Midwestern Higher Education Compact outlines cost-saving contracts, data dashboard and student supports for Kansas

Susan Heegard, representing the Midwestern Higher Education Compact, briefed the House Committee on Education on the compact’s cost-savings contracts, policy work and a public data dashboard for higher-education metrics.

Heegard said Kansas pays $115,000 a year for participation in MHEC, which gives state institutions access to negotiated contracts for technology, hardware, software and services. She named commonly used vendors — Dell, Oracle, Xerox and Parchment — and said cooperative contracting reduces procurement time and delivers bulk discounts.

Why it matters: MHEC’s services aim to lower institutional costs, help institutions offer out-of-state online programs without duplicative registration through SARA reciprocity, and provide state-level data to inform policy choices on enrollment, attainment and net price.

Key points from the briefing

- Membership and programs: MHEC covers a 12-state midwestern footprint and provides two principal services: cost-savings cooperative contracts and a policy/research function that shares best practices on issues such as open educational resources, FAFSA support and concurrent enrollment.

- Cost savings and uses: Heegard said MHEC negotiates contracts that local governments and K–12 districts as well as higher-education institutions can use. She highlighted student-health insurance participation (7,401 students at seven Kansas institutions, per MHEC data) and noted SARA reciprocity saves participating institutions approximately $1.73 million in registration costs when offering programs across state lines.

- Data and trends: MHEC’s research dashboard shows Kansas has 56% of residents ages 25–64 with some credential beyond high school, higher than the national average in the dataset presented. Heegard highlighted that the number of high-school graduates in Kansas is projected to decline over the coming decade and that the Hispanic student population is the fastest growing demographic in the state.

- Policy work: Heegard described recent MHEC efforts on open educational resources, FAFSA assistance and concurrent enrollment best practices and said Kansas officials can request more tailored data reports.

Committee follow-up

Heegard said the MHEC dashboard and policy resources are publicly accessible on the compact’s website and offered to supply additional detail if the committee requested specific breakdowns. Committee members asked for follow-up analyses, including whether state scholarship conditions (for example, pledges to remain in-state) affect retention, and Heegard agreed to provide deeper analysis if the committee desires.

Ending

No formal committee actions were taken. Heegard said MHEC would provide links and follow-up materials and that the compact’s research tools are available to legislators and staff.