This paper presents the results of an exploratory study of a professional development-based effort at one of the nation's 14 federally designated Historically Black Colleges and Universities community colleges. Course revisions included introductory courses in its Natural Sciences department. The goal was to improve students' critical-thinking and…

Noncredit community college enrollment accounts for approximately 40% of all enrollment in the two-year sector, or five million students (American Association of Community Colleges, 2016). Yet, this population is seldom discussed in the higher education literature due to inconsistent definitions, funding, and data reporting at the state level.…

Established in the 1920s, the Education Policy Center (EPC) is the oldest center or institute at The University of Alabama. Our work centers on four interrelated areas: (a) access and finance of public higher education, (b) college completion, (c) Pell Grants, and (d) rural community colleges. As place-based institutions with service delivery…

Since the initiation of performance funding in Tennessee in the late 1970s, approximately 30 states have, at some point, attempted a funding model that includes performance on a set of indicators. The purpose of the present study was to capture the current status of performance funding in public statewide community college systems and to assess…

Since the beginning of the Great Recession, many community colleges have experienced significant declines in state revenue, increases in enrollment, higher tuition, and flat or declining state student aid. These conditions have also occurred in an environment of heightened accountability with pressure to advance a student success agenda and to…

The $17.2 million Rural Community College Initiative (RCCI) demonstration grant program funded by the Ford Foundation which ran from 1994 to 2001 represents the largest philanthropic project specifically aimed at rural community colleges in United States history. While a good deal of literature has been published about this initiative, much was…

This study had two major purposes. The first purpose was to compare federal, state, and institutional direct grant aid, unmet needs, and headcount in 2000-2001 and 2005-2006. The second was to assess if any changes found related to the presence or absence of two key factors identified by experts as important to understanding the community college…

The survey on hot topics was added in 2007 to the annual survey of state directors of community colleges conducted by the University of Alabama Education Policy Center. The survey data provided an opportunity for examining the personal attitudes toward the hot topics and the associations between these attitudes and state contexts. This study finds…

Barbara K. Townsend's faculty profile on the Web site of the University of Missouri-Columbia lists three areas of inquiry: access to and attainment of the baccalaureate, community college faculty, and teacher education in the community college. Many people who knew Barbara are well aware that her interests were far wider and more expansive. This…

A certain "mythology" appears to exists within higher education that residence halls do not exist at community colleges. The reality is that residence halls do exist at community colleges, and they play an integral role in the fabric of the institutions that have them. This article identifies the number of rural-serving community colleges, and it…

Contends that Illinois was able to develop a cohesive and progressive approach to two-year postsecondary education because of visionary and cooperative efforts made during the decades immediately following World War II. Traces the system's history through the present, describes the current financing arrangements, and reports on proposals for the…

Identifies key events that influenced the development of community colleges in Ohio, identifying key individuals involved in the institutions' establishment. Discusses historical and contemporary challenges presented to Ohio's two-year colleges, focusing on programmatic, financial, and educational access issues from the 1950s through the 1990s.…

Discusses the development of two-year public colleges in five Midwestern states. Identifies key events in the colleges' history, their current organizational pattern, and the key issues facing them now and in the future. (AS)

Argues that there is a crisis in Latino leadership at community colleges. States that, based on studies, only 3-4% of CEOs at community colleges are Latino, and only 4% of all doctorates are earned by Latinos. Suggests that higher education institutions seek out and fund aspiring Latino community college leaders. (Contains 25 references.) (NB)

Discusses community college involvement in the Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training Program (JOBS) as an example of how federal and state workforce policy impacts publicly controlled institutions of higher education. Discusses the challenges faced by JOBS in an era of devolved responsibility for funding from federal government to states.…