March 25, 2026 · Higher Education Committee · 9,739 words · 9 speakers · 107 segments
The meeting of the Senate Higher Education Committee will now come to order. Will the clerk please call the roll? Chair Timken?
Here.
Vice Chair Rogner? Here.
Senator Serino?
Here. Senator Reineke is checked in.
Ranking Member Ingram?
Here. There is a quorum. Members, the minutes from the February 18th meeting can be found on your iPads. Are there any additions, subtractions, or changes to the minutes? Seeing none, the question is, shall the minutes be agreed to? Without objection, the minutes are agreed to. Today we have the first hearing of Senate Bill 345, sponsored by Senator Manning. The bill is indicated to receive sponsor and proponent testimony. Before we get to the testimony, there is an amendment distributed to the members of the committee.
The chair recognizes Vice Chair Rogner with a motion.
Madam Chair, I move we amend with Amendment 1865. Thank you, Vice Chair Rogner. The amendment is in order. Would you please explain the amendment?
I'd be happy to. I'm sorry, actually, it's Amendment 1869. 1869, removes the requirement for the Chancellor of Higher Education to conduct a feasibility study on including employment and earnings criteria in the retrenchment process required by law for state institutions of higher education. I did speak with the sponsor of the bill. He is supportive of this amendment, and my understanding is this amendment will align the Senate version of the bill with that, which is the companion legislation, which is in the House.
Is there any other discussion? Hearing none, the question is, shall the amendment become part of the bill? Without objection, the amendment becomes part of the bill. I will now call up Senator Manning to provide sponsor testimony. Senator Manning, you may proceed when you're ready.
Thank you, Chair. Chair Timken, Vice Chair Rogner, Ranking Member Ingram, Senator Serino, and members of the Senate Higher Education Committee, thank you for allowing me the opportunity to provide sponsor testimony on Senate Bill 345. And thank you even more, Chairwoman, for also doing proponent testimony. That way I can pass all the tough questions to the experts behind me. But the goal of this bill is to improve college graduation rates and creating an incentive for college to adopt evidence-based practices that foster student success. As we know, and this has been an issue in Ohio, many students enroll in college and unfortunately never graduate. We've done many things across the state, across the years, to encourage that graduation, to reward colleges for getting those students across the finish line. However, we have seen evidence-based programs out there, like one that was implemented by Lurine County Community College, who will speak after me, that really increased these graduation rates by implementing these evidence-based programs. So what this bill does, it creates the Higher Education Evidence-Based Innovation Fund and Grant Program to incentivize these schools to really have the best practices out there. I know a question might be coming, or maybe you already reviewed the bill. There is no appropriation in this bill. Really, the goal of this bill, as we know, as we work through the budget process, center Serena you know better than most is a very busy time and it hard to get some of these programs up and running and ready to go to ask for that appropriation So we looking to do that and we also are hoping that we can not only have this funded by the budget process but also by private entities, nonprofits, some of which we'll speak here today. As I said, we have already seen schools make great progress using this approach, including Lorain County Community College, who implemented the SAIL program, which has led to increased graduation rates. They've done this through introducing practices like one-on-one advising, career counseling, and monthly academic check-ins. With institutions like LCC, I already seen increased graduation rates using this strategic approach encourages other schools to make similar steps to ensure that as a state, we are promoting data-driven past success for our students. And Lorain County Community College would not have been able to implement this without Arnold Ventures, who you'll hear from without private funding coming in. So with that, there is, as Senator Rogner, or Vice Chair Rogner mentioned, there is a companion bill, House Bill 644, sponsored by Representative Manning. I don't know if you know her, but she, obviously, anytime Lurian County Community College brings us something, they're the best community college in the state, one of the best in the country. We listen, and here we are. But that did pass out of the Higher Ed House Committee with unanimous support. With that, I'm happy to take any questions, but like I said, the experts are behind me. Thank you, Chairwoman.
Thank you, Senator Manning. Are there any questions from the committee? Seeing none. Thank you, Senator Manning.
Thank you.
Our next witness is Abigail Benjamin for Arnold Ventures.
Good morning. Good morning. Thank you, Chair. Chair Timken, Vice Chair Rogner, and Ranking Member Ingram, and members of the Ohio Senate Higher Ed Committee, My name is Abby Benjamin. I'm testifying on behalf of Arnold Ventures. I'll be summarizing the written testimony. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to provide testimony in favor of Senate Bill 345. For many, a college education provides marketable skills, opens opportunities for well-paying careers. Yet too few Ohioans graduate. Less than a third of students who start at Ohio's community colleges will earn a degree within three years. Less than 70% of those students who begin at Ohio's colleges graduate. Students who do not graduate often find themselves with debt, with little to show for it. Often the right support at the right time can help students make it to graduation. These supports, like career counseling, assistance paying for books, and gas cards to go to campus can ensure the students get positive returns for college. College. Colleges around the country from New York to North Carolina to a Raine Community College here in Ohio have adopted evidence-based practices that helps more students graduate. Local economies, communities, and most of all the students benefit from these reforms. These programs can come with significant start-up costs. These upfront costs keep campuses from adopting best practices and from innovating. Senate Bill 345 creates a competitive grant program to help colleges adopt and implement evidence-based reform. These grants can help campuses scale best practices and experiment with promising methods. Evidence-based reform can boost graduation rates, make colleges more affordable to students, and improve the efficiency of Ohio's higher ed system. Furthermore, these reforms have been rigorously evaluated and significantly improve productivity, or sorry, significant improvements for the students. This creates a strong incentive for Ohio's colleges to stay on the cutting edge of education reform. Through this competitive grant program established in Senate Bill 345 Ohio colleges can test implement and scale evidence reform and help more Ohioans complete college and contribute to the state economy Thank you for your time I happy to take any questions at this time
Thank you. Vice Chair Rogner has a question.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for your testimony today. Can you give me a specific example of an evidence-based reform?
Absolutely. Through the chair to the senator. Yeah, so they like to test what salaries students coming out of college. I'm sorry, is that what you're looking for? Also degrees? Well, to the chair, no. So your testimony references evidence-based reforms multiple times
and said that these can boost graduation rates, make college more affordable for students, improve efficiency. So I'm just thinking what are some of these evidence-based reforms,
like just very specifically, like that you would consider. Yeah, absolutely, through the chair to the senator. I think when we look at evidence-based reforms, and Lorraine Community College is actually here and will testify to them, but what we look at is what comes out, what support is offered behind it. So these jobs coming out of it, salaries coming out of it, there's multiple tests or studies that have tests of a five-year and a 10-year study showing that kids that come out of it will have higher paying jobs, higher degrees, and actually have make more money. Yeah, follow up. So are you specifically saying these are like the courses
that they'll be taking would change or you're tweaking the courses themselves or what exactly
would be changing? What would be the reform? Yeah, absolutely. Sorry. That would be just the support behind it. So wraparound services, the wraparound services behind it. Such as? Such as career counseling. They have one-on-one career counseling. And I mean, we had a student testify in the House Higher Ed Committee yesterday, and she spoke about how she was going to drop out. And actually, one of the career counselors encouraged her, talked her through it, and she stayed in and is now going to graduate from Lorain Community College this year. Also, gas cards is something that we offer food. They get Giant Eagle cards that they can use for food or gas. Also, just books. Anything that's not just a scholarship, this fund establishes. So they have those wraparound services.
So that would include, from what you said, it sounds like counseling and freebies?
through the chair to the senator. Yes, along with just overall help with school. Yes, so if they need help, it's just those wraparound services.
Okay.
Question, Senator Serino.
Thank you, Chair. I kind of want to follow up a little bit on Senator Ruggner's questions. So you seem to be focusing on what the outcomes would be. higher paying jobs, more employment, higher graduation rates and so on. It's really still not clear, and maybe subsequent folks can answer this a little bit. What exactly are those programs? So, for example, let me play devil's advocate with you here. We provide to the community colleges SSI dollars, right? In the capital budget that we're going to pass in the next couple of months, $400 million will be appropriated to higher education. 25% of that goes to the community colleges. We also have a lot of other programs that we have supported in the operating budget as well So nothing that you have described so far is anything that should not be ordinarily expected of the community colleges or the universities to do in order to increase graduation rates to counsel students on career choice so that they know if they want to go into sociology, they might not be driving a Mercedes, right? just so they understand the choices that they're making. Those are things in the normal course of delivering education. So I'm having difficulty understanding what are the new inputs that you're talking about doing that we should appropriate for on top of everything else we've appropriated for the universities and community colleges.
Absolutely. Through the chair to the senator. So one thing that this fund does do is it allows philanthropist groups to pay into the fund.
Sorry, it allows what?
Philanthropist groups to pay into the fund so that it's not just state dollars, but also programs like this, the SAIL program, the programs in New York, as well as North Carolina. Specifically in Lorain Community College, I believe the graduation rate has jumped from 19% to those students that graduated. and those students that were included in the program, it was within 30% of graduation. So I think you guys do a great job supporting students, but I think this additional help, and I think the Reign Community College as well as some of the other groups here can testify to this, this additional fund has been proven time and time again to work with just higher outcomes. So I think it's just something on top that has just proven to be beneficial to students.
Okay, thank you.
Senator Ingram.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you for this, and there's other folks coming, and I've already looked at some of their testimony. Who is it for? What restrictions will there be? And maybe you can help me with what you do. Are you with an organization that does that third-party kind of intervention?
Absolutely. Through the chair to the senator. So the best part about this program is Ohio can make it whatever you want to make it. Right now, it's for students who financially need that support. However, if you guys decide that you want to make it for all students who enroll, you guys can do that. This is a very scalable program. It's very flexible. So however you guys want to work with the Department of Higher Education, that is something that can be done with this. And then I represent Arnold Ventures, and we actually do this in North Carolina, New York, and Lorain Community College. We partner with them on their sales program.
So you're third party?
Yes.
Okay.
That's fine.
I'll wait for the other folks.
Absolutely.
Okay.
Thanks.
Thank you.
Any other questions? Thank you very much.
Thank you, Chair.
Our next witness is Tracy Green from the Lorain Community College.
Good morning, everyone. Thank you for having me. Chair Timken, Vice Chair Rogner, Ranking Member Ingram, and members of the Senate Higher Education Committee. I'm just so delighted to be here today and add some color and context, some real lived experiences of how we've supported some of our most vulnerable students. This is an example of one of those evidence-based high impact practices that Senate Bill 345 would help to encourage other colleges colleges and universities to be able to try, to launch, and then on their own, sustain and scale. And that's the story I'm here to share with you from Lorain County Community College. You have my written testimony. I will use it as a guide, but I'll also address some of the questions and concerns that came up in the last testimony. I also want to thank Senator Manning for pushing,
putting this legislation forward. We've been, the program I want to share with you specifically
is called SALE. Students Accelerating in Learning is the acronym that we use. It is modeled after a New York-based CUNY ASAP model who had already had evidence-based. Our program is very specifically focused on low-income students. The students who have the greatest barriers, whether that be transportation, food insecurity, housing, they're caring for children, they're caring for parents, they are the ones that need us the most. So when we discovered the SUNY ASAP model, Ohio became one of the demonstration sites. Could it be replicated and could the outcomes be achieved? Lorain County Community College was one of three colleges to do that. That was back in 2017. We started out with two cohorts, one who received the support and one who did not. I'm embarrassed to say that back in 2017, only less than 10% of our low-income students were able to graduate in that three-year. They come with a lot more challenges than our traditional students do. They've got their juggling work. Over 80% of our students are working at least part-time. We knew that we needed more support. What the ASAP model showed us was by reducing advising numbers from numbers of 1 to 300, 1 to 500, down to 1 to 150. The advisors do both academic and career counseling. They also meet with the student on a regular basis, at least once a month. They also help them break through barriers that they're facing, whether that's through our food pantry at the institution or by connecting to community services. What we've seen over that time is now the impact. We did sustain the program. We kept it. We could only serve about 40% of the eligible students up until 2025. So while we were only serving 40% of our Pell students during that time, we were seeing the data. The evidence was undisputable. We needed to make this for every student who would be eligible. Went from 10% to now sales students are mirroring what our traditional students are, which is over 40% completion rate. The program has worked, and when you find a program that helps the most vulnerable students succeed at those levels, you have no choice but to scale it. And in 2025, we took the step to scale that program. We did so through a lens of strategic finance. and to Senator Serino's point,
we are very grateful for the state share of instruction
that we receive and we do provide career counseling. We provide wraparound services for students. This is very intensive and very targeted on students who are coming mostly from low-income families who don't know what careers are out there. They don't have the support system and it's getting them to the finish line. The data is evidence, but the stories are even more powerful. You have written testimony from one student, Jordan Sass, who came from a low-income family and is now working at SureTape in the finance department and on her way to her master's degree. Never thought college was possible for her In the testimony you also if you have two minutes to listen to Izzy Torres story she faced every barrier I mentioned She was homeless She dropped out of school. She attained her GED through a spire. She's on her way to become a nurse. These are trans, this is transforming lives. Our college president who testified yesterday, Dr. Marsha Ballinger, to the House, saw the evidence and said, we have to figure this out. We've used a strategic finance model, really digging into the state share of instruction to identify that the sales students, because of their circumstances and the milestones they achieve, earn more in state share of instruction than the traditional population. So it is an investment, not an expense. We've also looked at, so that helps to break, to carry on the cost and sustain and scale the program. So does the use of open educational resource centers to reduce those book costs. The leveraging of Ohio Means Jobs funding for these students, we help them qualify for the other funding, and then philanthropy as well, that help fund the very last dollars that are going to help students. And sometimes that is through emergency aid of $500 is a make or break. If a student faces a $500 challenge, they're out. They quit. College is not for them. We can help them get through those hurdles, get to that finish line, and fuel the workforce in our community because over 90% of our students stay, live, and work within Lorain County and Northeast Ohio. That is just one program. Lorain County Community College has already done this. We've been about almost 10 years now. What was so helpful for us was the technical assistance to figure out how to make this both sustainable and scalable. We also then have engaged our philanthropic community who support those last-dollar supports. I think the promise of this particular legislation is that this is not a continued funding approach. This is how institutions try to do things differently, break down policies, change systems, and be able to help those that are most vulnerable. And with that, I'll conclude my testimony, and I would certainly entertain any questions.
Thank you very much. Questions? Senator Serino.
Thank you, Chair. Career counseling. A lot of, I guess what you're suggesting is that students, when they're in elementary school, sorry, not just elementary, but high school as well, that they're not getting career direction, career awareness, that sort of thing, and then you're finding that the students get to you as a post-secondary, right? And they don't have any background at all, so you're making up for a deficiency in the K-12 arena. Would that be a fair statement?
Certainly. Through the Chair to the Senator, we are doing better at that. It's not fixed as of yet. Careers are different. Many careers didn't exist ten years ago. We are working with our K-12. College Credit Plus is a big part of that in embedding career counseling there. This program brings a lot of nontraditional students who didn't have that benefit and didn't see the jobs in their own communities that are possible and out there that can lead to that living wage. So I would say that Ohio is on a great path to helping in that career exploration. I think that could be another high evidence model in future years because we're doing some things that I think are leading there. But still, the jobs are changing. We look at the data through Team Neo and Jobs Ohio All of our career and academic counselors are trained in what those occupations are So instead of having to see an academic advisor and a career advisor it one job So when a student comes into Lorain County Community College, they're designing with the end in mind. That end is not completion of walking across the graduation stage. That end is what career are they going to go to? What employer are they going to work with? And our programs help to design backwards from that. The SAIL program really puts that clear into focus and raises the inspiration and aspiration of some of the students who really couldn't see beyond some of the service sector industries that they've been in.
Senator Reineke.
Thank you, Chair. Thank you for being here. I'm still unclear exactly what this does. I want to follow up with my other senators on their train of thought there, but if you're doing it now, I don't understand what we're changing or what we're doing to help you with this. Through the chair to the senator, this is not about Lorain County Community College. This is
about helping other colleges and universities have the same type of experience we did ten years ago to try to redesign a program to fit a very specific population and need at our institution. I'm providing one example of what that evidence-based program might look like because we've done it for 10 years. We couldn't have done this, though, 10 years ago had we not had support from the Arnold Foundation and others to help us in that technical assistance to figure out the design elements that were going to make this work. This is not an ongoing expense of providing gas cards. This is really to help provide program design based on other evidence models, things like sale that have proven in the 10 years, how can we help other colleges and universities
replicate that at a deeper level for their students? Senator Reininghe.
Thank you, Chair. Thank you. I'm still not clear on what we're changing or what do we have to do that's why can't any other university do it or college do it now if you're doing it. I'm missing a link here or something.
Through the chair to the senator, I think from our approach, having that benefit of being part of a cohort that was co-designing it, and there were definitely startup dollars that were provided. We did receive about $100,000 to $150,000 to help provide the initial gas cards, the initial wraparound services, things that were not in place for our pilot study to see if we could produce those results. The startup support helped us get going and prove the results so that we could go back out to philanthropy and others to help sustain the program. We would be willing to help support the other colleges and universities, but it really is going to take startup resources in order to do this.
I have a question. So I think what I'd like to know, and I think for all of us to get a clearer picture, what are your funding sources for this SAIL program? As I understand it, Arnold Ventures donated some money to Lorain Community College to start this up. But you also use state share of instruction as part of this program as well. I think we're trying to get a clearer picture of where the funding sources for this were and then the impact of what we would be changing across the state of Ohio.
Certainly. To the chair in terms of the program itself we have used state share of instruction the model of state share of instruction to provide the evidence that we receive more state share of instruction for the sales students because they complete different milestones and because of the success points that are related to it. So there is definite cost, about $7,000 more per sales student than our normal student or our common student going through the program. So it's about a $7,000 difference. The expenses include increased advising, include book stipends, the gas card or transportation, and I think that's about what makes up the $7,000, in addition to, because they are Pell eligible, the tuition support. So maybe a little bit of gap tuition, but not a lot there. From the revenue side, the increase in state share of instruction covers about half of that. We can say we're earning state share of instruction that will cover about half of that $7,000. The rest of the dollars are coming from reducing textbook costs, so trying to get to open educational resources and or loaned or borrowed books, as well as wraparound support resources we can get through Ohio Means Jobs, which would be WIOA dollars. And then the final part of the expense for program operation really is through philanthropy. And so we've had some very generous donors, the Nord Family Foundation, the Stocker family, step forward and support those last dollars for emergency aid and gift cards.
Senator Wilkman.
Thank you, Chair. So it sounds like it's on average $7,000 more per student, a lot of this being freebies and then wraparound services. And from that, we're getting, I think I heard you say a 40% success rate? Four in three years.
Now the retention rate that are continuing on or that may transfer increases that up to around 65%. So they're graduating in three years, yes.
Okay. All right. Thank you. And no further questions.
Okay. Any other questions?
Senator Ingram. Thank you, Madam Chair. Excuse me. The intention is well and good because you're trying to ensure that those students can succeed and additional wraparound services. And I will say this about community colleges. You get the brunt of the increase in enrollment when times are bad for folks. so all over the state I believe that your numbers are probably up now, which is a good thing. But just having the numbers and intending to do something doesn't get Ohio where it needs to be when we spend our dollars, spend the OCOG or whatever you're getting for those students that are using their Pell Grants or whatever. help me with whether Lorraine Community College is doing this with an outside vendor.
Would the intent be that the only way that you could ramp this up,
because I remember when SUNY did this, Dr. Zinfar was there, is the only way you can ramp this up is to do it in that same way, or is it to ensure that those wraparound services get to the specific students that you're targeting?
Through the chair to the senator, all students do have access to wraparound services, obviously. We make that commitment. However, through a program like this, it is built into a way that ensures that we are working with those students during their entire time when those barriers come up. These students have a level of support that really understands their situation. As an open access institution, we meet every student where they're at. Some of those are our highest performing high school students that are coming to Lorraine County Community College on their way to a four-year degree. Others, they never thought they would be in college. And so this program is one that helps meet those students that are most vulnerable and help provide a level of wraparound support that is custom for this set of students. I would say in terms of replication, the really hard lift is the first two to three years. You're redesigning a lot in that and having that outside support, not just the funding. The funding is absolutely important to have, but it's also the mentoring, the design work that goes into it, the establishing of the data and the dashboards to help us prove that this is or is not working. So that is the, I believe the intent of this legislation is to help colleges be able to do this. It's not easy work to do on your own. I hope that answers the question.
Thank you, Madam Chair. It does answer the question in a way, but I think that that's why you're getting all the questions from everybody else is that they're not sure how that works and why you need money to do that, and you already have money. So this is a proposal because there's no money, and it does work. why should this even be a law if it works and you're doing it?
And is this for us to someday prepare for the operating budget,
for the general revenue when we get to it, to put money aside other than the money you're already getting as an additional pot? Is that what this is for?
Through the chair to the senator, I think some of my colleagues who are testifying later can share what models have happened in other states that have both state support as well as philanthropic support. My intent in being here today is not about asking for money for Lorain County Community College. This is to help replicate whether it's SAIL or some other high-impact practice that has evidence to it that can be meaningful to Ohio's workforce, to replicate that across and in other settings. Lorain County Community College has been doing this. We would be glad to share our best practices, but it takes more than just sharing of best practices. It is a lot of work to do.
Any other questions? Thank you very much. Thank you very much for your time. Our next witness is Chad Aldis, the Fordham Institute. Welcome to committee.
Good morning. Chair Temkin, Vice Chair Rogner, Ranking Member Ingram, and committee members for the opportunity to provide proponent testimony today for Senate Bill 345. My name is Chad Aldis I with the Thomas B Fordham Institute Fordham is a nonprofit education policy think tank committed to rigorous research and promoting high expectations for all students Ohio has made meaningful progress in expanding access to higher education but access alone does not guarantee success Too many students, especially those from low-income backgrounds, enroll in college but do not complete a credential. That reality carries real consequences for individuals, families, and the state's workforce. Senate Bill 345 represents a practical, research-driven effort to improve those outcomes. At its core, the bill is about encouraging colleges to invest in strategies that have been shown to work. The bill creates a dedicated fund, or at least the opportunity to create a dedicated fund, and competitive grant opportunity that allows public institutions to pilot, expand, and evaluate programs aimed at improving student success. Rather than funding initiatives based on good intentions alone, the proposal emphasizes approaches supported by credible research and measurable results Institutions seeking support must clearly articulate how their proposed efforts will improve outcomes, such as retention, completion, and time to degree, and how those efforts will be evaluated over time. The bill also places a strong focus on serving students who face the greatest barriers to success, ensuring that new investments are aligned with Ohio's broader goals around equal opportunity and workforce readiness. We are not starting from scratch when it comes to improving college completion, though. A growing body of research shows that certain types of student support, such as structured course pathways, proactive advising and targeted financial assistance can significantly improve both graduation rates and long-term earnings. One of the most compelling examples you've already heard a little bit about today, I won't go back through the program particulars, but I will note that some of the data, even from a few years ago as the first data was coming through, were really, really impressive because we already know that a large number of community college students, wherever they attend, don't graduate. But at Lorraine, students in this program graduated after three years at the time at a 35% rate compared to 19% of students not doing it. And here's an important thing that you guys have been sort of like nibbling at. This was a random controlled trial. It's the gold standard of research. And what this bill does is it lays out research parameters such that if you're going to apply for this money, you're going to compete on a competitive basis and have the best grade of evidence possible. Now, we've also talked a lot about this particular program, but this sets a framework that other programs from other states that could come could easily be incorporated as long as they have a strong evidentiary basis. The benefits, though, extend well beyond graduation. Years after participating in these programs, students earn higher wages, on average 14% higher than comparable students who did not receive the same support. We support Senate Bill 345 because we think it takes a disciplined approach by requiring institutions to compete for funding based on the strength of their proposals. This ensures that resources are directed toward colleges that are ready to implement thoughtful research-backed strategies and not just another state mandate that puts another program on their plate that they don't really want to do anyway. This structure also helps address a common challenge in higher education finance. Ohio rightly rewards and funds institutions for improved outcomes. in the funding system, but there can be a delay between when a student support program is launched and when those results actually generate improvement and additional funding. A targeted grant program can help institutions cover the upfront costs needed to get effective programs off the ground. In this way, the bill supports innovation while maintaining accountability. Colleges must define clear goals, measure progress, and plan for long-term sustainability beyond the initial grant period. We believe this bill is a strong example of policy grounded in evidence and focused on results It creates a pathway to extend a successful program in Lorraine while at the same time opening the door to even more innovative efforts that we maybe even haven thought of yet By encouraging institutions to adopt proven models Ohio can move quickly toward a system where student success is the norm rather than the exception. The bill will likely help more Ohioans earn meaningful credentials, improve their economic prospects, and contribute to the state's long-term prosperity. Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony this morning.
I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have. Thank you very much. Questions?
Senator Ingram. Thank you, Madam Chair. Thank you for this. Of course, you always do your homework. The difficulty I have is where the money comes from. And if you recall, there was a portion of the bill when we were looking previously that actually took money from the other institutions. Is this just for the community colleges or is this for everybody?
Chair Timken, Ranking Member Ingram.
From my understanding is it's for everyone to apply.
The chancellor is the one who will solicit applications and be able to award based on the best grant applications. Which is definitely a good thing that he doesn't do the feasibility study anymore. So my concern though is that if, because I actually think it's a good idea. I mean, I'm from Cincinnati. Cincinnati State has some of their graduates earn more money than a lot of people in the state. My concern, though, is if we're getting or if we're backing into taking dollars out of everybody's money to say, and okay, now you've got to prove to us that you deserve that 5% that we've withheld from you very deliberately. in order for you to get any additional dollars, then in my mind that we've just gone the back door to do something that was very detrimental. So is that it or is this something very different?
Chair Timken, Ranking Member Ingram.
There's nothing I've been seeing that suggests that's the purpose of this bill. Otherwise, I would have some concerns. I mean, I think we need to be direct when we're doing legislation and have legislation that does what it says it's going to do without some side plan. I will say, and I know there have been a lot of questions about the money. Where would the money come from? What would it do? There are lots of good programs, lots of programs in law, that through the budget process every couple of years, this body rightly decides what's worthy of investment and what isn't. That's part of the process. What I'm excited about is the framework valuing research. I don't know who wrote it, but it was written by somebody who understands research because of the tiers of research quality that are spelled out in law. You're creating a fund. Right now, the state, there's no money coming in the next year for this. Maybe next year, who knows? But it does open the door for private investment into this fund where the chancellor could determine where private investment would go based on competitive grants. That, to me, feels like a fairly straightforward, and it would be nice to have that framework in place. If it ends up resulting in success, this body may well decide in the future to fund it in a budget. Maybe that's in 27, maybe it's in 29, maybe it never happens. But it doesn't hurt having this in place because it creates a really strong framework to do that in the future. Thank you, Madam Chair.
So who doing it now besides Lorraine Chair Timken Ranking Member Ingram I not aware of other schools A lot of schools have innovative programs that are doing this
Not necessarily using Medicare. Not necessarily using a third party. Because therein lies the difference. Like I said, when Dr. Zimper did that at SUNY, it was very deliberate and it was a third party. How do we do this and make sure it gets done with using what the institution has or if their program fits into being able to ask for the dollars without giving it to a third party to come back in and do it.
Chair Timken, Ranking Member Ingram,
I think one of the reasons we're talking most about Lorraine is because of the methodological approach they took to this. Normally when someone has a good idea, whether it's in a college or university or government, you get a good idea, and you simply do it. And you don't have two sets, a treatment group and a control group. You don't do a research methodology. You're like, hey, this would really help our kids. Let's do it. And then you have no data. You're hearing about Lorraine because this was a very disciplined approach to seeing if something worked where they were stewarding private dollars and some SSI dollars later, as we heard just a few minutes ago, to try to make this difference for students. And now we're seeing this data, which the research has been done by a very reputable national organization. And it's like that had a measurable significant impact. So you're hearing more about it then, but I would love to have this sort of rigor, this sort of framework at more Ohio colleges and universities. So when we're investing, when you're investing, you're seeing what works and what doesn't when making these important decisions. Additional questions?
Thank you very much. Our next witness is Caitlin Bowling, the Association of Community Colleges.
Good morning. Good morning. Chair Timken, Vice Chair Rogner, Ranking Member Ingram. My name is Caitlin Bowling. I'm the Senior Director of Government Relations at the Ohio Association of Community Colleges, and thank you for the opportunity to testify today in support of Senate Bill 345. We certainly appreciate Senator Manning for bringing this legislation forward and giving us this opportunity to talk about the importance of investing in student success, as this is particularly important for our community college students. I won't read all of my testimony, but a few facts and figures about our students. A third are age 25 or older, so they're really at a different phase in their life, different responsibilities than traditional college-age kids. 37% are parents. 75% juggle work in academics and nearly half of those are working full-time 40 hours a week. More than a third report using at least one form of public assistance within the previous year and nearly two-thirds qualify for financial aid. And so for many of these students, these competing demands of work, family, finances can really easily disrupt their educational plans, delay their progress, and hinder their completion. And so our community colleges do recognize this, and they do the best with what they have to build up these dedicated support systems and to help students navigate these challenges throughout their educational journey, ultimately from enrollment all the way into the workforce through completion. And so our colleges, as has been referenced, do offer a wide range of academic and personal supports including advising, tutoring, childcare, transportation support, and other wraparound services. But I think the important point here is that the scale of these services is really limited to the available resources for each institution. And we do represent all 22 public community colleges in the state, and they are all very different based on geography, student makeup, and population. And so a one-size-fits-all solution generally doesn't work for all of our colleges. And that's where Senate Bill 345 would help address this challenge, bringing targeted investment that supports the development, scaling, evaluation of evidence-based strategies across our campuses. And as has been referenced, it really creates that mechanism for private partners, signals to private partners who are looking at other states and opportunities to invest in that Ohio is really committed to ensuring that workforce pipeline and to fill the available jobs. And so that is a really important component of this. As we lay the groundwork for next budget, this really signals to private investors that, you know, Ohio is a place where we can put our money and see a solid return on investment. The good news is that community colleges have a really solid foundation in this work already. Over a decade ago at the association, we launched what is called the Success Center for Ohio Community Colleges. We really recognized at that point in time the importance of student success initiatives and improving persistence and completion. And so through that success center, we work with our colleges, bringing them together to implement evidence-based practices, to look at data and help them make data-informed decisions, align national initiatives with local strategies. Take, for example, their campus completion plans. We work with them, provide opportunities for them to really focus in on how they can implement the specific strategies that they've outlined in their campus completion plans. And then we help them scale institution-wide reforms when resources are available. And at the time that this initiative, the Success Center, was launched, it was really a first of its kind. and it has since been modeled by other states, including Texas and Florida, just because the results have been significant. There has been a narrowing in the gap of national completion rates for community colleges and Ohio's completion rates. So that gap was 8.9% in 2010, and that has now closed to 1.3%. We continue to make progress, but there's certainly a lot of work to do. And I think this progress really demonstrates what is possible when community colleges do have sort of that kickstart, that startup money to launch these strategies and these initiatives within their institutions to help their students stay on track. And as my colleagues have talked about, we know which models, which student success initiatives work. The SAIL program has been referenced, the ASAP model. We had three community colleges that previously implemented this ASAP model, and for that specific Ohio demonstration, the graduation rates increased by nearly 50%, and those who came out of the demonstration project actually ended up earning more money than those who had not graduated through the demonstration project And so as Tracy so eloquently explained the SAIL program, that's just one example of a really strong evidence-based model that could be implemented through funding through this particular program. So from our perspective, we know the strategies that work. It's really needing the resources to start up these programs and to scale these programs statewide. And Senate Bill 345 would make that possible. So and I think looking at the long term return on investment, Dr. Ballinger from Lorraine yesterday spoke about students that may encounter a car breakdown or some other family emergency where $500 means that they spiral out of the system and drop out of their college path and their educational journey. And so having resources like emergency financial aid to help keep them on track is really important, and that is what this program is designed to do. So thank you for the opportunity to testify. Happy to entertain questions.
Thank you very much. Questions?
Senator Ingalls. Yeah, I do. In regard to, thank you, Madam Chair. So in regard to the Success Center and your working with all the community colleges, because it seems as if, despite the fact that it may be that this would be for everybody, this is more focused on the community colleges and that workforce development pipeline. Through the Chair to the Senator.
So I think as the association that represents community colleges, we're really excited about this bill because we are doing great work in this space. And the more resources we have, the more we're able to help students across the state complete their education. And community college students specifically just generally face more challenges given their age or other responsibilities outside their academic pursuits.
Follow up. Thank you, Madam Chair. I just, and here again, I really like the program. I hope it's not to backdoor what unfortunately was in one of our bills previously. But I want to make sure that it is focused on the kids with the most need and that will be assessed by the institution or will that be assessed by the third party that does the evaluation? Thank you for the question through the chair to the senator.
So I believe in the legislation there are some parameters that these evidence-based strategies are designed to hone in on low-income students and those most vulnerable populations. I believe the Chancellor does have some discretion in sort of what the specific types of awards or what specific initiatives the awards would go to. But we would love to have a conversation with the Chancellor and talk about the models that we are seeing and talk about, you know, what makes sense to award through this grant program. Thank you.
Thank you very much. Thank you.
Good morning. Good morning. Chair Timken Vice Chair Roganer Ranking Member Ingram and members of the Senate Higher Education Committee thank you for the opportunity to provide proponent testimony for Senate Bill 345 My name is Kevin Duff, and I am the Executive Vice President at Ohio Excels. We are a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that engages and unites Ohio's business community to strengthen the education-to-workforce pipeline from early childhood through post-secondary and into the workforce. We convene partners, we conduct research, and we advocate for policies that improve outcomes for Ohio students and better align education with workforce needs. At Ohio Excels, one of our core priorities is ensuring that more Ohioans earn high-value credentials and degrees that lead to strong career opportunities. And the state has done a lot to improve the accessibility and affordability of higher education over the past few years. However, as you've heard from other witnesses, that's not enough. We have to make sure that our students are completing their programs. To better understand this challenge, Ohio Excels conducted a poll in January of 2023 of Ohioans who enrolled in college but did not complete. The most commonly cited barrier is not a surprise. 25% of respondents identified the cost of tuition, alongside basic living expenses like housing and food, as the primary reason that they stopped college. However, these former students pointed to many other reasons that, cumulatively, have a greater impact on their decision to stop their programs. For example, 22% indicated I had to deal with a family commitment or an emergency as the primary reason that they stopped. 9% said that I was not properly prepared academically for higher education. 7% reported I was not prepared for the non-academic or social challenges for higher education. And 5% answered I don't know what major to pick or how to navigate the classes. This is exactly what Senate Bill 345 and the framework it's establishing is designed to address. The bill creates the Higher Education Evidence-Based Innovation Fund and Grant Program, which would support institutions in adopting proven, research-backed strategies to boost student retention and completion through a competitive grant process. Importantly, this bill requires that funded programs demonstrate measurable impact, include strong evaluation components, address sustainability, and focus on improving retention, completion, and workforce outcomes for low-income students. One other thing that I'll add in there that hasn't come up yet is the plans that they must submit as part of the grant applications talk about how they're collaborating with other organizations in their community, whether it's other two-year, four-year workforce system or philanthropies that might be in there. We at Ohio Cells have always been very supportive of regional partners, finding regional solutions to the issues that might be affecting their students in their community. I'm going to kind of skip around here because you've heard a lot of this before but I will also say that the bill establishes as Chad Aldous mentioned a really strong framework for evidence that sets expectations for communities that might be wanting to put together these programs or institutions that might be interested in piloting or adopting this sort of thing. It sets an expectation for you have to make sure that there's rigor, evidence and actual outcomes for students on the front end. And so that's something that we really like about this framework. The grant program and the fund, it does, like I said, create the structure to kickstart and continue scaling these proven models throughout the state. And we do, SAIL is just one of those models. It's a very great model. We've loved seeing how that has evolved over the past 10 years. But different communities can come up with different ideas. maybe there needs to be more done with early childhood support if you have a parent as community colleges in this example we have a lot of people who attend community colleges that are just dealing with life dealing with a parent that might have a health issue they have kids that might need supervision We have community colleges that are starting to create child care centers on campus so that students can attend their programs and actually continue their learning. The goal here is to find ways to continue that learning. So Ohio Excel strongly supports Senate Bill 345 in the creation of this grant and fund program. We believe that this bill and the framework that it's establishing represents an opportunity to help more Ohio students complete a degree, strengthen our workforce, and ensure that our higher education system delivers real value for individuals and our economy. So thank you, and I'm happy to answer any questions you might have.
Thank you very much. Questions, Senator Ingham?
Thank you, Madam Chair. Do you know how, or I'm sure you do, tell me, how does the ASAP program work? Sure. So the ASAP program is very, very similar to SAIL. So what it does is it
includes, it takes a student and does those wraparound services around them. And so it can focus on what the academic advising, career coaching, having structured pathways to help them understand what is next after you take this course, what's next after that, and then connecting them to potentially work-based learning opportunities or to what their job prospects are going to look like. It's also there to focus on the different barriers that might pop up. I think a witness referenced a simple flat tire can derail an entire student's education career. And so small emergency funds to help with those sorts of things has, I think, monthly incentives. We heard of the giant eagle card to help with gas or food, depending on what the student needs. Textbooks. Textbooks are very expensive. This program can also help with textbooks. And they also structure the day a little bit differently. So if you're a student that's already working, can we get the courses you need in the evening or in a block so you don't have one at 10 a.m. and then one at 3 p.m., and that doesn't allow you to do any working. Ultimately, it's an effort to focus on how can we meet the needs, both career needs, but also the life needs of these students to make sure that they can graduate. Follow-up?
Thank you, Madam Chair. And I guess maybe I've been around too long. Been there, done that on a lot of this stuff. And my concern, though, is these are things that we're expected to do. You may not have the dollars to do it. So what difference now than before as to making sure that, you know, we talk about the regional and the partnerships and we've got career ed and we've got so much stuff going on in pre-K-12 and then to post-secondary. How do we get there? What difference does this make with the business community? And how much input? Maybe that's a couple of questions. would you expect for the business community to have as far as making sure that these outcomes benefit the community, et cetera?
So through the chair to the ranking member, I'll answer your questions in reverse order. The business community is interested in making sure that students have the agency, the ability to do what they want to do and to lead the life that they want. We want to promote economic mobility because ultimately that's the workforce that we need. to help our economy be competitive. And so when we think about how the business community can be involved in the creation or operation of these programs, I would love for them to be a part of the planning team and potentially contributing philanthropic dollars as well to help kick-start these and keep these to be sustainable. One of the things, and I'm not sure it was mentioned yet, is while this program is administered by the Chancellor at the Department of Higher Education, when it comes to awarding the programs, The Department of Job and Family Services is also going to be at the table. And the application also talks about opportunities to collaborate with workforce partners and workforce system. I think what makes this different, so going to your first question, is, and when I say this, I should be clarified. Programs like SAIL is that they take a really comprehensive approach to addressing all of the different problems that can pop up in a student's life. I mentioned in our polling here, having a family commitment is almost as common or selected first as I didn't have enough money as a reason to drop out from their program. So, excuse me, I think that this comprehensive nature, this case management, if you will, is what helps students navigate and I think is going to be what's most important to help them access all of the different resources that might be available. We had a really compelling testimony yesterday in House Workforce and Higher Education Committee of a student in the SAIL program talk about the hardships that she encountered And her first thought was I going to go to my advisor I going to go to Whitney was her name And every time Whitney was able to deliver for Shiloh to find a solution, it's that personal advocacy, that comprehensive nature, and then the framework around it that has the evidence to show that this works. This is what we think is worth scaling up.
Additional questions?
Chair, I just want to ask one question. Is it, I could have asked anybody, is it income eligibility too? I know that, you know, the low income is what we use, but low income is relative anymore. Will it be income? There will be restrictions? And here again, the chancellor doesn't do it, but jobs and family services is somehow in there, so I don't think I read that anywhere. so thanks for letting me know. Are there restrictions?
Through the chair to the ranking member, the bill does talk about how the priority here is low-income students, but it doesn't define low-income students. It does require them, I should say them, the institutions that are applying for the grant to define who those students they're serving might be. So there aren't specific restrictions, like it has to be a certain percentage of the federal poverty level, that sort of thing.
Okay, thank you very much. Members, there's also written testimony from Jordan Sass on your iPads. This will conclude the first hearing of Senate Bill 345. Is there any other business to be brought before the committee? Seeing none, we are adjourned.