FEBRUARY 6, 2009

The article, Shaking Up the Community College Concept (February 6, 2009, Inside Higher Ed), elaborates on the City University of New York's plan for a new community college in Manhattan. Reporter David Moltz describes the new institution:

“The institution would be a twist on the typical two-year model. With a planned enrollment of 5,000 students, the college would be the system’s second smallest institution. All first-year students would be required to take a predetermined core curriculum and would then be limited to their choice of about 12 majors — each with a prominent focus on internships and other on-the-job educational opportunities. The proposed majors are mostly in pre-career fields of study such as nursing, surgical technology and energy services management.

“Still, there are a few majors designed to help students transfer to four-year institutions, such as urban education and urban studies — programs designed to focus on issues specific to New York City. The college would not have the “traditional remediation/credit divide” and instead would place all its students on a credit-earning track from day one — using the comprehensive core curriculum to prepare students at all educational levels. Although the college would maintain open admissions, all students would be required to attend a face-to-face interview with a college counselor before being admitted and would be required to enroll full time with at least 12 credits per semester for their first year.”

CCRC Director Thomas Bailey will be a member of an advisory board for the college. In the article, he discusses the new college’s requirement for full-time enrollment.

“The full-time model, some scholars have noted, is a better fit for traditional age students. Thomas Bailey, director of the Community College Research Center at Columbia University Teachers College and a member of an advisory board for the new college, said even though it is very hard for working adults to attend college full time, this model might serve CUNY’s enrollment base well. Almost 60 percent of CUNY community college students are 22 years old or younger.”

--The full-length article is available on the Inside Higher Ed website at: http://insidehighered.com/news/2009/02/06/cuny