Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education institutions across the state of Texas saw a decrease in enrollment, including community colleges in the Texas Panhandle and South Plains.
Because of the decrease, some colleges lost a significant amount of funding from the state. This comes as K-12 public schools were held harmless, giving districts the chance to maintain their funding in the midst of declines in enrollment and attendance for the next biennium.
The Globe-News spoke with representatives from three regional community colleges about the potential impact their respective budgets will take in the upcoming fiscal year due to the pandemic and enrollment decreases.