LANSING – As part of their effort to improve educational opportunities for all Michigan citizens, House Democrats today passed the community colleges budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1. The 2008 budget increases operations funding for the state's community colleges on average by 3.89 percent.
"Community colleges play an increasingly important role in preparing our students for the good-paying jobs of the 21st century," said State Representative Joan Bauer (D-Lansing), acting chair of the Community Colleges Appropriations Subcommittee. "Michigan's many fine community colleges are known for their smaller class sizes and higher amount of student-professor interaction. It is this kind of hands-on training that will help get Michigan back on track."
The 2008 budget provides for an additional $7.1 million in operating funds for the state's 28 community colleges. The budget also includes $3.2 million distributed across the board to address parity issues between colleges and universities.
The budget provides over $3.3 million for the At-Risk Student Success Program -- which assists community colleges in providing services for students with various learning disabilities or who require English as a second language -- and $7 million in nursing funding grants to be distributed to the colleges to expand their nursing programs.
"For too long, community colleges have been forced to do too much with too little," Bauer said. "We're determined to change the status quo. By investing in our community colleges, we are investing in the future of our state. If we build a well-trained, well-educated workforce, we will move Michigan forward."