.2015 to 07.26.2015

University of Denver
2199 S University Blvd
Denver, Colorado 80208

Please plan to join us at the University of Denver, July 23-26, 2015, for an intensive, four-day series of workshops and seminars that will prepare you to organize your colleagues, stand up for academic freedom, and advocate for research and teaching as the core priority of higher education.

President McNay Testifies on SB 4

Yesterday, Tuesday, March 3, OCAAUP President John McNay testified as an interested party on Senate Bill 4.

SB 4, sponsored by Senate President Keith Faber (R-Celina) would require the board of trustees at each public college and university to submit a plan to the Chancellor of the Board of Regents as to how they will cut in-state student cost of attendance by 5% for the 2016-17 academic year.

In sponsor testimony delivered on February 17, Sen. Faber said that the university presidents have dubbed this “The Senate Challenge,” and that he has been encouraged by their response to the challenge.

Faber cited administrations, policies, and course work as the areas in which he believes inefficiencies need to be addressed.

In President McNay’s testimony yesterday, he pointed out that colleges and universities could not be blamed solely for higher education costs, noting the relationship between dwindling state subsidies and rising tuition. 

“Only 12.8% of university funding comes from the state, which is a 13.1% decline since 2002. In fact, subsidies to main campuses have been cut over 14% since 2002, university regional campuses by over 25%, and community colleges by over 22%,” McNay stated.

However, the remainder of McNay’s testimony focused on colleges’ and universities’ misguided spending decisions, especially in regards to administrative bloat, athletic subsidies, and building construction.

He noted that less than 25% of institutional budgets are being spent on instructional compensation (e.g. faculty salary and benefits), and that institutions are employing as many administrative staff members as they are full-time faculty.

McNay pointed out that there are examples of places doing it differently. For instance, Iowa State University has made a concerted effort to shrink its administration and hire more full-time faculty. Additionally, the State University of New York (SUNY) system has undergone an effort to redirect 5% of administrative spending into instruction.

Moreover, President McNay made comments on the millions of dollars universities are spending to subsidize their unprofitable athletic programs, citing that only Ohio State has a self-sustaining athletics department.

He said, “We wish we could report to you that most of these funds were going to student scholarships, but a Cincinnati Enquirer article revealed that only about 16% of athletic spending at Division 1 schools like Cincinnati and Miami goes to student aid. The other 84% pays for coaching salaries, facilities and game expenses.”

Furthermore, McNay noted that in just recent years, universities have more than doubled their debt to $6.5 billion in the name of building projects that they hope will attract students. He said that these projects are financed by raising tuition and tacking on extra fees that may seem harmless, but can have serious debt implications for students.

President McNay encouraged the Senate Finance Committee to amend the bill so that all stakeholder groups have input opportunity as to how costs will be cut. He also said that the bill should be made clearer in terms of next steps.

Finance Committee members asked McNay questions about MOOCs, professors assigning their own textbooks, as well as the overuse of adjunct faculty.

For a copy of the full testimony, click here.

OCAAUP Produces Higher Ed Report

The Ohio Conference AAUP has produced an “Ohio Higher Education Report” entitled The Real Problems Deserve Real Solutions.

The purpose of the report is to influence public policy around higher education issues, especially in light of HB 64, the state budget bill, as well as Gov. Kasich’s Task Force on Affordability and Efficiency.

It is also a response to “solutions” that have been proposed in recent years, such as faculty workload mandates, which fail to address the real problems and cost drivers at our public colleges and universities.

Certainly, this report does not cover every issue that is worthy of attention and discussion; but we included the problems we believe to be the most pressing, including the decline of state funding, administrative bloat, and athletic spending.

The full report can be found by clicking here.  OCAAUP President John McNay, Trustee and Chair of the Government Relations Committee Steve Mockabee, and Executive Director Sara Kilpatrick have been meeting with legislators to discuss the report and have found it to be a very effective tool.

In addition, media outlets have begun to pick up on and write stories about the report, such as this article from the Dayton Daily News and this one from the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Legislators Take Aim at Higher Ed

It has been only two weeks into the legislative session, but members of the Ohio General Assembly have wasted no time putting forth bills that would impact higher education.

Here are the ones on our radar along with a short description:
HB 1 (Schuring, Manning): The bill would establish the Workforce Grant Program, under which students who choose degree programs in “in-demand” fields could be awarded a grant of up to $5,000 per year. Upon graduating and finding employment in their field, the students could claim an income tax credit equal to 25% of the student loan payments they make each year.
HB 27 (Ramos): The bill would create the Finish Fund and the Finish Reserve Fund to provide grants to students who are nearing completion of their associate or bachelor’s degrees and display financial need or hardship.

HB 48 (Maag): The bill would extend to handguns affirmative defenses to a charge of carrying a concealed weapon or having or transporting a firearm in a motor vehicle, and would modify the prohibition against carrying a concealed handgun onto institutions of higher education, places of worship, day-care facilities, aircraft, certain government facilities, public areas of airport terminals and police stations, and school safety zones.

HB 64 (Smith): This is the biennial budget bill. It contains all of the pieces of Gov. Kasich’s executive budget, including the higher education ones mentioned in our last communication.

SB 4 (Faber): The bill would require each state institution of higher education to develop a plan to reduce in-state student cost of attendance by five per cent for the 2016-2017 academic year.

SB 6 (Jones, Eklund): The bill would increase the maximum income tax deduction for college savings contributions to $10,000 annually for each beneficiary and create the Joint Committee on Ohio College Affordability.

SB 12 (Hottinger): The bill would grant an income tax credit to individuals who earn degrees in science, technology, engineering, or math-based fields of study.

SB 19 (Sawyer): The bill would make changes to the Ohio College Opportunity Grant and limit state university over load fees.

SB 24 (Williams): The bill would qualify students in noncredit community college programs for Ohio College Opportunity Grants and require the awarding of academic credit for community colleges’ career certification programs.

You can find more information about these bills 
on the Ohio General Assembly’s website. We will keep you posted on developments as they unfold.

Guest Column by Marty Kich: Early Thoughts on President Obama’s Proposal for Free Education at U.S. Community Colleges

I should begin by stating that I am in favor of any proposal that provides free higher education at public colleges and universities. In fact, I am in favor of any proposal that reduces the cost to students without compromising the students’ learning environment.

I think that the president’s proposal will help community colleges because their funding has generally been hurt in two waves: first by the loss of federal stimulus dollars in 2011 and then by the introduction of performance-based funding in many states.

Completion rates for associates degrees are generally lower than those for baccalaureate degrees, and that reality should not surprise anyone who gives it any thought. Many students enrolling at community colleges are seeking technical training due to volatility in the job market, and so their reason for enrolling may disappear with some change in the job market. Moreover, many of those students have issues with academic preparedness for any level of postsecondary education.

Most performance funding also does not take into account many of the types of education that community colleges provide-various types of training that do not lead to associate degrees or even certificates.

So, on the whole, I think that both students and community colleges will largely benefit from the President’s proposal because it does link the maintenance of a decent GPA to the federal funding.

My major concern about the proposal is that it does not seem to make a distinction between technical and pre-baccalaureate programs. In effect, I have the same concerns here as I do with proposals for allowing community colleges to offer baccalaureate programs.

A quarter of a century ago, when I was entering the academic job market, we were advised to consider full-time positions at community colleges because of the contraction in the number of positions available at universities. But that boom in full-time hiring at community colleges was very short-lived. Today, the proportion of full-time to part-time or adjunct faculty at most community colleges is very lopsided to the part-time side. On average in my state, full-time faculty account for 15% to 25% of the total faculty at community colleges. In addition to teaching more courses and courses with higher class sizes than full-time faculty at universities, those full-time faculty are typically responsible for directing or coordinating programs-that is, for supervising all of the adjunct faculty teaching in those programs.

In short, they are already grossly over-worked, and I don’t see how adding many more pre-baccalaureate courses and sections of courses, never mind two full years of baccalaureate courses, is tenable.

So, to be very clear, I am not saying that most community-college faculty or adjunct faculty are not qualified to teach pre-baccalaureate or baccalaureate-level courses. In fact, I know that many community-college faculty and many adjunct faculty have Ph.D.’s, have substantial professional experience inside and outside of academia, and are excellent teachers.

What I am saying is that I don’t see how substantially increasing the enrollment of pre-baccalaureate students at community colleges will do anything but increase the demands on those faculty who are already the most over-extended, the most over-worked, and the least compensated for their work. I worry that the enrollment increases that will almost certainly result from the President’s proposal will simply amplify the exploitation of faculty who deserve full-time positions or who deserve full-time positions with much more reasonable workloads.

So, unless there are financial incentives or requirements for community colleges to hire many more full-time faculty, I don’t see how the quality of instruction for pre-baccalaureate students is not going to suffer and then be reflected in lower completion rates as those students transfer into universities. 

There is, after all, truth in the axiom that faculty working conditions are student learning conditions.

As I have argued in other posts to the Academe Blog, increased completion rates are meaningful only if the same standards and the same quality of student learning environments are maintained. 

I suspect that what may work better for students in technical programs may turn out to be inadequate for pre-baccalaureate students.

And since this proposal from the President is an almost singular effort against the long, ongoing trend of making students bear more and more of the cost of post-secondary education, I think that it is extremely important that it succeed-that it be thought out carefully so that some successes are not lost in the inevitable, politicized attention to some salient failures.

And if baccalaureate completion rates fall, those numbers will almost certainly outweigh any increases in the numbers of associates degrees being awarded.

 February 25 is “Adjunct Dignity Day“

Wednesday, February 25 in Ohio is “Adjunct Dignity Day,” during which OCAAUP and the Ohio Higher Education Coalition (OHEC) are raising awareness of adjunct issues and promoting the AAUP’s One Faculty Campaign.

You may have heard that adjunct groups are planning a “National Walkout Day” on February 25, and in the spirit of supporting all part-time and non-tenure eligible faculty, we are asking our Ohio members and chapters to take action on your campuses in some way.

National AAUP has One Faculty tabling materials here on their website. Please consider setting up an information table on your campus or participating in another way.

AAUP / AAUP-CBC Announce 2015 Summer Institute Details

The AAUP and AAUP-CBC have announced that this year’s Summer Institute will be held at the University of Denver from July 23 to 26.

The Summer Institute is a four-day series of workshops and seminars designed to train and educate AAUP members on a wide range of topics such as organizing, advocacy, and academic freedom.

More information about this event can be found by clicking here.

Each year the Ohio Conference offers scholarships to Ohio members who want to build a new chapter, strengthen an existing one, or simply learn how to be a more effective advocate of AAUP principles. Be on the lookout for more information about scholarship availability in the coming months.