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College of Southern Idaho requests $475,700 enrollment adjustment as enrollment surges
Summary
College of Southern Idaho asked the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee to approve a $475,700 enrollment workload adjustment to help hire faculty and relieve wait lists after a 20% fall enrollment increase tied to Idaho Launch; college leaders also urged support for capacity-building and one-time infrastructure funding.
College of Southern Idaho President Dr. Aldine Fisher told the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee that CSI is asking the legislature to approve an FY2026 enrollment workload adjustment (EWA) request of $475,700 to help add instructional capacity after a large recent enrollment increase.
Kevin Campbell, budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, told the committee CSI’s FY2026 request appears at page 181 of the legislative budget book and noted that appropriations to Idaho’s community colleges are made as a single trustee and benefits payment rather than by object category. Campbell said CSI typically spends 100% of its state appropriation and that CSI’s five‑year average annual base budget growth has been about 6.4 percent; he told the committee the college’s single appropriation in 2024 was reported as $18,600,000.
President Fisher said the college experienced a 20 percent enrollment increase in fall 2024 that was not driven by dual‑credit, and that CSI has added roughly 3,800 students since fall 2021. “The students are already there, Senator Cook,” Fisher said, arguing the increase is producing immediate demand for faculty, classroom and clinical capacity. He told senators and representatives the college received 579 Idaho Launch recipients last fall who matriculated to CSI and that continued growth has strained programs across the college.
Fisher gave examples of constrained programs: a radiologic technology cohort that enrolls 15 students annually but has a waiting list of 84; nursing programs constrained by clinical space and the need for faculty; and welding cohorts that are running in multiple locations and extended hours to meet demand. He said CSI intends the $475,700 EWA request to fund five additional instructors for general education courses that support the surge in students and estimated, based on an average faculty member teaching about 150 students per year, that five hires would allow CSI to serve roughly 750 additional students.
Fisher also urged continued support for the governor’s capacity‑building proposal and for $15 million in one‑time infrastructure funds to expand specialized learning spaces needed by CTE programs. He raised compensation for faculty and staff as an ongoing concern, saying CSI lags regional community‑college pay by about 12 percent and noting that an estimated $400,000 would help close the gap with K‑12 teacher pay on the faculty ladder.
Campbell described recent budget items affecting CSI, including prior-year enhancements for compensation equalization and additional CEC (cost‑of‑education‑component) funding and noted that the EWA was moved from “non‑discretionary adjustments” into enhancements in FY2025; Fisher said CSI’s FY2026 EWA request is part of that enhancements package.
No formal committee action or vote was recorded at the meeting; the presentation and questions were part of the FY2026 budget review process.
Ending: Fisher thanked the committee and reiterated that CSI seeks legislative support for the governor’s proposed CTE and capacity funds, the EWA request, and steps to better align community college compensation with regional peers.
