Research On Professionals For Community Colleges

Community colleges in the United States develop rapidly and have become a vital component of the postsecondary education delivery system. As of 2011-2012 school year, 45% of all undergraduate students were enrolled in public two-year colleges, approximately 8.3 million students (Knapp et al., 2012. Cited by AACC Fast Facts). And it seems that with globalization and Obama’s education agenda, the trend of growing enrollment in community colleges won’t change. A high school graduate who decides to pursue postsecondary education may face with a dilemma--whether enroll in a community college or a traditional four-year college. Even within a community college, a student may be faced with a choice—enroll in a vocational program and enter workforce after graduation with a vocational certification, or choose an academic program with an intention of transferring to four-year institutions.

College: What is Was, Is and Should Be, by Andrew Delbanco takes both a historical and analytical approach to the evolution of higher education institutions in the United States. While thought provoking, some of his views balance on the verge of extremity. Many colleges provide students with the skills necessary for what is happening in society at that moment. This is exemplified in how the application process has changed from the earliest colleges to today. Also, when colleges were first introduced into society, students were recommended by members of society to attend a school, which is much different than the process today. Another aspect of what Delbanco discusses in his book is the disparity between a small liberal arts college and

“I am just going to Joliet Junior College”, said about half of my classmates my senior year of high school. People everywhere make community college out to be something that is looked down upon and for people who were not as bright. In his essay “Blue Collar Brilliance”, Mike rose explains the reputation community colleges have acquired over the last few decades depicts two year schools as a place for people who could not make it into “real colleges”, also known as four year colleges (276). Although four year universities have reputations for quality education and excellent programs, students can get the same quality, if not better education at a two year college at a better convenience.

“HCC will be a learner-centered, accessible, lifelong learning institution dedicated to student and community success. We will maintain a wide spectrum of college programs and services, with a special emphasis on teaching excellence as measured by verifiable student academic achievement. We are committed to staff success through planning and learning, shared campus governance, the promotion of internal and external partnerships, and making the necessary strategic changes that will assure we successfully address our mission – the purpose, functions, and values of the College. (Mission & Vision)”

The concepts of leadership, “to assist people to become more competent, purposeful, and ethical,” (Mission and vision, n.d.), fit within the mission of Siena Heights University because the institution fosters the growth of leaders by incorporating skills outside of the classroom. Educators have long known that a significant portion of student learning in college occurs outside the classroom and that faculty-student interaction is an important part of the college experience. (Cox, B. E., & Orehovec, E., 2007, p. 357). Significant research has demonstrated the importance of interaction between faculty members and students, both in and outside of the classroom (Cox, B. E., & Orehovec, E., 2007, p. 343). Faculty members possess a great deal of knowledge that can be imparted to student. This knowledge could be educational, life skills, and personal experiences that allow the student a contextual view point.

Unfortunately, notwithstanding poet Louisa Fletcher's desire to start over, colleges and universities in the United States will not at any time soon access the Land of Beginning Again. Those institutions must enact meaningful change transitions from where they exist today, and there is much change that is needed. To wit, innovator and strategic management consultant Fred Buining asserts that higher education is in the "eye of the hurricane," which means that leaders, scholars, and educators are not doing enough to meet the challenges they face. Buining suggests that there is "no critical mass" in terms of the changes that are needed in higher education. Moreover, he believes that while today's student in colleges and universities are getting younger the professors and instructors are getting older, issues like cultural diversity and commercialization threaten institutions of higher learning. This paper reviews and critiques scholarly sources that address issues of diversity and commercialization on college and university campuses. Thesis: colleges and universities are in many respects becoming very much like corporations, and this is truly the wrong direction for higher education

Students nowadays face many challenges when it comes to obtaining a college education. We evaluate an institution’s quality based on what we need the most. The qualities sought out may vary by each person’s personal point of view. However, as a student, I’ve found that most students seek for an institute that benefits them the most. Attending a community college has been an enormous advantage towards my education. I have been attending San Bernardino Valley College for the last two semesters. I have come to respect their philosophies and values. The institution has now been in business for 87 years. They venture to encourage both students and faculty towards high standards of achievement and progress into exceptional members of the society. They now offer a variety of degrees, transfer programs and certificates for a wide range of students. San Bernardino Valley College has an accomplished staff, student support services and technological tools that pave the road towards the conquest of a quality education.

Community Colleges were developed with the purpose of providing an affordable and accessible education. By providing students with both academic and learning skills, community colleges continue to remain an essential part of today’s society. Throughout the years, community colleges have continued to develop and transform to provide resources to meet the needs of their students. As new community colleges began to develop, it is critical that they are aware of the political issues that community colleges face. For this assignment, I will discuss the University of District of Columbia Community College and its governance. In addition, I will provide information on federal and local government involvement, leadership structure, political culture, student demographics, and community groups. Lastly, I will provide recommendations on how to address the issue of governance.

There isn't anything more important to community colleges than the certainty that they can and should provide all qualified people who are looking to be accepted with admittance (Vaughan). The people of the community college represent forty-four percent of all undergraduates and forty-nine percent of students attending college for the first time (David). These students include a lot of minority students, students with a low social standing and the non-standard (age twenty-five and older) student who commonly enters college less academically equipped (David). Most community colleges have made immense advancement in reducing a lot of geographical and economic blockades that have in the past limited college admittance (David). Community

Institutions of higher education often struggle to find strategies that successfully engage students in learning. In the article “Faculty Work, Student Success,” Colleen Flaherty attempts to address this problem by analyzing the benefits that undergraduate research has on students and faculty. However, she points out that faculty have a hard time balancing the demands of focusing on teaching students while keeping up with research, without sacrificing the quality of one or both pursuits. Flaherty uses the College of New Jersey, as an example of an institution that took a risk and did a complete reformation of their curriculum focusing on the teacher-scholar model and undergraduate research (Flaherty, 2014). Since the implementation of the program in 2004, it had benefited both students and faculty alike such as increased retention and recruitment rates and increased student-faculty interactions (Flaherty, 2014). The new curriculum lightened the faculty teaching requirement to three courses a semester than were focused on undergraduate research and scheduled time to pursue their own research while encouraged to include students in that as well (Flaherty, 2014). While this new model has worked well for this university to engage students in learning through an emphasis on undergraduate research and balancing the faculty’s workload by changing their curriculum, this model may just not be feasible for some institutions since they vary greatly in size, focus, and resources, etc.

Community college is a great institution for students to start their educational journey. Especially when they do not have the funds or lack some of the prerequisite that a university would require. Community college was created to serve the community, traditional and non-traditional students with the best higher education and lifetime learning opportunities. The faculty and staff members at a community college is there to provide leadership in education while going above and beyond to recognize the needs of the students and the community by providing excellent educational programs and support services that are available to all who have the opportunity to take advantage of them. “Student services now include recruitment and retention, counseling, student activities, student health, financial aid, academic support, career centers, transfer centers, and supplemental services such as transportation, child care, and services tailored for specific populations of students” (Cohen, Brawer, & Krisker, 2014, pg. 209). My philosophy in fulfilling the role and mission of the community college, is to establish the mission, vision, goals and values to guide all students on their journey to strive to become successful both in school and in today’s economy.

For the past quarter century I have been one of those policy wonks trying to figure out how to judge whether a college is doing a good job. People who work at colleges, especially the faculty, tend to be annoyed by those of us who ask about effectiveness, because it seems like it should be obvious. The instructors have earned their bona fides in their disciplines. They have succeeded in attracting students. What more do I need to know?

Since there are four guided questions to help address the main research question. There will also be some subtopics to help us better understand the reasoning toward the altered mission of community colleges. First, I will discuss about the first community college founded in American history of higher education and its mission, the influences on community college mission during the Depression era, and the intention of community college mission after the World War II era. Second, I will report what I have found about the impact on community college to alter their institution from a 2 years institution to a 4 years institution. Third, I will discuss what the organizational culture was like today compared to the twentieth century. Lastly, I will examine some of the societal factors that impact the altered mission of community colleges.

While they do have a tremendous focus on workforce development and training, the opportunity to take a more active role in higher education exists. By adjusting their focus to act as a bridge for students, the community college has the ability to soften the transition financially and educationally. Community colleges must move beyond their reliance on open acceptance policies and actively pursue students who would otherwise attend universities. By offering comparable course tracks that will challenge and educate they can move even further past the image of being a second class institution. More focus must be placed on both building articulation agreements with the universities and educating potential students about the benefits of making the community the next stop on their education

Cuyahoga Community College (CCC) is located in Cleveland, Ohio and has 3 campuses located in Downtown Cleveland (Metropolitan), Highland Heights (Eastern), Parma (Western), and Westlake (Westshore). CCC also has satellite sites for Workforce Development (Metropolitan) and the Brunswick University Center (Brunswick). CCC main objective is deliver high quality education while keeping tuition low. The main goal of the college is to successfully guide students to graduate with an Associate’s Degree and/or Industry Certificate. There are currently over 20,000 students enrolled in courses at CCC. I will be describing in this task the Academic Affairs division of the Western Campus.