Tech college students hurt by lack of transit
Those without cars must rely on inadequate buses
The trek is far greater at most other technical college campuses across the state. Sixty-one percent of campuses are not within walking distance of a public transit stop, which poses problems for students without a car or with car problems, according to new research by an education foundation.
“Our students are one flat tire away from dropping out of school,” said Abigail Seldin, CEO of the Seldin/HaringSmith Foundation.
The organization is producing stateby-state maps calculating how close public transit stops are to community and technical colleges. It exclusively shared the Wisconsin map with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Schools devote significant resources to getting and keeping students on track to earn a degree. But for some community college students, nearly all of whom are commuters, the biggest barrier is simply getting to class.
Research shows low-income students and students of color are disproportionately affected by transportation burdens. Latino students, for example, are more likely to rely on public transit and less likely to own a car, a burden that contributes to a lower college completion rate for this group.
Community college students spent an average of $1,840 on transportation last school year, accounting for nearly 20% of their cost of attendance.
Technical colleges have long understood that access to reliable transportation can be the linchpin to a degree for students. Even before the pandemic, many offered emergency grants to go toward gas or a car repair.
But some schools say they’re starting to focus on the issue even more.
Gateway Technical College, for example, is trying something new this year by partnering with the city of Racine to offer up to 300 students an annual bus pass.
The initial results have been “outstanding,” Gateway spokesperson Lee Colony said.
Map understates reliability of public transit and affordability
The Wisconsin map by the Seldin/ Haring-Smith Foundation shows that 39% of the state’s 92 technical college campuses are situated close to public transit stops, which is defined as within a half mile. Not surprisingly, these are concentrated primarily in Wisconsin’s largest metro areas of Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, La Crosse and Kenosha.
If anything, the map understates the ease of students’ commutes to campuses with close public transit options. Not taken into account are the frequency and reliability of routes, the cost and the availability of stops in students’ neighborhoods.
MATC student Jonah Libernacki said his daily commute from the city’s south side includes a 10-minute drive to a park-and-ride lot, a 40-minute wait for the bus and a 10-minute bus ride to the downtown campus. On the way back, it’s about a 30-minute wait, 10-minute bus ride and another 10minute drive.
“It’s about as simple as I can make it,” he said.
Libernacki, who is studying to be a surgical technician, said he’s considered driving to classes, but safety and cost are why he opts for the bus instead.
MATC pays $1.1 million to provides all students enrolled in six or more credits of class with a bus pass. Spokesperson Darryll Fortune said the routes serving all campuses, with the exception of Mequon, are easily accessible and high frequency.
Milwaukee County Transit System eliminated a route in 2020 that connected the downtown campus to the Mequon campus due to budget cuts.
Fortune said students can use an Ozaukee County-run shared taxi service, which takes them to one of three bus stops in Milwaukee County.
“Our students are one flat tire away from dropping out of school.” Abigail Seldin CEO of the Seldin/Haring-Smith Foundation