The National Advisory Council on Extension and Continuing Education has been charged by Congress with the responsibility of reporting annually to the President and the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare and making suggestions for change to them. After reviewing the administration and effectiveness of the Community Service and Continuing Education Program established by Title I of the Higher Education Act of 1965 as well as of other related federal programs, the Council makes the following recommendations. 1. The appropriations for the program sponsored under Title I should be increased above the level of $10 million provided in each fiscal year to date. The original authorization called for an expenditure of $25,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1966, and $50,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1967. The experience of the Council members and the staff in the field indicates clearly that increased funding is needed to help solve the crucial community problems of the people of the United States. In fiscal year 1967 the state agencies reported that they could effectively use an additional $26.8 million under the provisions of present legislation. The additional authorization advocated in the second recommendation together with increased institutional participation would markedly raise the total requirement. A larger appropriation by increasing program activity would make more people aware of the potential of the Title I program in helping solve important American problems. The Council believes that the present level of appropriation is inconsistent with the intent and potential of Title I as expressed by Congress in 1965. As a dynamic resource in meeting our critical urban problems, the program should be funded to the maximum feasible amount. 2. Ten percent of the enlarged appropriation for Title I should be set aside for use by the Commissioner to make grants for national or regional demonstration projects. To bring together the resources necessary to deal with complex community problems which cannot always be solved within the restrictions of state boundaries and competencies requires coordinated regional and national efforts. Successful experiments funded on the basis of regional or national priorities could then be repeated in other Title I projects. 3. Title I should be amended to authorize a special, additional appropriation for grants to institutions of higher education for major urban community service and continuing education programs. The grants would be made by the Commissioner to aid universities to conduct research, planning, and program operation in connection with the efforts of cities to solve the multiple complex problems associated with rapid urbanization and technological and social change. Project grants would provide opportunity for a relatively few large and well focused projects. Demonstration projects under urban grants could show the impact of greater funding in making available to the city the resources of higher educational institutions and would be especially useful in implementing the Model Cities programs. 4. A full-time director with a technical and professional stafi should be assigned to the Advisory Council if it is to discharge its responsibilities to the President and the Congress. To be fully effective the Council needs the continuing and responsible help of professional people whose efforts are directed toward the achievement of the purposes set forth in the enabling legislation. This need is particularly evident in the Council's efforts to "review the administration and effectiveness of all federally supported extension and continuing education programs, including community service programs." The staff of any one program will encounter difficulties in attempting to review the effectiveness of the others. To achieve both vigor and impartiality, the Council needs its own full-time officers. 5. More funds should be assigned to the Division of Adult Education to enable it to add professional and technical staff in the Washington office so that the responsibilities of the Division can be effectively accomplished. At present the Division is understaffed and can only with great difficulty provide necessary assistance to the states, evaluation of projects, and effective relationships to other federal extension and continuing education services. 6. The federal officials who administer the Title I program should strongly encourage the State Agencies to provide at least a minimum of one full-time professional person (or the equivalent) in each state. An independent study of program effectiveness has reported that such a provision is essential for proper grants management. (See page 15.) 7. The authorization of funds should be extended for the next five fiscal years. Because the program is new and its scope of activities has been limited by the level of federal funding, this change would provide a better experience for measuring progress. 8. The 75% federal - 25% non-federal matching requirement should be maintained for the next two years. In a study conducted by the Council during the past year, this recommendation was supported by an overwhelming proportion of the people interviewed. (See pages 20-21.) Also more than 70% of the states have delayed approval and funding of institutional projects for fiscal year 1968 at least in part because of the difficulty of finding adequate matching funds. The State Agencies report that fewer programs will be undertaken by fewer institutions should the legislative requirement remain at the 50-50 matching level. It is anticipated that 87 institutions will not be able to participate, leaving a total of 227 institutions active in the program. Of these 87 institutions 80% are private colleges and 20% are small public institutions. Many institutions which are competent to provide significant community services have developed extension and continuing education programs for the first time. They are keenly interested and are learning to become effective forces in community service. To lose their sense of commitment and involvement would be to deprive the communities and the total program of their resources. 9. Appropriations for grants, contracts, or other payments under federally funded programs for community service and continuing education should be included in the appropriation act for the fiscal year preceding that for which they are available for obligation. If institutions of higher learning are to assign the necessary resources to operate effectively they will need assurance that significant programs will be adequately funded over a reasonable period of time. Support for this recommendation is provided on pages 15 and 20. 10. Following the same general logic as that used in the preceding recommendation, Title I of The Higher Education Act of 1965 should be amended to provide for appropriations on a twoyear basis. To permit long range planning and to provide more effective resource allocation by institutions of higher education, assurance of continuing and well-timed funding is required. Annual appropriations force institutions to develop limited projects rather than a comprehensive program. 11. A thorough study of the indirect costs required for various programs of community service and continuing education should be made and a uniform indirect cost policy established consistent with the results of this study. The supporting justification for this recommendation will be found on page 20. The National Advisory Council has put forward these recommendations only after much study and deliberation and is prepared to offer further justification of them if it is required. The Council believes that all of them are required if there is to be developed a comprehensive, coordinated extension and continuing education program which can effectively use federal funds and the substantial resources of American higher education for the solution of the major problems which now confront our nation, particularly in its urban areas. |