The Clear and Present Funding Crisis in Community Colleges

Abstract

This chapter describes the impact of major changes in community college funding on its open‐access mission, as well as on the work and responsibilities of college leaders as they attempt to balance the increasing demands made of their institutions while concomitantly grappling with diminished public fiscal support.

Differences in College Engagement Benchmark Scores as a Function of Honors Course Enrollment for Community College Students: A Nationwide Study

“…is perceived lack of success has led to a focus on collegiate practices. Questions have been raised by government officials and the public about the role of taxpayer subsidies for educational initiatives [18], and the level of public financial support has trended lower [19]. Community college administrators are being asked by accreditation boards, local, state, and federal government agencies and the public to demonstrate institutional effectiveness through data that illustrated standards and cost-effectiveness [1,2].…”

Rural Partnership Models

“…As with any community college serving as a beacon, rural colleges are deeply reliant on external partnerships. In particular, the survival and success of rural community colleges is dependent on a plethora of partnership avenues, including civic, economic development, business/industry, foundations, faith‐based groups and the generosity of donors (Milliron, de los Santos, & Browning, ; Phelan, ). Rural Americans have always relied upon each other to survive and sustain their communities.…”

Idea implementation from an inter-organizational network

“….................................................................................................. Summary and Reflection ....................................................................................................................... Tables Table 1.1 Interrelated Blocks of Organizational Barriers within the Intuition Process…………………….……………………………………….….…………18 While some critics have stated that community colleges are trying to be "all things to all people" (Blanchard, Casados & Sheski, 2009;Gonzalez, 2012;Hagedorn & Kuznetsova, 2016;Phelan, 2014), others assert that community colleges have demonstrated a commitment to their mission of access (McClenney, 2013) and affordability (Mellow & Heelan, 2014) and have remained vital to our nation's and their own state's economic development throughout times of prosperity or recession (Friedel, Salinas, & Thornton, 2015;Salinas & Friedel, 2016). However, pressures to increase accountability and improve completion rates (American Association of Community Colleges, 2014; Hagedorn & Kuznetsova, 2016;Salinas & Friedel, 2016) have not been accompanied by significant increases in resources from policymakers (Bailey, Jaggers, & Jenkins, 2015;Phelan, 2014). Indeed, a growing reliance on tuition, fees and additional funds from students have not compensated for reduced state and local support (Archibald & Feldman, 2012;Bailey et al, 2015;Cochrane, 2015;Ehrenberg, 2012;Gonzalez, 2012: Mitchell, Leachman & Masterson, 2016, threatening the survival of the institution (Phelan, 2014).…”

“…However, pressures to increase accountability and improve completion rates (American Association of Community Colleges, 2014; Hagedorn & Kuznetsova, 2016;Salinas & Friedel, 2016) have not been accompanied by significant increases in resources from policymakers (Bailey, Jaggers, & Jenkins, 2015;Phelan, 2014). Indeed, a growing reliance on tuition, fees and additional funds from students have not compensated for reduced state and local support (Archibald & Feldman, 2012;Bailey et al, 2015;Cochrane, 2015;Ehrenberg, 2012;Gonzalez, 2012: Mitchell, Leachman & Masterson, 2016, threatening the survival of the institution (Phelan, 2014).…”

“…To compete in today's higher education marketplace, institutions are increasingly cultivating collaborative relationships between themselves in order to maximize value through economies of scale and develop performance improvement strategies (Burns, Crow & Becker, 2015;Educause, 2014;Phelan, 2014). Prior research demonstrates that participation in interorganizational networks can lead to increased operational efficiencies (Burns et al, 2015;Proenza & Church, 2011) and enhanced organizational learning Oelze, Hoejmose, Habisch & Millington, 2016;.…”