CCRC in the News
Community Colleges Double Down on Dual Enrollment
With a rising number of high school students enrolled at community colleges, dual enrollment is becoming increasingly important. “What it means for college leaders is to really think about how to strategically use their partnerships with high schools to broaden access to college for their communities, but also to offer dual enrollment with a purpose,” John Fink told Inside Higher Ed.
As Enrollment Lags, Colleges Send Acceptances to Students Who Haven't Applied
Direct admission is not about lowering the bar for admittance at community colleges, Tom Brock told EdSurge. Rather, it is a means of raising awareness of college options and simplifying the admissions process.
Why Fixing the Transfer Process Is an Equity Issue for Colleges
Fixing the transfer process is an equity imperative, John Fink told The Chronicle of Higher Education. “Bachelor’s degrees are important in terms of closing the racial wealth gap,” he said. But attainment gaps are stubbornly wide.
Community Colleges Buoyed by Modest Enrollment Growth
As some two-year colleges start to recover after deep enrollment declines, administrators at these institutions are hopeful the trend lines keep pointing up. John Fink told Inside Higher Ed that while he hasn’t yet looked at fall enrollment numbers, he’s heartened to hear colleges are experiencing growth—even if modest.
Minimum Wage Gains, Community College Enrollment Losses
Davis Jenkins remarked to Inside Higher Ed that a new paper’s findings about community college enrollments declining when state minimum wages increase is telling of poor, working people's precarious position, that “a small increase in wages dramatically increases the opportunity cost” of going to college.
How a Houston-Area Partnership Is Easing Community College-to-University Transfers
Students struggle with transfers because the onus has traditionally fallen on them to research their course plans, Davis Jenkins told The Houston Chronicle. Transfer students sometimes wrongly assume their courses apply at both their current and target schools.
The Transfer Maze: How Systemic Snags Too Often Block the Path from Community College to a Bachelor's Degree
The best examples of transfer partnerships involve connections between academic departments at two institutions, John Fink told The Chronicle of Higher Education. “They build trust and hammer out the right course sequence — but unfortunately, I don’t feel like that is widespread at all."
DataPoints: Healthcare Education
Community College Daily breaks down the findings from CCRC's latest report analyzing healthcare training programs in community colleges.
Persistence Rebounds to Pre-COVID Levels, But Not for Everyone
After two years of COVID-19-related disruptions, the percentage of first-time college students sticking with school has returned to pre-pandemic levels. A report by NSCRC also found growing interest in short-term skilled trade credentials. Thomas Brock called this "good for the students and good for the country. Those often are very good-paying jobs, and there’s a lot of need right now."
High Schoolers Account for Nearly 1 Out of Every 5 Community College Students
Dual enrollment far exceeds the popularity of Advanced Placement courses. The sharp growth in dual enrollment has raised a lot of questions about course content. In a story in The Hechinger Report, John Fink acknowledged that quality is uneven. But colleges that oversee these courses are trying to improve quality, Fink said.