Beginnings & Origins 

In 2007, ASCU determined that there was a need for decisive action to achieve the promise of college opportunity and affordability by increasing productivity, increasing affordability and commitment to expand access especially to low- and middle-income students, and taking steps toward leading the nation in institutional productivity, leveraging the schools relatively high degree of governance autonomy.  This was titled the New Jersey College Promise project, and seven goals were established for it.

 

Goal 1:	Engage independent expert consultants to examine rigorously state college/university cost structures for the purpose of gaining greater efficiency to help keep college affordable, citizens' biggest concern.
Goal 2:	Convene a group of national experts on higher education and individuals from outside of higher education to examine the benefits and means of improving nonpartisan, lay citizen trustee-governed institutions; to protect public colleges from political intrusion; to identify policy that will increase college affordability and access; and to promote innovation, change and public accountability.
Goal 3:	Consult with experts from New Jersey state government, business, labor and higher education to study and recommend where state policy and regulation needs to be changed to assist the colleges and universities in being more efficient and effective in serving their missions and the state.
Goal 4:	Commission scientific opinion polls to learn what New Jerseyans think and to test public support for solutions to college affordability that can be implemented.
Goal 5:	Host forums on higher education to make New Jersey the national leader in college access, affordability and accountability in the 21st century.
Goal 6:	Make specific annual policy recommendations to the governor, legislature and others to achieve the Promise; and keeping all parties informed regarding succeeding with this agenda.
Goal 7:	Build effective communication strategies, including using internet technology to inform a broader constituency for public higher education, to bridge the gap between opinion and policy action to achieve the "Promise" agenda.

NJ College Promise Advisory Council Members

Summary of NJ College Promise Advisory Council Recommendations

To achieve the seventh goal, ASCU launched a major public outreach effort, eventually named New Jersey College Promise Advocacy Network (NJCPAN). The Network was designed to:

 

n	Increase public awareness of the value of the state colleges/universities and the need to make them a higher state policy priority to serve a public agenda; and
n	Advance with individual institutions, and collectively, the Council's recommendations to support the project's goals of college affordability, access/capacity, productivity and direct accountability/public trust.

 

Now over 8,600 strong, this network of New Jersey residents, including many parents and students concerned about the future of the state colleges and universities, and especially student affordability at these nine institutions.  The policy advocacy program is coordinated by the Association, which several times a year, sends out "Calls to Action" designed to draw the support of the widest possible constituency within the Network.  The Network connected members directly with their elected officials in Trenton.