Community colleges play increasingly important role

Once the neglected step-child of post-secondary education, community colleges have acquired a new, and arguably, important status, as centers of preparation for the 21st century world of work.

USA Today has been running a series on the role community colleges play in preparing the U.S. workforce, particularly when it comes to preparing students for jobs that will be in high demand over the coming decade.

From the article,

Now, community college leaders insist that their institutions, created to serve their local communities, have grown even more important on a larger stage. If the USA wants to keep pace with other industrialized nations, studies show, more of its workforce will need to be educated, including those who have traditionally been left behind by higher education: low-income students, working adults, underserved minorities and those who need remedial help before college. Community colleges, which were founded on the very notion that anybody who wants an education ought to be able to get one, are positioned to serve those populations, advocates say.

Enrollment at Maine’s community colleges have experienced a noticeable uptick, which bodes well for the state’s future.

You can read the most recent article from USA Today, here.