Some Students Ask 'What Is the Point' of Community College
2023-04-16
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1Recent research suggests that there has been a big drop in enrollment in community colleges.
2Two-year community colleges fill the gap between high schools and four-year colleges.
3Some students take community college classes to get job training.
4Others go to community colleges to take lower-cost classes before moving to a four-year university.
5Community colleges can cost thousands of dollars less than four-year schools.
6But some students say credits for classes at community colleges do not always transfer to four-year colleges, and some employers say workers from community colleges are not always ready for jobs.
7At the same time, there are many jobs for people without a college education, which makes people believe they do not need college.
8Since 2010, the number of students at U.S. community colleges has dropped by 37 percent, or about 2.6 million students.
9Those numbers come from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, a non-profit group.
10That is a surprise to many people because, during the same period, the cost of higher education in the U.S. went up sharply.
11Many private four-year colleges can cost over $40,000 per year.
12Community colleges cost, on average, less than $4,000 per year.
13Some are even free of cost.
14Students say they are dropping out of community colleges because they lack support.
15Enrique Camara of Washington state was a good student in high school.
16He wanted to take audio engineering classes.
17But when he got to Shoreline Community College, he said it felt like he was in "a weird maze." He felt lost.
18He said he had trouble getting help with things like choosing the correct classes and getting financial aid.
19Camara said he had to "run from office to office" to find out what to do.
20After two school terms, Camara left Shoreline and he now works at a restaurant and plays music in two bands.
21Camara is not the only student who had problems.
22Megan Parish is 26. She lives in the southern state of Arkansas.
23She has been taking community college classes since 2016.
24She said she often has trouble getting information from administrators and advisers.
25Sometimes it took 30 days to get an answer from a person in the financial aid office.
26Twenty-year-old Oryanan Lewis is in a program for medical assistants at Chattahoochee Valley Community College in Alabama.
27She has had problems finishing her schoolwork because of a chronic sickness.
28Because she missed many classes, she was put on academic probation.
29That meant she was in danger of failing school.
30She said she only got attention from people who worked at the college when they realized she might leave.
31I feel like they should talk to their students more," Lewis said.
32"Because a person can have a whole lot going on."
33That means they might have problems others do not know about.
34Supporters of community colleges say they are supposed to help the students who need the most support.
35But there is not enough money to help everyone.
36In 2020, the Center for American Progress, a non-profit group, said community colleges get $8,800 less government money per student than four-year colleges.
37But experts like Joseph Fuller of Harvard Business School say the lack of money is only an excuse made by schools that are poorly run.
38Davis Jenkins is a researcher at the Community College Research Center, part of Teachers College at Columbia University in New York.
39He calls the current situation a "reckoning."
40He said the drop in students attending community colleges would look even worse if it were not for high school students.
41Some high school students take part in programs that enroll them in community college classes.
42Many students at community colleges start school aiming to move on to a four-year college.
43But research suggests the number of students able to do that is decreasing.
44The two-year schools have the worst completion rates of any kind of university or college.
45About half the students leave school within the first year.
46Only about 40 percent finish their two-year school term within six years.
47Many of the students who attend community colleges are minorities.
48Half of all Hispanic students and 40 percent of all Black students in higher education are at community colleges.
49If they are having trouble finishing a two-year program, that means they are not moving on to four-year colleges or finishing the job training programs.
50Observers say this is a problem for the U.S. economy.
51For years, community colleges have trained people to work as nurses, assistants to dentists, auto repair technicians, machine operators and many other jobs.
52If students do not complete two-year programs to become qualified for jobs, businesses will have trouble finding skilled workers.
53A recent study by the Harvard Business School showed not all employers are happy with community college graduates.
54Only 62 percent of employers thought community college graduates were ready to work.
55In addition, all colleges are having trouble keeping young people in recent years.
56That is because there are many jobs available right now that pay well and do not require a college education.
57This hurts community colleges more than four-year colleges.
58In Michigan, the number of students going to community colleges dropped three times faster than those going to four-year colleges.
59That information comes from the state's Center for Educational Performance and Information.
60It covers the period from 2018 to 2021.
61Even with all the problems, some community colleges do very well.
62Joseph Fuller, the professor at Harvard Business School, studies management.
63He said concerns about community colleges lacking enough money are "legitimate."
64"But a number of community colleges do extraordinarily well," Fuller said.
65"So, it's not impossible."
66I'm Jill Robbins. And I'm Dan Friedell.
1Recent research suggests that there has been a big drop in enrollment in community colleges. 2Two-year community colleges fill the gap between high schools and four-year colleges. 3Some students take community college classes to get job training. Others go to community colleges to take lower-cost classes before moving to a four-year university. Community colleges can cost thousands of dollars less than four-year schools. 4But some students say credits for classes at community colleges do not always transfer to four-year colleges, and some employers say workers from community colleges are not always ready for jobs. At the same time, there are many jobs for people without a college education, which makes people believe they do not need college. 5Since 2010, the number of students at U.S. community colleges has dropped by 37 percent, or about 2.6 million students. Those numbers come from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, a non-profit group. 6That is a surprise to many people because, during the same period, the cost of higher education in the U.S. went up sharply. Many private four-year colleges can cost over $40,000 per year. Community colleges cost, on average, less than $4,000 per year. Some are even free of cost. 7Getting lost 8Students say they are dropping out of community colleges because they lack support. 9Enrique Camara of Washington state was a good student in high school. He wanted to take audio engineering classes. But when he got to Shoreline Community College, he said it felt like he was in "a weird maze." He felt lost. 10He said he had trouble getting help with things like choosing the correct classes and getting financial aid. 11Camara said he had to "run from office to office" to find out what to do. After two school terms, Camara left Shoreline and he now works at a restaurant and plays music in two bands. 12Camara is not the only student who had problems. 13Megan Parish is 26. She lives in the southern state of Arkansas. She has been taking community college classes since 2016. She said she often has trouble getting information from administrators and advisers. Sometimes it took 30 days to get an answer from a person in the financial aid office. 14Twenty-year-old Oryanan Lewis is in a program for medical assistants at Chattahoochee Valley Community College in Alabama. She has had problems finishing her schoolwork because of a chronic sickness. 15Because she missed many classes, she was put on academic probation. That meant she was in danger of failing school. 16She said she only got attention from people who worked at the college when they realized she might leave. 17I feel like they should talk to their students more," Lewis said. "Because a person can have a whole lot going on." That means they might have problems others do not know about. 18A 'reckoning' 19Supporters of community colleges say they are supposed to help the students who need the most support. But there is not enough money to help everyone. 20In 2020, the Center for American Progress, a non-profit group, said community colleges get $8,800 less government money per student than four-year colleges. But experts like Joseph Fuller of Harvard Business School say the lack of money is only an excuse made by schools that are poorly run. 21Davis Jenkins is a researcher at the Community College Research Center, part of Teachers College at Columbia University in New York. He calls the current situation a "reckoning." 22He said the drop in students attending community colleges would look even worse if it were not for high school students. Some high school students take part in programs that enroll them in community college classes. 23Many students at community colleges start school aiming to move on to a four-year college. But research suggests the number of students able to do that is decreasing. 24The two-year schools have the worst completion rates of any kind of university or college. About half the students leave school within the first year. Only about 40 percent finish their two-year school term within six years. 25Many of the students who attend community colleges are minorities. Half of all Hispanic students and 40 percent of all Black students in higher education are at community colleges. If they are having trouble finishing a two-year program, that means they are not moving on to four-year colleges or finishing the job training programs. 26Observers say this is a problem for the U.S. economy. For years, community colleges have trained people to work as nurses, assistants to dentists, auto repair technicians, machine operators and many other jobs. If students do not complete two-year programs to become qualified for jobs, businesses will have trouble finding skilled workers. 27'It's not impossible' 28A recent study by the Harvard Business School showed not all employers are happy with community college graduates. Only 62 percent of employers thought community college graduates were ready to work. 29In addition, all colleges are having trouble keeping young people in recent years. That is because there are many jobs available right now that pay well and do not require a college education. This hurts community colleges more than four-year colleges. 30In Michigan, the number of students going to community colleges dropped three times faster than those going to four-year colleges. That information comes from the state's Center for Educational Performance and Information. It covers the period from 2018 to 2021. 31Even with all the problems, some community colleges do very well. Joseph Fuller, the professor at Harvard Business School, studies management. 32He said concerns about community colleges lacking enough money are "legitimate." 33"But a number of community colleges do extraordinarily well," Fuller said. "So, it's not impossible." 34I'm Jill Robbins. And I'm Dan Friedell. 35Dan Friedell adapted this story for VOA Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press and the Hechinger Report. 36Editor's Note: Next week: Two community colleges in Alabama work to solve the problem. 37____________________________________________________________________ 38Words in This Story 39enrollment -n. the process by which students are accepted and attend school 40gap -n. a space that exists between two things 41transfer -v. to move something from one place to another 42weird -adj. strange 43maze -n. a system of connected passages that is meant to be hard to understand and in which people can easily get lost 44chronic -adj. something without end; a condition that goes on for a long time 45reckoning -n. a time when someone is judged for their past actions 46legitimate -adj. fair or reasonable 47extraordinarily -adv. at a very high level 48__________________________________________________________________ 49We want to hear from you. What do you think can fix the problem at community colleges? 50We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 51Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.