HOUSE BILL REPORT
HB 453
BYRepresentatives Jacobsen, Wineberry, Dellwo, Wang, Sutherland, Nelson, O'Brien, Winsley, Unsoeld, Silver, Ferguson and Prince; by request of Governor Gardner
Establishing the Washington fund for excellence in higher education program.
House Committe on Higher Education
Majority Report: The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass. (10)
Signed by Representatives Jacobsen, Chair; Barnes, Basich, Jesernig, Miller, Nelson, Prince, Unsoeld, K. Wilson and Wineberry.
House Staff:Susan Hosch (786-7120)
AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION FEBRUARY 6, 1987
BACKGROUND:
During the fall of 1986, the Governor proposed an extensive package of educational improvements in order to halt Washington's eroding support of the state's colleges and universities.
The $190,000,000 proposal included increased funding for faculty salaries, instructional support, equipment, financial aid, plant maintenance, and telecommunications. The package also recommended increased state support for minority recruitment, adult literacy programs, research, and the distinguished professorship program. A pilot program to measure educational attainment through value added testing was proposed at Western Washington University.
Several elements of the proposal were designed to improve the quality of instructional programs. Two of these elements included funding for an international studies program at the University of Washington, and funding for the Washington Center for the Improvement of Undergraduate Education. One of the most unique elements of the Governor's proposal was a request for $5,000,000 to create a competitive award program for innovative instruction. This program will be called the Washington Fund for Excellence in Higher Education.
SUMMARY:
SUBSTITUTE BILL: The Washington Fund for Excellence in Higher Education program is established. The program will award grants to state colleges and universities for improving the quality of education. These grants may be awarded in response to proposals for improving the quality of undergraduate instruction, curriculum development, assessment, recruitment and retention of targeted populations, cooperation between the academic and business communities, and articulation between the two-year and four-year institutions.
The program will be administered by the Higher Education Coordinating Board. The board may receive and solicit grants for the program from public and private sources. The board will adopt necessary program rules; establish screening committees to evaluate proposals; publish evaluation criteria; solicit grant proposals; and establish reporting, evaluation and monitoring requirements for grant recipients.
The board will establish biennial guidelines for submitting grant proposals. For the 1987-89 biennium these guidelines must be consistent with the following goals: improving the quality of undergraduate education; improving minority recruitment and retention; developing curriculum to enhance international awareness; and creating programs that will improve a student's ability to succeed in a competitive economy while meeting the changing needs of the business community. The board must report on the program biennially to the governor and the House and Senate committees on higher education and education respectively.
After consulting with the board and the institutions, the governor may transfer program administration to another agency with an appropriate educational mission.
Monies in the fund will be administered by the state treasurer. The fund is subject to the Office of Financial Management's allotment procedure, but no appropriation is required for disbursements.
SUBSTITUTE BILL COMPARED TO ORIGINAL: A biennial report is required; program evaluations are required; and the governor is permitted to transfer program administration to another education agency after consulting with interested parties.
Fiscal Note: Not Requested.
House Committee ‑ Testified For: Ann Daley, Governor's Office; Carl Opgaard, Tacoma Community College; Patrick Hill, The Evergreen State College; Pam Brown, State Board for Community College Education; and Susan Levy, American Federation of Teachers.
House Committee - Testified Against: None Presented.
House Committee - Testimony For: This program is an important but inexpensive part of the Governor's higher education package. It is patterned after the federal fund for excellence program. Eighty-seven percent of the projects funded by the national program were later continued using institutional funds. Both programs are designed to encourage innovation and risk taking in support of institutional efforts to enhance educational quality. Through a competitive grant process, the state is establishing educational goals, and setting creative minds loose to meet those goals. Similar programs in other states have had an extremely positive effect on quality. Perhaps the most dramatic program impact may be on those colleges which do not receive the grants, but do see the results of projects funded by the grants.
House Committee - Testimony Against: None Presented.