Five Questions With:
Joseph M. McNamara

Joseph M. McNamara, a longtime Democratic state representative from Warwick and a retired Pawtucket educator, was named chairman of the New England Board of Higher Education in the spring.

The board promotes collaboration among the six New England states to improve higher education opportunities in the region. McNamara has been a board delegate since 2006. He spoke with Providence Business News about the board and higher education in the region.

PBN: The NEBHE has called for the “accelerated reinvention” of the region’s higher ed sector to address pressing challenges and opportunities facing New England. What are some of those challenges and opportunities?

MCNAMARA: NEBHE has identified four priority areas for collaborative action over the coming years: enhancing opportunities for adult learners, expanding cost-savings opportunities for students and institutions, advancing [pre-K through higher education] alignment, and further efforts to articulate the public value of postsecondary education.

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In terms of adult learners, NEBHE envisions the region working to enhance postsecondary opportunities for adult learners through increased access, affordability and targeted programs and policies to promote successful completion. NEBHE’s work will include generating data profiles of adult learners and reporting on best practices for serving adults through state-based initiatives, employer partnership and legislation. NEBHE will also consider related activities such as a regional summit and launching a web-based directory of higher education institutions with adult-friendly services.

NEBHE plans to develop new cost-saving collaborations to help institutions and states change business models, lower operating costs and contain student tuition and fees. Examples include resource sharing for academic programs in specialized disciplines and expanding the availability and use of open education resources. Such efforts will build upon NEBHE’s current cost-containment programs made available to education institutions and agencies throughout New England, including purchasing programs in areas such as technology and cyber insurance.

In terms of [pre-K through higher education] alignment, NEBHE will focus on areas where alignment is especially needed, such as addressing equity gaps in postsecondary access and attainment, and the award and transfer of credit for early college, dual and concurrent enrollment. Additionally, NEBHE plans to examine dual enrollment policies and programs in the region, college-readiness indicators and FAFSA-completion initiatives.

As for the public value of higher ed, college access and success are essential for the economic health of our small region. NEBHE will engage key stakeholders to better articulate the significant public value of postsecondary education to New England and its residents through expanded advocacy and outreach.

Seven of 10 future jobs will require a postsecondary credential. But the return on investment in higher education goes far beyond simple job earnings. Higher ed expands people’s horizons and contributes to a community’s general well-being. NEBHE plans to undertake work documenting the return on individual and public investments in higher education in terms of income, unemployment, poverty and civic engagement.

PBN: The New England states are competitors, at some level, in trying to attract talent, jobs, etc. What’s the advantage of working together strategically as a region, specifically for Rhode Island?

MCNAMARA: True, there is some competition among the New England states, but there is more competition from outside the region. The individual New England states are in a stronger position by collaborating to retain students and talent in the region.

Rhode Island, as the smallest state, benefits from importing students and talent from the other New England states to its higher education institutions. Meanwhile, Rhode Island residents benefit from having more options for higher education in nearby states, especially when it comes to public colleges and universities. For example: Because of a longstanding interstate agreement through NEBHE to share degree programs among the six states, Rhode Island residents gain affordable access to hundreds of specialized programs at public colleges and universities in the other five New England states.

The 60-year-old Tuition Break program enabled Rhode Island families to save nearly $7 million in tuition last year alone, with average savings of $8,200. Meanwhile Rhode Island public colleges received more than $15 million in tuition revenue from Tuition Break-eligible residents of other New England states. Tuition Break also helps Rhode Island avoid the expenditures of establishing and operating degree programs in specialized or high-demand fields that are already offered in nearby New England states and made available at reduced cost to Rhode Islanders. Examples of programs eligible through Tuition Break for Rhode Island residents are game design, occupational therapy, mechanical engineering technology, robotics, sustainable product design, Russian, actuarial science, aviation, environmental engineering, homeland security, meteorology, medicine and dental medicine.

PBN: One of NEBHE’s priorities is to develop new “cost-saving collaborations” to help institutions and states lower operating costs and contain tuition costs. What are some of the things that are under consideration?

MCNAMARA: Over the past decade, NEBHE has expanded its menu of cost-savings programs for colleges and universities – helping them save money and simplify purchasing. Our cost-savings programs leverage national purchasing power to reduce the burden of sourcing solutions, so higher education institutions can do what they do best: serve their students.

NEBHE offers a growing range of tools for institutions to operate more efficiently and sustainably. Our cost-savings programs offer cost containment strategies, purchasing efficiencies and solution accessibility in technology goods and services, as well as insurance coverage. All of the purchasing contracts can be used by higher education institutions, and many can also be leveraged by K-12, cities, states and local governments in the six New England states.

NEBHE continues to work with partners to identify additional opportunities to help institutions lower operating costs. We are also working to reduce the costs of delivering online learning.

Federal regulations require colleges and universities be authorized in every state to which they delivered online programs. This resulted in an inconsistent, complicated and expensive maze of regulatory processes and fees. As enrollment in distance-education programs expanded, it was clear that a solution was needed.

Beginning in 2014, NEBHE worked regionally and nationally to build a reciprocity agreement that would simplify all of that. Called the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement, it saves New England institutions millions of dollars in fees while increasing student access to high-quality online programs.

It also creates opportunities for colleges and universities to expand their out-of-state enrollments via online learning and increasing tuition revenues. This enables Rhode Island institutions to more effectively serve student populations in states where authorization may have been cost prohibitive or too laborious. Seven Rhode Island colleges and universities take advantage of it to expand their online enrollments and to help create access for students to high-quality online programs to meet the needs of their busy lives.

PBN: Where does the NEBHE stand on Gov. Gina M. Raimondo’s Rhode Island Promise initiative and her failed proposal to expand it? On the one hand, it seems to increase access to higher ed for many, but does it put private institutions at a competitive disadvantage?

MCNAMARA: NEBHE supports efforts, including those of Gov. Raimondo, to increase access to higher education and to make college more affordable, especially for underrepresented students. Since the Rhode Island Promise Scholarship started in 2017, the number of low-income students and students of color who enrolled full-time has doubled. Graduation rates are increasing as well. Given the success of the Promise program at the two-year level, a logical next step would be to expand the program to allow graduates of the two-year program to continue their education and earn a four-year degree at Rhode Island College.

Gov. Raimondo was unsuccessful in securing support from lawmakers to expand the program for graduates of [the Community College of Rhode Island] to enroll at Rhode Island College and to complete a four-year program. Observers noted one reason the plan was rejected by lawmakers was a $200 million deficit, which was addressed, in the recently passed budget for [fiscal year] 2020.

With regard to the Rhode Island Promise Scholarship putting private colleges at a disadvantage, the issues confronting private colleges have little to do with the Rhode Island Promise Scholarship. First and foremost, tuition at private colleges is considerably higher than it is at public colleges and universities. With no resources or very limited resources, underrepresented students would find private colleges out of reach.

PBN: There has been a lot of handwringing about the lagging education system in Rhode Island. Are there any areas in the higher ed sector in which Rhode Island has been on the leading edge?

MCNAMARA: One of the education policies that I am proudest of is our commitment to supporting access to higher education resources for Rhode Island’s students. For the past several years, 10th graders have been required to take the PSAT – a grade level a year earlier than most – at no cost to them. This helps set students up for postsecondary success because they’re able to opt in to receive information from colleges, they have a better sense of their strengths and weaknesses, they’re better prepared for the SAT and they can be considered for a National Merit Scholarship. Rhode Island is the only state to make the PSAT both mandatory and free, and it has become a key facet of our college and career readiness agenda.

Additionally, Rhode Island stands out from its peers for its commitment to seeing that 70% of its residents attain a postsecondary degree that has value in the workplace. Employers in our state are asking for more-skilled employees. The combination of setting this goal, investing in Rhode Island Promise and ensuring that underrepresented groups have access to educational opportunities is how we’ll deliver on this request and attract more jobs, too. I’m thrilled that Rhode Island is participating in NEBHE’s initiative, High Value Credentials for New England, to bring greater transparency to what certificates and degrees are of value in our state and region’s economy and what pathways can lead individuals to good, satisfying jobs with family-supporting wages.

Finally, I’m very proud of our model partnership between Electric Boat and the Community College of Rhode Island to offer instruction in maritime sheet metal, pipefitting and electrical trades, and prepare workers – regardless of their experience – for initial success on the job. The strong foundational instruction in the essential competencies has ensured that new employees meet Electric Boat’s rigorous standards for the entry-level skills necessary for modern naval shipbuilding projects.

William Hamilton is PBN staff writer and special projects editor. You can follow him on Twitter @waham or email him at hamilton@pbn.com.