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Subcommittee restores community college funding, tightens Excel CTE eligibility
Summary
The subcommittee approved a package restoring capital outlay, business-and-industry, technical college operating grants and student-success funding for community and technical colleges, added $6.2 million for Excel CTE tuition in FY26, and added provisos limiting Excel CTE reimbursement to juniors/seniors with a 2.0 GPA and barring reimbursement for repeated failed courses.
The Higher Education Subcommittee moved and approved a restoration package for community and technical colleges that reverses portions of a prior global motion and inserts targeted provisos for the Excel CTE program.
Senator Alley presented the proposal: move roughly $5.2 million of unused college funds plus an additional $1 million to create $6.2 million for Excel CTE tuition for FY26, and restore a larger FY27 package that includes capital outlay ($12.4 million), business/industry/apprenticeship funding ($14.3 million), technical college operating grants ($7.0 million) and student success funding ($10.5 million). Alley said the motion also reduces Excel CTE appropriations by approximately $10 million and redirects some savings into tiered and non-tiered course funding.
Alley described new guardrails for Excel CTE: limit tuition reimbursement eligible courses to those qualifying under the Kansas Promise Scholarship Act, restrict eligibility to juniors and seniors (defined as having completed half of graduation credit hours) with at least a 2.0 GPA, prohibit funds from reimbursing repeated failed courses, and require the Board of Regents to collect more data on credentials and pathways. "Add language outlining the amount to be distributed to each community college and technical college for fiscal year 2027," Alley said as he outlined the distribution plan.
Dayton and other staff confirmed the reductions and reallocation are primarily budget coding changes and that further details would be provided in written material. Senator Penny asked whether the tuition reduction and limits would be visible in the budget lines; staff said a separate line would show the change.
The subcommittee voted by voice to carry the motion. The Chair recorded the motion as carried and said the item will be presented with the supporting paperwork to the full committee.
Next steps: staff will circulate the detailed breakdown and the distribution table for each institution; the Board of Regents will be asked to provide the requested credential and pathway data in follow-up reporting.
