Friday News Roundup: Week of September 12-16

University of California Regents recoil at idea of 16% tuition increase

Hawaii provides $6M over 3 years for preschool

Washington State’s school districts brace for even more cuts

Kansas colleges request budget hike of nearly $19 million

University of California Regents recoil at idea of 16% tuition increase
A proposal to increase tuition in the University of California (UC) system by 8 to 16 percent annually through the 2016 school year to make up for projected budget shortfalls has become highly contentious. Under the plan, tuition (not including room, board, and campus fees) could jump from this year’s $12,182 to between $16,596 and $22,000 in 2016. This week, however, the UC Regents deferred plans to vote on the system’s budget in November until sometime in 2012. Instead, they suggested the UC system try to make up the budget shortfalls with billions of dollars in donations and increased tax revenues. The Regents also approved large incentive awards and salary increases for eight UC executives, the largest of which was a $745,000 bonus for the system’s chief investment officer. More here…

Hawaii provides $6M over 3 years for preschool
Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie announced this week that the state Department of Education would provide $6 million over the next three years for early childhood education. The funds will be distributed as part of the state’s Race to the Top initiatives and will allow an additional 800 children from low-income families to attend preschool. Students will be drawn from low-income areas the state has terms “Zones of School Innovation.” The state’s child care resource agency will handle individual student applications for the subsidies. More here…

Washington State’s school districts brace for even more cuts
Washington State is facing a $1.3 billion revenue shortfall this year on top of cuts already made to the fiscal year 2012 budget from 2011 levels.. Four months ago, lawmakers passed a budget that cut $1.8 billion from K-12 education in the state. However, schools may face additional cuts as the legislature looks for ways to fill the additional shortfall. Programs at the greatest risk are the politically-contentious ones, including full-day kindergarten for low-income students, funding to supplement property tax revenue in property-poor districts, bonuses for certified teachers, and teacher salaries, which saw a legislature-mandated 1.9 percent cut last year. In the past, legislators have also considered shortening the school year to below the current mandatory 180 days. Some lawmakers have also proposed raising taxes to keep districts’ budgets intact. More here…

Kansas colleges request budget hike of nearly $19 million
The Kansas Board of Regents is scheduled to consider next week a 2.6 percent increase in funding for higher education in the state for fiscal year 2013. Assuming the increase is approved, the Regents will send the budget plan to Governor Sam Brownback’s office for consideration as part of the Governor’s 2013 budget package. The legislature will begin work on the final budget beginning at the start of the legislative session in January. The budget increase totals $18.9 million, to include inflationary increases in higher education spending. It also calls for $2.2 million in increased need-based financial aid, and $38.4 million for specific programs, including $20 million for technical education, a major focus of Governor Brownback’s. The proposal reflects a number of the governor’s goals for the state’s education system. More here...