The Connecticut state college system is in need of a new direction.
Student enrollment is declining at the 17 colleges and universities in the state’s Board of Regents for Higher Education system. That has created fiscal challenges at some state colleges, which have been forced to reduce course offerings and hold off on hiring new faculty.
If the trend keeps up long term, the state’s public higher education system will lose its competitive edge and more students will seek a college degree elsewhere.
Gregory Gray, the recently appointed head of the Board of Regents, is proposing a major overhaul of the state’s higher education system, which includes Charter Oak State College, 12 community colleges, and the four Connecticut state universities (Central, Eastern, Western and Southern).
Many of Gray’s ideas are good ones.
One includes making the state’s community colleges more workforce focused by creating career clusters in fast-growing fields like advanced manufacturing, allied health, and information technology.
The business community should support this effort. Far too many manufacturers in the state have complained that they can’t find the talented workers they need to run their shop floors. The state must do a better job training and educating students in fields that are, and will be, in demand by Connecticut employers. It will ensure students have a better chance of finding a job after graduation. It will also provide employers an incentive to stay and operate in Connecticut if they know they have a reliable talent pipeline.
Gray also proposes financial incentives to community college graduates who want to pursue a bachelor’s degree at one of the state universities. He’s also pushing a significant expansion of online college education through Charter Oak State College. That, too, makes sense at a time when online education has become mainstream. It provides an avenue for nontraditional students to pursue a degree in a more flexible setting.
Gray said his plan — called Excel CT — aims to boost enrollment at Connecticut’s public college system to 100,000 over the next few years. Today enrollment is currently 92,000, down from 96,000 a few years ago.
Of course, with any major change comes opposition. Some college professors are voicing concerns that liberal arts programs will be cut back. Others say pushing more online instruction will dilute education quality.
Both are valid concerns that need to be part of larger discussion on the role of higher education in the 21st century. Should liberal arts programs be eliminated? No, a humanities degree still has value in creating critical thinkers who can contribute to a host of industries and professions. Still, at a time of limited and often dwindling resources, the state needs to invest more strategically in its higher education system.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s Next Generation Connecticut initiative is an example of that.
While the $1.5 billion price tag seems excessive, focusing on developing UConn’s science, technology, engineering, and math curricula is the right move. Those are the fields the state wants and needs to develop if it’s going to reverse decades of anemic economic growth.
Now, that strategic focus must trickle down to the state’s other public universities and colleges. Gray’s ideas deserve serious consideration.
