Everyone who was ever read a fairy tale understands the concept of the stepchild. Forgotten, abused and demeaned, the fairy-tale stepchild is, among other things, a metaphor for how we all feel sometimes. It’s part of the human condition. It’s also part of the Western New York community college condition. Just ask the leaders at ECC.

Erie Community College is chronically underfunded by the state and by its sponsoring county, and overfunded by students. By formula, Albany is required to provide 40 percent of the college’s revenues, students are supposed to provide 33.3 percent and Erie County is supposed to put up 26.7 percent. It isn’t working that way. The state is putting up only 34 percent and the county only 18 percent.

Students are producing 45.6 percent of the college’s revenue. That’s 37 percent more than the formula calls for them to provide.

But the problem goes deeper than picking students’ pockets for more than their allotted share. By underfunding capital expenses, the county is restricting the flow of matching dollars from the state. As a consequence, urgent repair projects are being delayed, which raises the ultimate cost as problems become worse and inflation drives up the price.

Consider the masonry problem at the City Campus. Twelve years ago, ECC sought county funding to fix leaks in the building. The $6.5 million project has never been fully funded. The result is that a mold problem is getting worse and trees are growing on the roof.

While the county, over the administrations of three executives, has provided bits of funding, which Albany matched, only now does the college believe it has enough to do the job. In the meantime, the price of the project has grown as moisture spread and inflation drove up costs.

That’s just one problem. Many others are awaiting attention, including a North Campus that is far out of date.

It’s no secret that Erie County is under financial strain. Virtually no one is happy with funding decisions made in the county’s current economic environment. But something has to change. It will become easier for the county to fund the college adequately once the county gets out of the hospital business, perhaps in a matter of months. But this is also about a mind-set.

ECC is the county’s second-largest post-secondary school after the University at Buffalo. It is not an educational afterthought for an ever-growing student population that relies on it for an education. It must not be a political or economic afterthought for county leaders.