TORRINGTON – A proposed bill floated by Wyoming senators John Barrasso and Mike Enzi and Utah Sen. Mitt Romney would change the way community colleges report how many students graduate each year – which could end up helping students in Wyoming moving forward.

The proposed Time for Completion Act co-sponsored by the three Western-state legislators would require inclusion of part-time and non-traditional students – typically older people who may be returning to college to complete either a degree or new or additional training – in regular graduation rate reporting to the federal government.

Currently, reporting only numbers of first-time, full-time student is required, leaving a large segment of students in the Wyoming Community College System institutions uncounted and unacknowledged, said Dr. Lesley Travers, president of Eastern Wyoming College in Torrington.

“When you look at those non-traditional students, it gives people a better idea of what community colleges are really doing,” Travers said. “We have a lot of students who fit into those funky little areas – all of those we don’t have to report.”

The problem with not counting non-traditional, non-first-time or part-time students is it doesn’t reflect the true nature of the people being served by community colleges in Wyoming and across the United States, she said. While Travers didn’t have hard numbers, she contended those individuals not attending college straight out of high school or not taking a full-time class schedule probably represent the majority of students receiving an education at community colleges today.

“A lot of our students (at EWC) have to work,” she said. “Very few have the opportunity to come back to school full time.”

The current reporting system has been “very inaccurate, when you think about it. We have other students,” Travers said. “Now, we’ll get a much more accurate picture of what the community colleges are doing. I’d hope that could free up some additional money – who knows what this will do.”

In a December press release announcing the introduction of the legislation, Enzi touted increased transparency and recognition of student diversity at the seven community colleges in the state.

“It’s important for students and family to have the most accurate information before choosing a college that best fits their needs,” Enzi was quoted in the release. “The Time for Completion Act would update how colleges report on graduation rates to help make sure our institutions of higher education are serving students well.”

Only a small portion of funding for Wyoming community colleges comes directly from the federal government – about $1.9 million of the proposed almost $255 million for the Community College Commission in the recommended 2021-22 budget proposed by Gov. Mark Gordon. But acknowledging the true number of students annually who learn at and graduate from community colleges in the state has the potential to open or expand educational grants and other funding opportunities for students, Travers said. 

“The numbers could say, maybe we need to make Pell Grants available for non-traditional students,” she said. “They could look at those numbers and say, ‘we’re missing a huge percentage of students here we might be able to help.’

“Once they get those numbers and track them for a couple of years, (officials) might say, ‘look at the number of students attending part-time,’” Travers said. “Maybe there’s something we can do for these students while they work, raise families and go to school. It could make a huge difference.”