The Coordinating Commission at its Oct. 14 meeting approved recommendations for the 2011-13 operating budget and capital construction requests submitted by the state's public colleges and universities.

The Coordinating Commission at its Thursday meeting will vote on recommendations for the 2011-13 operating budget and capital construction requests submitted by the state's public colleges and universities.

The Commission provides these recommendations biennially as required by the state’s constitution and statutes. The purpose is to provide the Governor and Legislature with objective analysis and recommendations regarding the operating budget and capital construction requests made by Nebraska’s state university system, state college system, and community colleges.

The Coordinating Commission has issued a request for proposals for the 2010-11 Improving Teacher Quality (ITQ) state grants.

The Coordinating Commission recently released Sections A and C of “A Factual Look at Higher Education in Nebraska,” an annual report that includes information from the federal government’s Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) surveys.

Every college, university and technical/vocational institution that participates in federal student financial aid programs must complete the IPEDS surveys, which gather information on enrollments, program completions, graduation rates, faculty and staff, finances, institutional prices, and student financial aid.  

The Coordinating Commission last week approved the distribution of more than $1 million to school districts and other non-profit groups across the state who will use the money to make college more accessible for low-income and other underrepresented student populations.

The funding is available through the federal College Access Challenge Grant (CACG) program. Gov. Dave Heineman chose the Coordinating Commission to administer the CACG program for Nebraska.