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 Obama Unveils Community College Plan at Macomb(JULY 15, 2009)--President Obama outlined a major plan in support of community colleges in a speech delivered yesterday afternoon at Macomb Community College in Warren, Michigan. Macomb’s president, James Jacobs, serves as chair of the CCRC advisory board and until last year served as CCRC associate director. Obama’s proposal, called the American Graduation Initiative, aims to produce an additional five million community college graduates by 2020. Projected to cost $12 billion over the next decade, the plan includes competitive grants for community colleges to make innovations for improving students’ educational and employment outcomes, a loan fund to upgrade college facilities, and a program to develop free online courses. The announcement comes a day after the President’s Council of Economic Advisers released Preparing the Workers of Today for the Jobs of Tomorrow. That report describes the attributes of a well-functioning education and training system designed for the future growth in jobs requiring greater skills, highlighting the role of community colleges. More Information: • The Chronicle of Higher Education: http://chronicle.com/daily/2009/07/22070n.htm • Inside Higher Ed: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/07/15/obama • President Obama’s July 12th op-ed in the Washington Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/11/AR2009071100647.html • White House Fact Sheet: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Excerpts-of-the-Presidents-remarks-in-Warren-Michigan-and-fact-sheet-on-the-American-Graduation-Initiative/ • The Council of Economic Advisers’ report that was released in conjunction with President Obama's speech: http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/cea/Jobs-of-the-Future/ • CCRC Brief No. 42, Building Bridges to Postsecondary Training for Low-Skill Adults: Outcomes of Washington State’s I-BEST Program, which was cited in the Council of Economic Advisers’ report: http://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/Publication.asp?UID=695 (Registration may be required to access external websites.) |
