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It’s
simple, according to economists and educators, alike.
“An excellent school system is essential to the long-term economic
prosperity and quality of life of all Texans,” said M. Ray Perryman,
president of Waco-based The Perryman Group, which conducted a study called
“Financing the Public School of Texas: Some Issues of Growth, Equity
and Efficiency.”
“Business needs to get involved,” explained Cary Israel, president
of Collin County Community College District. “When companies and
people move, they are concerned about the quality of the K to 12 education.
Businesses look for research universities and community colleges. They
want someone who can help them maintain a vibrant business or they need
access to courses taught at colleges.”
From a purely economic standpoint, investing in universities and college
campuses is crucial to the area’s future.
“Higher education is an economic engine,” Israel added.
Two years ago, he said, Collin County and the entire Metroplex experienced
a critical shortage of technology skilled workers. Workers were getting
signing bonuses and now there is no shortage because of the bubble and
meltdown, he said.
“Now, we have a critical shortage of nurses. This has a dramatic
impact on business because if there is not quality care in the community,
it will impact the bottom line,” Israel said. “We also have
an alternative teacher certification program because of the shortage of
teachers. We want an educated and trained workforce.”
Israel said an economic impact study showed that for every $1 invested
in education, there is a $6 return in the future. That alone can be strong
motivation to contribute to the public school system and higher education.
“Community college was a stepping stone for me,” said Plano
business owner Fred Moses. “It enabled me to get motivated about
my education.”
Moses, along with his wife Mazzie, were honored as the CCCCD Foundation’s
2001 Community Partner of the Year. Their ongoing support of scholarships
at CCCCD has funded more than 30 annual scholarship awards.
At CCCCD alone, the financial aid needs have increased from $5 million
to $8 million.
Not only has enrollment increased because of the population growth in
Collin County, but there are now students who previously went away to
universities, but now can’t pay for living away from home because
mom or dad lost a job, Israel said.
“We will see more students here for a year,” Israel said.
“Also, because some colleges are canceling summer classes, we’ll
have some students coming from as far away as Tyler to finish courses.”
Need for scholarships
“We have a tremendous need for scholarships,” Israel said.
“We have gone from double income homes to single or no-income homes,
so they need has skyrocketed.”
For the first time in the college’s 17-year history, officials literally
ran out of scholarships for students in the fall.
The college awarded nearly $5.8 million dollars in financial aid and scholarships
last year, said Lisa R. Brittain, director of public relations for Collin
County Community College District. This year, because of the record enrollment,
the total topped $8.7 million, and scholarship requests more than doubled.
Last year, more than 4,500 students requested grants, loans and work-study
funding at CCCCD. This year, that number jumped to 8,241.
McKinney community leaders Richard and Diane Dill established two scholarship
endowments to fund a scholarship in music and one in business to honor
good friends Tom and Bette Emerson. These kinds of gifts continue to give
back to the community again and again because of the endowment.
$1 million donation
Israel and college officials are mounting a number of initiatives to help
students in need. Recently, Israel announced that he was actively seeking
a $1 million donation to the college.
“A $1 million gift to this college would have a dramatic impact
on our students and our programs, so I spend a lot of time cultivating
relationships in order to help our students succeed,” Israel said.
A number of fundraising efforts for scholarships occur throughout the
year including CCCCD’s Evening of Monopoly fundraiser.
“Being able to award scholarships to deserving students is a college
priority,” said Robert Keahey, chairman of the CCCCD Foundation
Inc. board of directors. “This year, the college experienced a tremendous
increase in the requests for scholarships. Although we awarded more than
$125,000, still many more students could have been helped if additional
funds were available.”
Keahey said the Evening of Monopoly has proven successful in past years
and is a critical event for raising money for student scholarships.
Plano Independent School District also hosts its annual Taste of Plano
event to raise funds for scholarships for PISD students. The idea was
created in 1988 and the first year’s event attracted approximately
400 attendees and grossed slightly more than $9,000 for career education
scholarships.
In 2002, 43 area restaurants fed more than 4,000 patrons grossing more
than $60,000 and awarded 60 scholarships. The numbers on patrons and money
raised for the 2003 event, which was held March 5 at South Fork Ranch
were unavailable at press time.
Collin County natives Ray and Ora Botsford have funded an annual scholarship
at CCCCD since 1986.They attend the CCCCD scholarship banquet each year
to meet their recipient and find it very rewarding to know they are impacting
the lives of individual students.
Botsford retired from J.C. Penney Company and his wife is a retired educator
who taught in the Richardson school district.
Keahey said he encourages local businesses and community leaders to support
the college in its endeavor to educate tomorrow’s workforce.
“We felt there was a need to support students who wanted to gain
technical skills, and we wanted to help them achieve their educational
dreams,” said Milton Buschbom, a member of the CCCCD Foundation
Board, who is also retired from Texas Instruments.
He and his wife, Mary Kate, have established a planned gift to the CCCCD
Foundation. Mrs. Buschbom is retired from Fisher Controls and currently
heads MLB Consulting. Both are residents of Collin County.
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