Blinn board approves new legislative priorities for 89th Session

Board also approves naming rights in the Bryan Campus Administration Building

January 22, 2025

The Blinn College District Board of Trustees approved legislative priorities for the 89 ^th Texas Legislative Session and authorized naming rights of two spaces within the new Bryan Campus Administration Building during its regular meeting on Wednesday.

In its first action of the meeting, the board approved two key legislative priorities:

• Enhancing House Bill 8 Implementation in collaboration with the Texas Association of Community Colleges (TACC) and the Community College Association of Texas Trustees (CCATT).
• Improving Section 51.981 of the Texas Education Code, which governs how employers request off-campus workforce education programs with institutions of higher learning.

House Bill 8, passed during the 88 ^th Legislative Session, marked a transformative update to the state’s community college funding model. Blinn and other state higher education leaders propose three enhancements to maximize the impact of this legislation:

1. Broadening Transfer Student Funding: Amend the funding formula to include students who transfer from community colleges to private or independent Texas universities, in addition to public universities.
2. Adjusting Base Tier Funding Formula: Allow colleges with ad valorem tax rates below $0.05 to use their actual tax rates in Base Tier calculations.
3. Expanding the Transfer Student Definition: Include students who completed a limited number of semester credit hours at a four-year university before enrolling at a community college.

In other business, the board approved the naming of two rooms in the Bryan Campus Administration Building.

The first-floor meeting room honors Ben and Sue Boehnke, following a donation from Bodley and Karen Thornton. Karen, a member of the Blinn Foundation Board, is their daughter. Ben served as a teacher and coach at Blinn for 27 years, leading the 1972 undefeated football team and earning induction into the NJCAA Football Hall of Fame in 1998. Sue was an art professor and Blinn’s first drill team instructor, serving the College for over 20 years.

The first-floor conference room recognizes William S. Thornton and Nita B. Thornton, thanks to a donation from their son, William S. Thornton Jr. William Thornton Sr. was a respected business leader in Bryan-College Station, serving as a Brazos County Commissioner, President of the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce, and the first president of the Economic Development Corporation.

The board also authorized the College to negotiate and execute contracts for roofing contractor services related to roof replacement at Buildings F and H on the Bryan Campus, and general contractor services related to paving repairs at the Blinn Boulevard entrance of the Bryan Campus.