 The report addresses emerging dilemmas modern community colleges
face, including how economic uncertainties are challenging
educational leaders to re-imagine and redefine institutional
objectives.Developed by AACC's 21st-Century Commission on the
Future of Community Colleges, the report and its wholesale
recommendations were assembled by a team of 38 key leaders from
across the country. Dr. Allen Goben, president of Heartland
Community College, is a member of the national commission.
"Community colleges are unique in creating opportunities for
achievement among students of all ages, backgrounds and interests
while serving our communities and society," Goben said. "The
commission's work addresses recent, vast societal changes and
provides a blueprint to help America realign our strong abilities
across all educational sectors and employers so that coherent,
relevant and high-impact career paths will be more strongly
supported. Whether employers hire our graduates or leverage our
colleges for ongoing training, partnering effectively will advance
community colleges as an exceptional return on investment by fueling
positive socioeconomic mobility at the personal, organizational,
community, state and national level. Equally important are
partnerships and alignment across K-12 schools and universities.
Just as the Founding Fathers of our country demonstrated, we are all
in this together, and we must all work together to create a positive
future."
Heartland Community College is already earning national
recognition for its student and community success initiatives,
putting it ahead of the curve with regard to several of the report's
recommendations -- specifically, those focusing on powerful local,
regional and national partnerships.
"The entire Heartland team and all of our community partners can
be proud of what we've already accomplished here in central
Illinois," Goben said. "Like our colleagues at community colleges
across Illinois and around the nation, we're changing lives every
day in positive ways through passionate educators, strategic
relationships, and resourceful collaboration. While our
Heartland
GPS: Guided Path to Success effort is still developing, it is
already becoming a leading model for career, college and life
planning. We've anchored this effort right where the commission
recommends we should focus. It is all about maintaining access to
opportunities while systemically structuring our college to support
student learning success and life achievement. It's a culture of
high expectations and high support."
The AACC report emphasizes the connection between education and
American prosperity, and how education and history have on several
occasions come together to inject new energy into the American way
of life. Additionally, the report explains why education is
typically not a partisan issue, because American legislative leaders
understand that the more educated its citizens are, the more likely
they are to be employed, earn a good living, support a family, pay
taxes and contribute to their community.
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"Community colleges across the country continue to empower and
energize the communities they serve," Goben continued. "By
invigorating economies, reducing crime rates and improving the
health and wellness of area citizens, Heartland Community College
and institutions like it will continue to play significant roles
rejuvenating opportunities to achieve the American dream."
The 21st-Century Commission is not the first to take up the
challenges and opportunities facing American community colleges. The
newly released AACC report follows in the tradition of two other
major reports: The 1947 report of the Truman Commission envisioned
community colleges as a mechanism to make higher education available
to all and created the modern comprehensive community college. And,
the 1988 report of the Commission on the Future of the Community
College set forth an agenda to strengthen the community college role
in building communities. The 2012 commission report harkens back to
the Truman Commission Report, though, in that it calls for a
tremendous realignment to modern and emerging national needs so that
the next generation may pursue the American dream.
The AACC report indicates the American dream is one of
opportunity, community and intergenerational upward mobility. In
pursuit of that dream, community colleges have already been proven
as a national asset, serving the country and its people well by
creating opportunity, supporting students and building communities.
Now, however, community colleges must re-examine their approach so
that they are truly and deeply relevant in the modern era. As
American community colleges collaborate to substantively realign
themselves with 21st-century societal needs, new and promising paths
promoting personal and community success will emerge.
"As one of the newest community colleges in Illinois and in
America, Heartland is fortunate to have a thoughtfully innovative
and progressive culture -- one that is sure to serve it well in
supporting our society through the 21st century and beyond," Goben
said.
For additional information about the American Association of
Community Colleges, visit www.aacc.nche.edu. For more information
about Heartland Community College, visit
www.heartland.edu.
[Text from news release from
Heartland Community College] |
