Legislature(2017 - 2018)CAPITOL 106
02/07/2018 08:00 AM House EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation: Building a Culture of Education: K12- University Partnerships; University Administrative Cost Effectiveness | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
JOINT MEETING
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
February 7, 2018
8:01 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
Representative Justin Parish, Vice Chair
Representative Ivy Spohnholz
Representative Jennifer Johnston
Representative Chuck Kopp
Representative David Talerico
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
Senator Gary Stevens, Chair
Senator Cathy Giessel
Senator John Coghill
Senator Tom Begich
Senator Shelley Hughes
MEMBERS ABSENT
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
Representative Harriet Drummond, Chair
Representative Zach Fansler
Representative Lora Reinbold (alternate)
Representative Geran Tarr (alternate)
SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
All members present
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
PRESENTATION: BUILDING A CULTURE OF EDUCATION: K12-UNIVERSITY
PARTNERSHIPS; UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATIVE COST EFFECTIVENESS
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
JAMES R. JOHNSEN, PhD, President
University of Alaska
Fairbanks, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave a presented entitled "Building a
Culture of Education: K12-University Partnerships; University
Administrative Cost Effectiveness."
ACTION NARRATIVE
8:01:10 AM
CHAIR GARY STEVENS called the joint meeting of the Senate and
Senate Education Standing Committees to order at 8:01 a.m.
Representatives Parish, Johnson, and Talerico and Senators
Stevens, Giessel, Begich, and Hughes were present at the call to
order. Representatives Spohnholz and Kopp and Senator Coghill
arrived as the meeting was in progress.
^Presentation: Building a Culture of Education: K12-
University Partnerships; University Administrative Cost
Effectiveness
Presentation: Building a Culture of Education: K12- University
Partnerships; University Administrative Cost Effectiveness
8:01:50 AM
CHAIR STEVENS announced that the only order of business would be
a presentation: "Building a Culture of Education: K12-
University Partnerships; University Administrative Cost
Effectiveness"
JAMES R. JOHNSEN, PhD, President, University of Alaska, pointed
to a painting in the room of the Alaska treaty signing in 1867;
he said that the setting was during the Lincoln Administration.
He noted that five years before that, the Morrill Act of 1862
was passed by Congress and signed into law by the President.
The Morrill Act created land grants for universities across the
United States, and in 1815 Congress approved the Alaska
Agricultural College and School of Mines to become a land grant
university. Alaska didn't get the land that was supposed to
come with being a land grant university, but the state is
pursuing the issue in Congress. Before the treaty and the
Alaska purchase, a vision of the country's leaders was to invest
in education.
DR. JOHNSEN stated that culture of education for Alaska means
habits and values, and he emphasized that the university's
mission is for Alaska. He said he would address the
university's partnership with "friends in the P12 community."
He noted that the commissioner of the Department of Education &
Early Development (DEED) was present in the room. He mentioned
cost-effectiveness in education, and he emphasized the
importance of ensuring students' experiences are positive ones.
8:04:33 AM
DR. JOHNSEN began his PowerPoint presentation, entitled
"Building a Culture of Education: K12-University Partnerships;
University Administrative Cost Effectiveness." He directed
attention to slides 2-5 of the presentation, entitled "P12
University Partnerships." He stated that he and the
commissioner of DEED work together, which is something that was
not done in the past. As shown on slide 4, he said partnering
is taking place through teacher education and by reaching out to
students to increase educational attainment in Alaska, which has
been relatively low. Bringing that rate up is important in the
development of a more diverse and innovative economy and to
reduce the cost of health care and the incidence of crime. He
offered a more in-depth look at the partnerships of the
university, DEED, and local school districts, which focus on:
increasing academic rigor, expanding concurrent and dual
enrollment programs, increasing college and work readiness,
increasing college attendance and completion rates, reducing
required developmental coursework, and improving educator
preparation, recruitment, and retention. He said the UA Board
of Regents and Board of Education meet regularly, and he has
regular meetings with the Alaska Council of School
Administrators. He said UA is in the process of creating the
College of Education at the University of Alaska Southeast, and
that program has an internal advisory council and an external
council.
8:09:06 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slides 6-7, entitled "Teacher
Education." He stated that there is a low percentage of Alaska-
trained teachers in the state with relatively high turnover, the
estimated cost of that turnover is 20 million dollars a year.
He stated he would like to use that money elsewhere, such as for
recruitment of teachers. High teacher turnover in rural Alaska
is a burden, but more of a burden to the students and the
communities. More opportunities for Alaskan's to become
teachers need to be provided. He stated the goal is for 90
percent of all new teachers to be educated in Alaska by 2025.
Dr. Johnsen said the operating budget request for the coming
fiscal year includes an increment to fund strategies to increase
the ability to train more teachers and, through additional
professional development and enrichment, to retain teachers. He
highlighted an item on slide 7, the Alaska Statewide Mentoring
Project, which is not only improving the retention rate but also
showing up in improved academic performance of students. He
mentioned the Rural Alaskans' Honor Institute (RAHI) [not shown
on the slide], which is a place where "smart young Alaskans" are
brought to the university to learn about opportunities,
including teaching. He pointed to Educators Rising, on slide 7,
and noted that about half of the schools in Alaska have that
program, and UA would like to expand it.
8:12:08 AM
SENATOR HUGHES asked how many teachers are trained in Alaska
currently.
DR. JOHNSEN estimated about 800 total teachers are hired each
year.
8:12:40 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked Dr. Johnsen to expound upon the
recruitment process.
DR. JOHNSEN responded that UA is working with school districts
through the Educators Rising program by talking to children at
an early age about becoming teachers, much like is done with
middle school children through the Alaska Native Science &
Engineering Program. He said there has been a decline in the
respect given to the teaching profession. He mentioned the
Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program, which is a fast-track
to teaching.
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON asked Dr. Johnsen how reduction of
developmental training and the performance scholarships are
measured, specifically related to performance levels two and
three.
DR. JOHNSEN said he could provide those details. He recollected
that when he started as president, about 50 percent of the
students coming to the university required developmental
coursework, and now the number has been reduced to approximately
30 percent. In response to a follow-up question, he confirmed
that part of the reason for the reduction is because of the
university's change in its approach to developmental course
work; it has become more refined. He offered further details.
He noted that some of these students are coming to the
university at age 29, for example, and don't remember some of
the math skills they once learned in high school. He said UA
can tailor the developmental requirement to the student.
8:17:19 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON asked if that means that UA has
developed a network of tutors and has "looked into the tutors as
far as developing a further network of teachers."
DR. JOHNSEN answered that he would get back to Representative
Johnston with exact information. Due to fiscal cuts in past
years, the university has had to cut student support and student
advising positions.
8:17:56 AM
SENATOR HUGHES asked if MAT was developed for professionals in
other fields who decide they may like to try out teaching or if
it is designed for someone who already has taken several
education courses.
DR. JOHNSEN confirmed that the MAT is designed for those who may
want to change careers or perhaps just got out of the military,
for example. The prerequisite for entering the MAT program is a
baccalaureate degree.
8:19:07 AM
REPRESENTATIVE KOPP, regarding teacher turnover, said the state
is spending about $20 million a year, and he acknowledged that
"these are a lot of partnerships that you're doing with DEED."
He referenced information from the presentation saying that
there was a 50 percent turnover rate in rural Alaska, and he
asked how many teachers that is.
DR. JOHNSEN stated that he would get back to Representative Kopp
with the details, but he estimated the number is 100.
REPRESENTATIVE KOPP stated that it was interesting that
Northwest, West, and Southwest Alaska suffer from the highest
turnover rates and have single percentile scores in math,
science, and the English language. He remarked that the loss of
students in Alaska is directly related to teacher turnover, and
the foundation already has been laid for a statewide mentoring
project that may be much more intensive than what it is now. He
stated, "It's almost like we need ... a fulltime support
ministry for teachers." He said he thinks a program like this
would eventually pay for itself by keeping teachers in
classrooms. This program could give support at a ratio of one
person for 6-10 teachers.
8:21:19 AM
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND opined that Dr. Herb Schroeder does an
amazing job of "reaching down into that middle school cohort and
producing engineers." She asked how that depth of reach could
be modeled in Educators Rising.
DR. JOHNSEN stated that the university reaches out to students.
Regarding the Alaska Native Science & Engineering Program
(ANSEP), he said Dr. Schroeder identifies the smartest kids in
school and gets them on the university campus every year.
Ultimately, he said, it comes down to caring adults establishing
standards and instilling confidence in those young students. He
stated his belief that this approach needs to be taken to make
effective prospective teachers. He noted that Finland, which is
a country that has been "extremely successful in moving up the
ranks," has done this. He said he would like to start talking
to those students that have been identified and have them become
math teachers. During the past few years, funding cuts have
been necessary; these cuts have been a little more in-depth in
some areas to ensure that ANSEP expansion in Anchorage has the
funding it needs to continue. This year's budget request is
another increment of funding for development of ANSEP in
Anchorage, he said.
REPRESENTATIVE DRUMMOND said she is glad to hear that and hopes
Dr. Johnsen is taking a similar approach with educators.
8:22:52 AM
SENATOR BEGICH commented on the importance of the mentoring
program and how it has declined but is being discussed here. He
noted that Dr. Johnsen had stated a cost of $20 million annually
for recruitment, and he asked how something such as
Representative Seaton proposes - an earlier time period for
solidifying the budget for education - would affect those
recruitment numbers.
DR. JOHNSEN surmised it would reduce turnover, although he said
he may not be aware of certain effects of early funding on
turnover.
SENATOR BEGICH said clearly when students are in their last year
of teacher training, they are being recruited. He asked if Dr.
Johnsen thinks school districts would be able to recruit earlier
if they had a certainty about their budgets.
DR. JOHNSEN answered that he thinks there would be an impact,
but he said he would want to test that, perhaps by looking at
other states that may have earlier funding. He continued:
Just like ANSEP where, in spite of cuts, we cut deeper
and invested, we did that also with the mentoring
program. So, we tried to protect that. That was in
my first year. We said, "Wait a second, it's just
wrong, given the positive results, to end this
program." So, again, we cut a little deeper, painful
though that was, to make sure that funding went to the
mentor program.
8:26:57 AM
DR. JOHNSEN returned to the PowerPoint presentation, to slide 8,
entitled "Student Outreach." He mentioned Alaska Middle College
High School and said 75 percent of the students who graduate
from it come to a UA campus with an average of 30 university
credits units "in their pockets" and many with associate
degrees. He said ANSEP is successful. He noted that the Jump
Start Program in the Kenai Peninsula Borough supports tuition
reduction for residents of the borough to close to one-quarter
million dollars a year. He said there is a strong partnership
between UAA and the King Career Center, and the community and
technical colleges - UAA and UAF - work closely with school
districts. He pointed to the last item on slide 8, "TRIO Upward
Bound," and said the federal government is also involved in
education - teacher education in particular. He informed
members of the committees that the Higher Education Act is being
reauthorized now; numerous provisions of the Act address
education funding and teacher education. He said Alaska's
senior Senator is playing an important role in the
reauthorization of the Act.
8:26:51 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slide 9, entitled "Student Financial
Support." He stated that the UA Scholars Program is funded
through land development. Even though UA has never been given
the full land-grant it was due, it is active in commercializing
and getting monetary value from the lands that it does have.
The money goes into a fund endowment and then earnings from that
fund pay for the UA Scholars Program. The Alaska Performance
Scholarships award $12 million annually to students who come to
the university. The Alaska Education Grant is given based on
needs, between $500 and [$4,000] per year. He stated that even
with the education grant and a needs-based grant, UA is about
the lowest ranking in the country, in terms of providing needs-
based aid for students.
8:29:38 AM
DR. JOHNSEN directed attention to slide 10, entitled
"Administrative Cost Effectiveness." He emphasized that it is
critical for the university, as a university of the state, to be
accountable to the people of Alaska. He listed five efficiency
review processes, as shown on slide 11, which are: a 2008
MacTaggart and Rodgers report; a 2011 James Fisher report; a
2015 Statewide Transformation Report; a 2016 Strategic Pathways
[review], which is ongoing; and a 2017 review by experts from
the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems of
past UA systemwide studies. In response to Senator Stevens, he
said he would be happy to provide [the 2017 review]. He brought
attention to slide 12, entitled "Strategic Planning," and he
said the university system has clear goals and measures, which
he would share later. On slide 13, he said, is the summary from
the 2017 review, which reflected that UA had done a lot and
still has much to do. He said UA has engaged Jones and
McGuinness over the last year to focus on improvement goals.
Slide 14 focuses on strategic pathways and reflects the result
of an 18-month process where 230 faculty, staff, students, and
community members jointly looked at 22 areas of the university
with the question: "How do we optimize our system to achieve
our goals for higher education in Alaska?" He said the chart on
slide 14 shows a tension between the governing entity of a state
system and the campuses - the universities that make up that
system. The top four rows of the chart - mission, objective,
core principles, and strategy - and said they are all one. He
then pointed to the row that shows courses and programs
available across the university and said that represents unity.
He indicated that the information between those rows, which he
compared to [the filling of] a hamburger, shows where the three
major campuses differ.
DR. JOHNSEN said the Board of Regents has made some tough calls
over the last several years. The university system moved from
three schools of management to two and is in the process of
going from three distinctive colleges of education to one. It
is streamlining its procurement process. He explained that UA
purchases about $200 million of "stuff" per year, which must be
coordinated to get more buying power. He named grants and
contracts administration as an example of two areas in which UA
has "focused on backroom efficiencies to enable front room
service."
8:34:41 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON mentioned the hamburger and asked
whether credits are transferable.
DR. JOHNSEN answered yes, all credits are transferable, though
they may not transfer to a specific degree from one campus to
another. He provided an example of statistics for psychology
and statistics for economics where the theory is all the same,
but they are very different courses and should not be counted
when changing disciplines. The university has streamlined the
process to 48 hours for evaluating which credits transfer to a
major. That said, he reiterated that all credits will transfer
from UAA to UAF, for example, in counting toward a degree. He
added that general education requirements (GERs) all transfer.
In response to Senator Stevens, he confirmed that if a student
passed the general education requirements at the University of
Alaska Southeast, then he/she has passed the general education
requirements at UAA and UAF.
8:36:41 AM
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON mentioned nursing and engineering
degrees and asked, "Does that prove true for those two degrees
also?"
DR. JOHNSEN answered yes. He said the nursing and engineering
programs collaborate across the university system; their
external advisory committees work together. He said, "We tend
to think of these institutions as competing with each other, but
I think we're realizing that we're so much stronger together."
8:37:55 AM
DR. JOHNSEN returned to the PowerPoint presentation, to slide
15, entitled "UA Goals & Measures 2018-2025." He said the Board
of Regents has established five goals: economic development,
skilled workforce, world-class research, increased degree
attainment, and cost-effectiveness. He said the universities
are meeting with deans and directors to find out the goals of
the colleges that then will "roll up to these statewide goals."
He said increasing degree attainment is the critical goal.
Currently enrollment is at 29,000 and the goal of 45,000 by 2025
is almost a 50 percent increase. He has two benchmarks that the
Board of Regents approved: one is to look at the percentage of
population in school in another state; the other is to look at
Alaska's history of student enrollment. In 1965, he said, 6.3
percent of Alaskans were students at one of the state's
campuses. Currently that number is just over 4 percent, and he
said 6 percent seems reasonable.
8:40:11 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SPOHNHOLZ stated that she is excited to hear
about ambitious goals. She asked for an explanation of the item
under the goals on slide 15, which is to increase annual
completions per full-time equivalent (FTE).
DR. JOHNSEN answered that is a standard measure of productivity.
He offered further details. He said if UA can increase
graduation rates, then there will be "more people as a
percentage of our total student body graduating in a particular
year."
8:41:30 AM
REPRESENTATIVE PARISH asked what the target was in terms of the
number of Alaska teachers hired and whether the turnover problem
would be addressed.
DR. JOHNSEN indicated that the answer depends on UA's
partnership with the school districts. He explained that
districts need to reduce their turnover rates while UA
simultaneously produces more teachers. In response to a follow-
up question, he indicated that the focus is simply on "more" and
refinement will come later. The 80 percent solution is more.
He stated that he would love having too many Alaska-trained
teachers.
8:44:10 AM
REPRESENTATIVE KOPP asked Dr. Johnsen if he would agree that
athletics and research are two of UAs biggest "draws."
DR. JOHNSEN replied no. He acknowledged that $4-$6 outside
dollars come in to UA for each $1 that goes in to research, and
the area attracts graduate students. He said athletics does not
seem to be a powerful draw in Alaska. He said a powerful draw
to students currently is the ability to graduate and find
employment opportunities.
REPRESENTATIVE KOPP countered that he believes that athletics is
a powerful draw when trying to get young people to select UAA,
and he suggested that Dr. Johnsen may have "a little disconnect
from actually where a lot of Alaskans are at with respect to our
athletic programs." He said schools become known for different
programs, and the better Alaska's programs do, the better
recruitment is. He said he is glad to see research being
highlighted, because he does think that "draws the ... top tier
faculty, and that's critical."
DR. JOHNSEN acknowledged Representative Kopp's point. He said
the university's goal with athletics has been to get private
support up to the same level as the students are paying for
their academic programs. He said there is no question that the
athletic programs are valuable; however, they have been heavily
subsidized - more so than academic courses - which he opined is
not a good plan. Dr. Johnsen said UAA and UAF are going to
continue to garner more private support for athletics. He
related that UA has three alumni at the Winter Olympics this
year, all of whom happened to have majored in engineering. He
concluded, "So, there's no question that it's very, very
important."
8:47:50 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slide 15, entitled "UA Goals & Measures
2018-2025," which represents the regent's established goals over
the long term; those goals are tied to funding. He pointed out
that the appendix breaks out the specific investments proposed
in each of the goal areas. Referring to slide 16,
"Institutional Missions," he said UA is clear about its missions
for each university. He then addressed slide 17, "System vs
Campus Authority," and he said UA has considered the
relationship between stateside administration and campuses to
determine who is responsible for what, as well as focusing
statewide on governance and "those services that make sense."
He said when he began as president, UA "had some programs that
touched students and others in the statewide administration;
those have all been moved to campuses." He added, "The only
stuff that's in statewide is where it makes sense from a
governance standpoint and where, from an administrative
standpoint, it makes sense to have that centrally provided
service to the university campuses."
DR. JOHNSEN highlighted slide 18, entitled "System vs Campus
Reductions," and he stated that the university has reduced
systemwide functions 36 percent, in terms of positions, since
fiscal year 2014 (FY 14). Funding has gone down about 37
percent. He said that is "not quite triple the systemwide
average reduction over this period." Further consideration is
being made to "make statewide even leaner."
8:50:04 AM
DR. JOHNSEN covered slides 19-21, entitled "System vs. Campus
Authority." Slide 19 clarifies roles of governance between the
Board of Regents, the statewide administration, and the specific
universities. He said UA was criticized in the MacTaggart
Report for not involving the campuses in statewide decision
making. He relayed that he has weekly meetings with the
chancellors individually and as a group with a couple of vice
presidents. No decisions are made without consultation with the
chancellors, which has strengthened collaboration. Dr. Johnsen
said there would always be tensions in a system, but UA has a
process for working through them. He said UA thinks about the
needs of the state and provides administrative functions that
are nonduplicated. Further, the University of Alaska Foundation
and the Land Management Office are self-funded activities. The
foundation is a 501-C-3, while the Land Management Office is
paid for through development activity. These entities provide
some services directly to the campuses, but they have an
independent mission, as well. Dr. Johnsen said that [functions
that directly impact] students and faculty members are strictly
at the campus level. He gave examples of two programs that were
moved out of statewide services: the Mining and Petroleum
Training Services (MAPTS) program and the K-12 Outreach program.
He mentioned the Executive Council, a Summit Team, and 12
systemwide councils. He said every council has a charter and a
scorecard and reports monthly on its initiatives and objectives.
He stated that this effort increases transparency as to what is
going on across the system. He said many of the recommendations
and decisions that came out of the strategic pathways process
have been assigned to the councils. He said this plan comes
partly from his experience in the private sector, where there
were monthly reviews that covered every aspect such that
"nothing falls through the cracks."
8:53:26 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slide 22, entitled "Budget Development,"
which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
Reports identified the need to improve budget
development between statewide and campuses
Regents set goals, then Statewide administration
works with campuses to identify strategies and needed
resources
Budget increments are tied to specific strategic
goals down to the campus level
Budget reduction plans are codeveloped with campuses
DR. JOHNSEN said budget cuts are not a pleasant process. He
said, "We're planning for a good future, but we're also always
preparing for what might actually take place."
8:54:30 AM
SENATOR BEGICH noted that Senator Coghill "is looking at
extending the education tax credit" that Dr. Johnsen had said
last year was a critical component of UA's budgeting process.
He said the tax credit is set to expire this year, and he asked
Dr. Johnsen how vital a role that credit plays in future
planning processes.
8:55:05 AM
DR. JOHNSEN acknowledged that both Senator Coghill and
Representative Tuck have bills that would extend the tax credit
program. He emphasized that the tax credit program is
critically important to the university, because it brings, on
average, $5-$7 million dollars a year. A lot of that money goes
into workforce development, research, and scholarships. He said
the larger significance of the credit is connectivity between
the university and the mining companies, banks, fishing
organizations, and other elements of the private sector, that
are making those contributions.
8:56:24 AM
DR. JOHNSEN returned to the PowerPoint presentation. He
advanced to slide 23, entitled "Salary Schedules." He said UA
is doing a comprehensive compensation analysis covering faculty,
staff, and executives. The university system has "been on the
downslope" financially, while other universities in other states
"have been on the upside" coming out of the recession. He said
UA has had salary freezes across the board in FY 18 and 19,
which includes no step increases. He credited United Academics,
the union for the university system, which helped UA work on a
collective bargaining unit with no compensation increases for
three years.
8:57:50 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slide 24, entitled "Retention &
Graduation," and he said UA is committed to achieving a goal of
65 percent [retention and graduation] by 2025. A large study
done by Georgetown shows that twenty percent of jobs will
require bachelorette degrees and higher, while 20 percent will
require "some postsecondary education of value," such as an
associate degree or certification. He said all other goals
established by the regents are in line with the 65 percent goal.
8:58:56 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SPOHNHOLZ referred to slide 23, regarding salary
schedules. She shared that one of her brothers works in the
Lower 48 and experienced the impact of the recession on public
institutions, including the difficulty of retaining faculty.
She acknowledged that there is a challenge to compete nationwide
when recruiting faculty. She noted that most faculties do not
commit to an institution for just a couple of years but hire on
for "a long-term relationship"; therefore, the loss of cutting-
edge faculty could affect the university's competitive edge for
a decade. She said it took UA 15 to 20 years to recover from a
"competitive disadvantage" it faced in the 1980s. She said she
fears UA is taking backsteps that will once again affect it.
She shared that when she was in school in the '90s, her
classmates went to colleges in the Lower 48, because UA wasn't
offering competitive degrees with exciting faculty. She said,
"We don't want to see that kind of brain drain as we're moving
forward."
DR. JOHNSEN said he agrees. He pointed out that UA ranks number
one in Arctic research, and "we need to own that space." He
said other institutions, such as Dartmouth, Northern Arizona
University, the University of Colorado, and the University of
Washington, "are discovering the Arctic." He stated, "It's
critical, not just for that ranking and that reputation, in
terms of our ability to attract top-notch faculty; it's critical
for solving relevant problems, challenges that we face here
living in the North. So, it's a proxy for a lot of really,
really important, good things that we retain that world
preeminence in Arctic research."
9:03:50 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slide 25, entitled "Curriculum," which
read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
Fisher recommended common general education core
across the campuses
We are making good progress here
o Aligning General Education Requirements
(GERs) across all campuses
o Establishing system wide policy for
transfers
o Establishing system wide standards for
college readiness and developmental education
DR. JOHNSEN said UA has figured out a more streamlined process
for figuring out transfers. He then addressed slide 26, "Career
& Technical Education," which read as follows [original
punctuation provided]:
Reports identified the need to clearly distinguish
our vocational, career and technical education
? We've acted by creating distinct Career & Technical
Colleges at UAA and UAF
Prioritizing workforce needs 65% by 2025
? Reports recommend pricing community college rates
below other degree program
? FY19 budget proposing CTE tuition off-set
DR. JOHNSEN estimated that within the next week, UA would be
announcing its specific occupational endorsement programs and
courses across the system where it will be providing a 25
percent discount. He said UA has a unified tuition model and,
while its university tuition is relatively low compared to
national standards, its community college tuition is relatively
high.
9:05:45 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slides 27 and 28, entitled "Information
Technology." He described information technology (IT) as UA's
nervous system and emphasized the need to keep it strong. He
said several reviews have been done, including strategic
pathways of IT, and more recently he engaged an IT expert from
the Silicon Valley to do a review; UA will be making decisions
based on that review in the next couple weeks. He talked about
the dynamic nature of IT and having to keep up with its
innovations. He mentioned Thomas L. Friedman's book, The World
Is Flat, and he said it means that regional geography becomes
less important, which means UA has to increase its investment in
online programs. He noted that UA currently has over 100
programs available completely on line. He talked about security
issues and using data to make decisions, such as the use of
metrics and predictive modeling, particularly in the area of
student support. He said UA is doing streamlining, investing in
automation process improvement, and is working with the State of
Alaska on a travel system, among other things.
9:08:03 AM
SENATOR HUGHES noted that the two committees had focused on the
virtual education effort through SB 96, which addresses the
national problem of teacher recruitment and retention.
Regarding the teacher education program, she emphasized the
importance of "gearing up teachers to be able to use this model
... in a whole new twenty-first century kind of way." She said
this is part of the solution in closing the achievement gap and
addressing the teacher shortage.
DR. JOHNSEN responded, "point taken."
9:09:22 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SPOHNHOLZ stated there are a lot of opportunities
for Alaskans to be moving into information technology and
computer engineering. She questioned what UA is doing to
provide those opportunities. She offered an example of a 30-
year-old constituent who is a software developer who develops
applications ("apps") and is doing well for himself. She stated
her belief that increased access to broadband throughout Alaska
will provide opportunities for rural Alaskans to "have one foot
in each world in the best of ways." She said she is interested
in what UA is doing "in that realm."
9:10:47 AM
DR. JOHNSEN highlighted the university's computer and
engineering programs. He provided an example of a successful
entrepreneur - a UAF graduate who went on to Berkley to earn his
Master of Business Administration (MBA). He said this UAF
graduate has been working with the technical industry for the
last 20 years. He recalled speaking with the entrepreneur about
opportunities in Alaska, and he offered his understanding that
this person would like to help other Alaskans rise in the field.
He talked about the President's Innovation Challenge, which
provides prizes for students who work with business leaders in
the community to identify a problem and develop a solution to
it. He said there is "a whole ecosystem of innovation," and UA
needs to continue to promote it. He noted that UAF had launched
a business incubator located in the new engineering building.
He said Alaska Center for Energy and Power (ACEP) is "one of the
anchors." Four faculty and companies have space there, and he
expressed his hope that there would be a research park developed
in the future. He mentioned mariculture in Southeast Alaska.
9:12:36 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slides 30-34, entitled "Improving
Student Experience." He covered the information on slide 31,
which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
Budget cuts negatively impact student facing
services; FY19 budget includes resources to replace
those services
? New on-line student access gateway provides students
easier access to courses and programs statewide
? New readiness assessment allows for faster, and more
targeted developmental work
Math Emporium and other innovations in developmental
programs
DR. JOHNSEN related the information on slide 32, which read as
follows [original punctuation provided]:
? New Education Advisory Board (EAB) student success
initiative will provide data based advising and
increase retention
? Title IX compliance creating safer campuses
? Course sharing between universities increases
opportunities for students
? Progress being made on common calendar (semester
start / end dates and breaks are now common)
? Additional on-line programs for nontraditional
students
DR. JOHNSEN noted that over 85 percent of UA students and 95
percent of staff completed training in Title 9 this past year.
He estimated there are now 106 online programs available. He
said Alaska is ranked as the state with the most individuals who
have attended college but have not earned a degree. For those
individuals to be able to finish college while working, online
courses are imperative.
9:17:09 AM
DR. JOHNSEN covered the material on slide 33, which read as
follows [original punctuation provided]:
? e-Learning was focus of Pathways process
? Increased cross campus collaboration through e-
Learning Consortium
? 106 programs can be fully completed online
? In FY17, an average of 4.3 e-Learning credits taken
per student an increase of 43% since FY13
? Approximately one-third of students enrolled at more
than one campus
? Exploring outsourcing of some online programs
DR. JOHNSEN related that at UAS, over 50 percent of the credit
hours are delivered on line to students across the state.
Considering that a third of UA's students are enrolled
simultaneously at more than one campus, UA is working toward a
seamless systems process across the UA system. He said UA has
been looking at outsourcing a portion of its online programs.
He said digital library and database subscriptions would be part
of UA's operating budget request.
9:18:24 AM
DR. JOHNSEN advanced to slide 36, entitled "Strategic Investment
by Objective," which details UA's budget request beyond the
governor's request and breaks it down into state and non-state
funds. He concluded his presentation by sharing the seven best
practices for higher education systems, provided by the
MacTaggart Report. They are: strong executive leadership;
simple, clear public agenda; fiduciary capacity to execute;
clear authority and responsibility; models of frugality;
integrated decision making; and critical self-appraisal and the
ability to change. He said he thinks UA has demonstrated all
these best practices.
9:20:23 AM
REPRESENTATIVE PARISH commended Dr. Johnsen for UA's goal of
operating more cost effectively and reducing the cost of
education per completer by more than forty percent. He asked
what would happen to tuition over that same period.
DR. JOHNSEN explained that in the short term the university has
already approved a 5 percent increase for the next couple of
years. Tuition is still under the median of the western states.
The university will address the cost of tuition for more price
sensitive courses and programs, such as occupational
endorsements; it will put resources there to lessen the impact
of the tuition increases. He stated that what drives UA's
efficiency is increasing enrollment and revenue faster than it
increases its expenses.
REPRESENTATIVE PARISH stated that he had attended UAF and UAS
because he could afford it. He asked what UA's target goal is
for tuition over the next eight years.
DR. JOHNSEN answered that UA would like to keep tuition below
the median tuition of the fifteen western states. He stated
that affordability is critical. He listed affordability,
efficiency, and excellence as the touchstones of UA.
9:23:45 AM
CHAIR DRUMMOND noted that Dr. Johnsen previously had related
that student counseling had been reduced. She said that as
chair of the House Education Standing Committee, she serves as a
commissioner on the Alaska Commission of Post-Secondary
Education (ACPE), which has an Alaska career information system
and a complete range of services it offers students. She asked,
"Is the university's counseling integrated with what the ACPE
provides?"
9:24:23 AM
DR. JOHNSEN answered, "Absolutely." He said UA works closely
with the Department of Labor & Workforce Development, under
which ACPE resides, and has done so for years and will continue
to do so. He said UA is currently working on a project [with
ACPE]. He related that he is the former chair of ACPE;
therefore, there is "a bit of personal commitment to ... that
important mission."
9:25:27 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committees, the joint
meeting of the House and Senate Education Standing Committees
was adjourned at 9:25 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 02 07 UA Joint Educ Committee Final.pdf |
HEDC 2/7/2018 8:00:00 AM |