By TIM CARPENTER
Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — A Kansas House committee is considering a bill that would create a 17-member blue-ribbon commission to study operations and priorities of public higher education institutions, including consolidation of state universities and community colleges or technical colleges.
The bill was introduced in early March by state Reps. Ken Rahjes, Agra, and Shannon Francis, Liberal, both Republicans who serve western Kansas districts. The legislation would enable House and Senate Republican leadership to appoint 11 members of the commission while Democrats in the Legislature would have two appointments. The governor, Kansas Board of Regents, Kansas Association of Community Colleges and Kansas Association of Technical Colleges would have one appointment each.
The legislation would charge the commission with exploring the higher education structure and financing issues in addition to potential consolidation among 32 public educational institutions in Kansas.
Blake Flanders, president and chief executive officer of the state Board of Regents, said board members nearly 20 years ago explored opportunities for merging universities and colleges but that work was halted by the Legislature.
“The board’s lesson has been that if we are to reimagine our delivery system, we must have your strong partnership and support on the front end,” Flanders told the House Appropriations Committee. “If you have interest in incentivizing mergers or affiliations of institutions, the board will need strong legislative collaboration.”
Flanders said many of the proposed commission study topics outlined in House Bill 2402 would align with the state Board of Regents’ strategic planning initiative known as Building a Future. It emphasized the role of public colleges and universities in advancing educational opportunities for families, enhancing prosperity in the state and supporting interests of business, he said.
He said the study commission could have a positive influence on accessibility and affordability of higher education as well as streamlining the process of degree completion for students.
“We support efforts to strengthen our higher education system in Kansas,” Flanders said.
The Board of Regents is a higher education governing board with direct oversight of six state universities and a coordination role with the 19 community colleges, six technical colleges and one municipal university. The 26 institutions outside of the state universities have independent boards of trustees.
Heather Morgan, executive director of the Kansas Association of Community Colleges, said the organization supported formation of the blue-ribbon commission. She said House Republican leaders approached community colleges with the task force idea early in the 2025 legislative session.
She said the state’s community colleges had been working together for more than a year to identify operational efficiencies to reduce cost and promote student success.
“We look forward to sharing what we have learned, have implemented and believe could be beneficial to Kansas students,” Morgan said.
Under the bill, the commission would deliver to the Legislature a preliminary report in January 2026 and a final report in January 2027.
Those reports would explore goals and priorities of higher education, student accessibility and affordability issues, strengths and weaknesses of postsecondary educational institutions and strategies for enrollment and degree completion. In addition to governing structures and “consolidation of the state Board of Regents’ schools and community and technical colleges,” the reports would delve into “right-sizing and streamlining higher education with a student focus.”