DENVER – Fort Lewis College is overdue for an out-of-state tuition increase, which it has put off because the state picks up the tuition tab for Native American students who come to the school from other states, FLC President Dene Thomas told the Joint Budget Committee of the state Legislature on Wednesday.
Until recently, FLC has been sensitive to the burden the Native American tuition waiver is to Colorado when it is applied to out-of-state students, Thomas said. But FLC must seriously consider an increase, which would generate roughly $160,000 in revenue for every percentage point raised.
“After eight years, we really need to have some serious discussion about beginning to increase, perhaps in small increments, what we have held off on,” she said.
An increase would require additional funds from the state’s general fund, but the college would recoup revenue lost over the eight years it has remained stagnant, particularly with non-Native students, Thomas said.
“We are forgoing additional revenue because about half of the out-of-state students are Native American and are covered under the tuition waiver and Colorado covers the tuition, the other half are not Native American but they all have the same out-of-state tuition rate,” she said.
To offset the hit to the general fund, Thomas said she has been to Washington D.C. on multiple occasions to support bills such as H.R. 1089, also known as the Native American Indian Education Act. It was introduced in February 2015 by U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, and would create federal funding for the tuition waiver when applied to out-of-state students.
FLC does not intend to cut the tuition waiver as it is an important identity marker for the college and helps it fulfill a part of its statutory mandate.
“We are proud of that connection and work hard to serve native communities throughout the nation,” Thomas said.
Thomas was among officials from several Colorado universities, including Adams State University, Western State Colorado University and Colorado Mesa, who presented their budgetary needs to the Joint Budget Committee and talked about the impact of their institutions on surrounding communities and the state.
Fort Lewis College has a $151 million economic impact on La Plata County, Thomas said.
But the prospect of more money for higher education is dim.
Higher education might see budget cuts based on the December budget forecasts, JBC member Rep. Millie Hamner of Frisco told them. “The elephant in the room is the limit of funding for higher education.”
Some of the university representatives took the opportunity Wednesday to discuss their dissatisfaction with the funding formula for higher education in the state.
Stephen M. Jordan, president of Metropolitan State University of Denver, said the formula does not place enough emphasis on the retention and graduation rates for transfer students, which make up a significant portion of his institution’s student body.
Jordan said he believes the performance portion of the formula is based off of an old college framework that does not account for transfer students, who are much more common in the 21st century.
The lack of performance funding for his university is compounded by the drop in overall enrollment in community colleges where students generally transfer from, which runs countercyclical to the economy.
Colorado Mesa University finds itself in a similar situation, said Tim Foster, president of CMU.
Foster suggested a more equitable system would be one where higher education students are funded at a flat rate regardless of where they attended and then additional funding was given out based on the graduation and retention performance of the different institutions.
Rep. Bob Rankin of Carbondale, who also sits on the committee, said the formula should be a living tool that can be shifted over time and should be evaluated every year.
lperkins@durangoherald.com
