This special issue of Research in Comparative and International Education investigates the spread and development of two-year and community college institutions worldwide. While not all post-secondary education falls within the scope or definition of community colleges, both post-secondary and community college education tend to serve the needs of…

This document is a qualitative study on the literacy enhancement of community college students and the role that community colleges served in assisting this enhancement. Data collection was done through ethnographic interviews of seven community college students in order to determine what factors put these individuals on a literacy path initially…

Community and junior colleges play a vital role in the economic development process. They serve as catalysts in planning and implementing the efforts of the involved groups. They also provide technical assistance through program offerings, services, and resources. There are specific ways that each group involved can display a commitment,…

This report presents the results of a study of faculty recruitment and selection strategies used by self-reported learning-centered community colleges during the 1998-1999 academic year. The study examined six key principles of a learning college: (1) creates substantive change in learners; (2) engages students as partners in learning; (3) offers…

This paper explores the potential the North American community college model holds for Latin America as a means of responding to the expansion of secondary education in this region. The authors propose learning from, not imitating, experiences found in North America and Europe and discuss how these lessons may be of used to inform Latin American…

As the need to serve a broader and larger population of students at the community college level increases, the rate of student success is decreasing at many institutions. There is a greater need to deliver in-class and co-curricular experiences that satisfy the students currently entering college. The Student Success Project at Santa Monica…

This document is a report on how California community colleges can incorporate customer satisfaction models and theories from business to better serve students. Emphasis is given to two levels of customer satisfaction: macro- and micro-models. Macro-models look at how customer satisfaction relates to other elements or priorities of community…

Discusses the background and purpose of 1994's School-to-Work Opportunities Act (STWOA). Focuses on the implementation of STWOA's three components (i.e., school-based learning, work-based learning, and connecting activities), highlighting the role of tech prep in joining school- and work-based instruction. Argues that community colleges are…

This digest offers community college academic leaders a synopsis of the key components necessary for building a successful developmental education instructional framework. Specific emphasis is placed on program structure, faculty, and program improvement. Developmental education is defined as "courses or services provided for the purpose of…

Describes the efforts of St. Petersburg College (Florida) to offer teacher education baccalaureate degrees in elementary education, special education, and secondary education in math and science. States that community colleges seeking to offer the baccalaureate degree should be aware of the demands posed by funding, curriculum, marketing, student…

Arguing that workforce training is fundamental to the community college mission, this report discusses the necessity for re-examining related national policy and presents models for developing programs that meet current and future workforce training needs. Following an introduction highlighting community colleges' customer responsiveness,…

This is a report analyzing the multiple community college attendance patterns of students from nine colleges in the Los Angeles Community College District (California) from 1990-2000. The assessment utilizes the Multiple College Index (MCI), which is a measure based on the proportion of units a student earns at different colleges. The study…

This is a report on a workshop held in Hawaii with representatives from United States community college and the Thai Ministry of Education to help form the East-West Consortium for Community College Development in Thailand. Recommendations from the workshop included plans for a U.S. community college training team to visit Thailand and help begin…

Reviews current literature related to self-directed learning, highlighting six competencies important for its successful implementation. Reviews critiques of self-directed learning and describes hurdles to implementation at community colleges related to quality control, teachers' roles, and institutional image. Provides suggestions for overcoming…

This document describes the principles in a learning college, opportunities to create learning colleges, and key factors in molding an institution into a learning college. The principles state that a learning college: 1) creates substantive change in individual learners; 2) engages learners in the learning process as full partners who must assume…