Guest Editorial by Dr. Stephen M. Benson President, Paris Junior College
When the Texas Legislature passed House Bill 8 in 2023, it fundamentally changed how community colleges are funded. Rather than rewarding enrollment, the Community College Finance Model rewards results—student success, workforce credentials, degree completion, and meaningful outcomes that strengthen Texas communities and our economy.
Three years later, the results are undeniable. Texas community colleges are delivering exactly what lawmakers intended. Today, community colleges serve more than 740,000 students—more than all Texas public universities combined—while expanding dual credit, increasing credential and degree completion, strengthening workforce education, and preparing more Texans for high-demand careers.
Ironically, that success has exposed the model’s greatest challenge. The funding appropriated when House Bill 8 was enacted was based on projections that underestimated how successful community colleges would be. As a result, the available funding no longer matches the outcomes colleges have earned. Because community colleges statewide exceeded the performance projections built into the funding model, performance funding for Fiscal Year 2027 is projected to fall approximately $81 million short of what colleges earned under the formula. For Paris Junior College, that means a projected $1.4 million reduction in state funding next year—not because we served fewer students or produced fewer graduates, but because community colleges across Texas outperformed the projections used to fund the model.
Paris Junior College is proud to be part of the statewide success of Texas community colleges. Over the past two years, PJC has been among the fastest-growing community colleges in Texas. Our enrollment has grown by more than 1,000 students, and we now serve more than 5,100 students. More than 2,500 high school students are earning college credit through our dual credit partnerships, while we continue preparing students to transfer to universities and expanding workforce programs that prepare nurses, first responders, industrial maintenance technicians, welders, healthcare professionals, and other skilled professionals our region depends on. These results are not unique to Paris Junior College—they are being replicated at community colleges across Texas because House Bill 8 aligned funding with student success.
These are exactly the outcomes House Bill 8 was designed to reward. Successful colleges should not be penalized for exceeding expectations.
The timing couldn’t be worse. PJC is serving record numbers of students, expanding workforce programs, strengthening partnerships with school districts and employers, and
producing outstanding student outcomes. A $1.4 million reduction represents resources that would otherwise support the growing educational and workforce needs of Northeast Texas. The state’s investment should reinforce that momentum—not force high-performing colleges to do more with less.
The Texas Association of Community Colleges and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board are already working together to improve future funding projections and strengthen the long-term sustainability of the model.
As lawmakers prepare for the 90th Legislative Session, they have an opportunity to build on the success of House Bill 8 by fully funding the outcomes community colleges have already earned, adopting more accurate performance projections, and refining the formula to ensure future success is rewarded rather than being penalized.
Every student who earns a credential, every nurse who enters a hospital, every welder who joins the workforce, every dual credit student who gains a head start, and every first-generation college student who changes the trajectory of a family represents a return on Texas’ investment.
House Bill 8 has proven that outcome-based funding works. The Texas Legislature challenged community colleges to produce more graduates, stronger workforce outcomes, and greater economic impact—and community colleges delivered. At Paris Junior College, we will continue building on our momentum because our students, employers, and communities deserve the very best in higher education and workforce training. Now, the Legislature has the opportunity to finish the job by fully funding the success it challenged community colleges to achieve.
