University Business - March 2010 - (Page 38)

Community Colleges as Economic Saviors unfunded mandates that are passed, the better for us.” “We have to look at education across the whole spectrum,” adds Nunn. Poor performance at the elementary school level might eventually lead to the need for developmental classes at a community college. “We should make sure each level prepares learners for the next level of education and the workforce.” A closer relationship with community colleges’ four-year counterparts, especially around articulation agreements, is also necessary. “The community college is the one that gets the blame when students realize credits won’t transfer,” says Bower. Part of the problem is a lack of respect for the education students receive at community colleges and more institutional level research is needed to show that transfer students can perform as well or better than native students, she suggests. Employers’ Expectations of Employees Percent who agree with each statement: 91% 90% 88% 88% Our company is asking employees to take on more responsibilities and to use a broader set of skills than in the past. Employees are expected to work harder to coordinate with other departments than in the past. The challenges employees face within our company are more complex today than they were in the past. To succeed in our company, employees need higher levels of learning and knowledge today than they did in the past. Tackling Transfers Articulation agreements are also needed because long-term economic recovery will require them. “As the economy recovers, the demand over the next several years for BA and higher degrees will be pretty robust,” says Tony Carnevale, director of the Center on Education and the Workforce at Georgetown University (D.C.). According to CEW projections, there will be around 13 million job openings for people with certificates or AA degrees and 17 million for holders of a BA and higher from 2008 to 2018. “When employers start hiring again, it will be across the entire economy,” says Tony Pals, director of public information for the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. He highlights information from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that 2009 unemployment rates among people who hold BA and higher degrees are lower than those with associate degrees. Source: “Raising the Bar: Employers’ Views on College Learning in the Wake of the Economic Downturn.” Hart Research Associates for Association of American Colleges and Universities Although, AA holders have faired better than those without any college education. “For the nation’s economic well being, we need to increase the number of workers who complete some form of postsecondary study,” Pals says. But to do that, four-year colleges and universities have to ensure the transfer pipelines are open, says Spilde. “As universities think about their own budget, they are trying to bring in out-of-state students since it means more revenue, but does that close out community college students?” “I’m not happy to find out [that transfer agreements] are only as good as the last dean at the four-year,” Spangler says ruefully. She finds hope in the recent efforts of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which brokered an agreement on what competencies are needed to obtain a mechanical engineering degree. “It proves National average education and related expenses that it is possible to get an agreement per FTE student, 2002 and 2006 on those basic requirements,” she says. $16,000 No one would appear to be in favor of heavy-handed legislations, but most $14,000 in higher ed would agree that state $12,000 mandates for common course number$10,000 ing are usually needed to smooth the transfer process. “Addressing these is$8,000 sues institution by institution is not as $6,000 powerful as getting them together,” says $4,000 Mehaffy. Tennessee is the latest state to mandate common course number$2,000 ing with legislation passed in January. $0 2002 2006 2002 2006 2002 2006 2002 2006 There is also a requirement for commuPublic Public Public Community nity colleges to clearly identify which Research Master’s Bachelor’s Colleges courses will not transfer to a university. Attrition rates show that not every Net tuition portion of education and related expenses 18-year-old student is ready to attend Average subsidy portion of education and related expenses college, which makes articulation Source: Delta Project on Post Secondary Education Costs, Productivity, and Accountability $8,359 $7,149 $5,666 $6,710 $6,206 $5,673 $6,908 $6,909 $4,963 $5,453 $4,048 $3,720 $4,762 $2,259 $2,630 $6,406 38 | March 2010 Average education and related spending per FTE student (in 2006 dollars) universitybusiness.com http://www.universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - March 2010

University Business - March 2010
Contents
Editor’s Note
College Index
Company Index
Advisory Board
Behind the News
Sense of Place
Financial Aid
Human Resources
Viewpoint
Money Matters
Community Colleges as Economic Saviors
Web Content Needs - Solved
Paths to the Presidency
What’s New
End Note

University Business - March 2010