A lesson from the British Polytechnics for American Community Colleges

Community College Review, Fall, 2001 by Cynthia V.L. Ward

Even though the antecedents of American higher education can be traced to the ancient universities of England, the American system has moved beyond the original model. Community colleges, although a unique American invention, can still learn from what is happening in modern-day Britain. The conversion of the British polytechnics into universities is parallel to the move by some community colleges to offer a workforce bachelor's degree. Based on the British experience, community colleges would do well to remain within their well-defined, universally understood parameters, rather than becoming hybrid institutions.

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Education seeks to raise aspirations. At all levels, students are encouraged, cajoled, and coaxed by teachers and parents to excel in their studies so that they can proceed to the next educational level. They are told that more education will result in greater security and in a better quality of life overall. Convincing empirical evidence exists to support at least the first of these contentions. For instance, based on 1992 figures, the lifetime earnings for workers were estimated to be $821,000 for high school graduates, $1.06 million for associate degree recipients, and $1.42 million for holders of bachelor's degrees (US Bureau of Census, 1994). In terms of employment, a college graduate is 10% more likely to be employed than is a high school graduate (Sanchez & Laanan, 1998). On average, further education leads to increased earnings and improves the chance of remaining employed, two elements essential for workers to achieve economic security.

Not only individuals, but institutions as well, have aspirations. Educational institutions are particularly susceptible to comparisons with other institutions and are constantly striving to better their relative standing. The process of ranking institutions of higher education has become a profitable business enterprise. Currently in the United States, over 50 publications produce comparative ratings, including special annual editions of U.S. News & World Report, Time, and Newsweek. Within higher education there is a clear institutional hierarchy, stratified in the U.S. by the Carnegie classification scheme. Although not every institution can or wants to be in the top category (that of "Doctorate-Granting Universities-Extensive" in the latest Carnegie categories), there is continual pressure placed on educational institutions to improve in stature and rank.

Community Colleges Serving Ordinary People

A recent addition to the American higher education structure, the community colleges came into being primarily to serve those students who were not readily admissible or did not have ready access to more traditional institutions. From the outset, two-year colleges were designed as multipurpose institutions, which were to fulfill four major educational purposes: transfer and preparatory, preprofessional, terminal general, and terminal occupational (Eaton, 1994, p. 14). Over the course of the twentieth century, the purposes of two-year colleges multiplied and expanded. These changes are reflected in the adoption of the new definitive title: "community colleges." Contemporary two-year institutions are expected not only to educate their students, but also to provide services to their local communities and to society at large (Boone, 1997). However, the dedication of two-year colleges to assist students at the bottom end of the higher education market, those underserved by traditional higher education, has remained in place. Potential students with limited financial means, with poor academic records, with language difficulties, and with personal or family backgrounds that tend to impede academic success are actively recruited by community colleges.

Thus, community colleges are wedded to the premise that all students, regardless of previous educational attainment, financial situation, or time demands, should have the opportunity to acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to become economically secure and responsible members of society. Koltai (1993) underscored this point in his revealing description of community colleges. K. Patricia Cross is quoted in the article as saying that, "the tough problem is not in identifying winners; it is in making winners out of ordinary people." Koltai responded that, with their open-admissions policies and their remedial programs, the community college, more than any other segment of higher education, has confronted "this responsibility of creating winners rather than merely selecting them" (p. 112). All indications are that the community colleges will experience an ever-expanding market for their services in the foreseeable future, due primarily to two defining and countervailing forces: the increasing skills levels required for most jobs and the low skill levels exhibited by most high school students.

Projections indicate that, at least in the immediate future, the majority of job openings will require some college work but not necessarily a bachelor's degree (Cohen & Bawer, 1996). Students and their families, however, continue to value the four-year degree and the promise that it holds. Though community colleges offer a stepping stone to the baccalaureate degree, 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 (Sanchez & Laanan, 1998). The same conditions responsible for initially channeling students to community colleges (underpreparedness and financial need) negatively affect the probability that they will finish a two-year degree and, to an even greater extent, a four-year degree (Dougherty, 1994). Graduates of two-year institutions electing to attend four-year institutions also may face the added barrier of lack of geographic proximity; however, with the increasing availability of distance education, physical location is diminishing as an issue.