Community Colleges are a worthy investment

Editorial published in Burlington Times-News, March 29, 2017.

North Carolina's community college system originated in 1950 when the state superintendent of public instruction commissioned a study to determine if there was a need for such institutions. With the state economic focus shifting from agricultural to industrial after World War II, workers needed training beyond high school.

Seven years after the study’s commission, the legislature adopted the Community College Act and provided funding for community colleges.

Today, representatives from community colleges across the state will be at the General Assembly to advocate for the 58 colleges in the system.

Community College Day will see the colleges showcase programs and people. The colleges also will make their case for funding for specific programs, such as money for rapid job training and for support services — tutors and counselors — for students. They also seek to raise staff and faculty salaries.

The system — the nation's third largest — has undergone multiple changes since it began to grow and evolve with the workforce and students’ needs. The colleges’ adaptability is a tremendous strength, as is the breadth of service they provide.

The scope of what the colleges do was on display in Wilson recently when nine of the state’s institutions came together. From utility linemen to high school students seeking an edge entering a four-year institution, the community colleges have it covered.

“Probably the single biggest challenge that community colleges face is to communicate effectively all of the many diverse, essential roles that we play, services that we render, opportunities that we provide in our service areas,” Tim Wright, president of Wilson Community College, said at the March 22 event, according to The Wilson Times. “We do so many things, and it is so difficult to get the word out and keep that word out.”

The Wilson event was designed, at least in part, to make the case for the colleges’ funding from the state. The campuses effectively communicated why they deserve the funding they receive and more.

A similar event also took place at Guilford Technical Community College March 24 for community colleges from the Piedmont Triad region, including Alamance Community College.

“Our future here in this region depends more on community colleges than anything else that comes to mind," ACC President Algie Gatewood said at the event, according to the News & Record of Greensboro. "The investment that we’re asking our legislators to make in our community colleges … will pay dividends for years to come.”

High on the agenda is securing funding for programs that train people quickly to fill positions open in area businesses.

“We need everybody in North Carolina talking to the legislative people about what our colleges do and that we deserve to be funded,” Lyn Austin, a Johnston Community College trustee, said at the Wilson event, according to The Wilson Times. “Last year, the community colleges served something like 800,000 students. Universities served 200,000 students. Of the education money pie in the budget, the community college system receives less than 9 percent of that budget. Think about that. What is remotely just in those numbers?”

That is certainly a question worth exploring, but we would urge that an expansion in community college funding not come at the expense of four-year institutions or secondary education. Still, there’s no doubt that our community colleges consistently find new ways to help their students and our state’s workforce. That’s worth investing in.

The original version of this editorial appeared in the Henderson Daily Dispatch.

http://www.thetimesnews.com/opinion/20170329/editorial-community-colleges-are-worthy-investment