The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

The Channels

The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

The Channels

The news site of Santa Barbara City College.

The Channels

Brief: Romo briefs senate on ’06 initiative

Superintendent-President John Romo met with the Student Senate Friday to explain in detail the Community College Initiative and inform senators of their role in getting the initiative on the ballot.

The senate voted on Nov. 18 to support the measure but chose to hold off on assigning tasks to specific senators until Romo addressed it.

At the meeting Dec. 2, Romo said the senate would need to collect 3,080 signatures from registered voters.

Currently, community colleges are funded based on the enrollment of K-12 students. City College needs to raise $25,000 as part of its share to get the measure on the ballot.

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Romo said he will work closely with The Foundation, the college’s money generating engine, to raise the funds.

“Enrollment for K-12 is projected to go down, while the enrollment for City Colleges is projected to go up,” Romo said.

If passed by California voters, the initiative­ -which would be on the Nov. 2006 ballot-would separate community colleges from K-12, drop enrollment fees from $26 to $20 per unit, and put more power in the hands of the community college chancellor.

Romo said if City College enrollment increases, it will get “a bigger piece of the pie,” referring to the money doled out by Proposition 98 funds, which guarantee K-14 schools equalization.

There is little opposition to the proposed proposition in Sacramento, said Romo.

“We have a governor who really understands City Colleges,” he concluded.

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