Poll Finds Most Happy With State’s Public Colleges

A new public opinion poll shows strong support for Washington’s public colleges but no clear consensus on how to provide access to throngs of new students, much less pay for that access.

The state Higher Education Coordinating Board, along with a new blue-ribbon panel on college financing, is trying to determine how the state can meet a projected enrollment increase of 40 percent during the next generation.

The Legislature, which has regularly squeezed higher education budgets and now faces the spending limits of Initiative 601, has asked the board to update the state’s higher education master plan this year. That proposal will set targets for meeting the pending higher education demand.

As part of its yearlong project, the board and its consultant, MGT of America, commissioned independent pollster Stuart Elway of Seattle to sample public opinion about higher education. The results, released to the panel Wednesday, show what Elway called “a reservoir of good will” for the state-supported community colleges and four-year schools.

The vast majority of the respondents had a positive view of state colleges, with only 7 percent calling them below average or poor. The University of Washington and Washington State University were particularly well-regarded, with 72 percent giving the flagship colleges top marks. A majority also gave community colleges ratings of excellent or good. Regional universities and Evergreen also were praised by 47 percent.

Most people said they and their children need more than a high school diploma in today’s economy.

Roughly 80 percent of the respon dents said they believe paying taxes entitles them and their children to access to state colleges. Many said their children plan to attend in-state school and most thought qualified high school graduates will be able to get into state schools.

One in six people said they’ll avail themselves of additional schooling in the next three or four years. Elway said those returning students have not been figured into earlier projections of enrollment increases.

A majority was satisfied with the current mix of two-year and four-year schools and technical colleges. Those who wanted changes primarily advocated more emphasis on community colleges.

Respondents said higher education should be a top state budget priority. Only kindergarten through 12th grade funding was a more popular way of spending state tax dollars. About 60 percent of the respondents pegged K-12 as their top priority, followed by higher education at 15 percent.

Turning to funding, the poll said dramatically raising tuition, increasing class size or limiting enrollment are unacceptable. Those solutions have been adopted by the Legislature in recent years, but turn out to be the least popular, Elway said.

The only clear consensus, de scribed as unrealistic by Elway, was to save lots of money by firing administrators.

About 59 percent said they would favor giving community colleges local taxation authority, much as school districts now may seek special property tax levies.

About 55 percent suggested shifting money from other budget areas, most notably the prison system.

Others suggested requiring professors to teach more classes.

The option of a tax increase for higher education was fairly evenly split: 51 percent in favor and 44 percent opposed.

The poll was conducted by phone in late June among 800 adults. Margin of error is 3.5 percent.

The panel called the poll both informative and sobering. State residents have “some pretty scary expectations” of a system that faces a crisis of financing and sheer numbers of students, said member Larry Hanson, a newspaper publisher from Everett.

Former U.S. Rep. Mike McCormack of Ellensburg, buttressed by comments from Central Washington University President Ivory Nelson, said state colleges need to rebuild public confidence and support and learn to be more efficient.