skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Audit: Lawmakers Can Help Improve Oregon Community Colleges

play audio
Play

Wednesday, January 11, 2023   

An audit of community colleges in Oregon has implications for the state's legislative session, which started this week.

The report from the Secretary of State's Audit Division in December pointed to the need for a greater role from the commission overseeing higher education.

Ben Cannon, executive director of the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission, said there have been some modest gains in completion or transfer numbers over the past decade. Although overall numbers hover around half, he noted there has been greater success for some underrepresented students of color.

"We are graduating more Hispanic/Latino students today than at any prior time, and that's in spite of the decline in overall enrollment at the colleges," Cannon reported. "Over the last couple of years in particular that's been steep."

The audit showed enrollment dropped faster than most other states both before and during the pandemic. In 2021, Oregon ranked 40th for completions, according to data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center included in the report.

Despite the challenges, the audit pointed to areas where state lawmakers could help the Higher Education Coordinating Commission improve outcomes at Oregon's 17 community colleges, including increased funding, and collecting more data to measure them.

"The increased role that the auditors envision for the HECC in helping improve student success at community colleges would require greater levels of capacity at the state agency," Cannon explained. "Or in some cases, greater levels of authority."

Cannon added his agency and the audit agreed state lawmakers can do more to invest in financial aid.

"Those programs are a partnership between the HECC and the Legislature, and legislative support, particularly on the funding side, is really critical for us to expand those and really meet the spirit of the auditor's recommendation there," Cannon contended.

Oregon's legislative session is slated to run through the middle of June.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


A 2022 report finds failing to speed up transmission beyond the current pace will increase 2030 U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions by 800 million tons per year. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …

Many factors affect a customer's bill amount, including energy usage, weather, and the number of days in a billing period, according to Arizona Public Service. (Jason Yoder/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021