Changing higher education to meet Nevada’s needs

The turnaround in Nevada's economic recovery may finally be in sight. For years, I have advocated that our public education system will be central to that recovery and to our state's long overdue economic diversification.

A welcome first step in this direction came from Gov. Brian Sandoval's announcement that he would stop further cuts to Nevada's K-12 and higher education budgets. After four years of successive reductions that have resulted in layoffs, program closures, and record tuition and fee increases for our students, concerns have lingered about the potential for yet another round of cuts and more damage. Yet, by taking a difficult position to prevent additional cuts, Gov. Sandoval has restored hope and demonstrated his commitment to our state's students and their families.

He sent a similar message to staff and faculty who have had salaries reduced by indicating that this would be another high priority of his budget process. These early moves on his part will help us stabilize our services and allow us to begin rebuilding an even stronger and more responsive System.

While the governor is doing his part, the Nevada System of Higher Education must continue to do its part to ensure that the money Nevadans invest in our colleges and universities is spent equitably and wisely. With Nevada leading the nation in enrollment growth for several years, state dollars were allocated to higher education primarily based on the number of students enrolled. Over time, that formula grew more complex in order to keep up with Nevada's rapidly changing environment.

Unfortunately, that formula no longer meets the needs of higher education or the state - and the time has come to replace it. I currently have a proposal for a new formula in front of a legislative committee to do just that. We reviewed national best practices and created a plan that can best be summarized as funding student success, rather than the number of students sitting in a classroom. My proposed model is based on the following principles:

- The main focus for the investment of state dollars will be class instruction as measured by completed student credit hours.

- Different programs, such as English and chemistry, have different operational costs and those costs will be taken into account when determining funding levels. Also, additional weighting to upper division and graduate courses will be used to create a pool of dollars to support research missions.

- A base level of support will be given to smaller community colleges to ensure higher education access for all Nevadans.

- Cost of operations and maintenance for buildings, with the exception of certain research facilities, will be included in the base amount given to each institution and will be driven by weighted student credit hours.

- Revenue from students' tuition and fees will remain at the institution and not reduce state funding.

An additional pool of dollars will be distributed to the institutions based on performance. This performance pool will have metrics that reward institutional behavior that results in student success, grows external financial support from grants and contracts, and aligns higher education with the broader state goals.

In short, our proposed funding model shifts the emphasis from the public paying for inputs (enrollments) to investing in outputs (course completions and graduating students). The new formula is far simpler, will be easier for all to understand, and is based on data that focuses on student success.

Naturally, this large policy shift will bring challenges. One particular challenge I have been discussing with university system faculty and presidents is how to avoid graduating unprepared students in order to increase funding levels. We all agree it is imperative to continue ensuring that academic rigor and degree quality remain our top priorities. I am working with faculty leadership at each campus to develop assessment for student learning outcomes and measures for student success.

This proposed funding formula is now being reviewed by a legislative committee and it is our hope that it will be approved and ready to implement for the next budget cycle. We cannot continue to use a funding model that no longer meets our state's needs and is counterproductive to student success. By improving the investment process by which Nevada funds its public colleges and universities, we can encourage student success, as well as provide a higher return to the citizens who have entrusted us with the development of our next generation of leaders and innovators.

Dan Klaich is chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education.