In the most fundamental sense, the role of higher education in Maine is to provide “access to opportunity” for our citizenry. The term “access” is an important one, for it suggests not only financial access (affordability) and geographic access (proximity to a place of learning), but also an awareness of available educational options and the ability to transition from one level of academic accomplishment to another. This accessibility has to be available to both traditional students and non- traditional adult learners.

In most parts of the country, an initial access point for many students has been through a community college. While Maine is one of the few states without a separate community college system, the reality is that the University of Maine System has served as the de facto community college system of Maine for almost two decades, primarily through the University of Maine at Augusta and its affiliated campuses, centers and outreach sites. (Some readers may even recall that at one point what is now the Bangor campus of the University of Maine at Augusta was actually called Bangor Community College.)

This year, the University of Maine System is providing statewide course instruction to more than 34,000 degree-seeking students at its seven university campuses, 10 University College outreach centers, and more than 100 ITV sites throughout the state. UMS student enrollment represents 78 percent of the students enrolled in public postsecondary education in Maine. By comparison, the Maine Technical College System (MTCS) serves 7,700 degree-seeking students (18 percent), and Maine Maritime Academy (MMA) serves about 750 students (two percent).

Four years ago, UMS and MTCS embarked on a joint initiative to develop a community college system that would utilize existing facilities, personnel, equipment and systems. The collaborative effort was aimed not only at sharing scarce resources, but also at developing a more seamless system of higher education that would address Maine’s community college education needs. The end result being sought was to minimize competition between the systems for students and resources and also enable students to transition smoothly either up or across the educational grid.

Transfer agreements already in place between UMS and MTCS have been highly successful, allowing technical college students to transfer easily into a UMS four-year degree program once those students have earned their associate degree. Collaboration was working. Understandably, we were taken aback in the spring when the Technical College System announced – with no notice or justification to its UMS partner – that it was redefining itself as Maine’s community college provider to address many of the problems UMS and MTCS had been collaborating on. Our joint effort had encountered only a few differences, certainly none significant enough to discourage or derail collaboration.

UMS refrained from publicly criticizing the MTCS proposal, even though that proposal would affect the five UMS campuses that currently offer two-year degree programs. Recently, when UMS Chancellor Joseph Westphal was asked in an interview about community college education, he spoke positively of the MTCS proposal. Furthermore, he suggested that there might be some efficiencies and program benefits to be realized by creating a single, integrated higher education system in Maine. Unfortunately the possibility was publicly and summarily rejected by the president of the MTCS.

In my opinion, that response was an overreaction to a thoughtful and prudent suggestion. As Chancellor Westphal has emphasized, neither he nor the UMS Board of Trustees has suggested that the University System acquire or “take over” the technical colleges nor MMA. We simply have said that there may be a more effective and affordable way to provide community college education beyond both what currently exists and what the MTCS president proposed. A new, integrated system was offered as one possibility.

Nonetheless, the possibility of an integrated higher education structure should, at the very least, be part of the public conversation about community college education. In a time of tight resources, integration may prove to be one way to maximize effectiveness and cost efficiencies. To his credit, Chancellor Westphal set aside the human tendency to protect one’s own turf when he commented on the pros and cons of folding his own university system into a broader higher education system. Most taxpayers and policy-makers would agree with his position, that our public higher education institutions should indeed work together to identify whether students can be better served, whether money can be saved, and whether unnecessary duplication of administrative services can be eliminated.

Furthermore, we need to work together to help our state policy-makers rethink the role and priority of higher education in Maine. The UMS budget proposal recently submitted to the governor proposes to increase the percentage of the state’s budget that goes to university education from the current seven percent to nine percent. At that level, UMS can freeze tuition rates, increase student financial aid, attract more federal investment in university research and development, and boost Maine’s attractiveness to potential and current employers.

The University of Maine System, the Maine Technical College System and Maine Maritime Academy all have dedicated trustees, bright and capable administrators, and top-notch faculties and support staffs. We’ve all enjoyed strong legislative support in recent years, and will need even more in the years to come. All of us in leadership positions in public higher education – the citizen trustees as well as the CEOs – must work together openly and collaboratively to convince state policy-makers to elevate higher education as an essential priority that produces great results.

James D. Mullen of Bangor is chair of the University of Maine System Board of Trustees.