IN RE HEARING ON ERIE ) Pennsylvania State Board of Edueation COMMUNITY COLLEGE PLAN ) ) Public Hearing scheduled for March 18, 2020. RECEIVED DEC 19 2019 PA. STATE BOARI OF EDUCATION VERIFICATION On this, the 17th day of December, 2019, the undersigned, deposes and states that s/he is the an authorized agent of the Northem Pennsylvania Regionel College, and that as such s/he is authorized to execute this verification on behalf of the corporation, and that the facts set forth in the foregoing Petition are true and correct to the best of his/her knowledge, information and belief, subject to the penalties of 18 Pa.C.S, §4904 relating to unsworn falsification to authorities |IN RE HEARING ON ERIE COMMUNITY COLLEGE PLAN, Pennsylvania State Board of Education Public Hearing scheduled for March 18, 2020, d ) ) ) d ) d ) ) NORTHERN PENNSYLVANIA REGIONAL COLLEGE’S PETITION TO INTERVENE, iollowing is the Northern Pennsylvania Regional College’s (“NPRC’s") Petition to Intervene in the proceedings to address the Erie Community College Plan: INTRODUCTION ‘The NPRC seeks to intervene in the proceeding regarding the Erie County Community Plan because that Plan and the pending application, if granted, could result in a significant and unnecessary duplication of services in Erie County. Further, the community college sought pursuant to the application would directly compete with the NPRC~ which is already authorized to provide the services addressed in the application to Erie County residents. ‘The NPRC seeks to potentially introduce evidence that bears on the plan pending application, including the history and operations of the NPRC, which would include, but not be limited to, the educational offerings already available to Erie County Residents, and potentially whether these would be duplicated by the applied for community college. ‘The NPRC would also potentially introduce evidence about the region to be serviced by the application, including population rate extrapolations and financial viability. 1. ‘The NPRC is a non-profit regional college, enabled by specific legislation of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, whose principal address is 300 2! Avenue, Suite 500, Warren Pennsylvania, 16365. | | |‘The NPRC’s mission is to provide affordable and accessible post- secondary education to the previously underserved residents of northern Pennsylvania, including residents of Erie County. 3, Effective May 28, 2019 the NPRC is authorized to grant degtees and certificates as a college in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, 4, ‘The NPRC offers its students options for dual enrollment, associate degrees and both certificated and non-certficated workforce development courses. 5. The NPRC does not operate as a traditional campus based college, or as an online college. Rather, it utilizes physical, community-based locations to deliver class instruction at multiple sites which are then brought together via live, interactive video technology, 6. ‘The NPRC's student body comes largely from previously underserved communities in northem Pennsylva , including Brie County, 7, ‘The NPRC’s target students are recent high schoo! graduates, individuals who did not complete highschool or college, returning adults, low income, and first generation students, 8, The NPRC has established physical classrooms in Erie County which provide flexible, career-focused education to its students, 9. These offerings include associates degrees, certificate programs, short term classes, workshops, seminars, and customized trait ings. 10, ‘The NPRC’s course of gs are high quality, easily accessible, student- centered, highly responsive to existing and emerging community needs, and offered at low-cost (o its students. |U1, ‘The NPRC?s course offerings include small class sizes and many classes that meet after 2pm. 12. ‘The NPRC and its associated agencies have been providing educational services to Erie County since the summer semester of 2017. The NPRC’s Interest in the Erie County Communit 13. ‘The NPRC has an interest that would be directly affected if the Erie County Community College’s application is granted, Duplication of Services 14, ‘The applied for Brie County Community College could potentially do nothing more than duplicate the educational offerings alteady provided by the NPRC, 15. Accortling to the pending application and plan, the Brie County Community College identifies its likely students as the precise students that are already being served by the NPRC -- individuals in Erie County seeking cost-effective educational offerings towards an Associate's Degree, certificate training program, and other training and workforce development options. 16. According to the pending application and plan, the Erie County Community College predicts that its total enrollment would be approximately 1,500 students, spread across full-time, parttime, summer session and job training tracks. 17. ‘The NPRC has the existing capacity to service these students, and, through its innovative model, can easily expand that capacity to serve any and all students in Erie County who seek the type of education offered by the NPRC, and proposed by the Erie County Community College. 18, The fact that Erie County Community College would do nothing more than potentially duplicate the NPRC’s educational offerings constitutes an interest of the NPRC |that could be directly, and negatively, impacted if the Erie County Community College’s application is granted. 19. [fpermitted to intervene, the NPRC would potentially introduce evidence related to the duplicative nature of the proposed Erie County Community Colleges® offerings and purpose. Divect Competitive Interest 20, ‘The NPRC and the Brie County Community College would be direct competitors of one another. 21. ‘The NPRC has established itself as a high quality and effective provider of the educational options that the Erie County Community College is now seeking to duplicate. 22, The NPRC has been specifically authorized by the Pennsylvania Department of Education to provide this education to students, 23. Ifthe ponding application is granted, a publicly funded community college ‘would be introduced into NPRC’s market and result in unfair end unnecessary competition, 24, ‘The NPRC already competes with those for-profit and non-profit schools that attempt to offer the sort of education that is the focus of the NPRC and that the Erie County ‘Community College seeks to potentially duplicate, 25, Introdueing a publically funded competitor into the precise market space ‘where the NPRC already exists will not enhance the offerings fo students, and could simply dilute the quality and quantity of offerings available, 26. ‘The NPRC has an interest in this matter that could be significantly affected if the application were granted based on its status as a direct competitor of the proposed Erie County Community College. | | |27. {permitted to intervene, the NPRC would intend on potentially introducing evidence related to the fact that the proposed Erie County Community College could be a direct competitor of the NPRC, and that such a development is not beneficial to the community or students. 28. Given the NPRC’s operations within Erie County, it has evidence concerning demographics, population projections and financial analysis regarding the viability of a community college. 29. If permitted to intervene, the NPRC would intend on potentially introdueing evidence related to the demogtaphties and economic trends of Erie County, and how those impact the viability of a community college as requested in the application. Requested Relief Based on the foregoing, the NPRC requests that the Pennsylvania State Board of Education grant this Petition to intervene and permit the NPRC to participate as an intervenor in the proceedings related to the Application for an Erie County Community College. NORTHERN PENNSYLVANIA ao Kate Brock Chairperson, Board of Trustees 300 Second Avenue Suite 500 Warren, PA 16365 814-230-9010 ONAL COLL