It’s time to perform a long overdue audit of our community college system!

It’s sad but true, that the Community College System of New Hampshire (CCSNH) has the highest tuition rate among all national community college systems. In fact, it is a disgrace! But why?

Source: O'Shaughnessy, Lynn. "Most expensive state university systems." CBS Money Watch,

www.cbsnews.com/news/the-most-expensive-state-university-systems/. Accessed 1 July

As an adjunct professor who has taught eight years in CCSNH I have no answer to this question. However, we can get a glimpse of the CCSNH financial balance sheet by examining the culture of an organization.

When educational institutions have high tuition costs it’s because they have either (1) not been subsidized sufficiently by federal and state governments, (2) have high expenditures to include management salaries and/or (3) continually mismanage resources resulting in a death spiral and insolvency. I’ll address the first two issues and pray that the third never happens.

First – Several years ago CCSNH left the state’s educational system and decided to become semi-autonomous which by cause and effect naturally reduced state aid. This I believe was a colossal mistake!

Second - High salaries for the Chancellor, his staff and presidents/vice-presidents of the seven associated CCSNH colleges to the tune of high five digits to low and mid six digit salaries. Higher education in the “Live Free or Die” state really means higher management salaries and perks.

Here’s the bottom line: The CCSNH Board of Trustees, Chancellor’s Office and college administrations are all complicit in the high cost of community college tuition.

So, what can we do as taxpayers who help fund NH higher education?

We need to contact our elected representatives, House and Senate, all the way to the Governor and his Executive Council to demand an audit of CCSNH policies, management staffing and salaries and all college resources.

As part of the auditing process have your Representatives also inquire why adjuncts who teach 75% of the classes and who currently teaching, and drawing a paycheck titled CCSNH are excluded as “internal candidates” when applying for jobs!

Prof. Michael F. Kenney