Washington
After months of waiting, community colleges received notice on Thursday of the application guidelines for a much-anticipated grant program that will allow them to create, expand, and restructure job-training programs.
The Obama administration is touting the $2-billion grant program not only as a way to improve the nation's battered economy but also to meet its college-going and degree-completion goals. President Obama wants every American to have at least one year of postsecondary education and wants the United States, by 2020, to once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.
Over the next year, the U.S. Department of Labor, in coordination with the U.S. Education Department, will award about $500-million through the grant program. A total of $2-billion will be given out over the next four years. Money for the program, titled the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grants Program, was allocated through the health-care bill the president signed last year. (Details about the grant program can be found on the Labor Department's Web site.)
U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan called the grant program "historic" during a news conference on Thursday and also said it would be a way to get "the country back on its feet."
The announcement of the program's details has been long anticipated by community-college officials. President Obama first proposed a major grant program for community colleges in 2009, shortly after taking office. He originally proposed a $12-billion plan to improve community colleges, called the American Graduation Initiative, but that plan collapsed during negotiations over legislation to overhaul student aid and the nation's health-care system. The final bill left community colleges with a $2-billion career-training program under the Department of Labor.
Even though the community-college sector initially expressed disappointment over the collapse of the bigger grant program, many community-college officials are grateful that the Obama administration continues to give their institutions attention and recognizes their importance, especially given that they enroll nearly half of all undergraduates in this country.
"The grant solicitation reflects an appreciation of the ways that community colleges are re-examining and refining their methods of providing cutting-edge education and training," said David S. Baime, senior vice president for government relations at the American Association of Community Colleges.
Awarding the Grants
Nonprofit community colleges aren't the only institutions that can apply for the grants. The program is open to all two-year, degree-granting institutions, so for-profit institutions are also expected to apply for the money.
Grants will be awarded to both individual institutions and to consortia of two or more eligible institutions. The Labor Department intends to award grants ranging from $2.5-million to $5-million for individual applicants and from $2.5-million to $20-million for consortium applicants. Grantees must enter partnerships with at least one employer to be eligible to receive the grant money.
The program could result in a significant federal investment in online education. The Education and Labor Departments are encouraging proposals for the creation of openly available online courses, putting the government's support behind the burgeoning movement to publish learning materials free on the Web.
The grant program will reward projects that find ways to bolster the economy through new or improved education and training programs that meet the needs of local or regional businesses. In fact, the population the grant program is designed to help is workers who have lost their jobs or are threatened with job loss as a result of foreign trade. That emphasis doesn't preclude other students from enrolling in supported projects after they have been formed.
U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis said during Thursday's news conference that everyone, especially workers who have lost jobs because of foreign trade, "deserves access to the level of education necessary to obtain employment that can support a family." The grant program, she said, provides an opportunity for workers to acquire skills and industry-recognized credentials needed to compete in a global economy.
Comments
1. wbradshaw - January 21, 2011 at 08:30 am
I am totally in favor of promoting the availability of education and encouraging people to go to college. That being said, I have the following concerns. Simply having a goal of the highest proportion of college graduates of any country in the world bothers me. I fear this will lead to "watered-down" degrees. Time will tell on that.
I also think there needs to be an emphasis on a balance of different kinds of degrees. If the goal is simmly for as many people as possible to have a college degree, there will be many people who will seek the easiest degree with little aptitude for what the major of the degree is, and some institutions (non-profit and for-profit) that will offer a multitude of easy-to-obtain degrees, with a heavy component of on-line courses, with little concern for whether such degree majors are acctually needed in today's work place.
And, finally, there are many people in our population who just do not have the overall temperament or general disposition to be interested in higher education and can do very well in a job that does not require a college degree. If there is such a great emphasis on everyone attending college, these people may begin to feel less worthy, and one's feeling of self worth is important.
I do not mean to be negative, but I do have these concerns.
2. plunkett - January 21, 2011 at 08:59 am
Wbradshaw fears "watered-down" degrees. It's a bit late in the day to worry about that. A college degree today is like a high school degree thirty years ago. We're living in a "dumbed-down" society, and there are no jobs for huge numbers of the populace.
This two billion is a band-aid approach. Far too little, far too late.
Reagan's attack on the unions started a lot of the current economic demise and lack of jobs. NAFTA sped things along.
3. lindagrant1 - January 21, 2011 at 09:03 am
For those of us in Texas this may be all the funding we can find. The current admin wants to close 4 community colleges to save his budget. The current gov has no respect or desire to see community colleges succeed.
4. wasonevich - January 21, 2011 at 09:45 am
What Wbradshaw may not understand when suggesting that college isn't for everyone and that "many people . . . can do very well in a job that does not require a college degree" is that those jobs are dwindling. Studies such as the Workforce 2000 and Worforce 2020 reports indicate that fewer than 20 percent of available jobs can be attained with just a high school diploma or less. On the other end, approximately 25-30% of available jobs require a bachelors degree or higher. That leaves approximately half of the available jobs requiring post-secondary education, but not necessarily a 4-year degree. That may be why President Obama and others are seeking to bolster the nation's community colleges.
5. dburton - January 21, 2011 at 11:44 am
Which way do you want to look at this article? From the academic or job creation prespectives. It is easy as an educator to get caught up in the old question of value of a college degree, but it is another to focus on the needs of the unemployed work who is eekingjob training skills that will result in a job and hopefully will lead to a secure career.
These grants, hopefully, will give rise to courses and programs that create skill sets needed for growth of the economy. Needless to say, these grants won't help "academia" profit in the way it would like--making more "college educated" citisens. If it does that then probably its value in creating needed job skills needed to help our country get back on its feet will suffer.
6. 12096136 - January 21, 2011 at 03:37 pm
The goal should not be to have the highest number of college graduates. It should be to train workers in a skill that will suit them and get them employed. Everyone does not need a college degree, they need to be trained. I think community colleges strive to fill this training. For-profit colleges do not. There is alot of government money wasted at these institutions.
7. wilkenslibrary - January 21, 2011 at 07:23 pm
Everyone does not need to be trained. Everyone needs to become a thoughtful, educated citizen, a problem-solver, a good communicator, a collaborator. Training should be part of what we in community colleges do, but it should not be the one and only goal.
8. joanb195 - January 22, 2011 at 09:46 am
Give me a break--propriety schools included. Now they can really scam their students!
9. eharpera - January 22, 2011 at 12:07 pm
One of the most crucial issues has to do with the employers. Will they value the non-degree skills training provided by the community colleges as much as they value the credential of a college degree. While they claim to only be interested in skills, studies show that given the choice between someone with a college degree and someone without, they tend to trust the degree more. So while these programs may provide useful skills, will they be valued in the labor market?
10. cel4145 - January 22, 2011 at 05:23 pm
What I don't understand is why only community colleges are able to participate? I can see why that might be the case for individual applications, but for consortiums, there would be advantages in having other higher education institutions partner to develop courses applicable for both community colleges *and* universities. Moreover, there are tons of researchers in universities who could bring a lot to these projects, and arguably, might be more qualified (and have more time) to help develop some parts of the design of some projects.
11. lisaclarkphd - January 23, 2011 at 06:28 am
As a k-12 and college educator I question the current level of communication between high school career/technical education programs and community colleges. During the early part of last decade, I was part of a movement to review high school career and technical education programs, so that students would graduate with a career and technical education endorsement on their high school diplomas. One of the requirements for the process was an articulation agreement between high schools and post secondary institutions. Either students could take college courses during their senior year of high school, or the college would accept them if they successfully graduated from the endorsed cte high school program. A great deal of work went into ensuring rigor. Unions and business leaders also engaged in the review process.
I agree with the comment about colleges producing thoughtful, problem-solving citizens. Communication between community colleges and high schools is necessary, and should be supported.
12. evenhanded - January 25, 2011 at 09:21 am
Let's see...$2 billion x community colleges' dismal graduation rate = another monumental waste of money.
13. mikeparker - January 25, 2011 at 09:36 am
The number of students attending both 2 and 4 year institutions that are not making satisfactory progress is incredible. These students continue not being successful semester after semester at a cost to the taxpayers that is staggering. This will increase the burden of repayment for those students that are striving to be successful in their endeavors. Why not a simple rule, 2.0 + or out!
14. major_ray - January 25, 2011 at 09:51 am
When I was at the community college, I pioneered some of the most effective strategies in community college partnerships (mostly university science and engineering). (See The MATRIX, R. Turner J. Chem Education). I was even made a notable in my hometown for what I did in Boston. Unfortunately, best practices are often ignored by others who refuse to endorse anything they or their institution did not create. Community colleges are notorious for reinventing nearly everything from scratch to feed the ego of autocratic and often under-educated presidents. Even though my model program was integrated into MIT's UROP in 2006, I doubt if the model will be used by the very community college where the work originated. It's not in my hands any more. In any case, I am currently, working on origin. As a creationists, I suspect people will not listen to me in my new area of interest either.
15. skepticalteach - January 27, 2011 at 11:24 am
Re: comment - "Let's see...$2 billion x community colleges' dismal graduation rate = another monumental waste of money."
CC graduation rates always seem to be skewed by others. For many students, their intent is not to get a degree or certificate - it's just wanting to keep up and improve current skills to improve (or keep) their jobs. Remember, too, that a community college also serves their "community" - the same community that funds their foundations, special projects, and provides jobs & partnerships in their businesses. Over half of my students are employees of those community businesses who, again, are not seeking a degree, but to improve their skills to keep their job or find a job.