Opening the door to the Baccalaureate Degree.

Community colleges have made their mark by providing high-quality, open access to higher education. This democratization of learning has resulted in the development of nearly 1,200 community and technical colleges across the United States. During the 100 years since the first public junior college was founded, the broader community college mission has expanded from a singular focus on university transfer to include technical and vocational education, adult education, workforce development, and remedial education. In the new century, the demand for even greater access to education has become critical. Once again, community colleges are being asked to step forward and provide the skilled workforce to keep the nation competitive in a global economy. Community colleges are uniquely qualified to meet this challenge of educating a wide population to the level required for entry into the skilled workforce. While the inate principles of the community college will remain intact, the mission should expand to offer the baccalaureate degree to more students, at convenient locations, in a more student-centered learning environment, and at a greatly reduced cost.

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During the last century, community colleges made their mark by providing open access to higher education. This democratization of learning resulted in the development of more than 1,200 community and technical colleges across the United States. Since the first public junior college was founded, the broader community college mission has expanded from a singular focus on university transfer to include technical and vocational education, adult education, workforce development, and remedial education. In the new century, the demand for even greater access to education has become critical. Once again, community colleges are being asked to step forward and provide the skilled workforce to keep the nation competitive in a global economy.

Availability, Affordability, and Convenience

Community colleges are uniquely qualified to meet the demand for training and educating a workforce to the level necessary to meet the needs of the twenty-first century. Moreover, the community college, because of its history of serving the socioeconomically disadvantaged populace, can open the door to even greater numbers of people. In this global economy, the baccalaureate degree is necessary for entry into many well-paying jobs of business and industry. Expanding the mission of the community college to offer the baccalaureate degree is a logical step since the community college can provide the degree to more learners, at convenient locations, in a more learner-centered environment, and at a greatly reduced cost to the learner and the state.

Edmund Gleazer, in his book on the community college, Values, Vision and Vitality (1980), points out that "the community college was sold on the basis, primarily, of providing college space and, secondarily, vocational-technical training. "`Mission,' as far as the public was concerned, was `college'" (p. 5). Gleazer notes that as community colleges expanded across the country, it became readily apparent that they would serve unique communities and needs. "Some observers say there are dangers in attempting to be specific with regard to mission," (p. 5) Gleazer points out. "Anytime we can describe the community college in definitive, specific terms, we will destroy it. It has to be different in different areas. The institution must be able to change as communities change with new conditions, demands, or circumstances" (p. 5).

Now community colleges find themselves in the midst of new challenges and changes, fueled by projections of unprecedented demands for higher education in the near future. "Projected increases in the number of college-age students threaten to overwhelm many state public higher education systems during the next decade" (Ehrenberg, 2000, p. 34).

A Compelling Purpose

Community colleges were designed to serve students who were not readily admissible to the university, students with limited financial means, poor academic records, language difficulties, and family concerns that made it hard for them to attend four-year institutions. Community colleges continue to serve those students well, and continue to adapt and adjust their programs to meet the changing needs of the community. As our institutions go about identifying community needs today, surveys and focus groups show that, in addition to the increasing need for basic skills and short-cycle training and certification, these same students want to earn baccalaureate degrees. Significantly, they are not always interested in, or capable of transferring, to traditional baccalaureate degree colleges or universities. Rather, they seek to earn the baccalaureate degree at their community college.

Much of the reason for this groundswell of support for community college baccalaureate degrees can be found in the students themselves. According to the latest census report, undergraduates are getting older. The percentage of college undergraduates age 24-34 has increased to 21%, compared to only 10% in 1970 (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1999). In addition to these returning students and first-time older college students, community colleges have traditionally attracted students with poor academic records, language difficulties, and limited resources. In fact, community colleges enroll more than one half of all minorities, women, and persons with disabilities who are engaged in higher education (Campbell, 2000).

These students have been able to find success at the community college and want to continue that success in the pursuit of the baccalaureate degree. Community college leaders have a strong loyalty to these nontraditional students and believe they have an obligation to continue serving them beyond two years. As a community college president, some of the thoughts that have occurred to me are, "Why should we take these students up to two years of education and then say we are going to throw you out; you're on your own? Find the university if you can get in, if you can afford it, if you can get there, if you can overcome the obstacles that are in your way."

Facing the Critics

In my 27 years as a community college president, I have often heard the criticism that students who start at a two-year institution are significantly less likely to complete a four-year degree than students who begin at a four-year college or university. Completion rates of community college students have always been hard to quantify since many people who attend community college have no intention of getting a degree, much less pursuing upper division studies. In Florida, however, statistics show that degree-seeking community college students traditionally do as well or better in the upper division of the state university system as those who enrolled there as freshmen (Florida Division of Community Colleges, 1999). Indeed, permitting community colleges to offer selected baccalaureate degrees can only serve to enhance these success rates since it will make the option of upper division studies accessible to more students.

Perhaps the most vocal arguments posed against authorizing community colleges to offer baccalaureate degrees is that it is an abandonment of the community college mission. James Wattenbarger (2000) says community colleges should stick to what they do best. "It would be difficult, if not impossible, to convince anyone that the bachelor's degree offered by a community college is as important as the one offered by a university or a four-year college. So the community college's bachelor's degree would always be known as a second-class bachelor's" (p. 4).

In my view, this is a faulty assumption. The community college associate's degree is a first class degree, and the professors are known for their quality teaching rather than research. Community colleges are accredited by the same regional accrediting associations as universities, and the same standards would apply for our bachelor's degree. Community college students are not taught by graduate assistants in classes with as many as 500 people in them. They will continue to be taught by quality faculty who emphasize learning. For these reasons, the community college baccalaureate degree would become a first class degree.

Adding the baccalaureate degree to the mission of the community college is not shifting focus; it is adding a focus in order to increase the relevance of the community college in serving its students. Recently, I heard the community college baccalaureate degree movement in the United States compared to the conversion of the British Polytechnics to universities. This is an invalid comparison because community colleges that are seeking authority to offer the baccalaureate degree do not want to be turned into universities. What we are talking about is keeping the core values of the community colleges, but saying to the students, "We are not going to get you halfway there and then abandon you. We are going to take you all the way to the baccalaureate degree."

The Canada Story

Rather than comparing the community college baccalaureate degree concept to the British Polytechnics, a more accurate correlation could be drawn to the case of the Canadian colleges and universities, which have experienced a very successful transformation of their community colleges to allow baccalaureate degree-granting authority. Ontario's Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities, Dianne Cunningham, announced in 2000 that Ontario community colleges would be permitted to offer applied degrees on a pilot basis. The provincial government invited Ontario's 25 publicly funded colleges to submit proposals for degree-granting programs. The Ontario government stipulated that the programs could not encroach on professions and fields of study traditionally taught in universities (Cunningham, 2000).

The provinces of Alberta and British Columbia had already adopted this approach as a way of increasing access to higher education for their citizens. As a result of planning initiated in 1994, the Alberta Department of Advanced Education and Career Development introduced an applied degree credential that combines formal instruction with accredited work experience. Applied degree programs provide enhanced career preparation that applies to a broader range of career and employment opportunities beyond entry-level in an industry. These programs, which are offered by some public colleges and technical institutes, are four-year programs, consisting of six semesters of academic studies and at least two semesters of paid, related, supervised work experience (Alberta Advanced Education and Career Development, 1998).

In 1995, British Columbia passed legislation to enable five university colleges and two specialized institutes in that province to grant undergraduate degrees independently. Peter Jones, president of The University College of the Fraser Valley, says that the question that led to this legislation was not whether the colleges should be like universities, but rather what kind of advanced education was needed in Canada. "The challenge for a university-college is not to create some kind of hybrid with some parts of it looking like a university and others looking like a college. The challenge is rather to create a degree-granting institution based firmly on the values of a community college" (Jones, 1994, p. 12).

Traditionally in Canada, degree-granting authority was restricted to universities. Colleges, community colleges or institutes of technology, were limited to career-oriented or technical training, as well as university transfer programs or general education leading to diplomas or certificates. In recent years, the lines of distinction between universities and colleges have become far less pronounced as provinces have endeavored to make optimum use of their educational resources.

The Competitive Edge

A very compelling reason for the community college baccalaureate degree lies in the fact that community colleges can provide the skilled workforce necessary to keep our nation competitive in a global economy. Alvin and Heidi Toffler, authors of The Third Wave, have identified a new level of skilled worker that will be needed in the new global economy. "As we transition toward a knowledge economy, more future-oriented organizations will seek Star people: individuals with multiple sharp points of skills who are experts at interconnecting with other stars and who thrive on multi-dimensional issues," say the Tofflers (Toffler, 2001, p. 67).

Community colleges are capable of developing innovative ways to help ordinary people become "stars," while solving the crisis of rising demand, limited access, and increasing costs. Expanding the mission to include the upper division degree is only logical given the fact that associate degree training is simply not going to be competitive in the twenty-first century. Providing entry-level opportunities to students who otherwise could not gain access to higher education is precisely what the community college would continue to do even if baccalaureate degree authority is granted. We are talking about community colleges offering selected workforce-oriented baccalaureate degrees that are in high demand by the communities they serve.

By adding baccalaureate degrees to our offerings, community colleges can help promote:

1. Increased geographical, financial, and academic access to upper-division education.

2. Cost efficiencies through the use of existing infrastructures.

3. Success among nontraditional or returning students through smaller classes, less rigid sequencing, and greater scheduling options.

4. Ready matriculation and upward mobility for students with associate degrees.

5. Stable family and employment relationships for students while they complete their degrees.

6. Community college commitment to economic and workforce development.

7. Responsiveness to community needs for specialized programs.

Doing What We Do Best

Critics of the community college baccalaureate degree talk about competition with universities and a fear that community colleges will forego their core values. "It's a very dangerous, slippery slope," says Gustavo Mellander (1999) of George Mason University. "I fear that people who are pushing for this will forget the community college mission and try to imitate four-year colleges when they don't have the background or the foundation for that" (p. 13).

However, these same critics may omit from their discussions the needs and demands of students and the desire of business and industry for well-educated employees. Community colleges have survived and prospered over the past century because leaders have adapted their mission in order to be responsive to community needs. To help ensure community college survival and relevance through the next century, we need to reassess our mission. If our communities change, the community college needs to change. As our students and communities increase their calls for access to baccalaureate degrees, community college leaders need to listen. The community college mission need not be defined by the needs of the past; rather, it should be defined by responsiveness, adaptation, and growth.

Nearly one half of all undergraduates attending public institutions are enrolled in community colleges, and many students would like to complete their degrees where they started (American Association of Community Colleges, 1997). Significantly, many of these students are high achievers who have aspirations to pursue mathematics, science, and engineering degrees. Traditionally, the community college has served as an entry point for nontraditional students, such as women and minorities, to enter these fields of study. In a recent Community College Times article, Susan Wood, president of the American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges, said, "Community Colleges are an under-appreciated resource. We have a lot of women coming through community colleges in mathematics, engineering, and the sciences, and they need to be nurtured, and there are women faculty in these areas who can be excellent role models" (p. 3).

The cost to the student is as much as one-third less for tuition and fees, and the cost to taxpayers is one-half less for producing a baccalaureate degree at a community college versus a state university (Florida State Board of Community Colleges, 1997). Lower costs and convenient geographical locations of community colleges would mean greater opportunities for significantly more place-bound students. For adult learners who own homes, are raising families, and have full-time jobs, earning a baccalaureate degree at a local community college may be their only option.

It Is Already Working

Working examples already in place across the U.S are propelling the impetus for the community college baccalaureate degree. In Nevada, Great Basin College began offering baccalaureate degrees in 1999, including an elementary education program, a Bachelor of Applied Science degree, which will provide an umbrella degree for technical areas of study, a Bachelor of Arts in professional studies, and a Bachelor of Science in nursing. The change from a two-year community college to a baccalaureate degree-granting community college was propelled by two major factors: a need to support and diversify the local economy, and a strong desire of the community for a four-year school (Gonzales, 2000).

Community pressure and activism also led to the conversion of Dixie State College in Utah from a two-year to a four-year school, and the metamorphosis of its mission to offer the baccalaureate degree. The new mission allowed Dixie State College to have a two-tier emphasis. The first was to continue on as a community college, and the second was the authority to offer a limited number of quality baccalaureate programs. The first two programs were business administration and computer and information technology (Carpenter, 1997).

Westark College, in Fort Smith, Arkansas, has embarked upon an innovative course to offer a competency-based, contextually integrated baccalaureate degree in manufacturing technology. The manufacturing technology degree employs a self-paced curriculum that allows the students to have flexible scheduling. The curriculum is learner centered, teacher facilitated, and is designed to meet the leadership demands of industry. The self-paced structure, the integration of general education requirements applied to a manufacturing environment, and the modular components make the program especially appealing to traditional students as well as to workers and employers (Tannehill & Connor, 2001).

To explore the viability of offering baccalaureate degrees at traditionally lower-division institutions, the Community College Baccalaureate Association (CCBA) was founded in 1999. The organization publishes a newsletter and hosts an annual conference to share information and develop ways to promote the community college baccalaureate degree to governors, state legislatures, national policy boards, and other appropriate persons and organizations. The CCBA currently has 63 members from 21 states, 5 Canadian provinces, and 2 Caribbean Island states.

Two More Years

The time has come to stop defining the community college mission as a two-year institution. It is not the mission of the community college to serve its students for two years. Its mission is to provide open access to all who would come to learn and to prepare them well at the level that for many workers will give them ready access into the job market. Increasingly, that entry level is the baccalaureate degree. I agree wholeheartedly that community colleges should continue to inspire ordinary people to go beyond two years of education, to lift them to the baccalaureate degree, to career advancement, and to a better quality of life.

While it is true that the addition of baccalaureate degrees will greatly change the nature of the community colleges that offer them, the core values of easy access, learner-centeredness, affordability, and convenience will not change. The mission of the college will expand, as it should, to remain viable. The mission of any institution must constantly adapt to the evolving society it serves. The innate principles of the community college will remain intact: open-door admissions, low cost, developmental studies, local control, workforce development, continuing education, and the granting of associate degrees. The culminating factor, however, is that, by offering the baccalaureate degree, community colleges will no longer be forced into the undesirable position of stamping the education they offer their students with an "incomplete."

* This article was solicited by the editor and was not subjected to peer review.

References

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Kenneth P. Walker is the district president of Edison Community College in Fort Myers, Florida. [e-mail]