Gregoire offers hope for college

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, December 14, 2006

OLYMPIA – Those dreaming of a new university in Snohomish County learned Thursday that Gov. Chris Gregoire will offer them some help in making it a reality.

Gregoire wants to spend $2 million in the next year deciding what type of higher education institution is needed for residents in Snohomish, Island and Skagit counties, and where it should be built.

Whether it is an independently run college, a branch campus of one of the state’s research universities, or a school operated under another form of governance is one of the questions to be answered, said Deb Merle, the governor’s adviser on higher education policy.

If funding is approved, the state Office of Financial Management would direct this phase of the planning process and report its findings by Dec. 1, 2007.

State Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen welcomed the decision, saying it acknowledges the governor recognizes that the communities are underserved when it comes to college choices.

“That’s what we wanted,” said Haugen, one of several legislators who served on an advisory panel that recommended building an independent four-year university focused on science and technology instruction.

The $2 million is “a good start,” she said, adding, “We can enhance it in the Legislature.”

The money will be in the governor’s proposed capital budget to be released Tuesday.

Gregoire spent Thursday talking about higher education.

She outlined a two-year, $173 million investment to keep costs down and access up at colleges around the state. The money will be part of her proposed operating budget due out Tuesday.

In this plan, unveiled at Washington State University campuses in Spokane and Vancouver, she envisions adding 8,300 enrollment slots on campuses statewide. These would include 3,300 in high-demand fields such as engineering, construction and health care.

She also will ask legislators to enact a two-year freeze on tuition at the state’s 34 public community and technical colleges. Today, roughly 23,000 students at Everett, Edmonds and Cascadia community colleges in Snohomish County pay about $2,500 a year in tuition and fees.

The governor is pledging $19.7 million to the colleges to cover the revenue they would lose.

“I’m glad to hear this,” said state Sen. Paull Shin, D-Edmonds, the incoming chairman of the Senate Higher Education Committee. “I want to make college more accessible and more affordable.”

Everett Community College President David Beyer said the governor’s ideas mirror what he and his peers asked from her.

“It is critical we do not price students out of the opportunity to attend,” he said. “When you say there will be more space and more opportunity and no increase in cost, it is a strong message that this governor is a supporter of higher education.”

Gregoire also wants to limit tuition hikes at the public four-year universities. She is seeking a 7 percent cap at the University of Washington and Washington State University, and a 5 percent cap at The Evergreen State College and Western, Eastern and Central universities.

Leaders of those schools will be watching closely the effort for another institution in Snohomish County. They’re concerned each dollar steered toward that effort is one less dollar for existing two- and four-year schools.

In the meantime, some in Snohomish County’s delegation of state lawmakers will meet in Everett today to try to knit a bit of unity among them on how to proceed. While they generally agree on the need for more higher education opportunities, there are differences on how to provide them.

Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@heraldnet.com.