No Limits to Benefits between Friends: DCCCD & DART 2012 NACAS South Conference May 8, 2012 David Browning, El Centro College Edward DesPlas, Dallas County Community College District

Who The Heck? DCCCD = Dallas County Community College District DART = Dallas Area Rapid Transit

DCCCD Service area: One County Number of Students: 80,000 El Centro College – flagship of DCCCD, centrally located in downtown Dallas, south Dallas and west Dallas El Centro student population: 12,000 (credit) El Centro has extremely limited parking

DART Trains & Buses Most of Dallas County Part of Collin County Soon to hit Rockwall County Partnered with Trinity Railway Express, connecting Ft. Worth in Tarrant County

Reduce CO 2 e Benefits? Public Transit vs. Parking Lots & Traffic Lower Carbon Footprint Facilitating Regional Student Recruitment Providing Students with Reliable Transportation Enhance applications for grants for economic development and environmental programs

Public Transit vs. Parking & Traffic Costs less to provide passes than to operate parking garage Survey of 6 other college within the DCCCD with parking lots showed, on average, 60% of campus criminal activity occurred in their parking lots Public transportation allows students to continue group discussions while commuting

Lower Carbon Footprint In 2009 with a full-time student enrollment of 7,700 ECC reduced it’s CO 2 e produced by student commuting by 32.6%

Facilitating Regional Student Recruitment Per the 2010 US Census, El Centro has access to a Dallas/Ft. Worth Metro population of 6,371,771; largest metro area in Texas and the South, 4th Largest in the US and 10th Largest in all of the Americas. Compared to an El Centro College service area population of 137,635.

Gas Price Increase Vs. El Centro Enrollment Growth Yearly Aveage from the U.S. Energy Information Administration

Students are Consumers, too

Providing Students with Affordable Transportation Monthly Cost of Parking Monthly cost of Gasoline % of students of FA No Gas $ = no attendance – No attendance = attrition No Parking $ = parking tickets – Unpaid parking tickets = jail time – Jail time = attrition Affordable Transportation = student success

Enhance applications for grants for economic development and environmental programs Silver Rating on AASHE Promotes environmental grant applications Interagency collaboration increases grant proposal scores Attracts “green” partners – US Green Building Council

Structure of Program Eligible students = 6 credit hr. cert. date or continuing ed. 96 clock hour min. Statistics since Fall 1997: 155,654 Eligible (payment to DART based on this) 89,373 Participated Cost $3,552,970 ($20 - $25 per semester pass) Effective cost is $39.75/participant

Public Transit Program vs. Parking Cost Comparisons: – Parking Garage construction Cost $5,000, parking spaces – Cost for Security and Maintenance $3,500,000 Total: $8,500,000 – Total for DART-Free: $ 3,552,970

Other Aspects of “Friendship” DART drive-on to college in non participating municipalities: Eastfield College - Mesquite DART bus access at all other colleges Richland College - “Poetry in Motion” DART Train North Lake College: station artwork designed by college faculty member DART pass good 24/7, not just school transit Student retention – seamless, semester-to- semester

Poetry in Motion DART brought Poetry in Motion to North Texas in From , Richland College partnered with DART in support of this program. The national program is coordinated by the Poetry Society of America (PSA), and is enjoyed by millions of riders in New York, Baltimore, Boston and Chicago. Poetry in Motion gives riders a way to take a mental break from their day. Richland CollegePoetry Society of America (PSA)

Example - Poetry in Motion

Public Art – North Lake College Station

Education, directed toward future growth, has as its base history - great men and women who used their education to make life better for us today through the sciences, mathematics, history, literature, philosophy and the fine arts. The North Lake College Station [paving blocks] will include the names of some of these important men and women." - Chris Fulmer, station artist & North Lake College (DCCCD) faculty member

Summing-Up The Friendship It’s SUSTAINABLE: financially, environmentally and socially – Viable alternative to student parking – Public transportation partnership is good for the environment. – Public transportation partnership is good for the financial bottom line. – Impact of partnership surpasses environmental and financial benefits

Questions? The bus stops here.