As if the recession had not given community college advocates enough to worry about, some fear that the anti-tax sentiment stirred by Tea Party activists could endanger their federal, state and local funding.
One Tea Party group in New Jersey is questioning Warren County Community College's plans to open a satellite campus, meant to accommodate the institution's burgeoning enrollment in outlying areas and free up space on its main campus. As required by New Jersey law, half of the $7.3 million bond to buy and renovate a commercial building for the new campus would be paid from an existing pool of state funds. The remainder, officials say, would be paid for by leasing additional space in the renovated building to interested tenants.
At Inside Higher Ed:Taxes and higher education
Cash-poor, bond-rich: Colleges struggle with state budget cutbacks
Though the plan for the new facility would not raise taxes or pass along any extra costs to area residents, some activists are still questioning the move, arguing that the college should simply expand its existing campus and that outlying students should make the drive if they want to attend classes.
Money "doesn't grow on trees," John Clemmer, founder of the Warren County NJ Tea Party Patriots, told The Express-Times, a local newspaper."We don't print money. It's our money, no matter what you're talking about doing."
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