Ohio Senate Finance Committee
Testimony
John Carey, Chancellor, Ohio Board of Regents
March 3, 2015
Chairman Oelslager, Vice Chair Coley, Ranking Member Skindell and members Committee,
thank you for the opportunity to present testimony today on higher education cost savings and
affordability initiatives taking place across the University System of Ohio.
My name is John Carey, and I currently lead the agency known as the Ohio Board of Regents,
where we are responsible for coordinating higher education in Ohio through program approval;
allocating state operating support to public campuses and Ohio Technical Centers;
administering the state’s financial aid programs; assuring seamless credit transfer among all
sectors of post-secondary education; and providing Ohio’s workforce the skill sets needed to
succeed.
As you know, Ohio’s public institutions consist of 14 public universities with 24 regional
campuses, 23 community colleges, and Ohio’s public providers of adult career, technical and
basic literacy education. The majority of the agency’s General Revenue Fund (GRF) budget
supports public colleges, universities, adult workforce, and basic literacy education centers.
Over the last biennium, two major student-focused initiatives were undertaken: the initiation of
the performance-based funding formula and the revamping of Ohio’s dual enrollment program
under College Credit Plus. The new formula, based on course completion and graduation, is a
major step toward incentivizing schools to improve student outcomes by helping them achieve
credentials that lead to a job and a stronger workforce here in Ohio. Under this model,
Students will finish faster, preventing them from incurring additional debt without having a
degree or credential to show for it. Also, institutions are demonstrating more efficient program
delivery and ensuring student success, which is rewarded through the funding formula
The College Credit Plus program will allow students the opportunity for no-cost college credit
while still in high school which also can greatly shorten the time to a degree or credential. This
will directly result in reduced costs for students and their families. For example, a student who
is able to earn 30 credit hours while still in high school could save 25% of the cost of a
bachelor’s degree.
Additionally, our agency has recently updated policies regarding the number of credit hours
required for degree programs, capping associate degree programs at 65 credit hours and
bachelor’s degree programs at 126 hours, unless it can be shown that the additional
coursework is required to meet professional accreditation or licensing requirements. This will
help to ensure that our students can complete their degree goals in a timely and cost efficient
manner.
25 South Front Street
Columbus, Ohio 43215
phone 614.466.6000
fax
614.466.5866
web www.OhioHigherEd.org
There have been many other recent efforts that Ohio has embarked upon under the leadership
of Governor Kasich to assist our institutions in operating at optimal levels, through construction
reform, the collaborative capital budget planning process, and the work of the Efficiency
Advisory Council.
The FY12-13 budget reformed Ohio’s construction laws, giving our public institutions of higher
education greater flexibility by giving schools the authority to choose one of several alternative
methods of construction delivery. This regulatory relief reduces time and costs for our
institutions, savings that can be passed on to students and their families.
During the last biennium, Ohio’s college and university presidents came together in a
collaborative process to determine priority projects for capital funding. Rather than competing
for dollars, the presidents focused on directing resources to campuses with the greatest need,
and 88 percent of the funds went to renovation projects, again saving costs to our institutions.
For the past two years, each public institution has participated in the Efficiency Advisory
Committee, submitting annual operational efficiency plans that highlight cost-saving best
practices and innovative models of operation and collaboration.
Some examples include:
 Eastern Gateway Community College collaborating with OhioMeansJobs in the colocation of an office to help students learn to interview, prepare a resume, conduct job
searches, and other career services
 Central Ohio Technical College and The Ohio State University at Newark partnering
together to share administrative staff
 Bowling Green State University entering into a partnership with the Wood County
Hospital wherein the hospital will provide a student health care center facility and
services, saving the university approximately $1 million to $1.3 million annually
These are just a few examples of the hundreds of efficiencies that all of our institutions are
implementing to drive down costs and save students money.1
However, there is more work to be done. The higher education initiatives proposed in
Governor Kasich’s Executive Budget will move to improve college affordability, cost savings to
students, and efficient practices at our institutions.
Keeping Tuition Affordable for Ohio Families
The executive budget proposes holding down tuition by restricting tuition increases at two-year
and four-year schools to no more than the greater of two percent over what the institution
charged in the previous academic year or two percent of the statewide average cost, by sector.
Schools will not be allowed to increase tuition in FY2017, the second year of the biennium. To
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The 2013 and 2014 Efficiency Advisory Committee reports are available at www.ohiohighered.org/efficiency
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help schools plan for the tuition freeze in 2017, the Board of Regents will present a menu of
efficiency options that schools can adopt to reduce costs.
Reducing Costs and Driving Performance
The Governor recently issued an executive order to create a nine-member Task Force on
Affordability and Efficiency in Higher Education. The executive budget requires a report of the
task force to recommend ways for Ohio public colleges and universities to foster increased
innovation to drive down costs at our institutions. Some of the areas the task force will be
examining include identifying opportunities for shared services and outsourcing, administrative
staffing levels, more efficient space utilization, elimination of low-enrollment courses,
intellectual property that has potential to be commercialized, and the use of technology to
reduce costs.
Building upon the work of the task force, the board of trustees at each of Ohio’s public colleges
and universities will be required to conduct an efficiency review at the institution to help the
schools identify ways to implement the task force recommendations and other cost savings
measures. In order to incentivize these efforts, a new $20 million innovation program will help
colleges and universities implement their best reform ideas that deliver long-term, sustainable
cost savings to students.
Community College Pathways
One of the best ways to earn an affordable degree in Ohio is through the many pathway
partnership agreements between our community colleges and universities. By starting their
degree at a less-expensive community college and finishing it on a main university campus,
students can greatly reduce the cost of their education. For instance, a student can take their
first two years at Columbus State Community College, and transfer and attain their bachelor’s
degree on Ohio State University’s main campus. Ohio University has partnered with 18 other
institutions on low cost pathways, and Lorain County Community College offers several
pathways with partner institutions that lead to a bachelor’s degree without students leaving
the LCCC campus. Again, these are just a few examples of the many partnerships between our
two-year and four-year institutions.
In the proposed budget, Ohio’s community colleges will be able to offer affordable bachelor's
degrees in instances where local businesses are saying they need workers with advanced, highly
skilled training. If a university within 30 miles is unable to offer the degree, Ohio’s community
colleges would be able to step in and fill that workforce need for local employers. This will
create yet another lower cost alternative for students to receive a bachelor’s degree.
Summer OCOG
Currently, federal Pell grants only cover two terms of study each year, limiting resources for
students attending community colleges and regional campuses who choose to study full-time
year round. The Higher Education Student Financial Aid Workgroup sought to remedy this
situation in the group’s recommendations. The executive budget authorizes funding students
with financial need with the Ohio College Opportunity Grant (OCOG) during summer terms,
once Pell grants are exhausted. This step will help low-income community college and regional
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campus students who seek to use summer terms to speed their time to a degree and save
money by finishing more quickly.
…
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you about
higher education cost savings initiatives today. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have
at this time.
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