IVC wary of law waiving freshmen tuition
IMPERIAL — In spite of the noble intentions behind it, a new law that will waive community college tuition costs for first-time freshmen is causing concern among Imperial Valley College officials.
Assembly Bill 19, signed into law in October, has yet to be implemented and currently is without a funding mechanism, which is what partly worries IVC officials.
In the absence of a defined allocation amount from the state, IVC officials remain unsure of how it will impact the local campus.
“That kind of puts us in a panic mode, because we don’t know how to plan for it,” said Victor Torres, dean of student affairs and enrollment services.
In January, Gov. Brown’s proposed 2018-2019 budget included $46 million to go toward implementation of AB 19.
However, that figure may change as lawmakers seek approval of the $190 billion statewide budget proposal by June.
Additionally, the new law, known as the California College Promise, would also allow campuses to implement a federal loan program that IVC officials said wouldn’t likely benefit the local student body, the vast majority of whom already receive some sort of financial aid.
“As soon as we get that (budget) projection,” Torres said, “we will be able to determine a course of action and also determine whether we are going to participate in the loan program or not.”
Previously, IVC students had the opportunity to take part in the campus’ federal student loan program. The program didn’t attract wide use, proved difficult to administer and was subsequently discontinued in 1992, officials said.
The loan program’s relatively low use also meant just a few defaulted loans had the potential to place the program beyond acceptable thresholds for default rates, said Lisa Seals, director of financial aid.
Failure to maintain default rates below 30 percent for three consistent years would jeopardize the campus’ ability to obtain federal Title IV financial aid for all of its students.
Currently, about half of the campus’ students receive federal Pell grants that total about $20 million annually, Seals said.
Also, AB 19 may not have as much of an impact locally considering that about 80 percent of IVC’s student body is already eligible for the $46 per-unit fee waiver, officials said.
As part of AB 19, eligible full-time freshmen would need to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form and take part in efforts aimed at boosting graduation, such as assessments, the establishment of an education plan and participation in the orientation process.
The number of freshmen who completed the activities similar to the law’s requirements during the 2017-2018 school year totaled 133 students, Seals said.
Those 133 were part of a total of 320 full-time freshmen who were eligible to receive the fee waiver. The campus has approximately 2,900 freshmen and a total of about 10,500 students this school year, officials said.
Campus officials work collaboratively with local school districts to ensure graduating seniors fill out FAFSA forms regardless of what college or university they plan to attend. About 60 percent of the Valley’s graduating seniors enroll at IVC.
“We have some families that don’t want to deal with FAFSA for whatever reason,” Seals said.
Tuition for full-time state residents costs about $1,100 to $1,400 annually, depending on course load.
Prior to the passage of AB 19, the state Department of Finance released an analysis in August that essentially opposed it, stating the bill would reduce statewide community college funding by about $30 million to $40 million as a result of lost student fees.
Imperial Community College District Trustee Jerry Hart said he is in support of providing students additional opportunities to access higher education, but has mixed feelings about AB 19.
Specifically, AB 19 has the potential to reduce the amount of funds available to statewide community college districts through Proposition 98, a 1998-voter approved law that established a funding formula for K-12 and community colleges, Hart said.
The state’s community colleges receive nearly 11 percent of Prop 98 funds, he said.
“I am very concerned that it will take from the neediest students and put it into a program that has not been in effect yet,” Hart said.
Hart also pointed to programs in place at IVC that are aimed at boosting enrollment and graduation.
Recently, the passage of Assembly Bill 288 allowed high schools and community college districts to partner and allow college professors to teach dual enrollment courses at high schools.
The passage of AB 288 allowed local officials to expand on their previous offering of concurrent enrollment courses, where high school students would attend certain classes at IVC.
Locally, about 179 students from the Central Union, Calipatria and Imperial Unified school districts are taking part in those dual enrollment courses. The next school year, three additional high school districts are expected to take part in the program as well.
“Those fees are waived for those high school students,” Seals said.
Participating high school students can amass up to 36 units upon graduation and start as sophomores once at IVC.