The American Community College Turns 100 · The American Community College Turns 100: A Look at its...

POLICY INFORMATION REPORT

POLICY INFORMATION CENTERResearch Division

Educational Testing ServicePrinceton, New Jersey 08541-0001

The AmericanCommunity College

Turns 100:

The AmericanCommunity College

Turns 100:A Look at its Students, Programs, and Prospects

1

CONTENTS

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

The Community College . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

The Students . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Background Characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Educational Aspirations and Admissions Test Scores . . . . 12Educational Risk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13College Involvement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Community College Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17College Transfer Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Occupational/Technical Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Developmental Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Community Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Support Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Transfer and Articulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20The Transfer Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Articulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Examining the Impact and Effectiveness of theCommunity College . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

A Look Ahead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Resources on Community Colleges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Appendix – Guidelines for Dual Admissions Program(Mercer County Community College) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

This report was written by:

Richard J. ColeyEducational Testing Service

The views expressed in this reportare those of the author and do notnecessarily reflect the views of theofficers and trustees of EducationalTesting Service.

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March 2000

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PREFACE

As the 19th century drew to an endand Frederick Jackson Turnerannounced the closing of theAmerican frontier, there were fearsthat the era of ever-expandingopportunity was also ending. Thatfear proved unjustified, for therewere frontiers other than wide-open spaces and free land topursue. One such frontier was theopportunity to develop the mind,and the turn of the century saw thebeginning of a particularly Ameri-can institution — the communitycollege. Establishing a nichebetween high schools and four-year colleges, community collegesbecame ever more critical to therealization of opportunity for evermore people.

As the community collegereaches the century mark, RichardColey takes stock of what andwhere that diverse institution istoday. The American CommunityCollege Turns 100: A Look at itsStudents, Programs, and Prospectsaims to depict the diversity oftoday’s community college stu-dents and the myriad of programsand activities offered by theseinstitutions. In addition, heoutlines some of the challengesthat must be faced as these institu-tions expand their agendas inresponse to the needs of ourmodern world.

Paul E. BartonDirectorPolicy Information Center

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Much of the data in this report aredrawn from the American Associationof Community Colleges (AACC) andthe National Center for EducationStatistics (NCES) of the U.S. Depart-ment of Education. The report ben-efited from the reviews and commentsof Norma Kent and Kent Phillippeof AACC; Paula Knepper of NCES;and Paul Barton, Donna Desrochers,and Harold Wenglinsky of Educa-tional Testing Service. Any errors offact or interpretation are those of theauthor, however. Carla Cooper pro-vided desktop publishing, AmandaMcBride was the editor, C. SusanBeym designed the cover, and KenCaputo managed production.

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

� Over the past 100 years, thecommunity college system,comprised of approximately1,600 institutions, has becomea key part of the higher educa-tion system, enrolling 5.5million students in creditcourses and employing almost300,000 faculty members.Another 5 million studentsparticipate in some kind ofnoncredit activity at their localcommunity colleges, oftenrelated to workforce training.

� Community college students areolder and more racially andethnically diverse than studentsin four-year institutions. Theyare also more likely to exhibit arange of characteristics thatplace them at risk of not meet-ing their educational goals.

� Community college programsinclude associate degree andtransfer programs, workertraining and retraining pro-grams, occupational/technicalprograms, developmentalprograms, community services,economic development activi-ties, and support services.

� Community colleges conferredmore than 450,000 associatedegrees in 1997, includingnearly 170,000 degrees inliberal arts, humanities, andgeneral studies.

� Community colleges offerprograms as diverse as earlychildhood education, officemanagement, laser optics,

� Demographic trends, theeducational demands of a post-industrial workforce, and thewidely recognized relationshipbetween education and incomewill likely increase the demandfor community college servicesin the future.

� While its place in the historyof American higher educationis assured, the future success ofthe community college systemwill depend on how well itadapts to the changing needs ofsociety. If history is any indica-tion, community colleges willadapt and thrive.

medical and computertechnologies, auto body repair,and fire science. Programs intechnology fields and health careare “hot” on today’s campuses,and their graduates commandsubstantial starting salaries.

� Somewhere between one-quarterand one-half of communitycollege students who planned onattaining a bachelor’s degree orhigher eventually transfer to afour-year college. For thosegoing to school full-time thepercentage who transferred was50 percent.

� Community colleges can providea considerably less expensive wayfor students to complete theirfirst two years of college withouthurting their academic develop-ment or competitiveness in thejob market.

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INTRODUCTION

During its 100-year existence, thecommunity college system hasestablished itself as a key part ofthe American higher educationsystem. Its place in the history ofhigher education in the 20thcentury seems assured:

The invention of the two-yearcommunity college is the greatestinnovation of twentieth-centuryAmerican higher education. Such, inany case, is the case made recently byClark Kerr, a key architect of thecurrent system of higher education aswell as one of its most perceptiblestudents. Yet when the first publicjunior college opened its doors inJoliet, Illinois, in 1901, there weregrave doubts about whether this oddhybrid would survive. Over time,however, it became apparent that thispeculiarly American invention wasdestined to do far more than survive;by mid century it had become anintegral feature of the Americaneducational landscape.1

As the 20th century draws to aclose, a number of recent develop-ments are casting increased lightand heat on community collegesand their role. First, there is a pushfor education beyond high schooland more financial support for it.Federal legislation in 1997 estab-lished the HOPE Scholarship andLifetime Learning Credits, whichopens the doors of college to a newgeneration, with the largest invest-

1 Steven Brint and Jerome Karabel, The Diverted Dream: Community Colleges and the Promise of Educational Opportunity in America, New York:Oxford University Press, Inc., 1989.

2 Education Week, December 8, 1999.

ment in higher education since theG.I. Bill was established 50 yearsago. The legislation recognizes thatour changing economy demandsthat people have opportunities toenhance their skills throughouttheir working lives. When fullyphased in, 13 million students areexpected to benefit each year.Community colleges will providemuch of the education to theseclients.

Community colleges are alsofacing increased pressure to edu-cate students who come to themunprepared academically. Inaddition to having “open” admis-sions policies, community collegesmay be increasingly burdened withproviding remedial programs thatonce were provided by four-yearinstitutions.

Two large higher educationsystems have recently establishedpolicies curtailing remedial servicesto students who don’t meet basicskill standards. The two systems —California State University and theCity University of New York(CUNY) — are redirecting thesestudents to community colleges.Critics of such policies, like HenryLevin of Teachers College, warnthat such actions can “ghettoize”community colleges.2

In addition to this generaleducation or collegiate function,community colleges are expectedto provide a wide variety of ser-vices, responding to the needs

of their communities and thebusinesses that operate withinthem. These functions includevocational/occupational educationand training, contract educationand other economic developmentactivities, and community service.This expanded role, while demon-strating flexibility in responding tocommunity needs, has also gener-ated criticism about conflicts thatarise from these multiple andsometimes conflicting roles.

Such criticism of the Americancommunity college is not new.In their classic textbook on theAmerican community college,Arthur Cohen and FlorenceBrawer characterize the gist ofthe criticism as follows:

When the community college isexamined by outsiders, the commen-tary usually takes the form ofcriticizing the institution in its socialrole or the institution as a school. Inthe first of these criticisms, the collegeis often seen in a negative light. It isan agent of capitalism, trainingworkers to fit business and industry;it is a tool of the upper classes,designed to keep the poor in theirplace by denying them access to thebaccalaureate and, concomitantly, tohigher-status positions in society.When it is criticized as a school,questions are raised about its successin teaching: do these colleges reallyteach the basic skills that the lowerschools failed to impart? Can they

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provide a foundation for higherlearning? Here, too, the answers areusually negative; since the communitycolleges pass few of their studentsthrough to the senior institutions,they are said to have failed the test.3

The success or failure of such acomplex institution is not easilydetermined. And this report willmake no such attempt.

This report will, however,assemble data and other informa-tion that will describe the commu-nity college system as it concludesits first hundred years. The reportpresents information about thecommunity college system, itsstudents and faculty, its programs,its costs, its effectiveness, its rolein the community and in highereducation, and its likely futureniche in America’s system ofhigher education.

Since the community collegeenterprise is so large and diverse,this report aims to provide morebreadth than depth on these issues.For those interested in morein-depth information aboutcommunity colleges, additionalresources are noted at the end ofthe report.

3 Arthur M. Cohen and Florence B. Brawer, The American Community College, Third Edition, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1996.

6

0

200

400

600

800

1,000

1,200

1,400

1,600

1,800

1900 1998

1,600

THE COMMUNITY

COLLEGE

This section of the report providessome basic data about the Ameri-can community college enterprise.4

Joliet Junior College, opened in1901, is thought to be the firstcontinuously operating publiccommunity college in the UnitedStates. As shown in Figure 1, by1998 there were 1,600 communitycolleges across all 50 states (includ-ing branch campuses). Of the1,132 community colleges operat-ing in 1998 (not including branchcampuses), 968 were public, 137were independent, and 27 weretribal.5 This tremendous expansionwas fueled by the push for univer-sal education, the GI Bill, thebaby boom, the civil rights move-ment, the nation’s needs forworker training, and a robustnational economy.

The number of communitycolleges within a state varies froma handful to more than 100. Andwhile no two are exactly alike,they share the goals of access andservice. The American Associationof Community Colleges (AACC)provides this sketch of two differ-ent state systems:

North Carolina’s and Vermont’scommunity college systems bring

4 Much of the data in this section and in other sections of the report are drawn from two publications from the American Association of Commu-nity Colleges. These are National Profile of Community Colleges: Trends and Statistics, 3d edition, and The Community College Story, Second edition.Readers who would like to obtain more detail on a variety of topics related to community colleges should refer to these more comprehensivereports.

5 Kent A. Phillippe and Madeline Patton, National Profile of Community Colleges: Trends and Statistics, 3d edition, Washington, D.C.: CommunityCollege Press, American Association of Community Colleges, 2000.

Figure 1Number of Community Colleges, 1900 to 1998

higher education to within a 30-minute commute of all their citizens,an access goal many states share, andthey exemplify how different practicescan accomplish the same end. NorthCarolina has a 58-campus system,which 800,000 people used in1997–98. Seventy percent of thosestudents took noncredit programs,mostly in workforce training. The

Community College of Vermont(CCV), with much less support thanNorth Carolina from its statelegislature, owns no real estate andhas no full-time faculty. CCV rentsclassroom space in 12 populationcenters throughout the rural state andis expanding its distance learningsystems. About half of its 4,500students take general liberal arts

Source: Kent A. Phillippe and Madeline Patton, National Profile of Commu-nity Colleges: Trends and Statistics, 3d edition, Washington, D.C.: Commu-nity College Press, American Association of Community Colleges, 2000.

7

Figure 2Community College Fall Enrollment, by State, 1996

0 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000

1,131,429427,335

344,275321,653

281,701200,161

180,324160,399156,872

147,143133,416130,832128,779126,041

104,67795,50993,037

84,91879,78877,06776,89076,236

68,87568,288

61,58961,32460,445

55,06050,801

46,45544,95642,49940,93740,42339,127

34,10627,82925,679

19,16218,74317,49117,47813,68711,95011,8718,9888,9427,8155,7705,669

CaliforniaTexasIllinois

FloridaNew YorkMichigan

WashingtonOhio

ArizonaNorth CarolinaPennsylvania

AlabamaNew Jersey

VirginiaMaryland

WisconsinMinnesota

MassachusettsTennessee

OregonColoradoMissouriGeorgiaKansas

OklahomaIowa

South CarolinaMississippi

New MexicoUtah

KentuckyConnecticut

NevadaNebraska

IndianaArkansasLouisiana

HawaiiIdaho

WyomingWest VirginiaRhode Island

New HampshireMaine

DelawareNorth Dakota

AlaskaMontanaVermont

South Dakota

1,200,000

Fall Enrollment

Source: Kent A. Phillippe and Madeline Patton, National Profile of Community Colleges: Trends and Statistics,3d edition, Washington, D.C.: Community College Press, American Association of Community Colleges, 2000.

8

6 Phillippe and Patton, 2000.

7 George B. Vaughan, The Community College Story, Second Edition, American Association of Community Colleges,Washington, D.C.: Community College Press, 2000.

8 Vaughan, 2000.

courses with the intent of transferringto baccalaureate degree programs.6

Figure 2 shows the number ofeach state’s population, age 18 orolder, enrolled for credit in com-munity colleges in the fall of 1996.More than 1 million students wereenrolled for credit in California’scommunity colleges during thatsemester, 4.9 percent of the state’spopulation in that age group. OnlyWyoming, at 5.4 percent, enrolleda larger proportion. Nationally, 2.8percent of this population wereenrolled in community collegesthat semester. Even communitycolleges in small and less populousstates enroll thousands of students.

Community colleges provide asubstantially less expensive alterna-tive to four-year colleges forstudents and parents. In 1997–98,average tuition and fees at commu-nity colleges was $1,582. Thecomparable figure at four-yearcolleges was $6,329. Trends inthese costs, presented in constant1997–98 dollars, are shown inFigure 3. The gap between the twolines is widening. The increase intuition and fees at communitycolleges between 1977 and 1998was 67 percent, compared to90 percent at four-year institutions.

Community colleges receivemost of their revenue from federal,state, and local tax sources. On

1976-77 1997-98

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

Four-year colleges

Community CollegesCon

stan

t 199

7-98

Dol

lars

$6,329

$1,582

Figure 3Average Tuition and Fees for Community Colleges andFour-Year Colleges, in Constant 1997–98 Dollars


average, nationally, communitycolleges receive approximately39 percent of their funds fromstate taxes, 20 percent from tuitionand fees, 18 percent from localgovernment, 13 percent from thefederal government, and 10percent from other sources.7

The community college systememploys more than 104,000 full-time faculty and about 190,000part-time faculty. Most full-timefaculty hold a master’s degree andabout 16 percent hold a doctorate.

In keeping with the communitycollege mission, communitycollege faculty members’ primaryresponsibility is teaching. Mostpart-time faculty teach only onecourse per term, whereas full-timefaculty typically teach five courses.8

9

9 Phillippe and Patton, 2000.

10 Personal communication with Kent Phillippe, AACC, December 10, 1999.

THE STUDENTS

In 1997, community collegesenrolled about 5.5 millionstudents. In 1965, that numberwas about 1.2 million. This growthis shown in Figure 4. It is impor-tant to emphasize that theseenrollment data pertain only tostudents enrolled at communitycolleges for credit. The AmericanAssociation of Community Col-leges (AACC) estimates that morethan 5 million students each yearparticipate in some form of non-credit activity at communitycolleges. Because of definitionaland other differences in howstudents are counted, no accuratenational data exist on noncreditenrollment. However, somereliable noncredit data are availablefor some states and give someindication of the magnitude ofnoncredit enrollment.

� North Carolina and Wisconsinreported that about 70 percentof enrollment was in noncreditactivity.

� California and Florida reportedthat 14 and 11 percent ofenrollment, respectively, wasnoncredit.9

As will be discussed later inthis report in the section oncommunity college programs,students enroll in communitycolleges for a variety of reasons,

1965 1

2

3

4

5

6

Mill

ions

1996

5,500,000 students

Figure 4Community College Enrollment, 1965 to 1996*


*Does not include noncredit enrollment.

many related to workforcetraining. Community colleges playan active role in the short-termtraining that “welfare-to-work”individuals need for entering theworkforce. In addition, theseschools serve many adults return-ing for education or trainingbeyond the bachelor’s degree; bysome estimates 8 to 12 percent ofcommunity college students have abachelor’s degree or beyond.10

Community colleges alsoprovide an educational opportu-nity for individuals who tradition-

ally have not been well-served bythe higher education system.Arthur Cohen and FlorenceBrawer provide this descriptionof such students:

…those who could not afford thetuition; who could not take the timeto attend a college on a full-timebasis; whose ethnic background hadconstrained them from participating;who had inadequate preparation inthe lower schools; whose educationalprogress had been interrupted bysome temporary condition; who had

10

become obsolete in their jobs or whohad never been trained to work atany job; who needed a connection toobtain a job; who were confined inprisons, had physical disabilities, orotherwise unable to attend classes ona campus…11

This section of the reportcompares the background charac-teristics of first-time beginningstudents who were enrolled in U.S.postsecondary institutions in the1995–96 school year. It describesthe differences between publictwo-year college entrants (hereafterreferred to as community collegestudents), public four-year collegeentrants, and private four-yearcollege entrants. Therefore, it isimportant to note that thesecomparisons do not include themany community college studentswho have had previous post-secondary experience.

Background Characteristics

Compared to students in four-year colleges, students who beginin community colleges tend to beolder and more racially and ethni-cally diverse. Figure 5 comparesthe age distribution of communitycollege students to that of four-year college students. The largestdifferences can be seen at the endsof the distribution. While about60 percent of four-year collegestudents are 18 years old oryounger, only 38 percent ofcommunity college students are in

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

38

60

62

23

26

25

13

9

7

26

5

6

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Percentage

18 or younger

19

20 to 23

24 or older

Figure 5Percentage Distribution of 1995–96 BeginningPostsecondary Students, by Age and Sector of FirstInstitution Attended

Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for EducationStatistics, 1995–96 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS:96),Undergraduate Data Analysis System.

that age bracket. And while 26percent of community collegestudents are 24 years old or older,only about 5 percent of four-yearcollege students are that old.

The data also show thatminority students are somewhatmore likely than non-HispanicWhite students to enroll in

community colleges rather thanfour-year schools. Enrollment databy race/ethnicity are shown inFigure 6. While Black studentsmake up 12 percent of the com-munity college student population,they comprise only 8 to 10 percentof four-year college enrollment.

11 Cohen and Brawer, 1996.

11

0 20 40 60 80

72

71

71

12

10

8

12

10

11

4

6

6

0.7

0.8

0.3

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

White

Black

Hispanic

Asian/Pacific Islander

American Indian/Alaskan Native

Percentage

Figure 6Percentage Distribution of 1995–96 BeginningPostsecondary Students, by Race/Ethnicity andSector of First Institution Attended


In urban areas, where thepopulation tends to be heavilyminority, the community collegepopulation tends to mirror thatcomposition. In these schools,minority enrollment often exceeds50 percent. Likewise, most of thestudents in tribal colleges areNative American.

Community college entrantswere less likely than their counter-parts at four-year schools to bedependent on their parents forsupport, as determined by federalaid definitions. As shown in Figure7, while about 90 percent of four-year college students depended ontheir parents for support, only 65percent of community collegeentrants did so. This differencereflects the tendency for commu-nity college students to be olderthan students attending four-year institutions.

Figure 7 also shows familyincome data for the three groupsof dependent college entrants.Dependent community collegeentrants, along with those at four-year public colleges, were morelikely to have family incomesbelow $25,000 a year than depen-dent students entering four-yearprivate schools. At the top end ofthe income scale, only 19 percentof first-time dependent commu-nity college entrants had familyincomes of over $70,000,

12

Percent Dependent

Less than $25,000

$25,000 - $69,999

More than $70,000

0 20 40 60 80 100

659192

2823

18

5351

48

1927

34

Community CollegePublic 4-year

Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year

Percentage

Family Income for Dependent Students

Figure 7Percentage Distribution of 1995–96 BeginningPostsecondary Students, by Dependency Status andFamily Income for Dependent Students


compared to 34 percent ofdependent four-year privatecollege entrants.

Students beginning theirpostsecondary education at com-munity colleges were also morelikely than other college studentsto be first-generation collegestudents (neither parent had anypostsecondary education). Abouthalf of community college studentswere first-generation, comparedto 35 and 30 percent, respectively,in public and private four-yearschools. And while 32 percent ofstudents in private four-yearschools had at least one parentwith a postbaccalaureate degree,only 9 percent of communitycollege students had a parent withthat much education.

Educational Aspirations andAdmission Test Scores

At the time of enrollment,10 percent of community collegeentrants planned to earn a certifi-cate or less, 12 percent aimed foran associate degree, 42 percentplanned to obtain a bachelor’sdegree, and 37 percent aspired toa postbaccalaureate degree. Ingeneral, these aspirations weremore modest than the educationalaspirations of students enteringfour-year institutions.

Community college studentswere less likely to plan to achievea postbaccalaureate degree. Still,79 percent of community collegestudents planned to obtain a

13

Certificate or less

Associate degree

Bachelor’s degree

0 20 40 60 80 100

10

1

1

12

2

1

42

24

20

37

74

78

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Postbaccalaureate Degree

Percentage

Figure 8Percentage Distribution of 1995–96 BeginningPostsecondary Students, by Highest Level of EducationPlanned, by Sector of First Institution Attended


bachelor’s degree or higher. Thesedata are shown in Figure 8. Itshould be pointed out, however,that some researchers have identi-fied some problems inherent incomparing the educational plansof community college studentsand four-year college students. Forexample, Ernest Pascarella offersthe possibility that communitycollege students who indicate theirintention of obtaining a bachelor’sdegree may be actually somewhatunsure of their educational goalsand have no way of finding outwhat path they want to take exceptby trying out postsecondaryeducation in a low-cost setting.12

Nearly 90 percent of entrantsto four-year institutions tookeither the SAT� or ACT. Only 40percent of community collegeentrants did so. Furthermore,community college students weremore likely than the other stu-dents to score in the bottomquartile on these tests (see Figure9). Forty-three percent of studentsentering private four-year collegesscored at the highest admissionstest quartile, compared to 29percent of public four-yearstudents and 10 percent of com-munity college students.

Educational Risk

Research has identified sevenfactors that put students at risk ofnot attaining a degree, and found

12 Ernest T. Pascarella, “New Studies Track Community College Effects on Students,” Community College Journal, 69 (6), June/July 1999.

14

Lowest quartile

Middle quartiles

Highest quartile

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

43

17

12

47

54

46

10

29

43

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Community College

Public 4-year

Private 4-year

Percentage

Figure 9Percentage Distribution of 1995–96 BeginningPostsecondary Students, by Actual or Derived SATCombined Score, by Sector of First Institution Attended


that three-fourths of undergradu-ates were characterized by at leastone of these factors and that thehighest proportions of at-riskstudents were attending two-yearand less-than-two-year institutions.These risk factors, along with theproportions of students with theserisk factors that were attending thethree major higher educationsectors, are shown in Figure 10.

Students entering communitycolleges were more likely than theirpeers at four-year institutions tohave each of the seven factors. Infact, 24 percent of students enter-ing community colleges had fouror more of these factors. TheNational Center for EducationStatistics calls these students“highly nontraditional” students.Only about 4 percent of four-yearstudents showed this level of risk.Almost half of community collegebeginners had delayed entry andwere enrolled part time; aboutone-third worked full time andwere financially independent; andone-fifth had dependents.

College Involvement

There were also some differ-ences in student involvement incollege life, depending on the typeof institution first attended.Community college students wereless likely than other full-timestudents to participate in studygroups, to speak with facultyoutside of class, and to participatein school clubs. These differencescan be seen in the data provided inFigure 11.

15

Delayed entry

Enrolled part time

Worked full time

Financially independent

Had dependents

Single parent

No high school diploma

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

4817

16

4611

8

3511

10

3599

215

4

113

2

1133

Community CollegePublic 4-Year

Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year


Private 4-Year

Percentage

Figure 10Percentage Distribution of Risk Factors* for 1995–96 Beginning Postsecondary Students,by Sector of First Institution Attended

Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 1995–96 National PostsecondaryStudent Aid Study (NPSAS:96), Undergraduate Data Analysis System.

*Factors negatively associated with persistence and attainment.

16

0 20 40 60 80 100

46

77

82

69

85

92

18

49

67

Community College

Public 4-Year

Private 4-Year

Community College

Public 4-Year

Private 4-Year

Community College

Public 4-Year

Private 4-Year

Participate in study groups

Speak with faculty outside of class

Participate in school clubs

Percentage

Figure 11Percentage Distribution of 1995–96 BeginningPostsecondary Students, by School Activity andSector of First Institution Attended


17

COMMUNITY

COLLEGE PROGRAMS

The mission of communitycolleges, as described in theAACC’s The Community CollegeStory, is to provide access topostsecondary educational programsand services that lead to stronger,more vital communities. The wayindividual community collegesachieve this mission may differconsiderably. Some colleges empha-size college transfer programs; othersemphasize technical education. Themission of offering courses, pro-grams, training, and other educa-tional services, however, is essentiallythe same for all community colleges.Five general categories of programs,activities, and services are offeredand are described below. Someprograms culminate in the award ofan associate degree or some type ofcertification.14 Table 1 lists thenumber of community collegeassociate degrees conferred in 1997,broken out by the major field ofstudy. Degrees in the liberal arts,general studies, and humanities are,by far, the most prevalent.

The following section is in-tended to provide a brief summaryof the community college mission.Those interested in more detail onthis topic should contact the re-source groups listed in the appendixto this report or consult a generalreference text on communitycolleges, such as Cohen and Brawer’sThe American Community College,which is cited elsewhere inthis report.

14 These five categories are drawn from Vaughan, 2000, and do not represent the entirety of the programs that community colleges provide. Forexample, dual admissions programs allow high school students to enroll simultaneously in community colleges to earn college credits. AACCreports that 207,000 students were enrolled in these programs in 1997.

Liberal/general studies and humanitiesHealth professions and related sciencesBusiness management/administrative servicesEngineering-related technologiesProtective servicesMechanics and repairersEducationVisual and performing artsMulti/interdisciplinary studiesComputer and information servicesVocational home economicsPrecision production tradesLaw and legal studiesMarketing and distributionPublic administration and servicesSocial sciences and historyAgricultural business and productionPersonal and miscellaneous servicesBiological sciencesEngineeringPhysical sciencesCommunications technologiesCommunicationsConstruction tradesPsychologyEnglish language and literature/lettersConservation/natural resources renewalTransportation/material movingHome economicsParks, recreation, leisure, and fitnessMathematicsScience technologiesAgricultural sciencesMilitary technologiesForeign languages/literatureArchitecture and related programsUndesignated fieldLibrary scienceArea, ethnic, and cultural studiesPhilosophy and religionTheological studies/religious vocationsTOTAL

Table 1Community College Associate Degrees Conferred,by Major Field of Study, 1996–97

167,448 76,848 71,766 20,208 17,745 9,747 9,687 8,757 8,246 7,701 7,152 6,123 6,121 4,721 3,899 3,687 3,537 2,470 2,046 1,659 1,658 1,615 1,519 1,510 1,440 1,401 1,246 1,160 895 852 765 743 688 554 484 252 219 124 75 42 7456,508

Source: Kent A. Phillippe and Madeline Patton, National Profile of CommunityColleges: Trends and Statistics, 3d edition, Washington, D.C.: Community CollegePress, American Association of Community Colleges, 2000.

18

College Transfer Programs

Most of the nation’s communitycolleges offer transfer programs inwhich students can complete thefirst two years of college at a com-munity college and then transfer toa four-year institution. Studentsenrolled in transfer programs takecourses almost identical to thosethey would take in a bachelor’sdegree program at a four-yearcollege or university. Most of thecourses are in the humanities,mathematics, sciences, and socialsciences, and most transfer pro-grams result in an associate degree.Transfer policies can vary widelyacross schools and are discussedlater in this report.

Occupational/TechnicalPrograms

A mainstay of communitycolleges, occupational/technicalprograms are flourishing today tokeep pace with the changing skillsneeded in the workplace. Oncelimited to teacher training, officeskills, and agricultural training,today’s programs include curricu-lums as diverse as early childhoodeducation, office management, laseroptics, medical and computertechnologies, auto body repair, andfire science. Figure 12 shows the 20programs that community collegeadministrators considered “hot” attheir campuses and the averagestarting salary for each. Technologyand health care programs are “hot.”

$20,000 $25,000 $30,000 $35,000 $40,000

35,000

32,000

31,750

30,675

29,267

28,777

28,775

28,400

28,066

27,666

27,624

27,564

27,500

27,000

26,891

26,877

26,750

26,432

26,090

26,000

Digital systems

Facilities technology/maintenance

Dental hygiene

Manufacturing processtechnology

Telecommunications/information specialists

Registered nurse

Personal computercertificate

Computer science

Computer programming

Multimedia technology

Occupational therapyassistant

Robotics

Fuel technology

Physical therapyassistant

Computer assisteddesign

Respiratory therapy

Trailer/truckdriving

Engineering

Radiology technology

Chemical technology

Average Salary

Figure 12Community College “Hot” Programs and Average Salary,1997


*Based on administrators’ impressions of what programs were “hot” attheir colleges and reported starting salary of graduates.

19

Developmental Education

Sometimes called compensatoryeducation or remedial education,developmental education coursesare designed to prepare students toenter college courses. The need forsuch help may be due to familybackground factors, poor prioreducational preparation, a learningdisability, language barriers, a longrespite from formal education, orthe need to prepare for a newcareer or job. Developmentaleducation is a crucial part of thecommunity colleges’ commitmentto access, student success, andserving the community.

Community Services

Community colleges, as isimplied by their label, must servethe needs of the community inwhich they reside. Sometimesreferred to as continuing education,community service programs are themost flexible and broad area ofcommunity college offerings.Often paid for by the individualrather than by tax dollars, coursescan range from hobby courses orautomobile mechanics to trainingin computers or emergency medi-cal treatment. The business com-munity more and more looks tocommunity colleges to provideskills training for workers andfrequently contracts with thecolleges to provide that training.

Support Services

Finally, since communitycolleges are usually open-admissioninstitutions, they have an ethicalresponsibility to help their studentsbe successful. Students frequentlyrequire a variety of support ser-vices, including learning resourcecenters; academic, personal, andcareer counseling; informationon financial aid and transferprograms; and writing programs.

20

TRANSFER AND

ARTICULATION

One of the many educationalpurposes served by communitycolleges is to provide a lower-costway for students to completelower-division requirements beforetransferring to a four-year institu-tion to complete a degree. Andwhile this is but one of manycommunity college functions, itis one on which they have beenfrequently criticized. This sectionof the report examines somerecently available data on studenttransfer and provides a briefoverview of articulation.

The Transfer Function

Some past research focussingon the success of communitycolleges in providing students analternative route to the bachelor’sdegree has charged that the “com-munity college is in crisis.”15

Dougherty concluded that:

Baccalaureate aspirants are less likelyto succeed if they enter a communitycollege rather than a four-yearcollege. This baccalaureate gap is onlypartially explained by the differentcharacteristics of the two studentbodies. It also arises from different

15 Kevin J. Dougherty, “The Community College at the Crossroads: The Need for Structural Reform,” Harvard Educational Review, 61 (3),August 1991.

16 Therese L. Baker and William Velez, “Access to and Opportunity in Postsecondary Education in the United States: A Review,” Sociology ofEducation, Extra issue, 1996.

17 Valerie E. Lee, Christopher Mackie-Lewis, and Helen M. Marks, “Persistence to the Baccalaureate Degree for Students Who Transfer fromCommunity College,” American Journal of Education, 102, 1993.

18 See, for example, Brint and Karabel, 1989.

institutional characteristics of thecommunity college that produce lowerrates of persistence in the lowerdivision, of transfer to the upperdivision, and of persistence in theupper division than is the case forfour-year colleges.

Dougherty’s review points outthat this finding is particularlydistressing, since the communitycollege has become the maingateway into higher educationfor many minority and working-class students.

Another comprehensive reviewof the research on postsecondaryopportunity provides somewhat ofa different view.16 While thereview finds that beginning at acommunity college lessens astudent’s chances of attaining abaccalaureate degree, it also con-cludes that for students who aresocially and academicallyadvantaged enough to attend four-year schools, community collegesmay be less-expensive yet success-ful alternatives to attaining theirbachelor’s degrees. This review alsocites research that found thatcommunity college students whosubsequently transferred to four-year colleges and students who

entered four-year collegesdirectly from high school hadan equal probability of attainingbachelor’s degrees.17

Much of the criticism aimed atcommunity colleges focuses on thealleged tracking of students awayfrom baccalaureate degrees, oftenreferred to as “cooling out.” Thecharge is that the whole commu-nity college environment —faculty, peers, curriculum, and soforth — combines to lower stu-dents’ educational aspirations andplans (the “diverted dream”).18 Thisis a particularly pernicious charge,since many of the affected studentsare from minority and disadvan-taged backgrounds.

On the other hand, it hasbeen suggested that differences inthe clarity or certainty of plansbetween two- and four-year collegestudents may be playing a rolehere. As pointed out earlier in thisreport, some researchers offer thepossibility that many communitycollege students may have unclearor undeveloped plans to beginwith. For these students the com-munity college experience mayprovide a relatively low-cost oppor-tunity to explore postsecondaryeducation options and give them a

21

chance to clarify their career andeducational plans.19

Thus, trying to judge theeffectiveness of community col-leges in facilitating their students’transfer to four-year schools iscomplicated by definitional andmethodological problems. Fortu-nately, a new database is availablethat overcomes some of theseproblems. The BeginningPostsecondary Students Longitudi-nal Study, conducted by theNational Center for EducationStatistics of the U.S. Departmentof Education, provides nationallyrepresentative, longitudinal dataon students who entered college in1989–90 and followed themthrough academic year 1993–94.This section of the report usesthese data to discuss the transferbehaviors of beginning communitycollege students.20

So where do students whobegin their higher educationstudies in community colleges endup? First, it’s important to remem-ber that less than 20 percent of allpostsecondary students meetHarold Hodgkinson’s definition of“Joe College” — students from 18to 22 years of age who are living incollege housing and going tocollege full time. Second, nearlyhalf of those students who startedcollege in 1989 had enrolled at

more than one institution by 1994— 33 percent attended twoinstitutions and 12 percent at-tended three or more schools.21

(For an analysis of this “swirling”in and out of higher educationinstitutions and the variables thatcontribute to persistence in attain-ing a bachelor’s degree, see CliffordAdelman, Answers in the Tool Box:Academic Intensity, AttendancePatterns, and Bachelor’s DegreeAttainment, U.S. Department ofEducation, June 1999.)

Objective at Enrollment. Awell-known problem in calculatingtransfer rates from communitycolleges is figuring out how todifferentiate students who intendto transfer from those who do not.The data used here have theadvantage that base-year studentswere asked their degree intentionat the time of enrollment. Of thebeginning community collegestudents surveyed in the NCESstudy, 25 percent said that theywere aiming to attain a bachelor’sdegree. (This rate may be under-stated, since some articulationagreements focus on completing anassociate degree. Therefore, somestudents who intend to transfermight say that they are aiming foran associate degree.) Fifty-fourpercent said they were workingtoward an associate degree,

13 percent toward a certificate, and7 percent said they were notworking toward a degree.

As shown in Figure 13, somecommunity college beginners weremore likely than others to identifythemselves as prospective transferstudents. Male students andyounger students (under age 20)were more likely to be potentialtransfers. High socioeconomicstatus community college studentswere also more likely to intend totransfer. Figure 13 also shows thatabout one-third of Hispaniccommunity college studentsindicated a desire to transfer.While this difference betweenHispanic and White and Blackstudents is not statistically signifi-cant, this large percentage isindicative of Hispanic students’heavy reliance on communitycolleges as a point of entry intohigher education.

Transfer to Four-YearInstitutions. Twenty-two percentof all community college beginnerstransferred to four-year institutionswithin five years of enteringcommunity college. The transferpercentage was much higher(39 percent), however, for thosestudents who said that theyintended to transfer (degreeobjective was a bachelor’s degreeor higher). Another 6 percent of

19 Pascarella, 1999.

20 Alexander C. McCormick and C. Dennis Carroll, Transfer Behavior Among Beginning Postsecondary Students: 1989–94, U.S. Department ofEducation, National Center for Education Statistics, June 1997.

21 U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 1989–90 Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study, Second Followup(BPS:90/94), Data Analysis System.

22

Males

Females

Black

Hispanic

White

Under age 20

Age 20 or older

SES - Bottom 25%

Middle 50%

Top 25%

0 10 20 30 40 50

31

21

19

33

24

32

15

16

20

40

Percentage

Figure 13Percentage of 1989–90 Beginning Community CollegeStudents Who Planned to Earn a Bachelor’s Degree orHigher


these potential transfers entereda four-year school after anintermediate transfer to anothersub-baccalaureate school. Inaddition, 23 percent of commu-nity college starters who wereaiming for an associate degreetransferred to a four-year college.(This supports the notion thatmany students pursuing associatedegrees actually plan to transfer.)

Thus, a reasonable estimate is thatsomewhere between one-quarterand one-half of beginning commu-nity college students who have plansfor some type of degree eventuallytransfer to a four-year school.

Full-time prospective transferstudents (students working towarda bachelor’s degree) were twice aslikely as part-time potential transferstudents to transfer. Half of these

students transferred. Prospectivetransfer students who expected tocomplete an advanced degree alsotransferred at a higher rate thanprospective transfers who expecteda bachelor’s degree to be theirhighest educational attainment.

Sixty-five percent of commu-nity college students whotransferred to a four-year institu-tion did not complete a degreebefore transferring, 34 percentcompleted an associate degree, andless than 1 percent obtained acertificate. Students aiming for anassociate degree were more likelythan students aiming for abachelor’s degree to attain anassociate degree before transferring.Transferring students who wereenrolled full-time during their firstyear were also more likely thanpart-timers to obtain an associatedegree before transferring.

Community college beginnerswho transferred to four-yearschools spent about 20 months atthe community college, on aver-age. This is similar to the timenormally required for students tocomplete lower-level coursework atfour-year institutions. Communitycollege students who completed anassociate degree spent more time atthe community college thanstudents who transferred withoutobtaining any credential.

Community college beginnerswho transferred to four-yearinstitutions took an average of 21months off between institutions.About one-third transferred withinone year and about one-quartertook more than three years off.

23

22 Research reported by Pascarella also suggests that students planning to earn a bachelor’s degree who start out at community colleges are about 15percent less likely to complete the degree in the same period of time as similar students who start at four-year institutions. One could argue,however, that student degree plans are often unclear or undeveloped and that students who actually transfer are the better measure of degreeattainment.

23 NCES points out, however, that beginners and horizontal transfers at four-year institutions had higher rates of bachelor’s degree attainment.


Bachelor’s Degree Attain-ment. The bottom line is that 26percent of transfer students whoentered community college in1989 obtained a bachelor’s degreeby 1994. In addition, 44 percentwere still enrolled in a four-yearschool at that time. This adds upto an overall persistence rate of70 percent. This rate is equivalentto the persistence rate of studentswho begin at four-year schools ortransfer between or among four-yearschools (horizontal transfers).22

In summary, about 40 percentof prospective transfers were success-ful in transferring to a four-yearschool and persisted in college aboutas well as students who began at afour-year school.23

Prospective transfer studentswho completed an associate degreeat a community college beforetransferring had a much higherbachelor’s degree attainment ratethan their classmates who trans-ferred without any credential. Thismay be explained by the fact thatassociate degree completers weremore likely to transfer credits, whichwould accelerate degree completion.

Students who transferred withan associate degree may have beenbetter prepared for the transition, orthey may have encountered fewerobstacles along the path.

Finally, a more sophisticatedanalysis of the data (regression

analysis) by NCES revealed thatenrollment status was the mostimportant factor in transfer behav-ior. The likelihood of transfer wasnearly twice as high for studentsenrolled full time in the first yearthan for part-time students ofcomparable gender, age, socio-economic status, educationalexpectations, and degree goals.

NCES suggests that administra-tors and policymakers concernedwith the transfer function shoulddevote special attention to the needsof part-time students who make upthe majority of community collegestudents. These needs include accessto transfer-oriented classes andcounseling that accommodate workschedules, and access to facultyoutside of class.

Articulation

The most pervasive and long-lived issue in community colleges isthe extent to which their courses areaccepted by the universities. Articu-lation agreements (sometimeswritten into state education codes),interinstitutional standing commit-tees, and policy statements thatdate from the earliest years of thecommunity colleges to the mostrecent — all attest to the impor-tance of transferability.

Cohen and Brawer define“articulation” as the movement of

students — or, more precisely, thestudents’ academic credits — fromone point to another. Articulation isnot a linear sequencing or progres-sion from one point to another. Itcovers students going from highschool to college; from two-yearcolleges to universities and viseversa; double-reverse transferstudents, who go from the two-yearcollege to the university and thenback again; and people seekingcredit for experiential learning as abasis for college and universitycredit. The concept includesadmission, exclusion, readmission,advising, counseling, planning,curriculum, and course and creditevaluation. More recently, ratherthan following a linear progressionthrough higher education institu-tions, students have tended to“swirl,” dropping in and out ofcommunity colleges and universi-ties, taking courses in both typesof institutions at the same time,and transferring frequentlybetween the two.24

This fluidity complicates thematter of understanding articulationpolicy, which was traditionally aone-way street with the rulesdictated by the four-year schools.Past research has found that inmost cases, transfer negotiationsare conducted between institu-tions, mostly on a case-by-casebasis. Frequent problems include

24

deciding which courses would beaccepted, students’ access to theirdesired majors, and insistence by thefour-year institution that they be theprimary judge of whether to granttransfer credit.25

Cohen and Brawer go on toconclude that where formalizedarticulation agreements do exist,they are usually brought aboutthrough the intervention of stateboards of education. Several statesnegotiate agreements on a com-mon core of general educationcourses; these agreements must berenegotiated periodically. In anattempt to capture and describethis diversity, a Policy Paperprepared by the Education Com-mission of the States (ECS) notesthe following:

� Since the 1960s, state involve-ment in articulation agreementshas increased, but no singlemodel as been pursued. Tradi-tionally, agreements have beenvoluntary. Both Hawaii, wherecommunity colleges are part ofthe state university system, andCalifornia, where they are not,use agreements between thetwo- and four-year sectors.

� Florida, Georgia, Illinois,Massachusetts, Nevada, RhodeIsland, South Carolina, andTexas have legislated policiesthat specify curriculums andexaminations, including a

common course-numberingsystem and/or a core generaleducation curriculum.

� The Illinois Articulation Initia-tive is a recent state initiative toimprove articulation. Studentswho take the specified packageof coursework are assured theircredits will satisfy the generaleducation requirements at theinstitution to which they transfer.

� Dual admissions programsadopted by institutions in Ohio,New Jersey, and other stateshave the potential to increasethe number of communitycollege students who graduatewith an associate degree.26

Dual admissions agreementsare specialized transfer agreementsthat guarantee admission andtransfer of credits to specific four-year colleges and universities.Mercer County CommunityCollege, for example, has dualadmissions agreements with sixNew Jersey colleges. Each requirescompletion of a specified programand a minimum grade pointaverage, which varies by institutionand program. A description ofthese agreements and programs areprovided in the appendix to thisreport as examples.

The ECS concludes that, to beeffective, articulation policies andpractices must involve a network


26 Tronie Rifkin, Improving Articulation Policy to Increase Transfer, ECS Policy Paper, Education Commission of the States, September 1998.

27 Rifkin, 1998.

of constituents from the state tothe university to the communitycollege to the high school. Theultimate test is getting communitycollege students (who desire adegree) successfully through to theuniversity. State directives, thoughnecessary and important, may belimited in their effect and difficultto carry out. On the other hand,state-encouraged and state-sup-ported actions instituted at thesystem or institutional level mayprove more effective overall. Someof the options include:

� Streamline articulation — makecommunity colleges and four-year colleges partners in estab-lishing policies, and integratethe articulation system into thestate higher education system.

� Promote collaboration amonghigh schools and two- and four-year institutions.

� Foster curriculum developmentby faculty at both levels ofinstitutions.

� Bolster student support services,including counseling andfinancial aid.

� Build technical support forstudent information systems.

� Provide for research and evalua-tion on the effectiveness oftransfer and articulation.27

25

EXAMINING THE

IMPACT AND

EFFECTIVENESS OF

THE COMMUNITY

COLLEGE

This report has reviewed some ofthe data that attest to the impor-tance of the role the communitycollege plays in the higher educa-tion system. Until recently, how-ever, there was limited informationor data available on the effective-ness of these institutions. In arecent issue of CommunityCollege Journal, Ernest T. Pascarellaprovides a succinct summary of thesmall but steadily growing body ofevidence on the impact commu-nity colleges have on students. Hisanalysis suggests that the evidenceis more complex than has beenrealized, and is summarized below.

� There is some evidence,although hotly debated, thatcommunity college attendancehas a dampening effect onattaining a bachelor’s degree.

� Evidence suggests that whencommunity college studentstransfer to four-year collegesand complete their bachelor’sdegrees, they are about ascompetitive in the labor marketas similar students who start atfour-year colleges.


29 David Boesel and Eric Fredland, College for All? Is There Too Much Emphasis on Getting a 4-Year College Degree? U.S. Department of Education,National Library of Education, January 1999.

� Evidence suggests that commu-nity colleges may have cognitiveand developmental effects ontheir students similar to theeffects that four-year collegeshave on their students.

� Community college attendancecan give some students a chanceto transfer into schools that aremore selective than the schoolsthey could have enrolled indirectly from high school. Thisis particularly true for low-income students who did notperform well in high school.

� Community college degrees orcredentials, in and of them-selves, provide substantialeconomic advantages over ahigh school degree.

� Since community colleges areconsiderably less expensive thanfour-year colleges, they canprovide a more affordable wayfor substantial numbers ofstudents to obtain the first twoyears of postsecondary educa-tion, with little differential effecton their intellectual develop-ment or competitiveness in themarket place.

Pascarella concludes that theavailable body of evidence supportsneither the critics nor the ardentsupporters of the communitycollege system. As with the results

of much social science research, thereality appears to fall somewhere inbetween the views espoused byeach side.28

Another comprehensive reviewof the research evidence alsoprovides support for thecommunity college mission. Thisresearch synthesis, conducted bythe National Library of Education,found that community collegeswere a more effective alternativethan four-year colleges for manystudents. The report concludedthat high school students ofmodest ability or uncertain moti-vation who are thinking of enroll-ing in a four-year college, especiallyin a liberal arts major, would bewell advised to instead considerenrolling in a community collegeor occupational training programsuch as those offered by the mili-tary. A lower-achieving high schoolgraduate who chooses one of theseoptions would reduce his or her(already low) chances of getting abachelor’s degree but wouldprobably realize the same cognitivedevelopment gains and the same orgreater earnings at less cost andwith less debt.29

The next section of this reporttakes a look at some of the issuesthat community colleges will faceas the new century unfolds. Itincludes information on demo-graphic trends and on the futureeducational requirements of jobs.

26

A LOOK AHEAD

The demand for communitycollege education and training inthe years ahead will likely increaseboth for demographic and eco-nomic reasons. The post-industrialworkforce, with its emphasis onadaptable skills, problem-solvingability, and technological savvy,will have education and trainingrequirements that match up wellwith the strengths of the moderncommunity college. This section ofthe report examines some data thatdemonstrate these demands.

Anthony Carnevale has out-lined five crucial roles that com-munity colleges will play in thenew economy and in the newmulticultural America:

� The minimum educationalqualification for access to goodjobs

� The stepping stone to bachelor’sand graduate degrees

� The pivotal education institu-tion in the nation’s job trainingand retraining system

� The primary education providerfor the least advantaged

� The first chance at Americanhigher education for the surgingimmigrant population30

30 Anthony P. Carnevale, Community Colleges and Career Qualifications, New Expeditions White Paper, www.aacc.nche.edu/initiatives/newexpeditions/White_Papers/marketwhite.htm.

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 1997

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Con

stan

t 199

7 D

olla

rs(T

hous

ands

)

Advanced degree ($63,229)

Bachelor’s degree ($40,478)

Some college/associate degree ($26,235)

High school graduate ($22,895)

Less than high school graduate($16,124)

Figure 14Average Annual Earnings (in 1977 Dollars) by EducationalAttainment, 1975 to 1997


traditionally been a starting pointfor postsecondary education andtraining for many minority stu-dents, and this will likely continue.

Another reason for the sus-tained importance of communitycolleges in the future is the wide-spread recognition that post-secondary education is stronglyassociated with income. Figure 14shows the average annual earningsfor the past 20 years, expressed inconstant 1997 dollars, for indi-viduals grouped by educationallevel. The relationship is strongand clear — on average, individu-als with more education makemore money. In 1997, individuals

According to Carnevale, the “babyboom echo” of traditional-agecollege students is expected to peakat 16 million in 2015, an increaseof about 3 million students over1995 levels. The largest growth inthis cohort will come from stu-dents from racial and ethnicminorities. The number of AfricanAmerican undergraduates willgrow to 2.1 million, an increase of23 percent over 1995 levels.Undergraduate participation byAsian American and Hispanicstudents will grow even faster, withgrowth rates of almost 50 percentand 73 percent, respectively.Community colleges have

27

Bachelor’s degree

0 10 20 30 40 50

40.440.2

12.712.1

12.013.1

8.37.9

7.57.4

6.87.0

6.15.8

3.13.3

1.31.3

1.01.0

0.80.8

1996 2006

Short-termon-the-job training

Moderate-termon-the-job training

Long-termon-the-job training

Related work experience

Work experience plusbachelor’s degree

Postsecondaryvocational training

Associate degree

First professional degree

Master’s degree

Doctoral degree

Percentage of Employment

Figure 15Percentage Distribution of Employment by Education andTraining Category, 1996 and 2006

with a bachelor’s degree earned anaverage of $40,478, compared to$26,235 for individuals withsome college or an associatedegree, $22,895 for high schoolgraduates, and $16,124 forindividuals with less than a highschool diploma.

In addition to providing well-paying jobs in technology andhealth-care fields, communitycolleges provide the initial highereducation for those going on toattain bachelor’s and advanceddegrees. It’s also noteworthy, inlooking at Figure 14, that theincome lines for individualswithout any college education areflat or falling. It’s quite possiblethat these differences will widenin the future, increasing theimportance of obtaining educa-tion beyond high school.

In addition, based on severalanalyses, Ernest Pascarella foundthat men with an associate degreehad an average advantage of about18 percent over the annualearnings of men with a highschool diploma. For women theeffects were greater — about 26percent. Evidence also suggeststhat there is a greater economicreturn to completing a specificcoherent program of study (ob-taining an associate degree orcredential) than in taking twoyears’ worth of community collegecourses without completinga credential.31

Another key set of informationrelevant to assessing the futureimportance of the communitycollege system pertains to theeducational requirements of jobsand how these educational require-ments may change in the future.Figures 15, 16, and 17 summarizedata that get at this issue. These

data are collected by the Bureau ofLabor Statistics and include thechange in employment trendsbetween 1996 and 2006 and thenumber of total job openingsoccurring between these two timeperiods.32 This latter measure, inaddition to measuring employ-ment growth, measures the need to


32 The data discussed in this section on the educational requirements of jobs are from George T. Silvestri, “Occupational Employment Projections to2006,” Monthly Labor Review, 120 (11), November 1997.

Source: George T. Silvestri, “Occupational Employment Projections to2006,” Monthly Labor Review, 120 (11), November 1997.

28

Bachelor’s degree

Associate degree

Doctoral degree

0 5 10 15 20 25 30

25

22

19

18

18

15

13

12

9

8

7




Postsecondary vocationaltraining


Master’s degree



Percent Change, 1996 to 2006

Figure 16Percentage Change in Employment, 1996 to 2006,by Education and Training Category


replace workers who leave theirjobs to enter other occupations,retire, or leave the labor force forother reasons.33

It’s important to recognize thatthere are several ways to look atthis issue. Figure 15 shows thedistribution of jobs in 1996 and2006 by the education and

training required. Two points areapparent. First, the distribution ofemployment by education andtraining category changes very littlebetween 1996 and 2006. Second,an overwhelming proportion ofjobs requires less than a collegedegree. Only about three out of10 jobs in 1996 required any

33 For more in-depth information on the educational requirement of jobs, see Paul E. Barton, What Jobs Require: Literacy, Education, and Training,1940 – 2006, Policy Information Report, Policy Information Center, Educational Testing Service, January 2000.

postsecondary training. The largesteducation and training category isshort-term on-the-job training, inwhich workers can learn job skillsin a few weeks or less. Accountingfor 40 percent of employment, themost common occupations in thiscategory are operators, fabricators,and laborers; and administrativesupport occupations, includingclerical. These workers had thelowest average wages of all thegroups. By this measure, at least,most jobs don’t require anypostsecondary education.

If we look at where the jobsare growing, however, the picturechanges. Figure 16 shows thepercent change in employmentbetween 1996 and 2006 by thesame education and trainingcategories. As shown, the largestincrease in employment (25percent) will be in jobs that requirea bachelor’s degree, followedclosely by jobs that require otherhigher education, includingassociate degrees (22 percentgrowth). All of the jobs requiringat least an associate degree areprojected to grow faster thanaverage over this 10-year period,and also to grow faster than jobsrequiring less education andtraining. About half of the fastest-growing jobs required more than ahigh school education, and the topthree require at least a bachelor’sdegree — database administrators,computer support specialists, andall other computer scientists;

29

0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 30,000

21,944

7,343

5,628

3,481

3,466

3,285

2,329

1,614

582

460

430

Thousands of Jobs



Bachelor’s degree




Postsecondary vocationaltraining

Associate degree


Doctoral degree

Master’s degree

Figure 17Total Job Openings Due to Growth and Net Replacements,1996 to 2006, by Education and Training Category


computer engineers; andsystems analysts.

Finally, Figure 17 looks at totaljob openings between 1996 and2006. This measure recognizesboth employment growth and netreplacement needs. The mostgrowth is in jobs requiring short-term on-the-job training, account-ing for 22 million job openings.Next are jobs requiring a bachelor’sdegree, accounting for 7.3 millionjobs. When we total up the jobsrequiring at least some post-secondary education or trainingwe come up with a little over16 million jobs, or about one-third of all job openings.

When we factor the wagedifferentials for jobs by educationand training categories into thedata described above, we can reachseveral conclusions. First, while theeconomy is producing (and willcontinue to produce) many jobsthat don’t require any post-secondary education, those jobsare at the bottom of the earningsladder. In addition, those jobs aregrowing slower than jobs thatrequire more education. Whileemployers will continue to requireemployees with all levels of educa-tion and training, those with themost education and experience willdo better in the job market, bothin terms of career options and pay.

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CONCLUSIONS

The community college plays alarge and important role in thecountry’s system of higher educa-tion, especially for the moredisadvantaged portions of Ameri-can society. Community collegeprograms span a wide range offunctions and fields, providingthe first two years of college topotential college graduates, occu-pational training to aspiringworkers, economic developmentactivities to communities,workforce training and retrainingfor corporations, and educationalrecreation to many citizens.

While community collegeshistorically have been criticized ona number of fronts, many success-ful college graduates have commu-nity college credits on their tran-scripts, and many workers reapthe economic benefit of anassociate degree or occupationaltraining program.

Unfortunately, many graduat-ing high school students come tothe community college doorunprepared for college. On onehand, community colleges allowstudents a “second chance.” As aresult, much community collegecurriculum is remedial in nature.On the other hand, the availabilityof such a “second chance” sendsthe wrong message to students —many believe that they can attaintheir goals for higher education

without doing any work inhigh school. It is clear that oureducational system needs betteralignment and articulation, kinder-garten through college. Each partof the system needs to do a betterjob of informing students of whatis required and expected of them.Efforts like “tech-prep” and “2+2”programs that blend high schooland college are examples ofapproaches that allow studentsto see the relevance of their studiesto the world of work.

As the community collegesystem turns 100, demographicand economic trends would appearlikely to increase its vigor. A newwave of youth, many from raciallyand ethnically diverse back-grounds, as well as many fromforeign shores, offer an expandingbase of potential clients. As“democracy’s colleges,” their policyof open access will provide contin-ued opportunity to those who wishto take advantage of it.

The widely recognized eco-nomic benefit of education beyondhigh school will also work to theadvantage of the communitycollege. Along with providing thefirst two years of college, itstradition as a provider of workforcetraining in growing fields likeinformation technology and healthcare services will continue tobe important.

Of course, we are entering atime of rapid change in the waythat education is delivered, espe-cially to nontraditional learners.On the cautionary side, commu-nity college leaders are recognizingchallenges from outside the systemto redesign community collegesso they can move with, and aheadof, change. A paper prepared forthe New Expeditions Project(described in the next sectionof this report) by Richard Alfredand Patricia Carter considers fourpervasive forces at work insideand outside community collegesthat must be addressed. Theseinclude students with changingneeds and expectations, newcompetitors, evolving technology,and the drive for performanceand accountability.34

While its place in the historyof American higher education isassured, the future success of thecommunity college system willdepend on how it adapts to thechanging needs of society. Ifhistory is any indication, commu-nity colleges will adapt and thrive.

Cohen and Brawer provide afitting close.

Perhaps community collegesshould merely be described asuntraditional. They do not follow thetradition of higher education as itdeveloped from the colonial colleges

34 See Richard Alfred and Patricia Carter, Contradictory Colleges: Thriving in an Era of Continuous Change, paper prepared for the New ExpeditionsProject, http://www.accc.nche.edu/initiatives/newexpeditions/White_Papers/marketwhite.htm.

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through the universities. They do nottypically provide the students withnew value structures, as residentialliberal arts colleges aspire to do. Nordo they further the frontiers ofknowledge through scholarship andresearch training, as in the finesttraditions of the universities. Com-munity colleges do not even followtheir own traditions. They changefrequently, seeking new programs andnew clients. Community colleges areindeed untraditional, but they aretruly American because, at their best,they represent the United States at itsbest. Never satisfied with resting onwhat has been done before, they trynew approaches to old problems.They maintain open channels forindividuals, enhancing the socialmobility that has characterizedAmerica; and they accept the ideathat society can be better, just asindividuals can better their lotwithin it.35


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Resources on Community Colleges

ERIC Clearinghouse on Community Collegeshttp://www.gseis.ucla.edu/ERIC/eric.htmlUniversity of California, Los Angeles3051 Moore HallBox 951521Los Angeles, CA 90095-1521(800) 832-8256(310) 825-3931(310) 825-8095 (fax)

The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC)www.aacc.nche.eduOne Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 410Washington, D.C. 20036(202) 728-0200(202) 833-2467 (fax)

AACC 1998-99 Research Agenda

This agenda addresses five issues considered most important to community college research — technology, workforcetraining, faculty and staff development, collegiate education, and institutional finance and cost. The elements of access,learning process, and outcomes/value-added should be considered for each issue. More detail on this agenda can befound on AACC’s Web site.

The Center for Community College PolicyIn July 1999, the U.S. Department of Education announced a grant to the Education Commission of the States (ECS) toestablish the Center for Community College Policy. This center will focus on effective community college policies andpractices. The center will be the first in the nation to target community college public policy issues that are the focus ofstate and national policymakers, including:

� Providing access for an increasing number of students seeking postsecondary education

� Containing costs for postsecondary education

� Effectively training displaced workers

� Training people coming off welfare

� Providing additional training for teachers

� Providing leadership for state and community economic development efforts36

36 For more information, visit www.ecs.org or contact Katherine Boswell, project director, at 303–299–3645.

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New ExpeditionsNew Expeditions aims to set a vision and strategic direction for the nation’s community colleges in the first part of the nextcentury. Relying on input from the field and critical analysis of trends, the project will culminate in a visionary report tochallenge the colleges through a series of recommendations for action. The project will examine an array of issues, includ-ing governance, funding, open access and equity, technology, faculty roles, leadership development, service to students andcommunities, and the role of community colleges in improving the quality of civic life.

Launched in April 1998, this 21-month project is sponsored by the American Association of Community Colleges(AACC) and the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT), with funding from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation.For more information, including commissioned papers, visit www.aacc.nche.edu/initiatives/newexpeditions.

The ERIC Clearinghouse on Community Colleges at UCLA has prepared a series of bibliographies for New Expeditions.The areas covered are:

� Access, diversity, and inclusion� Civil society� Teaching and learning� Faculty� Technology� Governance� Leadership� Finance� Market forces� Change� Future of community colleges

These can be ordered from [email protected].

Community College Research CenterInstitute on Education and the EconomyTeachers College, Columbia UniversityBox 174525 West 120th StreetNew York, NY 10027212–678–3091

The Center has taken a broad and comprehensive view of community colleges, examining their fundamental purposes,problems, and performances. The Center’s current studies include research on the roles of community colleges; workforceand economic development; curriculum, pedagogy, and articulation; and the economic returns of community colleges.www.tc.columbia.edu/~iee/ccrc.

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AppendixMercer County Community College (New Jersey)General Guidelines for Dual Admissions Programs

MCCC has dual admissions agreements with:

Montclair State University: Joint Admission Agreement

� Complete the Humanities and Social Science Program at MCCC� Earn a cumulative GPA of 2.5 (or better)

New Jersey Institute of Technology: Joint Admission Agreement

� Complete one of the MCCC eligible programs: Architecture, Business Administration, Civil Engineering Technology,Computer Science, Electronics Engineering Technology, Engineering Science, and Surveying Engineering Technology

� Earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0 (or better)

Rider University: Guaranteed Transfer Agreement Program

� Complete one of the MCCC eligible programs: Most Mercer AA or AS programs as well as Radio and Television (AAS)� Earn a cumulative GPA of 2.5 (or better)

Rutgers University: Dual Admission Program

� Complete one of the MCCC eligible programs: Art History, Chemistry (for a major in Biology, Chemistry, or EnvironmentalScience at Rutgers), Computer Science, Engineering Science, Humanities and Social Science (for a major in any of the LiberalArts or Business programs at Rutgers), Law Enforcement (for transfer to Rutgers Newark only), Mathematics, and Physics

� Earn a cumulative GPA of 3.2 (or better) (3.0 for Engineering)� Earn all of your college credits at MCCC or Rutgers

(Students who have earned fewer than 12 non-matriculated transfer credits at another college may also be eligible to participate.)

The College of New Jersey: Student Transfer Agreement Program

� Complete one of the MCCC eligible programs: Art History, Biology, Business Administration, Chemistry,Communications (including Theater), Computer Science, Engineering Science, Humanities and Social Science,Law Enforcement (including Corrections), Mathematics, Physics, and Special Education

For students who have graduated high school within the past 5 years:

� Be a first time college student (Students who have previously attended MCCC or any other college are not eligiblefor the STAP.)

� Complete an STAP Intent to Transfer Application Form by the end of their first year for new admissions enteringMCCC.

� Achieve a high school class rank in the top 50% OR earn a combined SAT score of 1125 or better or an equiva-lent ACT score. (Students who have earned a GED are not eligible for the STAP.)

� Earn a cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) at MCCC of 3.2 or better. (The required GPA will vary dependingon the specific major chosen at The College of New Jersey.)

� Be a resident of Mercer County or a graduate of an accredited high school in Mercer County.

Students who have graduated from high school more than 5 years ago are not required to present high school rank or SAT/ACT scores, but are subject to all other eligibility criteria.

Thomas Edison State College: N.J. Baccalaureate Degree Completion Program

� Complete one of the MCCC eligible programs: Most Mercer programs� Earn a cumulative GPA of 2.0 (or better)

04202-16540 • RR20M7 • Printed in U.S.A.

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