Colleges, Charter Schools Scheduled for Review

The effective use of resources at two universities and the management of charter schools statewide will be the focus of two program evaluations planned by the LFC.

Both evaluations are scheduled to be completed in early summer.

The goal of the LFC program evaluation of the University of New Mexico and New Mexico State University, two of the state’s three research universities, is to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the school’s use of resources, including professors. The team will look at higher education funding, administration and governance, and student performance.

The project will review spending on administration, faculty workload, strategic planning, student satisfaction and the cost for both students and taxpayers.

The evaluators will also look at governance board oversight, statewide coordination of degree programs, and higher education programs in other states.

General fund spending on higher education, about 15 percent of total state general fund appropriations, has increased about 28 percent in the last six years, from $639 million in FY04 to $816 million in FY10. New Mexico’s per capita spending on higher education is among the highest in the nation.

State dollars typically make up about 40 percent of a college’s total revenue.

The goals of the evaluation of charter schools is to assess accountability for charter school performance, charter school use of resources, and student performance in charter schools.

Charter schools are public schools that must meet the same performance standards as traditional public schools but operate under an independent board of directors. As with all public schools in New Mexico, the schools are funded through the enrollment-driven state equalization guarantee.

Evaluations in other states have found that charter schools are prone to financial mismanagement because they typically lack experienced financial managers and must overcome high start-up costs and the cost inefficiencies of small schools.

Of the 12 New Mexico charter schools that have closed over the last decade, four cited financial problems.

Charter schools have also struggled with performance, although comparing charter schools to traditional schools is complicated by the tendency of charter schools to serve at-risk and exceptional student groups.

The number of charter schools in New Mexico has grown from five in FY93 to 73 in FY10.