HCCS struggles to regain its footing: one of the nation's largest community college systems seeks to overcome board controversies and bad publicity - Houston Community College System

Black Issues in Higher Education, Dec 6, 2001 by Lydia Lum

HOUSTON

As it tries annexing more land and pushing a bond election, Houston's largest community college -- and one of the largest nationally -- remains mired in governing board controversies and bad publicity.

And for now, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) wonders how well this college district has its act together. A year ago, SACS placed the Houston Community College System (HCCS) "on notice," a form of probation, amid doubts of how effectively the administration and elected trustees work together.

SACS is scheduled this month to review the progress and improvements the college district has made in recent months. At worst, SACS could strip HCCS of its accreditation if it doesn't meet SACS standards by December 2002. At the least, the five-campus, 50,449-student HCCS already is suffering yet another growing pain because of the sanction.

Throughout the 1990s, trustees have squabbled with each other and with HCCS administrators. The vitriol eventually claimed popular chancellor Dr. Ruth Burgos-Sasscer, who after a four-year tenure resigned last year. And even with public spats subsiding since Chancellor Dr. Brace Leslie was hired, public scrutiny on HCCS returned this semester over costly elections and one trustee's heated verbal exchange with a faculty member.

But you may not hear about any of that when talking to Leslie. Leslie, who became interim chancellor in October 2000, was the lone finalist for the permanent job a year ago. In a Black Issues interview, Leslie talks of surveying community support for a bond election. He also wants to lobby voters in at least two more public school districts to approve HCCS annexation. He illustrates the community's respect for HCCS academics when he recounts how during small talk in a checkout line, a student he had never met raved about an HCCS music class, not knowing Leslie was chancellor.

As for the SACS review, Leslie believes that when SACS releases its findings, possibly this month or shortly after the new year, "we should be in very good stead" with SACS. "The board of trustees has made tremendous strides," Leslie says. 'They are focusing on fundamental issues. They have found their voice. It's been a very exciting time for me."

PROBLEMS `FILTER DOWN'

Optimism aside, the specter of turmoil in a community college system is a sobering one, according to educators across the country. It also could strike any two-year college, urban or rural. The ramifications reach far because college leaders and governing boards play such key roles in defining school culture.

"If the board and the chancellor are having problems, it does filter down," says Dr. George Vaughan, professor of higher education at North Carolina State University. Vaughan has extensively researched community colleges and their presidents and governing boards. "These people can enhance the college culture, they can create a negative culture. Is learning placed first, or is it politics? If the board and the president are devoting time and energy to a negative culture, then they're not devoting themselves to academic standards. There are only 24 hours in a day. Fussing, feuding and fighting can eat up lots of time."

Should the average citizen care? Even a working professional who has never attended community college? Most definitely, Vaughan and others say.

Certainly, many working professionals "couldn't care less about daily operations" at their local community college, Vaughan says. If college trustees and administrators are politicking, they're spending less time raising local monies to support programs. "Then suddenly, this working professional wants to take a class after work, from 7 to 10 p.m.," Vaughan says. "But the class is canceled because the funds weren't available. And in extreme cases, if accreditation is removed because the leadership weren't taking care of business. Then this working professional isn't even going to want to attend this school, or want his son or daughter to go there. So this can get very personal."

And, of course, the public should want its public institutions to succeed, observers say. More than 10 million students are now enrolled in our nation's community colleges. That's nearly half of all American undergraduates, according to the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC).

That point is not lost upon Houstonians. Students are more likely to stay and work in an area as economic contributors if they have completed their education nearby, than if they leave that area for school. Also, the work-force training function of community colleges is growing. Studies indicate "people like my 17-year-old son are likely to have five careers in his life," with the need to be re-trained 13 times, says Jim Kollaer, president of the Greater Houston Partnership, which is much like a chamber of commerce. "And they say that four of those careers don't even exist yet," Kollaer says.

Furthermore, community colleges are of increasing importance to minorities. About one-third of community college enrollment nationally is Hispanic, with those students representing the fastest-growing minority at two-year colleges, according to the AACC. Among all minorities, 55 percent each of Hispanic and American Indian undergraduates attend community colleges. Also, 46 percent each of Black and Asian undergraduates attend community colleges at any given time. The HCCS is one of 209 Hispanic-serving institutions nationally, meaning at least 25 percent of their students are Hispanic and at least half of those Hispanics qualify for Pell grants. Nationally, Hispanic-serving institutions make up only 5 percent of all higher education institutions. But as recently as 1997, they enrolled nearly half of all Hispanic students.