New Jersey Disconnect: Voters See Public Colleges as a Priority Investment Linked to Jobs and Future Prosperity, But Don't See a State Plan
Press Release
Darryl G. Greer, CEO
Paul R. Shelly, Director of Communications & Marketing, ASCU
April 19, 2011
New Jersey likely voters say state colleges and universities are key to economic recovery, merit more state investment to fulfill this role, and are trusted to make educational and financial decisions. However, these public institutions need to do more to show the public they are working hard to contain costs and keep tuition and fees affordable -- a big concern of Jersey residents, many of whom have experienced economic setbacks.
These are among the principal conclusions of pollsters and higher education officials releasing today a new, scientific public opinion survey by Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates (PSB), Washington, DC, office for New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities (NJASCU).
The results are taken from an online study, focusing squarely on New Jersey's nine state colleges and universities, conducted by PSB March 31 - April 4, 2011 of 750 New Jersey likely voters. The margin of error for this study is plus/minus 3.58% at the 95% confidence level.
College investment tied with jobs, economic development. The vast majority (95%) of likely voters think it is important for the state to have a plan to connect higher education with jobs and the economy. A 57% majority said they were not aware that the state has such a plan.
Most residents seem to understand the need to invest in higher education. Among likely voters, 57% strongly agree that excellent and affordable state colleges are vital to New Jersey's economy. More than 60% say they are likely to support investment in college and university facilities, including a bond issue of $1.3 billion or $2.6 billion. Better than four out of five likely voters agree -- and 39% strongly agree -- that the state should provide consistent, predictable support to state colleges and universities so they can make long-term plans.
Colleges viewed as high quality, but affordability concerns deepen. According to Dr. Darryl Greer, NJASCU's CEO, affordability is an especially big concern because people don't want to be locked out of state colleges by their economic circumstances. Citizens recognize the education at state colleges and universities is of high quality: 14% say quality is excellent, 67% say good, 17% say fair, and 1% say poor.
Likely voters are divided about the affordability of state colleges; citizens' perception that college remains affordable continues to slip in the bad economy. In the current poll, 51% say the colleges are not affordable (not very + not at all), while 42% say colleges are somewhat affordable, and 7% say the colleges are very affordable. By comparison, in 2007, 16% of residents said state colleges were not affordable.
Greer says that the perception of college affordability is shaped by several factors: estimations of costs and student aid to cover costs; awareness of the pace of increases over time; and changes in personal economic circumstances.
The poll found that about one-half (51%) of likely voters had experienced at least one personal economic setback (e.g., job loss, pay cut, reduced hours) over the past year. Greer added, "While citizens are basically correct about the rising cost of college, they do tend to overestimate that cost, sometimes by 50% or more."
Many of those surveyed (38%) accurately responded the current state college tuition and fees rate range (above $10,000 but below $15,000), although approximately the same share think that tuition is above $15,000. (Note: the question specified "excluding room and board"). While citizens support helping others through student financial aid, 38% of likely voters think financial aid to those at NJ state colleges benefits "people like me and my family." A majority (62%) respond that such programs "benefit others but not me and my family."
Beyond state investment, productivity is key to affordability. While the colleges have been cutting costs, improving productivity, and finding new revenue to supplement lost state funds, much of the public may be unaware of these efforts. Twenty-two percent (22%) of likely voters say that the main reason for tuition increases is colleges' inability to cut back on spending. A large segment of the public cites state budget cuts as the chief reason for tuition increases (32%).
Confidence in trustees is strong. Most likely voters favor giving college trustee boards, rather than the legislature or state agencies, the freedom and responsibility to manage personnel, operations and programs. Four out of five believe that more Trenton control will lead to more political interference.
As in past PSB polls, citizens are far more likely to trust college presidents and the nonpartisan trustee boards than state bodies and agencies to make the best decisions for institutions. For example, when it comes to decisions about planning and facilities construction, trustee boards are favored over state entities nearly 2:1, and they are favored 3:1 when it comes to decisions regarding managing employees.
Scholarships should not restrict choice. The public is not at all keen about state student financial aid programs that are limited to one type of New jersey college. Seven out of ten likely voters say that state-funded scholarships should be available to students attending any New Jersey college or university. Another 21% say scholarships should be limited to those attending four-year colleges, and 9% say they should be limited to those attending county/community colleges.
Capacity problem understood. Better than four out of ten (42%) of likely voters are aware that New Jersey state colleges have to turn away students. Several of the questions showed that a majority of residents favor investing in state colleges and universities to serve more New Jerseyans. Darryl Greer says he believes that the shortage of state college first-time, full-time freshmen slots (currently only about 11,000 for over 20,000 applicants) is being felt in many homes. The capacity problem persists despite the fact that the colleges are now enrolling, collectively, about 17,500 more full-time students than they did a decade ago, and Thomas Edison State College continues to grow by thousands of students as the leading college serving adult learners attending part-time.
Low support for in-state tuition for undocumented students. The public has moved, over the past six years, towards a less favorable view of granting in-state tuition rates to undocumented, but otherwise qualified, New Jersey students: 62% say no, 38% say yes. In the 2005 PSB poll for NJASCU, opinion was split: 46% said yes, 45% said no.
Other questions covered in the poll include factors contributing to student graduation rates, perceptions about spending on higher education compared to spending on K-12 education, and importance of addressing New Jersey's (nation's worst) loss of high school graduates to out-of-state institutions (net 30,000 per year).
NJASCU is a nonprofit, nonpartisan policy advocacy organization created in 1985. Its members are: The College of New Jersey, Kean University, Montclair State University, New Jersey City University, Ramapo College of New Jersey, Richard Stockton College, Rowan University, Thomas Edison State College and William Paterson University.
The Association has sponsored numerous scientific polls of New Jersey residents and New Jersey likely voters over the past decade, conducted by Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates, a leading national independent polling firm. These polls help the Association fulfill its mission to build concrete policy recommendations for the state and NJASCU institutions to serve the higher educational needs of our citizens. For a copy of our most recent poll, click here.