Bond Results From 2011 Elections

With voters in an anti-tax move, many higher education leaders didn't see 2011 as an ideal time for bond referenda, but a few went forward -- with mixed results:

• Texas voters approved a measure that will authorize the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to issue bonds to create a long-term funding source for a student loan program, Bloomberg reported. Educators said that the authorization was key to meet rising demand for student loans.
• Voters in the San Mateo Community College District failed to give the necessary super-majority to authorize $564 million in bonds for facilities improvements and technology at the California system's three colleges, Peninsula Press reported. The measure received support from 52.8 percent of voters, not the required 55 percent.
• In North Carolina, voters narrowly approved a quarter-cent sales tax increase that will finance construction and renovation at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College, The Asheville Citizen-Times reported.