Alumni can help colleges’ fundraising and recruitment efforts. They also can serve as mentors to current students. And the good news is that alumni are “increasingly interested in connecting with their alma maters,” according to results of a survey by Anthology. The survey includes responses from 2,365 college and university alumni. Nearly 400 (17%) of […]
Advocacy and Funding Articles
$1B Build Back Better Regional Challenge projects include community college partners
The Biden administration on Friday announced the 21 selected regional economic development projects that will receive funding through the $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge. Most of the projects include state community college systems or individual two-year colleges among their partners. Funded by the American Rescue Plan and administered by the U.S. Commerce Department’s […]
A deeper look at public opinion of higher ed
Public Agenda and USA Today recently released extensive public opinion research results that reflect some competitive edges for community colleges, amidst broader and substantial concerns about the value and affordability of college. The data may offer useful insights for community college leaders. The research explores a number of topics and reveals complex views about higher […]
‘Empowering voices the world needs to hear’
In her blog post on June 15, 2021, in which she announced awards going to 286 community-serving organizations, philanthropist MacKenzie Scott wrote, “The headline I would wish for this post is “286 Teams Empowering Voices the World Needs to Hear.” Scott has awarded two rounds of billions of unrestricted grants to selected nonprofits, including community […]
Answering the call for OER
When the state began to push back against college textbook prices, Ohio colleges and universities got innovative. In 2017, “We were seeing in Ohio an atmosphere where the public was attacking higher ed textbook costs,” said Jack Hershey, president and CEO of the Ohio Association of Community Colleges (OACC) during a session at the AACC […]
Building a solid foundation
When Sauk Valley Community College was founded in 1965, the Sauk Valley College Foundation was simultaneously established alongside it as an independent 501(c)(3). The college’s founders had the foresight to know that philanthropy would be critical to building a college-going culture in the rural northwestern Illinois community it served. By the time David Hellmich became […]
Workforce development needs more support
To figure out how to develop a robust workforce pipeline, especially as businesses struggle post-Covid to find skilled workers, it makes sense to look at what’s preventing people from enrolling in programs that provide the skills for those jobs. Take the situation of Victoria Browning, a student at the Community College of Aurora (CCA) in […]
More funding for community colleges, students
The Biden administration on Thursday announced funding and other initiatives to support community colleges and their students, as well additional guidance on using previously awarded Higher Education Emergency Relief Funds. Continuing the Biden administration’s focus on community colleges, U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona and First Lady Jill Biden on Thursday visited Bergen Community College in […]
New program offers service opportunities, college funding
California is connecting service with affordable higher education through the #CaliforniansForAll College Corps. The program was announced by Gov. Gavin Newsom last week. It’s the largest state-level investment in a college service program in California history. Forty-five colleges and universities were selected as inaugural partners for the program. Through #CaliforniansForAll College Corps, up to 6,500 […]
The national standard for a free college tuition scholarship
Delaware led the nation in 2005 when it became the first state in the country to offer two years of free college tuition to recent high school graduates. The Student Excellence Equals Degree (SEED) scholarship was born thanks to the foresight of former state Sen. Harris B. McDowell, who recognized that college was too expensive […]