Am I glowing? Stop digging Tastes like…art Winning streak

12
Wingspan
By Susann Robbins
Online Editor
The seven community colleges,
the Wyoming Community
College Commission and
the Wyoming Association of
Community College Trustees
(WACCT) are monitoring 11 bills
in this year’s 40-day session of
the Wyoming Legislature, which
started in January.
Dr. Joe Schaffer, Laramie
County Community College
president, highlighted seven
bills at the Jan. 23 board business
meeting.
HB 105: Citizens and Students
Self-Defense Act
“Basically, if in the state of
Wyoming you have a concealedcarry-weapons
permit, this bill
will allow you to actually carry a
gun on college campus and into
schools without having to notify
the corresponding authorities,”
Schaffer said.
In general, the seven community
college presidents support
every citizen’s right to bear
arms; however, this bill raises
concerns across all colleges
about how to keep students safe
from a new series of unknown
variables. Schaffer said he encouraged
community members
with concerns about the bill to
reach out to their senators and
representatives.
Trustees Don Erickson and
Ed Mosher agreed with the
president’s concern, and Mosher
said more information about
what the bill entails is needed
before it will be approved by the
Legislature.
Trustee Dr. Kevin Kilty, on
the other hand, disagreed with
president’s concerns. “There
By Susann Robbins
Online Editor
are many things that could be
happening on campus which
you don’t know about, and I
honestly do not believe this
bill injects new fear rather than
adding to the fear,” Kilty said.
“Considering recent events, like
the Casper College attack, you
never really know what is going
on, and you don’t need a gun to
hurt others.”
HB 163: Adjunct
Professor Incentives
“Essentially, this bill creates
a loan program for high school
teachers interested in taking
part in concurrent enrollment,”
Schaffer said. HB 163 would
be funded by a budget appropriation
of $100,000 and would
be readily available for public
school teachers who want to
further their education. “I think
this is a good thing, and it will
strengthen the concurrent
enrollment force within the
Wyoming public school and college
system,” Schaffer added.
HB 165: Remedial
Classes Tuition Fees
“This bill means that any
Wyoming high school graduate
that comes to the university or
any of the community colleges
and needs a remedial course”
must be provided “tuition and
student fee free,” Schaffer said.
If passed, this bill would cut $1.4
million of the WCCC budget for
the colleges. Further, Schaffer
added it would force everyone
involved with college education
to rethink remedial education
because it doesn’t work.
“Maybe this bill should be
supported just for the simple
reason of forcing change in
remedial education in the state
At this year’s 62nd Wyoming Legislature the most
important item for the seven community colleges is
the budget for which the governor has proposed an 8
percent cut for fiscal year 2014 across the board for all
institutions within the state.
“The Wyoming Community College Commission
(WCCC) as an institution will have to take in an 8 percent
budget cut, and the seven community colleges will
see a 6 percent budget cut,” Dr. Jim Rose, executive director
of WCCC, said. Further, this spells out a cut of $1.3
news
of Wyoming,” Schaffer said.
At LCCC a lot of programs
generate money beyond the
cost it takes to run the program,
and the leftover funds are used
to subsidize programs that cost
more than the revenues they
generate, trustee Kilty pointed
out. “We would focus better to
get remedial students to operate
on a college level,” Kilty said.
“As a result we would do more
good to the Southeast Wyoming
workforce to have a larger, welleducated
workforce available.”
HB 166 and HB 177: Hathaway
Student Scholarship Program
and Hathaway Success
Curriculum
HB 166, if passed, would
increase the amount available
for Hathaway scholarships
recipients, Schaffer said. “I am
really excited about the extension
of the Hathaway Success
Curriculum,” Schaffer said.
Including foreign language, fine
million to the budget of Laramie County Community
College, Dr. Joe Schaffer, LCCC president, added.
Other budget items that have been brought before
the governor are as follows: Enrollment Growth Funding
(a one-time funding), $854,747 has been denied by the
governor and rejected as an amendment by the Joint
Appropriations Committee (JAC); WPTV Maintenance
Allowance (Wyoming Public Television), $117,670
approved by the governor, and Capital Construction
Authorization (for six projects), $37,611,568 approved by
the governor.
The enrollment growth funding would have been
applied to Eastern Wyoming College, Northwest College,
and performing arts, and careervocational
education into the
curriculum would open up new
programs for students in their
college careers.
SF 77: Community
College Construction
“This is rather benign bill
as it shifts the management of
community college construction
projects from the WCCC to
the Construction Management
Division of the Department
of Administration and
Information,” Schaffer said. The
real challenge will come when
trying to start construction
projects because it adds another
step of bureaucracy, he said.
SF 121: Career and Technical
Training Grants
This bill has been brought to
the Legislature for the third time.
“This bill will create a grant program
for adults to get a degree in
a program that the department
February 11, 2013
wingspan.lccc.wy.edu
Eleven bills on radar of colleges
Bill tracking sheet (as Feb. 6, 2013)
Bill Where is it?
HB 105 Passed House; sent to Senate Education Committee
HB 163 Passed House; sent to Senate Education Committee
HB 165 Failed introduction to House Committee of the Whole
HB 166 and HB 177 166 passed House; sent to Senate Education
Committee
177 passed House; placed on Senate general file
SF 77 Passed Senate; sent to House Appropriations
Committee
SF 121 Failed third Senate reading
HB 52 Passed House; placed on Senate general file
HB 54 Passed House; Senate passed to Committee of the
Whole
HB 173 Failed introduction to House Committee of the Whole
SF 128 Failed introduction to Senate Committee of the Whole
of workforce services identifies
as fast-growing and high-paying
in Wyoming,” Schaffer said.
The WCCC, WACCT and the
seven college presidents broadly
support this bill. Payments from
the $500,000 grant would go
directly to the training providers,
and grantees would be required
to work in Wyoming in the trade
for which they received training
for an agreed upon amount of
time.
Other bills being monitored:
HB52, Workplace
Safety Incentives
The state workers’ compensation
division will have to offer
an up to 10 percent discount
off rates for employers that participate
in the state’s workplace
safety contract program. WACCT
supports the bill.
HB54: High School
Equivalency Certificate
This bill deals with the
privatization of the General
Education Degree by creating a
different method by which the
WCCC administers the tests.
WACCT supports this bill.
HB 173: Community College
Police Officer Retirement
This bill would allow community
college officers to
participate in the law enforcement
plan under the Wyoming
Retirement Act.
SF 128: Bidder Qualification –
Community Colleges
Community colleges will be
added to the list of state agencies
and commissions who can
determine the qualifications and
responsibilities of bidders on
contracts for construction.
Budget cuts across colleges; LCCC positions safe
Western Wyoming Community College and LCCC.
“Nobody can really predict where the budget will
go. All we can do is keep the impact minimal to our
students,” Schaffer said. Savings will have to be found
internally for the priorities of the college. Further, the
college will look at course offerings and their enrollment.
Currently, too many choices are offered, and
some of these can easily be reduced without affecting
the learning environment of the students, the president
said. “There won’t be any reduction in positions, and we
will be looking at getting more students through federal
aid into the LCCC workforce,” he said.