By Alyssa Scott, KU Statehouse Wire Service
TOPEKA – A regional educational organization will increase its costs by more than 17 percent next year but state officials say the savings for Kansas is well worth the cost.
The Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC), an organization that provides higher education services to states in the Midwest, plans to increase its members’ annual fees by $20,000, effective next year.
Despite the increase, financial reports show that the money the 12 compact states save as a result of their membership makes it a valuable investment.
MHEC President Larry Isaak’s annual report to the Kansas Senate Ways and Means Committee showed that the state saved $6 million in 2014 by being a member of the 12-state compact, which include Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska, among others. According to Isaak, Kansas takes advantage of more MHEC services than any other state. These services mainly focus on risk management and technology, ranging from student health insurance to reduced computer costs.
“Every year we ask to do this because Kansas is a part of the program,” Isaak said. “We report to every state every year on how they are using our services.”
Since 2009, each member of the compact has paid a yearly fee of $95,000 to be a MHEC member. As college tuition increases, the fee has also increased. Starting in the 2016 fiscal year, states will pay an annual fee of $115,000.
Barry Swanson, University of Kansas associate vice provost for operations and chair of MHEC’s purchasing initiatives committee, said the increased fee is worth it.
“KU pays $95,000 to be a member, which is now increasing to $115,000, which is still a great value,” Swanson said. “We save more than that just on our insurance program.”
In addition to saving money, MHEC aims to facilitate collaboration between its members, and it does so with various forums and summits. For example, the Multi-State Collaborative on Military Credit, an interstate partnership, was created to allow states to share ideas to establish programs and systems to give military personnel college credit for their work.
“We use what makes sense for us, so it’s like the best of all worlds,” Swanson said. “There’s a lot of benefit just from collaborating to understand what other states are doing and seeing how we can benefit from that.”
MHEC also has programs that directly benefit students, such as health insurance and a reciprocity program that allows out-of-state students to pay reduced tuition. According to the MHEC, the exchange program has saved Kansas residents more than $56 million since 1994.
Diana Malott, KU chair of student health insurance plans and MHEC student health insurance committee representative, said the health insurance program also helps students save money.
“Most care at health care centers is 100 percent paid by insurance, so there are a lot of benefits offered for students,” Malott said. “The biggest part is it provides assurance for students that they’re protected not only here on campus, but also anywhere they travel or if they study abroad.”
Malott said the insurance plan is an advantage for international students in particular because it is something not all insurance companies offer. MHEC’s goal is to lower prices for all types of students, so this is one of the ways it does that.
Isaak introduced another program at the committee meeting that aims to benefit students by giving military personnel in Kansas an opportunity to earn class credit for certain military jobs and experiences. Because there are about 35,000 military personnel on the three Kansas military bases – Fort Riley, Fort Leavenworth, and McConnell Air Force Base — Isaak said he expects the program to be popular.
“MHEC is exactly what it says,” Malott said. “It wants to meet the needs of universities, and to do this it works to help the students at those universities too.”
Sen. Marci Francisco (D-Lawrence) said MHEC benefits extend beyond financial.
“Individuals are able to interact, talk with and learn from their counterparts in other states,” Francisco said. “You see how you can work with others and initiatives form from that.”
Alyssa Scott is a University of Kansas junior from Wichita majoring in journalism and French.