President Obama recently proposed The American Graduation Initiative: Stronger American Skills Through Community Colleges, seeking higher graduation rates, better facilities, and expanded online learning opportunities at these important institutions. He asked Dr. Jill Biden to help the Administration promote community colleges as an option for more Americans.
As a community-college professor, what do you see as the key, immediate needs that the American Graduation initiative (AGI) will serve?
President Obama has focused on community colleges because they are a practical and attractive choice for students from all walks of life to obtain the skills, training, and education they need to get better jobs, increase their incomes, and help rebuild our economy. We want to help motivated students get the services and support necessary to graduate on time, with the skills they need to excel in the workplace, and we also want to help working students to transfer into four-year institutions.
What do you see as major concerns for community-college students right now?
I have been an educator for 29 years and a community-college teacher for the last 16 years, so this is a personal issue for me. I am always moved by community-college students and their determination, hard work, and commitment to making a better future for themselves and their families. Take, for example, Grace Simmons, whom I met during a visit to Kingsborough Community College in New York earlier this year. When Grace lost her job as a lab technician, she turned to the community college and ultimately earned a nursing degree along with a job offer. Jaqueline Carter-Cutting also turned to Kingsborough to earn her nursing degree after being injured while serving in the U.S. Army Reserve. Students like Jaqueline and Grace, who are overcoming personal challenges, remind us that achieving broad access to higher education is not just about getting students into college, but giving them all the kinds of support they need to succeed and graduate.
How are budget cuts impacting your ability to promote community colleges as an option for increasing numbers of students?
States' budget problems mean community colleges are going to have to become more creative in how they attract, support, retain, and graduate students. This gives community colleges an opportunity to pull together as a system, to share best practices, to listen to students more closely, and to pay more attention to the workforce needs of local business and industry. This is a challenging time for community colleges, but the administration sees that challenge as an opportunity to improve our colleges, to make them more relevant, and to highlight their role in promoting economic growth.
What can community-college boards do to raise the profile and political importance of community colleges in their states? And how can boards at four-year institutions help in this effort (for example, articulation agreements)?
Community-college boards have great opportunity and great responsibility. They can build closer ties with local industries and businesses, which will help the institutions evolve with the changing needs of the marketplace. At the same time, boards at four-year institutions can look for opportunities to increase their partnerships with community colleges and make it easier for students to transfer to four-year universities and successfully attain baccalaureate degrees. Today's community college students want to succeed, and they are working hard to do just that. The Obama-Biden administration is committed to doing everything we possibly can to help, and I'm confident that the entire two-year college community will join us in rising to meet this challenge.
