There are a few things that swirled through my head as I read Chapter 1 of The American Community College by Kisker, Cohen, and Brawer. First, I loved learning about the history of community colleges. I’m actually amazed at how often I forget to think about the origin of things because there’s so much to learn from history. Within that history, I was surprised to read about Stanford and the University of Michigan’s presidents (as well as a couple of universities) advocating for junior colleges to represent the underclassman (or the lower divisions) with general and vocational training. This would then free up universities to be solely focused on research and professional development (p. 6). As I was reading through the arguments for this I couldn’t help but wonder how this would look today if that were implemented. Would more students walk away with at least an associate’s degree because it feels less daunting than signing up for 4 years right from the start? From there, one could consider where they stand and if they want to continue on to earn a bachelor’s degree or higher. But at least by that point, they had already earned one credential.
One thing I appreciate about the community college is its ability to stack credentials. A student can earn a certificate sometimes in as little as one class. From there, depending on the program, they can apply those credits to a technical certificate. Again, they could stop there or they could apply the technical certificate credits towards an associate’s degree. Each credential means more potential earnings outside of college. Students might feel more motivated to work towards each credential because the reward is applied in increments and grows larger each time. I can almost see it as an addictive video game. Instead of needing to summon the motivation to go the long haul for their one reward, the incremental incentives might better motivate them to reach the ultimate goal. Now, with universities like Ball State and Ivy Tech partnering together for the student to transfer from the 2-year to the 4-year as junior status directly into a program like Computer Science, it gives the student that next achievable goal. It just had me wondering if all degrees were set up in this fashion—smaller achievable goals earning you credentials along the way—if more students might stick it out to the end. And if they didn’t? They’ve possibly walked away with at least one credential in their back pocket and money well spent. As they mentioned in the book, “One of the major benefits of a year of schooling is a ticket to advance to the next level” (Green, 1980 as cited in Kisker, Cohen, & Brawer, 2013, p. 6).
“People who fail to achieve in their youth should be given successive chances” (p. 11)
Somewhat similarly, when I was reading about junior colleges combining with secondary schools (the 6-4-4 system) I began to wonder if dual credit and options like the Indiana College Core or Muncie Central’s Early College Program (also discussed in the book p. 13) that provides both the option to complete the Indiana College Core of 30 credits or an Associate’s degree through Ivy Tech would be the new “junior college” experience. And while I think initially Indiana hoped to serve a more underserved and underrepresented population with the Indiana Core to allow accessibility to early college credits and a touchpoint into college, the statistics are showing that higher-income households and white students are more likely to be participants in these programs. It almost seems like this program has put another spotlight on the inequities of education in our state (and country). And while I have not done extensive research on this topic, I can’t help but wonder why inequitable education is even allowed in this country? I digress. Back to my original point, I was interested to read the history and ideas shared with the purpose to give everyone a chance to further their educational pursuits. I loved seeing how old ideas from the early 20th century were rehashed a bit and made into something new (such as the Early College High School programs). And overall, community colleges have stood firm in the belief that "all individuals should have the opportunity to rise to their greatest potential" (Kisker et al., 2013, p. 10).
Kisker, C.B., Cohen, A.M., & Brawer, F.B. (2013). The American Community College (6th ed.). Kindle.
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