Higher Education

Issue

What reforms are necessary to ensure that Minnesota's post-secondary education systems are producing a workforce prepared to meet the demands of our global economy and domestic needs?

Policy

Increase funding to the State Grant Program.

Increasing investment in the grant program is in the best interest of business for two reasons. First, institutions should become more responsive to students. Since most student course selections are motivated, at least in part, by their vocational goals, this change will help make the institutions responsive to our changing economy. Second, increased grant money targets limited state dollars to those students who can least afford and might otherwise not pursue higher education. Given our state's demographics and the competitiveness of today's economy, investing in the State Grant Program is the best way to increase accessibility for the emerging workforce.

Adjust State Grant eligibility so a greater number of students are served based on each student's need. Student aid should be fairly distributed among students attending postsecondary institutions full time and part time.

Accountability.

The Minnesota Chamber supports the following accountability goals developed by the Minnesota Office of Higher Education:

Improve overall student success, access and choice, especially for student populations underrepresented in higher education.
Create a responsive system producing graduates who meet marketplace demands at all levels.
Increase the level of learning and skill to ensure graduates are prepared to compete in the global marketplace.

In addition, higher education systems should establish goals with respect to meeting the needs of the state's future workforce and the business community. The goals should be measurable and progress should be reported regularly to the public and the business community. Public reporting will help students and parents in selecting Minnesota institutions of higher learning.

The University of Minnesota and MnSCU are given large block grants, but do not publicly detail where and how those dollars are spent. Minnesota postsecondary institutions that receive public monies must be accountable to the public on how these funds serve the public's interest. Postsecondary institutions should view such accountability as an opportunity to publicly announce their goals and their progress toward accomplishing them. Public reporting will further inform student and parent decisions about choosing Minnesota institutions of higher learning.

Promote higher education programs targeted toward skills in high demand.

The Minnesota Chamber expects the state colleges and institutions to graduate workers with skills relevant to private-sector needs. Many Minnesota companies are concerned with the shortage of graduates with technical skills, i.e. welding, machining, drafting, engineering.

Identify separate state funding for research.

We recognize the distinctive and important role of the research performed by public postsecondary institutions. Institutions should identify and account for state funding used for research. To this end, the Office of Higher Education should create a separate and distinct set of goals and accountability measures for state-funded research.

Continue long-term expense reduction and increase efficiencies.

Institutions should strive to minimize any increase in or reduce overhead costs because these costs take money away from students. Systems also should reallocate resources among institutions and programs to better serve students. Institutions should set measurable goals to reduce expenses and report their progress in their annual report.

Support in-state tuition for Minnesota high school graduates who are in the process of becoming legal residents.

It is important to our economy to have an educated and trained workforce. Demographics are rapidly changing, and we anticipate a shortage of educated workers. Therefore, we need a greater percentage of students to pursue a postsecondary education. Supporting higher education for all students, including our immigrant populations, is in the best interest of our state's economy.

Support supervised work experience in institutions.

We recommend institutions encourage students to explore an internship in their field of study while at college. Work experience will help train students in areas that are not taught in school (i.e. soft skills, work ethic and attitude). Learning these skills will ease the transition between postsecondary education and work for both students and employers. Work experience also will give students the opportunity to understand firsthand what their chosen career entails.

Businesses should be willing participants in internships because they teach students the skills currently deficient among many employees. Internships also are an avenue to recruit potential employees. The Minnesota Chamber will strongly encourage businesses statewide to offer internships to students.

Business Impact

Maintaining a highly skilled and well-educated workforce is essential to a strong economy in Minnesota. It is important that our higher education system retains our current residents and attracts students from outside Minnesota so businesses have an educated workforce to support their growth. As the baby boomer generation enters retirement, it is clear that we need to anticipate the change in demographics by acknowledging that an increasing percentage of the workforce will need a postsecondary education.

It is important to the business community that institutions become more responsive to needs of the economy. Our policy creates a balance among an academic pursuit, institutional stability and student choice, which addresses the needs of the economy. The $2.8 billion that goes to the institutions finances their basic operations and many special programs. The $281 million in state grant money that follows the student not only makes the institutions sensitive to the more immediate needs of students and the economy but also improves accessibility. From the businesses' perspective, that's a good mix of meeting immediate needs and preparing for the future.

Improving education benefits the state and businesses within the state. Additional public financial support is not the only way to pursue improvements in higher education. Businesses continually look for improvements and increased efficiencies as a part of improving customer service and remaining competitive. Education needs to embrace the same mind-set. The business community believes and expects that it is not unreasonable to demand that education makes improvements through wiser and more efficient spending. There are multiple opportunities for streamlining operations, especially with respect to labor and facility costs.

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Minnesota Chamber of Commerce Priorities & Grassroots