Maryland Association of Community Colleges

Maryland's Community Colleges are among the most effective tools for fulfilling any promise to "Leave No One Behind," yet "Gov. Wes Moore’s proposed fiscal year 2025 state budget... includes the fourth largest cut to community colleges in the history of the Cade Funding formula, a $22 million reduction." I stand with Brad Phillips, Ed.D. and the Maryland Association of Community Colleges in stating that any proposal to backtrack on the Cade Funding Formula is a step in the wrong direction.

Thank you Inside Higher Ed for this timely article. While cutting community college funding does provide a method to reduce costs, it does so by removing opportunities for students who simply will not be able to afford college as a result. Maryland Association of Community Colleges are just now reversing the damage done by a long-lasting "rebasing" of our Cade Funding formula that took 13 years to overcome. We should not go back to how state budgets were balanced over a decade ago, especially after understanding the impact on students, and with the goals of equity, diversity, and inclusion at the forefront in a way that was not visible in prior years. #MDGA24

One of the comments that continually arrises is that community colleges are receiving more funding with less students. This explanation ignores the mechanics of how the State finances public higher education and how it's taken over a decade to grow back to equitable funding. For every dollar the State allocates to our senior public institutions, the policy is to fund community colleges 29 cents. This calculation is done through the Senator John A. Cade Funding formula that links our funding together. This cut would disproportionately impact community college students because it "rebases" that obligation to 26.5 cents while still providing a dollar to the public senior institutions, resulting in a $22 million cut. And it does so in perpetuity, which would result in community colleges losing over $27 million in FY26, $28 million FY27, $29 million in FY28, and $30 million in FY29, according to the Department of Legislative Services. In today's economy, education beyond a high school diploma is the only way to reach the middle class, and that is achieved by having an accessible and affordable community college system. Thank you The Daily Record for running this story. #MDGA24

Wishing everyone health, happiness and a world of peace in the new year. 🎆🎆🎆🎆🎆 Maryland's 16 community colleges, where Marylanders go to learn and grow.

One of the many benefits of #MacoCon is getting to speak with so many influential people. Here is Trustee J.D. Urbach advocating with Maryland’s First Lady Dawn Moore, who is also a strong supporter!