A S T R AT E G I C G U I D E T O

Maximizing LaborMarket Responsiveness

The 21st-CenturyCommunity College

VOLUME 2Promising Practices and Lessons From the Field

The 21st-CenturyCommunity College:A Strategic Guide toMaximizing LaborMarket Responsiveness

Volume 2Promising Practices andLessons from the Field

September 2004

Keith MacAllumKarla Yoderwith Anne Rogers Poliakoff

Academy for Educational Development

Prepared for the Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE), U.S. Department of Education, by theAcademy for Educational Development (AED), Washington, D.C., and Westat, Rockville, Md.

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This publication was produced under U.S. Department of Education Contract No. MOBIS 6S-23-F-814414 from the

Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) to Westat and the Academy for Educational Development (AED).

Direction was provided by Burt Carlson, Acting Chief, OVAE, Effective Practices Branch. Andrew Abrams served as

the contracting officer's technical representative (COR). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the

positions or policies of the Department of Education. No official endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education

of any product, commodity, service, or enterprise mentioned in this publication is intended or should be inferred.

U.S. Department of Education

Rod Paige

Secretary

Office of Vocational and Adult Education

Susan Sclafani

Assistant Secretary

September 2004

This publication is in the public domain. Authorization to reproduce it in whole or in part is granted. While

permission to reprint this publication is not necessary, the citation should be: U.S. Department of Education,

Office of Vocational and Adult Education, The 21st-Century Community College: A Strategic Guide to

Maximizing Labor Market Responsiveness, Volume 2 - Promising Practices and Lessons From the Field,

Washington, D.C., 2004.

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Volume 2

Promising Practices andLessons from the Field

CONTENTS

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v

How to Use This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi

Leadership and Governance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Organizational Structure and Staffing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Organizational Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Resources and Funding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Information and Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39Relationship-Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49Partnerships . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59Concluding Remarks and Next Steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67Notes: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Appendix: Profiles of the Participating Colleges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

List of Sample Resources and Practical Advice

Resource: The Workforce Development Institute . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Practical Advice: Steps to Becoming an Entrepreneurial College . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19Resource: The Workforce Initiative . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Practical Advice: Economic Development Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37Resource: Responding to Changing Labor Market Conditions Through Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47Practical Advice: Approaches to Labor Market Responsiveness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

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Preface

The Community College LaborMarket ResponsivenessInitiativeThe Community College Labor MarketResponsiveness (CCLMR) Initiative was created todevelop and disseminate information and toolsenabling community colleges, as a unique andcritical component of America's education andtraining system, to keep pace with the needs of adiverse student body and a dynamic labormarket. The U.S. Department of Education,Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE)undertook this initiative in the fall of 2002.

The main goals of the initiative are: 1) determinethe characteristics of a "market responsive"community college and identify the indicatorsand measures by which market responsivenesscan be judged; 2) identify the policies andpractices community colleges have put in placeto facilitate and support labor marketresponsiveness; 3) pinpoint the steps collegescan take to improve labor market responsivenessand the quality of customized programs theyoffer to students; and 4) disseminate thatknowledge to the field.

The conclusions presented by Westat and AED inthis guidebook rely heavily upon case studyanalysis of more than 30 colleges in 10 diverselabor markets, especially hundreds of interviewsand discussions conducted with college leaders,employers, and economic developmentprofessionals. To augment the case studies, wecollected standardized data across all collegesusing surveys and document review, conductedstatistical analyses, reviewed the relevantliterature, and consulted with experts.

In addition to this guidebook, other usefulproducts listed below have emerged from theresearch component of this initiative. These areavailable at http://www.nccte.org/ and athttp://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/.

Documented Characteristics of Labor-Market-Responsive Community Colleges anda Review of Supporting Literature (Westatand AED, 2003)

Research Appendices to The 21st CenturyCommunity College (Westat, forthcoming)

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In each module, broad findings and cross-cutting themes are explained in great detail andspecific examples from colleges are presented.Each module closes with a brief summary oflessons learned. Questions are embeddedthroughout the modules to provoke thoughtfulreflection and focus attention on practicalaction regarding current structures, policies,procedures, and programs at each college. Theoutcomes of discussions among the collegepresident and his or her colleagues will informthe college's strategic planning process.

The information and strategies appearing inthe seven modules emerged from ourextensive study of over 30 communitycolleges. To promote additional thinking, wehave interspersed between these modulesdetailed information on especially relevantresources and practical advice culled fromother sources. These supplementarymaterials point to opportunities and strategiesthat have general applicability to labor marketresponsiveness rather than applicability to anyspecific dimension of it. However, these arejust examples, not an exhaustive list;there are other materials that may beuseful, including materials that are still inthe production stage, and we encourageeach reader to seek them out as theybecome available.

Practical Examples And Resources

During the course of our study of communitycolleges across the nation, we endeavored toidentify practices that highlight the range andcreativity of their efforts. This guidebookshowcases some of the most innovative andpromising of these practices. Many representcommon strategies that most collegesemploy; others are unique. Some wouldrequire major investments, while others couldeasily be emulated with only minorreallocation of resources.

Because these illustrations are drawn from awide cross-section of community colleges,regardless of your college's location, student

How to Use This Guide

Volume 1 of this guidebook provides anoverview of labor market responsiveness andestablishes common ground from which you,the community college leadership, canaddress this important issue. We encourageyou and those at your college engaged inpromoting labor market responsiveness toread it through to better inform yourselvesand motivate others.

Volume 2 is the heart of the guidebook.Drawing from in-depth case studies of morethan 30 colleges, it presents a roadmap foraction. Each of Volume 2's seven modulesexplores a different facet of the communitycollege that contributes to labor marketresponsiveness. These facets, which rangefrom leadership and structure to resourcesand partnerships, represent various aspectsof an organic whole. As such they are notmutually exclusive, but rather mutuallyreinforcing, and the user will findconsiderable cross-referencing among themodules as the connections andinterrelationships are discussed.

While it is possible to read this volume in itsentirety, the seven modules are in factdesigned to be used independently of oneanother and referenced time and again aseach college president and his or her teamprogresses through processes of self-reflection and strategic planning. Like atravel guide, this volume points out numerouspaths leading to the goal of labor marketresponsiveness. The starting point willdepend upon local conditions, immediateneeds, and existing opportunities.

Although some community colleges maybenefit from the lessons learned in eachmodule, most will likely discover that thereare two or three dimensions that needspecial attention. By using the self-assessment tools in Volume 3, the collegeleaders and their teams will be able tobetter determine which of the criticaldimensions presented here need to beprioritized for action.

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demographics, or local economic conditions,you will find examples applicable to itscircumstances. In many cases, a communitycollege could adopt these strategies with onlymodest modifications to match itscircumstances.

A brief profile of each college participating inthis project is presented in the appendix tothis volume. There you will be able to quicklydetermine how your college compares tothose sharing promising practices here. Wehave also provided the main telephonenumber should you wish to contact thecollege directly for additional information. Foradditional information on colleges of particularinterest, see Research Appendices to The21st-Century Community College forthcomingat http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ovae/

Seven Key Modules Of This Guide

It is no coincidence that our in-depthexploration of the dimensions associated withmarket responsiveness begins withleadership. Leadership is critical to allaspects of a college's success, but to nonemore than to shaping the very essence of thecollege's underlying mission and creating ashared understanding of what it means to belabor-market-responsive. Following thismodule and stemming directly fromleadership are discussions of the responsivecollege's internal structure and culture.

Acquiring resources and gathering data inorder to develop effective programs follow.The final two modules focus on the interfacebetween the college and its community:building relationships and implementingpartnerships.

Although these discussions are overlappingand mutually reinforcing, we examine eachdimension in turn. Each module presentsinformation, guides self-reflection, and offerspractical examples for action. Taken together,we hope these modules provide the keyingredients necessary for community collegesto maximize their potential as labor-market-responsive colleges.

Throughout this guide we refer to "labor-market-responsive colleges" or "responsivecommunity colleges." All of the collegesmentioned in this guide employ noteworthyand promising practices and strategies, andthese are highlighted throughout. Many ofthese approaches are employed at multiplecolleges. Others are unique, created fromlocal circumstances and inspiration.However, none of the colleges visitedincorporated all of these approachessimultaneously and not all colleges portrayeduniform depth and complexity ofimplementation. When we refer to "the labor-market-responsive college" in this guide, weare describing an ideal toward which collegescan aspire rather than any actual institution.The colleges cited in this guide point the way.

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Leadership and Governance

The right leadership is essential to a labor-market-responsive community college. Bothresearch and common knowledge suggest this tobe the case. The case studies conducted for thedevelopment of this guide elevated theimportance of leadership. It is perhaps the keyfeature internal to a college that improves itspotential to meet and anticipate local labor-market needs. The most responsive and effectivecolleges have become so through theirleadership. A senior administrator at AnneArundel Community College in Maryland notedthat the leading "colleges that come to mind inworkforce development are who they are becauseof the commitment of their CEO." The influenceof leadership permeates every aspect of theresponsive community college and its efforts.

Entire books have been written about thecomplex and multifaceted subject of leadership.This module limits its discussion to generalfindings and guidance concerning effectiveleadership of the market-responsive college. Wehighlight six particularly relevant aspects ofleadership: the locus of leadership; the priorityplaced on the mission; a vision that extendsbeyond the traditional service area; knowledge ofeconomic and market trends; effectiveness in

public relations and resource acquisition; andsuch personal qualities as entrepreneurship.

Leadership Cannot Reside in One Person

Although the president is the college's primaryleader, he or she cannot lead in isolation.Leadership that nurtures labor marketresponsiveness also resides with the board oftrustees. We observed that responsive collegeshad boards that were active in setting prioritiesand an overarching mission that focuses thecollege on its local labor market, and kept thecollege committed to the policy and programdirections that stem from that mission. Boardsmay even play a role in allocating resources toworkforce development. At Valencia CommunityCollege in Florida, the board earmarks$300,000 a year as start-up capital for trainingfor businesses that are relocating to Orlando, aspart of an initiative with the local economicdevelopment commission.

An important governing role of a college boardincludes the selection of a new president. Anabiding interest by the board in workforce

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college could address those needs as well.This awareness translates into commitmentfrom the top of the organization to makinglabor market responsiveness a college priorityand to embracing that commitment publicly.As personnel at Moraine Valley CommunityCollege observed, success in responding tothe labor market "starts with a leadershipcommitment to making it happen." And theypraise their board for its "social conscience atthe leadership level."

The Importance of Mission and Vision

All community college leaders have a visionfor the future of their institutions. For agrowing number, this includes envisioning amore significant role for their colleges inmeeting labor market needs in theircommunities and beyond. A visionencompassing labor market responsivenessthat has been internalized by collegeleadership and staff will lead to numerousworkforce and economic developmentinitiatives.

Leaders at labor-market-responsive collegesconvey their commitment to and vision ofmeeting local labor market needs publicly andwidely through the college's mission andstrategic plan. Written goals encourageaction. Labor-market-responsive colleges haveadopted a mission statement that establishesworkforce or economic development as aninstitutional commitment. College personnelconsistently refer to these statements andplans when speaking of institutional activitiesand direction on their campuses. Thoughmost community colleges have long beeninvolved in market-responsive activities, the

development will influence their search for anew CEO, since they will choose a candidatewho shares that commitment and passion.Additionally, the president must have the fullsupport of the college governing body inleading the institution towards marketresponsiveness. Achieving agreement onvalues and priorities related to labor marketresponsiveness is an essential first step.

Although leadership starts at the top, it mustalso be diffused throughout the organization.Senior administrators who participate indecision-making and program managementplay important roles as part of the leadershipteam at the effective colleges we visited. Atsome colleges, faculty members as well asadministrators were expected to assumeleadership roles and empowered to takeinitiative. Vernon Crawley, the president ofMoraine Valley Community College in theChicago area, expects staff to be risk-takers,self-starters, and able to set a vision. Facultyand staff at that college have spoken up uponseeing an opportunity or the solution to achallenge, or otherwise seized the momentfor action. Moraine Valley's trainingpartnership with Cisco Systems, in which thecollege functions nationally as a CiscoAcademy Training Center, is cited as anexample of faculty leadership, both in itsinitiation and its subsequent expansion. Tosustain institutional engagement in labormarket responsiveness over the long haul,colleges must place a consistent emphasison leadership development for administrators,board members, and faculty.

Making Labor MarketResponsiveness a Priority

Exceptional leadership begins with recognizingthe value of labor market responsiveness.Before leaders can develop a strategic plan toachieve labor market responsiveness, theymust understand the role that the communitycollege can play in the local economy.Knowledge of the national labor marketenables leadership to envision how the

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What priority do youplace on the mission

of meeting localworkforce and economic

development needs?

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need to formalize these commitments inofficial ways became clear from the collegesstudied. It was evident that the mosteffective colleges had honed their writtengoals for some time, while others wereinfusing new impetus or a more holisticapproach to their activities by redraftingmission statements or adding a new focusto strategic plans. In addition tooverarching goals, the strategic plans ofresponsive colleges specifically target locallabor market needs and spell out the college'splan for fulfilling its local economicdevelopment role. As the boxed examplesdemonstrate, written statements showcase acollege's willingness, and that of itsleadership, to commit resources todeveloping the workforce. These documentsdirectly influence the culture on campus,dictate its structure, and determine actions tobe taken.

The processes of establishing thesestatements, college representatives confirm,are themselves key to securing thecommitment of leadership and staff to labormarket responsiveness. When labor market

responsiveness is on the table during theinformation-gathering, self-evaluation, andgoal-setting processes that underlie mission-building and strategic planning, it is morelikely to take root in an organization as anidea and a purpose. Not only is thereopportunity to define the concept and exploreits implications for the campus, but staffmembers also have the opportunity to airtheir concerns and even fears. Widespreadcampus commitment to the new purpose ismore likely to result from a process thatallows staff members to voice theirapprehension about the ramifications of whatis a profound cultural shift from the academicpurposes of a traditional community college.

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Indian River Community College (Florida): “In partnerships with business, industry, educational institutions and the community, the college is a leader ineconomic and workforce development and a center for professional, personal, and cultural enrichment.” Indian RiverCommunity College Web site: www.ircc.cc.fl.us/atircc/welcome/missionstmt.html

Mountain Empire Community College (Virginia): “MECC functions within the educational community to assure that all individuals in its service area are given acontinuing opportunity for the development and extension of their skills and knowledge through quality programs andservices that are financially and geographically accessible. MECC provides leadership in determining and addressingboth the needs of individuals and the economic needs of the College's service area.” Mountain Empire CommunityCollege Web site: www.me.vccs.edu/mission.htm

Springfield Technical Community College (Massachusetts): “STCC has a strong and recognized commitment to the economic development of the Pioneer Valley, Massachusetts,and the nation.” Springfield Technical Community College Handbook, available online at:www.stcc.edu/services/handbook/stateanddisc.html

Market Responsiveness Reflected inMission Statements

To what extent is yourcollege's commitment to

labor marketresponsiveness reflectedin the mission statement

and strategic plan?

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In addition, the leadership of communitycolleges that meet local labor market needsmaintains a broad outlook on economic andworkforce trends. It is a truism that weoperate today in a global economy. Collegesfail to prepare workers adequately if theyattempt to define local employment needs inisolation from other labor markets. Regional,national, and global economies profoundlyinfluence local labor markets. Understandingthese broader trends enables one toanticipate local shifts. Although mostcollege mission statements do not set forth aregional or national agenda, it is evident fromconversations on campus that the leadershipof many community colleges looks far beyondthe local horizon of the college district or

traditional community.

As Dennis Merrell, thepresident of YorkTechnical College inSouth Carolina noted,with regard toeconomic andworkforce trends, "If acommunity college is

only looking at their service area, they've gotto get their heads out of the sand. We'relooking at the thing right in front of us, butwe miss the tsunami." Numerous collegepersonnel emphasized the importance of notlimiting the vision to regional concerns, butgoing national. Responsive colleges told usthat national visibility and connections helpthem in many ways - from the political to thestrategic and financial. Colleges dependupon their leaders to articulate this broadperspective and communicate its importanceto faculty and staff.

The Public Relations Role of Leaders

Presidents are regularly viewed as the faceof the community college. Throughobserving and listening to the president,community members learn about the

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One initiative in the Gaston College (NorthCarolina) five-year strategic plan is providing proactiveleadership in economic development. The five goalsunder this initiative clearly articulate the mission andvision of its leadership:

Strengthen regional partnerships with

business/industry, community agencies, and

other educational institutions to enhance

economic development;

Increase involvement of business/industryemployers and economic development organizationsin educational programs and course development;

Develop programs and services that fit the needs andrequirements of external funding groups to betterserve special populations such as displaced workers;

Provide opportunities for a renewed sense ofentrepreneurship in the business community; and

Continually implement new curricula that respondto the emerging needs of the community.

Vision for the Future: Gaston College Strategic Plan 2003-2008

Strategic Planning forEconomic Development

Tony Zeiss, the president of Central PiedmontCommunity College (CPCC) in North Carolina ledthe formation of the Charlotte Region WorkforceDevelopment Partnership, which involves 10community colleges operating in 16 counties, the localschool district and university, chambers of commerce,economic development groups, and business. Henotes that recruiting new industry benefits the region,not just the county where a particular businessrelocates. Reflecting on the nationwide retirement ofbaby boomers, the president is thinking about sourcesfor replacement workers. If the labor pool increasesthrough immigration, the college could offer more ESL.The college could also train seniors and functionallyilliterate individuals, especially if national securityconcerns restrict immigration. CPCC has rallied Rotaryclubs and volunteers to run literacy courses and workswith a local senior center to reach older workers.

Regional and NationalVision

Does your outlookextend beyond yourcollege's traditional

service area?

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interests and activities of the institution.Enhancing public respect for the collegeand recognition of its contributions helpsensure that it is regarded as a key partnerin local economic development. Presidentsshare this public relations role with theirboard members. These leaders educateopinion leaders and power brokers aboutthe institution, both to familiarize them withthe college and to secure new partnershipsand resources. College leaders networkwith leaders from other arenas - corporate,political, government, even sports andmedia - to make connections that willfurther the college's mission. They findways, on campus and off, to showcase thecollege's mission and accomplishments andreward friends of the institution. Inaddition, effective presidents forgeconnections with the leaders of othercommunity colleges and create networks ofeducation and training providers.

"Cheerleader" is a term often used todescribe the presidential role. Thecommunity relations role of dynamic senioradministrators and program managers ofcontinuing education and training divisionswas clearly important at the colleges wevisited. However, in the most responsivecolleges, presidents and board memberstake on the majority of high-level networkingroles. The involvement of these leadersappears particularly significant in securinglarge grants or the substantial resourcesneeded to begin a new program. Presidentsoccasionally act as the key contact withimportant partners, in order to demonstrate

to both sides of the partnership thecommitment that the college is making tolabor market responsiveness. Because oneperson can develop and maintain only somany strong partnerships, the communitycollege leader needs to select strategicallyamong relationships and events in which totake part and delegate this responsibility toother college officials.

Well-Informed Leaders AreAnticipatory

Good leaders are well informed on theissues. Labor-market-responsive presidentsactively seek out information and data on theoverall economic picture. The leaders ofresponsive colleges understand the evolvingneeds of local employers and familiarizethemselves with local, regional, and nationallabor market trends. This investment of timeis well spent, for such information forms thebuilding blocks of plans to anticipate andmeet coming needs. Given the importanceof this information, the president and senior

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Do you capitalize onopportunities to lead byexample in communityinvolvement? Are you

outspoken in your publiccommitment to market

responsive goals?

"I am the cheerleader," said Zerrie D. Campbell, thepresident of Malcolm X College in Chicago, "the majorpublic relations vehicle." She is not only visible in thelocal community and energetic in encouraging its residents,but is also energetic and effective in bringing powerfulplayers to the campus. The president holds a gala in theatrium of the main campus building each February,primarily for corporate leaders. Her breakfast for legislatorsbrings city and state politicians to campus, "to see whatwe've accomplished and what we need." The Jazz Café,also held in the atrium, is free to the community butstrategically draws people from business and industry. Sheensures that graduations are opportunities for awards topowerful friends of the campus "to showcase those who'vebeen responsive to us." All of these campus eventsbecome opportunities to showcase the mission andaccomplishments of Malcolm X College.

President as PublicRelations Vehicle

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officers must drive the institution's researchagenda to ensure effective decision-making.Information-gathering positions the collegeas anticipatory, looking ahead and planningfor the future.

Presidents and administrators at responsivecolleges referred to articles, reports, anddata as a matter of course when discussingnational employment trends or the localindustry shifts. Their sources were manyand varied. Examples of nationalinformation-gathering include the high-growth industry profiles distributed by theEmployment and Training Administration atthe U.S. Department of Labor and an articleon the coming job boom in Business 2.0.Constance Carroll, the president of SanDiego District's Mesa College, foresaw atraining need in chemtech, and

subsequently developed a program to meetit, having read in the newspaper about thelarge number of pharmaceutical companiesmoving into San Diego.

Economic information can be gathered fromexperts as well. To anticipate how nationaleconomic trends might impact local workforcedevelopment needs, and to prepare thecommunity college to train that workforce,Anthony Zeiss, the president of CentralPiedmont Community College in NorthCarolina, invited representatives from the U.S.Departments of Education and Labor, theU.S. Chamber of Commerce, and theAmerican Association of Community Collegesto a workforce summit in Charlotte with localeconomic development officials, businesses,and community colleges. As convener of thesummit, the community college enhanced itsreputation as an institution capable ofanticipating the opportunities in andchallenges facing its community.

In addition, leaders must keep current withthe practices of other community collegesthat succeed in responding to their localmarkets, analyze their applicability to thelocal environment, and implement appropriateprograms and strategies. Senior personnel atGaston College near Charlotte, N.C., reportedthat the president frequently asks them whatother colleges in the state are doing andintentionally uses those colleges asbenchmarks for measuring progress andassessing possibilities.

Leaders gather important information andshare it with the campus. Collegepersonnel frequently report how much theygain from and appreciate their leaders'

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In the 1980s, York Technical College (SouthCarolina) became involved in the maintenance of electricvehicles. College leaders, familiar with national research,knew that many of these cars were being built but that noone was anticipating the need for maintenance. As aresult, York Tech became a charter member of the NationalAlternative Fuel Training Program Consortium anddeveloped a training program adopted nationwide forelectrical vehicle maintenance. The first program led to afocus on natural gas vehicles in the early 1990s, then fuelcell vehicles, and now hybrids. Alternative energy isimportant to the local community because auto pollutionhas caused air- and water-quality problems that couldhinder local economic growth. York Tech is now moving intothe field of energy efficiency and alternative energy for thehome. The college plans to educate the public and beginto train plumbers and electricians in the new systems,rather than wait to be asked to do so. "Part of our role isproactive, staring out towards where the end of theheadlights reach," says president Dennis Merrill. "This isgoing to have an impact on our community. Are there thingswe could start doing now to prepare for that?"

Anticipating theEconomic Future

Do you seek out reportsor data to familiarizeyourself with local,

regional and nationaleconomic trends?

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participation in economic developmentmeetings and in relationships with powerfulfigures and key partners. Thanks to thecollege leadership, faculty and staff becomeaware of new industry prospects forrecruitment and employer needs. AtValencia Community College in Florida,President Sanford Shugart is credited withpinpointing the fields that would needtrained labor over the next three to 10years - nursing and information technology.

In addition to sharing information, topleaders at responsive colleges effectivelycommunicate to staff and faculty themandate that they respect and embrace theworkforce-centered mission wholeheartedly.These messages must be accompanied bychanges in college culture and structurethat emphasize the institutional vision.Leaders do not micromanage, but leavestaff with no doubt as to theirresponsibilities and the high expectationsplaced on them.

The Personal Qualities Of a Proactive Leader

It is often said that leaders are born, notmade. Indeed, some innate personalitytraits appear typical of the leaders of labor-market-responsive colleges. Suchcharacteristics include anticipatory thinking

and planning, innovation, andentrepreneurship. At Dallas CountyCommunity College District's RichlandCollege, an administrator described thepresident as a risk-taker with "a bungeecord attached," meaning that he makesdifficult decisions with sufficient informationto know that an action will not harm eitherthe institution or its students. Theseleaders are also passionate about workforcedevelopment and meeting communityneeds. Hiring faculty and staff with similarqualities and attitudes further encourages acampus culture that supports such "out-of-the-box" approaches. Staff and faculty ateffective colleges noted that they takecalculated risks without fear of failure,because the leaders encourage innovationand entrepreneurship throughout theinstitution, and support them withresources, information, professionaldevelopment opportunities, andadministrative flexibility.

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To what extent are yourleaders characterized by

passion, entrepreneurship,anticipatory thinking and

innovation?

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Leadership is visionary and instills that vision in others, both within and beyond the college.

Leaders of responsive colleges communicate and take seriously the institution's mission and

strategic plan.

The college president and board of trustees are the most important figures in setting the direction

for improving labor market responsiveness.

Leaders of labor-market-responsive institutions make themselves very visible in the larger

community, where they are recognized as community leaders and partners in economic

development, as well as educational leaders.

In most cases, the president and the college's board are the primary forces in obtaining the large-

scale resources needed to develop exemplary programs. Rarely does anyone else at the college

have the personal prestige and expertise to raise funds and establish consortia.

Effective leaders are well informed, driving the institution's research agenda to inform strategic

thinking and planning. Leaders function as key conduits for information, enabling their staff to

anticipate coming changes.

The personal characteristics of market responsive college leaders mirror those of successful

businesspeople-entrepreneurial, anticipatory, innovative, and proactive. Leaders seek to develop

these same characteristics in their boards, administrators, and staff.

Lessons Learned

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R E S O U R C E

The Workforce Development Institute

Community colleges face the daunting challengeof educating more students with fewer resources.A demand-driven economy is changing the worldof our students as well as our communities. Theannual Workforce Development Institute (WDI),sponsored by The American Association ofCommunity Colleges, is intended to better equipprofessionals from community colleges and otherorganizations to advance workforce training. TheInstitute offers outstanding learning andnetworking opportunities, bringing togetherexperts from business, education, andgovernment to discuss innovative workforcetraining techniques and applications.

The 2004 conference was arranged around fourthemes: customer service, partnerships, nationalinitiatives, and professional development. Theprogram focused on practical applications forimproving community college workforce services.Sessions allowed participants to interact withpresenters and each other.

WDI is the focal point of a grant funded by the U.S.Department of Labor’s Employment and TrainingAdministration. Designed as a comprehensive programfor community college-based workforce serviceproviders, including faculty and administrators, WDIprovides participants with the resources and trainingto meet the workforce development needs of bothemployers and employees. WDI educates, invigorates,and motivates those who are new to workforcedevelopment as well as seasoned practitioners.

For additional information concerning past orupcoming WDI conferences, please contactCarolyn Teich at 202-728-0200 x 228 ore-mail wdi2004@aacc.nche.edu

American Association of Community Colleges(AACC)One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 410Washington, DC 20036(phone) 202-728-0200(fax) 202-833-2467http://www.aacc.nche.edu/

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Organizational Structure And Staffing

As any CEO will tell you, dynamic leadership andvision can take an institution only as far as itsinternal structures will allow. College leadersmust identify the ways that the institution'sorganizational structure limits its capacity foreconomic and workforce development and thenremove these organizational barriers to labormarket initiatives. Senior administrators atMoraine Valley Community College in Illinois viewthis as a key responsibility: "to keep the streamsclear so the salmon can swim upstream;" that is,to ensure that the institution places no barriersin the way of staff who take the initiative tomake things happen.

The leaders of labor-market-responsivecolleges frequently reconfigure organizationalstructures and charts. Because organizationalstructure reflects college priorities, it is animportant mechanism for conveying theimportance of the mission. Thus organizationalstructure and organizational culture, addressedin the module that follows, are without a doubtclosely linked. However, as they can operateindependently and may need to be addressedseparately, we have presented them as twocross-referencing modules.

Although there is no "ideal" structure ororganizational chart for the labor-market-responsive college, leaders who have adoptedthis mission re-think the organization of theirworkforce and economic development servicesand, in particular, often-address the stature ofnoncredit or continuing education programs andthe traditional credit-noncredit divide. Carefulassessment may indicate whether theinstitution can allocate resources moreefficiently to meet student, community, andbusiness needs by increasing collaboration andreducing program duplication.

The Organizational Chart As Equalizer

Community colleges traditionally pursue multiplemissions that compete for priority and resources.Historically, the academic and transfer functionsreceive the most attention. Workforcedevelopment and continuing education divisionshave often had second-class status compared tothe academic and credit divisions. Severalcollege personnel in career-oriented divisionsstated that their units were no longer the "red-headed stepchild" on campus. As their

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administrative positions dedicated entirely toworkforce and economic development.Seminole Community College in Florida addedseveral new deans-for business andtechnology, career programs, and economicdevelopment-to increase flexibility andinstitutional responsiveness to employers.

Responsive colleges ensure thatadministrators for workforce development orcontinuing education have the same standingas those who head academic divisions, givingthem equal access to staff and resources.Many different structures can accomplish thispurpose. Walla Walla Community College inWashington employs two vice presidents ofinstruction, one for the academic side andone for the workforce side. At OaktonCommunity College near Chicago, one vicepresident is responsible for academic affairsand another for continuing education,training, and workforce development: bothreport directly to the president. At othercolleges, a vice president for academic affairsor instruction oversees the deans of the creditdivisions as well as the continuing educationand workforce divisions. Various approachessucceed; the challenge is to make thedivisions equal partners.

Some community colleges elevated the statusof their workforce division and showcasedtheir commitment to business by promotingits head to vice president. The state ofVirginia supported the establishment of deansof workforce development at all communitycolleges to coordinate WIA activities, in partto raise the stature of noncredit programs.The leadership of Northern VirginiaCommunity College promoted its dean ofworkforce development to vice president in

institutions focused increasingly on thebusiness community's needs, their statusimproved. One way to bring the status ofthese divisions into parity with the academicdivisions is through the reporting structure ororganizational chart. Some colleges create

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The organizational structure of the Moraine ValleyCommunity College (Illinois) administration unites allprograms directly related to instruction and learning underthe senior vice president for academic affairs. Seven deansreport to the senior vice president, with responsibility for:career programs; enrichment programs and services; liberalarts; workforce development and community services;science, business and computer technologies; academicservices; and academic development and learningresources center. Senior staff members are unanimousthat "in the early stages, workforce development andtraining was confined to a unit. As the college matured, itbecame everyone's job-part of every administrator's job."The organizational move of continuing education andworkforce development from the division of studentservices to the division of academic affairs was crucial tothis evolution. The move demonstrated the evolution ofcontinuing education from an activity marginal to thecollege's purpose to "the heart of things." With all thedeans reporting to one administrator, their discussionstended to converge on a united purpose.

ReconfiguringOrganizational Structure

Does the college'sorganizational chart

reflect the equalimportance of for-credit

and noncredit programs?

Seminole Community College (Florida) took animportant step by reorganizing and consolidating economicdevelopment activities occurring across campus under thenewly created Office of Economic Development andEmployer Services. This new division allows the college tohandle much bigger projects competently, to present aunified face to economic development activities, and tomake it easier for clients to access programs and services,thereby significantly improving interaction with clients.

Centralizing EconomicDevelopment Activities

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order to reflect the institution's commitmentto this goal and to coordinate cross-campusintegration of services. Some campusobservers have since noted "a growing'oneness' between the credit and noncreditsides. We're all beginning to see theimportance of workforce development."

The Value of CentralizingMarket Responsive Services

Labor-market-responsive activities take placeall over the campus, serving different clients.There is often a center that supports smallbusiness, other offices that providecustomized corporate training, and manycontinuing education courses scatteredacross programs. Although the programdivisions house the technical expertise, theskills of packaging curriculum for businessaudiences and cultivating relationships withemployer partners may reside elsewhere. Acollege may offer similar content in a varietyof formats-credit classes, continuingeducation courses, and contract training, forexample-in order to meet the needs ofdifferent clients, setting the stage forcompetition over students and resources.

Several colleges found that consolidatingtheir workforce development servicesenabled them to serve needs moreefficiently and raise the visibility of collegeofferings. Black Hawk Community College inIllinois merged continuing education and theBusiness and Industry Center to eliminatethe confusion caused by their similarprogramming. The college is using fewerresources to accomplish the same purposesand meeting the needs of students andcustomers more easily. Indian RiverCommunity College in Florida hadtraditionally offered continuing educationcourses through the college's appliedsciences divisions, the locus of technicalexpertise on campus. With the growth ofthese courses, however, administratorsfound that centralizing them in the Businessand Development Center improved

coordination and management.Taking a different approach, SpringfieldTechnical Community College inMassachusetts separated its Division ofEconomic and Business Development (DEBD)from its Division of Continuing Education.With the separation, the DEBD gained its ownvice president and a focus within the college'supper administration on workforcedevelopment and entrepreneurship. Thus,this reorganization also strengthened thecollege's focus on market responsiveness.

College leaders should consider whether ornot to consolidate workforce and economicdevelopment activities on campus. Aspecialized division can also bring businessattitudes and practices into the campusworkforce development activity, an approachto which industry partners can relate.

Bridging the Credit-Noncredit Divide

Traditionally, community colleges have sharplydivided the credit and noncredit sides of thehouse, with the noncredit programs typicallymarginalized. In part, this was a function ofstate funding formulas, which, in most states,either do not fund noncredit programs at allor do not fund them equally with creditprograms. Outside of the few states thatfund credit and noncredit full-time equivalentstudents (FTEs) at the same rate, completeintegration of credit and noncredit divisions israre. Nevertheless, many labor-market-responsive community colleges appear toinvest great effort in blurring or at least

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To what extent do creditand noncredit programscollaborate to develop

and deliver career-oriented training?

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sides offer complementary strengths andresources. Responsive colleges removebureaucratic hindrances to collaboration andtry to make the credit-noncredit distinctionalmost invisible to students and employers.

Such collaboration often meets initialresistance from faculty, some of whom viewcontinuing education staff as competitors orworse. At these schools, effectiveadministrators demonstrated the advantagesof working together, sharing teaching ortraining responsibilities and facilities. Overtime, it became evident to all that thenoncredit side can serve as an entryway foradditional credit students. Recastingtraditional faculty roles was the solution atNorthern Virginia Community College.Contracts with faculty now stipulate bothcredit and noncredit responsibilities, whichformalizes the philosophical stance emanatingfrom the president's office. The contractsofficer stated that this change "helps narrowthe divide between credit and noncredit." Acultural shift is required to ensure that allforms of learning, whether in credit classes ornot, are viewed as equally important.

At many colleges that effectively meet labormarket needs, faculty and administratorsengage in partnerships across credit-noncredit lines. Academic faculty membersteach noncredit courses or act as corporatetrainers for employers, in some casesreceiving extra pay or stipends for noncreditprogram management. Faculty teachingcredit courses use equipment purchasedthrough partnerships on the noncredit side.Noncredit courses transfer to credit programs.Administrators at Kirkwood CommunityCollege in Iowa have learned to engageacademic faculty early on in noncreditprogram development, in order to developfuture avenues for integrating the newcourses into credit programs.

At these colleges, both credit and noncreditsides actively develop and maintain off-campus partnerships with employers and

collaborating across these lines, regardless ofstate policy. Collaboration is especiallyimportant in responding to labor marketneeds, because the credit and noncredit

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Roles for AcademicFaculty in WorkforceDevelopment

Holyoke Community College (Massachusetts) hasformalized a noncredit-to-credit career-ladder program innursing. The college is also working to incorporate theDivision of Continuing Education's (DCE) Microsoft Office®Specialist exams into credit word processing andspreadsheet courses. Furthermore, faculty andadministrators of noncredit programming rely on their creditcounterparts as resources for developing curriculum. WhenDCE administrators applied for funding to offer a preparatorycourse for the National Council Licensure Examination(NCLEX-RN®), they relied on Nursing Department faculty tounderstand the exam and its components.

Connecting Credit andNoncredit Programming

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other agencies. Community outreach seemsto be a barometer of credit-noncreditintegration. Colleges striving to maximizetheir responsiveness report that it iseveryone's responsibility to reach out to thecommunity and employers. On thesecampuses, academic faculty, deans, andadministrators view community involvementand marketing as part of their jobs. AtNorthern Virginia Community College,administrators recognize that committing toworkforce development means giving up acertain presence on campus, remarking, "Youhave to be out with business more, and notas involved in campus life and politics."

One structural way to "blur the lines" betweencredit and noncredit is the institute model.An institute is an organizational tool thatbrings together faculty, staff, resources,equipment, and facilities to focus on thesame field or subject matter. For example,many colleges have established institutes forinformation technology, healthcare, technicalcareers, manufacturing, businessmanagement, or construction. The institutehouses credit as well as noncredit courseworkand short-term corporate and customizedtraining services. It requires collaboration andcross-training among these faculty membersand instructors, protecting credit faculty'sauthority over course development whileencouraging more sustained relationshipswith employers. Administrators of collegesthat adapted this model spoke of providingseamless delivery based on a college-wideapproach to meeting industry needs, and theability to better serve students and clients

through a single point of contact. Theinstitute is a "one-stop shop" notion thatappeals to business and students alike. Anindividual or company seeking computertraining can approach an intake person at theinformation technology institute and getassistance in determining whether a degreeor certificate, noncredit coursework, orcustomized training will best meet the need.

Integrated Versus DistinctDivisions

On the other hand, leaders at a few collegesbelieved that the independence of thedivision responsible for workforcedevelopment ensured that administratorswould give more attention to this mission. Intheir opinion, merging the two divisionswould cause the workforce developmentmission to suffer due to the difficulty andtime-consuming nature of modifying credit

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Would a closer workingrelationship between the

credit and noncreditsides improve your

college's ability to providemarket responsive

programs?

The Homer S. Gudelsky Institute for Technical Education atMontgomery College (Maryland) offers credit andnoncredit courses, programs, and certifications, in additionto customized training. Prior to developing the institute,college staff had difficulty responding effectively to clientrequests, redirecting them to multiple programs managedby different units of the college. Moreover, there werevariations in quality and curriculum across programs thataffected the reputation of the institution as a whole.Housed in its own building, the 10-year-old instituteoperates on a single-point-of-contact model in which aprospective student or client can be connected to the rightoffering through one conversation. Once enrolled, creditand noncredit students sit in some of the same classes.Positive outcomes include a 15-fold increase in contracttraining over the last 10 years and a 55 percent growth intotal enrollments. With the success of the modelestablished, the IT Institute was established in 1998. Anew facility is under construction to accommodate theHealth Sciences Institute, due to open in 2004.

The Institute as anIntegration Model

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programming. Indeed, collaboration canhave positive results for credit courseofferings. College personnel spoke ofnoncredit courses acting as harbingers ofcredit programs. The flexibility of thenoncredit division allows the quick creation ofnew courses that respond to immediateneeds; enrollments can grow while creditprograms and credentials are seekingapproval from individual academicdepartments of the college. In addition, newsubject matter first introduced for a specifictraining course or customized program caninfluence the content of credit courses insimilar areas.

Using the Right Staff toPlay the Right Roles

Responsive colleges are well staffed to fulfilltheir workforce development missions.Noncredit instructors in career-orientedprograms at most community colleges arepart-time with extensive professionalexperience. Some colleges, such as Oaktonin the Chicago area, employ sales

programs and the need for separate staffingmechanisms for academic and noncreditfaculty. While the compartmentalization ofworkforce programs at these institutionsallows them to remain customer-oriented,flexible, and free of bureaucratic rules, itprevents the colleges from maximizing theirlabor market responsiveness across alldivisions and departments.

State funding differentials for credit andnoncredit programs are evidently a significantfactor in choosing such a model, as arepolicies that require structural differentiationbetween credit and noncredit divisions.However, colleges without parity in fundinghave made significant strides towardintegrating the two sides of the house andcollaborating across credit-noncredit divisions.

Many assume that colleges that appear tohave integrated for-credit and workforcedivisions are not unionized. Indeed, somecolleges report that restrictive union contractscan create difficulties in assigning academicfaculty to teach noncredit courses. Thefaculty is unionized at Montgomery College inMaryland. Initially, the American Associationof University Professors (AAUP) agreementspecified that only credit courses countedtoward the 30-hour teaching load theycarried, posing a barrier to the integration ofcredit and noncredit programs through theinstitute model and a hindrance to noncreditstaffing. The college changed the AAUPagreement so that 16 credit hours, themajority of the faculty's teaching load, couldbe taught in noncredit courses, thus alsoincidentally raising the standing of noncreditclasses. Unions and union agreements differ,but are not inherently an insurmountableobstacle to institutional integration.

Despite fiscal and policy constraints thatprevent the complete integration of the twosides of the house, it is important torecognize that the benefits of closecollaboration between credit and noncreditprograms go beyond workforce development

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Would a closer workingrelationship between thecredit and noncredit sides

improve your college'sability to provide marketresponsive programs?

Are human resources at your college

deployed in the mostefficient manner to meet labor-market-responsive goals?

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representatives experienced in consulting andtraining to network and make cold calls toincrease contract and customized trainingopportunities. Regardless, the most effectiveinstitutions hire key staff and administratorswho bring experience in business as well aseducation. Their attitudes toward thecommunity are conducive to partnering. Theynetwork off-campus and form relationshipswith industry. They seek out entrepreneurialand innovative people in hiring new staff andacademic faculty and support them throughopen communication and professionaldevelopment.

With appropriate staffing, workforcedevelopment roles, including programdevelopment and outreach to employers, areshared across the administration and faculty.All vice presidents at Seminole CommunityCollege in Florida are required to engage ineconomic development. Although the vicepresident for workforce and economicdevelopment at Shoreline Community Collegein Washington coordinates market-responsiveactivities, senior administrators clearly conveythe message that involvement in workforceand economic development is everyone'sresponsibility. As one way of expanding theirroles, the vice president encourages facultyfrom the academic divisions to accompanyher to meetings and conferences involvingbusiness and industry. Faculty at KirkwoodCommunity College in Iowa are responsiblefor developing the required resource andbusiness plans for new noncreditprogramming, determining the partners to beinvolved, and accurately demonstrating theneed to be addressed. The college expectsstaff to engage in outreach and to alwayslook for new opportunities.

In order to ensure that faculty memberssucceed in these roles, responsive collegessponsor professional development programs thatplace academic faculty in contact with industry.Noncredit instructors and administrators who arealready well connected to industry meet withbusiness representatives regularly, but facultyare often more comfortable remaining in anacademic milieu and may not understand theoutcomes for which they are preparing students.At York Technical College in South Carolina, thehead of computer and electrical engineeringspent 10 weeks at Duke Power on a summerexternship. English department faculty anddepartment managers spent time at the localhospital and paper mill in order to understandthe communications taking place. All went backand revised credit curricula to make them morerelevant. New faculty joining Anne ArundelCommunity College in Maryland participate in aone-year orientation called "The LearningCollege," which instills the value that credit andnoncredit programs are equally important inresponding to community needs.

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Kirkwood Community College (Iowa) madeprofessional development a high priority, devoting a greatdeal of time and resources to it. One staff memberreporting to the executive vice president is in charge ofstaff development campus-wide. The college providesresources for further education for faculty and a large travelbudget for staff to examine best practices and bring newideas back to the college. There are even professionaldevelopment performance expectations for employees.

InstitutionalizingProfessionalDevelopment

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an equal footing with academic programs, conveying the message internally and externally that

workforce development is a priority.

Effective institutions often increase efficiency and customer service by consolidating or centralizing

campus workforce and economic development efforts.

Collaboration across credit-noncredit divisions helps meet labor market needs. Divisions share

resources and complement each other's strengths, making the college's offerings appear seamless

to students and employers. Integration across divisions is easiest when supported by state funding

policy, and unionization does not necessarily inhibit credit-noncredit collaboration.

Each college needs a structure that will accommodate both the development of new, large-scale,

market responsive initiatives and the everyday activities of monitoring existing programs,

implementing continuous improvements, and responding effectively to external demands.

Program development, outreach, and interaction with employers can be everyone's job. Institutions

need to invest in professional development and support to help faculty succeed in these new roles.

Lessons Learned

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P R A C T I C A L A D V I C E

Steps to Becoming an Entrepreneurial College

Research shows that colleges follow various pathson the journey toward maximizing labor marketresponsiveness. The steps suggested by RichardDrury offer one such path.

The entrepreneurial college does not simply respondto needs, but creates conditions that demand itsservices. It is nontraditional in its offerings, and forthe most part, these offerings are noncredit. Itrelies on community-based programming. Acoalition of interested stakeholders is formed toundertake a cooperative process coordinated by thecommunity college that involves a series of steps toidentify community needs.

The college's vision, mission, philosophy, andgoals need to be critically examined or revisited,to assure their compatibility with community-based programming.

Environmental "scanning" needs to beundertaken, carefully noting opportunities andthreats in the economic, social, political,technological, and ecological environments.

All stakeholders in the collaboration processneed to set priorities among the opportunitiesand threats.

Stakeholders affected by the results of thescanning process need to be identified, boththose affected by the factors and those with avested interest in their resolution.

The community college assumes the leadershiprole as the catalyst for the coalition ofstakeholders.

Coalition members follow up with theirrespective constituents to keep communicationsflowing.

It is through collaboration among the citizens of acommunity, its leaders, community-basedorganizations, business and industryrepresentatives, and community college that theworkforce and economic development objectives ofthe community are achieved. In short, theentrepreneurial college is a partner in bettering thelocal community.

From: Richard Drury, "The Entrepreneurial Community College," Inquiry 6

(Spring 2001).

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Organizational Culture

The multiple missions of community collegesoften create tensions on campus that playthemselves out culturally as well asorganizationally. For example, communitycolleges have historically played a significantrole in preparing students to attend four-yearpostsecondary institutions. As higher educationprofessionals, many community college facultyand administrators embrace traditionalacademic values, attitudes, and beliefs. As aresult, community colleges often focus narrowlyon their transfer mission, placing greater priorityon academics and for-credit courses than onworkforce development. Although the transfermission remains important in an economy thatwill continue to demand graduates with four-year degrees, the realities of the work world arechanging and require changing preparation ofthe workforce as well. More than half of thefastest-growing occupations in the United Statesrequire some postsecondary education but lessthan a bachelor's degree.1 At a bare minimum,a high school diploma or its equivalent isessential in today's labor market, andcommunity colleges are responding to thiseducational need. Uniquely positioned at theforefront of workforce development, communitycolleges must maintain an appropriate balance

across their multiple missions. Fulfilling basiceducation, transfer, and career-orientedmissions requires academic rigor and a focus onthe quality of instruction.

Colleges that attempt to respond to localeconomic and labor market conditions are attimes hindered by a campus culture thatdevalues career-oriented programming in favorof traditional academic priorities. An official atone college said, "The credit faculty think that'swhat they are here for, and that they don't havea role to play in workforce development. Theyjoined the faculty to teach English, history,science, not to help develop workforce skills.But that's a narrow view. In [our state],English, history, and science are workforceskills." Thus, creating a truly labor-market-responsive college usually requires culturalevolution on campus.

Cultural change is at best gradual and complex,encouraged by leadership, informed by soliddata, and supported by organizationalrestructuring. Here we focus on the keymechanisms that campus leaders may employ tobring about cultural change–language andorganizational structure.

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and off-campus. They engage business andindustry partners in program, course, andcurriculum development. They constantlyseek ways to improve.

Language as a Tool For Cultural Change

One key mechanism that campus leaders useto promote cultural change is language, in itssimplest form a motto or mantra that isrepeated across campus. College leadersintroduce the motto to signal concisely whatthe leadership values and expects of staff. AtCentral Piedmont Community College in NorthCarolina, President Zeiss, when he took thehelm 11 years ago, asked staff to consider twoquestions in decision-making. He still adviseshis staff to guide program development withthose questions: "Is this good for our students?Is this good for our community?" As thequestions imply, what is good for students andthe community is good for the college. TheAnne Arundel Community College (Maryland)mantra is codified in numerous institutionaldocuments and frequently heard on campus,"Learning is learning is learning." This mantraemphasizes the structural and cultural shifttowards a one-college model in whichacademics, career-oriented courses, andcorporate training are all considered learningand given equal priority.

Shared values and attitudes are summed upin other formats, both written and oral.Virtually all the staff, faculty, andadministrators at York Technical College inSouth Carolina with whom we spoke,including those not directly associated withtechnical career preparation, spoke of theimportance of having manufacturing in theircommunity and its capacity for creatingwealth through associated service jobs. Thiscommon belief clearly originated in thepresident's office to focus the staff on thecollege's niche in improving manufacturingproductivity. President Crawley of MoraineValley Community College (MVCC) nearChicago summarized in an open letter the

Cultural Evolution

Traditional academic views of workforcedevelopment activity must change if acommunity college is to embrace themission of labor market responsiveness.Many continuing education personnel,reflecting upon the changes that hadoccurred on their campus, lauded the fact

that theworkforce-developmentdivision was nolonger relegatedto second-classstatus.Organizationalstructure can playa role in elevatingthe stature of

continuing education, but a correspondingshift in values, expectations, incentives, andattitudes must occur as well. Leaders areresponsible for introducing and instilling newvalues and attitudes and for ensuring thatresponsive practices and engagement inworkforce-development activities arerecognized and rewarded among faculty andstaff. A college leader's visible commitmentto the culture of market responsiveness isessential for such evolution to occur.

What does a labor-market-responsive culturelook like? On campuses striving to maximizeresponsiveness, workforce development andlifelong learning are key institutional values.Conversations on campus reflect these valuesdaily. Staff members bring academicexcellence and credentials, as well ascharacteristics like risk-taking,entrepreneurship, innovation, flexibility, andempowerment. As one individual at ScottCommunity College in Iowa explained, "Newideas are valued. We have an atmosphere ofnot just being talkers but doers."Collaboration is a hallmark–across internaldivisions and with external organizations.College personnel exercise their networkingskills and spend time building relationships on

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What adjectives wouldyou use to describe

the climate and cultureof your campus?

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attitudes and behaviors expected of staff.These expectations also inform the hiringprocess, as staff search for people whoseportfolios include the attitudes and valuesthat harmonize with the MVCC mission ofcommunity and economic development.

Organizational StructureCommunicates Institutional Values

Organizational structures that allow collegesto be more responsive to labor marketconditions are discussed in the precedingmodule. Structural change can minimizebureaucratic hindrances to responsiveness-streamlining processes and increasing accessto resources. Structural change can alsoadvance key messages on campus, such asthe importance of collaboration acrosstraditional credit-noncredit lines and theequality in status of academics and workforcedevelopment. The leadership of ShorelineCommunity College in Washington Statewanted to move the campus beyond thenotion that professional/technical programsdo not have the stature of academiccoursework. The dean of academic affairsnow oversees all 52 professional-technicalprograms. This organizational structureprevents institutional separation ofprofessional-technical from transfer programsand promotes an atmosphere conducive toblending workforce development goals withacademic objectives. Green River CommunityCollege in Washington State found thatcreating a new position of vice president foreconomic development raised the stature ofworkforce development at the college bygiving it a key place in senior collegeleadership. Hiring the former executive dean

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Is there a college mottoor frequently repeatedtheme that ensures afocus on workforce

development?Moraine Valley Community College (Illinois) spentacademic year 2000-03 creating or expanding programs toserve a new learner-centered focus and to addressobjectives covering five areas: (1) underprepared students,(2) learning outcomes, (3) selecting and developing staff,(4) learning technology, and (5) organizational culture.What MVCC participants discovered through the processwas that as they worked on the first four areas, the fifth-organizational culture-"put itself together." As a senioradministrator observed, "You can't just impose'organizational culture' by talking about it." One resulttoday is that conversations with MVCC staff members arepeppered with language-"seamlessness," "web ofinclusiveness" --that both describes and signals theexistence of an organizational culture characterized bycollaboration and learner-centeredness. One administratornoted: "The people here talk like that. We live it. You'reeither on board or you go away."

Fostering CulturalChange

President Martha Smith of Anne Arundel CommunityCollege (Maryland) determined that the college wouldrespond to community needs, including those of business.One dean noted, "With the culture before President Smith,it was a different college. [Credit and noncredit] weredistinct with no integration. Now there is a 'one college'concept-they all develop human resources in acollaborative fashion." It became clear to administratorsthat to meet an increasing demand for lifelong learningopportunities not tied to traditional, credit-drivenmodalities, they needed to value all instructional programsand services equally. One step in this direction was toreorganize the senior administration. The positions of vicepresident for academic affairs and vice president forcontinuing education and workforce development weremerged into that of vice president for learning. It isimportant to note that the new vice president for learningwas recruited from the Workforce Development Division,sending a clear signal throughout the campus about theintegration of academic and vocational education.

Structural ChangeBrings Cultural Change

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A Campus That EmbracesCommunity Cultures

One way in which the culture of a communitycollege can reflect responsiveness to the locallabor market is in its willingness to adapt tochanges in its demographic or communitycontext. Dallas County Community CollegeDistrict's Richland College is a member of theAsian, Hispanic, and African AmericanChambers. While senior administrators atMalcolm X College, one of the seven CityColleges of Chicago, remain attuned to theAfrican American community that the collegehas historically served, they are keenly awareof the shift in student demographics in WestChicago, where the campus is located. Theyseek to engage students of other ethnicbackgrounds, Hispanic students in particular.The college made great efforts to beclassified as a Title V school and belongs toHACU (the Hispanic Association of Collegesand Universities). On campus, these changesare reflected through artwork and bannersthat represent a variety of cultures, and incultural events throughout the year torecognize and encourage student andcommunity pride.

Staff at many colleges we interviewed spokeof growing populations of new immigrants indescribing the changing demographics oftheir service areas. In most parts of thecountry, the need for English as a secondlanguage courses is increasing, andcommunity colleges are at the forefront ofoffering workplace Spanish courses forsupervisors. English has become the mostfundamental job skill for many populations.Responsive colleges creatively refine theirown cultures to remain in tune with thechanging needs of the community.

of instruction to fill the new position also sentmessages about the integration of traditionalacademics and career-oriented training andthe importance of collaboration between thetwo. Structural change can alsocommunicate institutional values like flexibilityand partnership and instill in all staff anawareness of their role in outreach.

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Margaret Lee, the president of Oakton CommunityCollege (Illinois) has communicated the message thatthe changing demographics of the college district, includingburgeoning Asian and Eastern European populations,should be celebrated, not merely tolerated. The leadershiphas sought to educate its faculty. A recent professionaldevelopment activity was a bus tour of the district, whichincluded stops at a social services center, a church thatserves African Americans, and a very diverse high school.Many of the new immigrants are well-educated people inneed of employment, whose difficulties with English weremisinterpreted by some faculty as ignorance. The collegeoffers an afternoon class for faculty, taught in differentlanguages, to make them more sensitive to the difficultiesnon-English speakers face in communicating.

Campus CultureReflects CommunityCulture

Do your workforcedevelopment strategies

reflect the cultures in thesurrounding community?

York Technical College (South Carolina) considersitself competency-based and uses the DACUM (Develop ACurriculum) process for curriculum development. Thisinvolves bringing employees of industry to campus for aday, picking their brains about the jobs for which studentsare being educated, noting the competencies identified,and looking at coursework to ensure that it covers thosecompetencies. The college focuses on lifelong learning andresponds to employer needs for soft skill development byincorporating competency modules into all its classes.Doing so required the development of a portfolio system todocument these soft skills, as well as changes in the waycollege faculty teach and assess learning.

Competency-BasedCurricula

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Community college leaders should considerwhether the culture and climate of theircollege encourages immigrant and othernontraditional populations to enroll and feelcomfortable and whether staff are flexibleand open-minded enough to adaptinstitutional culture to meet the needs ofnew segments of the community.

A New Culture forCurriculum Development

Another opportunity to observe culturalevolution on campus is in the process ofcurriculum and course development.Although all occupational programs haveadvisory committees that oversee curriculumdevelopment to some degree, the extent towhich they are actually involved in thedevelopment, delivery, and alignment ofcoursework across the campus says muchabout the cultural context. Traditionally, theculture of higher education has asserted thatfaculty members are the most knowledgeableabout course design and development. Atthe labor-market-responsive colleges, facultystill play a key role, but business and industryrepresentatives are brought in at thebeginning and the courses that result reflecttheir contributions as well.

The changing needs of business and industryhave led some colleges to developmodularized programs. Rather than asemester- or yearlong curriculum that coversa topic thoroughly, modules allow employersto pick and chose exactly the componentsthey want to see in a customized course ofstudy, a concept new to the teaching world.Scott Community College in eastern Iowa isdeveloping a logistics program based onemployer needs and plans to survey localcompanies and invite them to help developthe curriculum. Administrators expect thatmuch of what the firms will identify alreadyexists at the college. Thus, to create acustomized program would require simplyassembling modules.

In addition, employers are increasingly lookingfor soft skills, such as problem-solving andteamwork, in those they hire and often expectthe community college to train in these areasas well as in technical skills. Designingcourses to teach soft skills, in addition toacademic or technical knowledge, and findingways to assess and document theirdevelopment, usually requires a cultural shiftamong faculty members previously focusedon academic knowledge transfer.

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Community colleges must balance multiple and sometimes competing missions. Cultural beliefs,

values, and expectations on campus will determine the relative priority assigned to those missions

and which ones are successfully accomplished.

Responsive colleges have established cultures that support workforce development and value the

personal traits of entrepreneurship, innovation, flexibility, and risk-taking.

Structural changes alone will not successfully engage faculty in the process of market

responsiveness. A corresponding cultural shift is also required.

Those charged with fulfilling workforce development goals at the community college must operate

with appropriate incentives in a culture that maximizes their flexibility.

Responsive colleges empower staff with the freedom to explore partnerships and take risks. Leaders

recognize and reward their staff for work related to labor market responsiveness.

Language is critical in creating and changing cultural orientations. Mottos and widely disseminated

documents help create strongly held common values and beliefs.

Colleges need to forge connections with the surrounding cultural communities in order to meet their

workforce needs.

Responding to employers' needs and engaging them in curriculum development requires new ways

of thinking.

Lessons Learned

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R E S O U R C E

The Workforce Initiative

The League for Innovation in the Community College's(the “League”) interest in the corporate relationshipsof community colleges stems from a seminal meetingin 1990, when the Business and Industry ServicesNetwork (BISNET) was formed to facilitate theexchange of knowledge and information amongmember institutions. It soon became clear that moreformal mechanisms were needed to coordinateinformation, facilitate communication, disseminateinformation, and assist in organizing collaborativeprojects. The idea of an alliance of communitycolleges with business and industry arose, and withencouragement from several corporate leaders, theLeague sponsored a Community College Businessand Industry Forum in Dallas, Texas, in early 1992. Atthis meeting, attended by representatives of 23corporations, the League was urged to develop anational effort to coordinate information, activities,and collaborative projects that would assistcommunity colleges in serving the training needs ofbusiness, industry, government, and labor.

Further, it became clear that much moreinformation was needed about the activities ofcommunity colleges in the corporate arena. In1992, the League embarked on a comprehensivenational investigation of the scope of communitycollege involvement in workforce training. More than725 colleges responded to the league survey, whichrevealed that 96 percent of community collegesprovided workforce training for employees ofbusiness, industry, government, and labor. As aresult of these findings, and with the public supportof corporate and educational partners, the Leagueadvanced an ambitious 10-point agenda to promotethe expansion and improvement of community

college workforce development programs. Thisagenda, expressed in a white paper titled TheWorkforce Training Imperative: Meeting theTraining Needs of the Nation formed the core ofwhat has become a major strategic focus of theLeague, the Workforce Initiative.

The Workforce Initiative serves as an umbrella fora wide-ranging set of projects and activities. Itserves as a topic stream in "Innovations," theLeague's annual international conference oninnovation in the community college. The"innovations" stream on workforce development isdesigned to help community colleges understandand address the tremendous issues involved inensuring that the nation's workforce is competitivein the global marketplace.

Working continuously with key corporate partners,the League is involved in a variety of efforts toassist community colleges, including: sponsoringconferences, workshops, seminars, training, andshowcases for innovative workforce developmentactivities; disseminating information about modelprograms and practices in community collegesthrough publications such as newsletters,monographs, and special reports; and conductingfocused special projects that develop, demonstrate,or evaluate innovative workforce developmentactivities in community colleges.

League for Innovation in the Community College4505 East Chandler Boulevard, Suite 250, Phoenix,AZ 85048Phone: (480) 705-8200www.league.org

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Resources and Funding

Adequate resources are, of course, necessary fora community college to become more responsiveto its labor market. Most community collegeshave historically acquired the largest proportion oftheir funding from the state, through formulasbased on student enrollments or apportionments.Some state systems have also provided workforcedevelopment monies to individual colleges tomeet particular industry needs.

State funding environments differ substantiallyacross the nation. Fewer than half provide anyfunds for noncredit students at communitycolleges, and only three fund credit andnoncredit students equally.2 Collegeadministrators frequently observe how differenttheir institutions would look with parity in statefunding, because they would move so manyprograms from credit to noncredit status in orderto provide greater flexibility and quicker responsetimes in customizing them for clients.Community colleges in the three states thatallocate equal funding for credit and noncreditprograms lobbied very hard for parity.

Regardless of state policies, resources foreducation are notoriously limited and shrinking.Some argue that community colleges are facing

a fiscal crisis. A recent survey by the EducationCommission of the States found that 33 out of40 state oversight agencies cited funding as oneof their main challenges.3 Many colleges havehad to lay off employees, cut programs andcourses, and reduce operating expenses. At thesame time, because many colleges face growingenrollments, they have fewer resources perstudent. In times of fiscal austerity,administrators at Montgomery College inMaryland note, "Business is a good advocatewhen you need to go to the state for moremoney. They are extremely valuable politically intelling the governor that community colleges areimportant." For employers to advocateeffectively for community colleges in the politicalarena, institutions must first demonstrate theirvalue to such partners.

Although individual community colleges havelittle control over state funding policies or annualapportionments, through partnership withemployers, economic development agencies,and other colleges, they may be betterpositioned to seek increased state support. Inaddition, responsive colleges have found ways toinnovate and expand programs despite fiscalconstraints. They look beyond the state to new

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place to address specific employer needs,while those with fewer revenue dollars havemore programs linked to state initiatives.Tapping into a wide variety of funding requiresan investment of human resources on the partof the college. College personnel activelyscan the horizon for funding sources, writegrants and proposals, and build relationshipswith potential funders and partners.

Grants: Workforce investment boards,corporate foundations, unions and professionalassociations, community-based organizations,states, and federal government agencies likethe National Science Foundation (NSF) allprovide grants to colleges. Several communitycolleges participating in this study receivedNSF Advanced Technological Education grants.Springfield Technical Community College inMassachusetts has received numerous NSFgrants, one of which established the NationalCenter for Telecommunications Technologies,tasked with developing a national modelcurriculum. Regional collaboration with othercommunity colleges is a strategic way tocompete for larger grants and acquire morepolitical leverage for a proposal to a federalagency. A collaborative approach answeredCoca-Cola's need for employee trainingthroughout the state of Texas. The Bill J. PriestInstitute for Economic Development and ElCentro Community College of the DallasCounty District are collaborating with 10community colleges in northern Texas todetermine how to offer the training, with thestate providing part of the funding.

sources of funding. The local economy mayalso limit its immediate resources, butresponsive institutions are not hindered bythis constraint either. Effective colleges findnew ways to raise money, whether throughlegislative initiatives or marketing expertise ona fee-for-service basis. They maximize localfunding from county and bond initiatives.College leadership, particularly the presidentand board of trustees, play a crucial role insecuring new funds. Internal allocation ofresources, for professional development forexample, reflects labor market priorities.Specialized facilities may become importantassets in labor market responsiveness.

Looking Beyond the State

Colleges tend to be resource-savvy, but differin the ways they go about obtaining resources.Community colleges that effectively meet labormarket demands access a wide variety offunding sources beyond the state. Commonsources of revenue include federal funds tostates (such as Perkins Act funds authorizedunder the 1998 statute), other grants,partnerships, contracts, training, stateinitiatives, in-kind donations, and self-supporting programs. Not surprisingly,community colleges with higher revenuedollars tend to have more formal programs in

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In 1996, administrators and faculty at Green RiverCommunity College (Washington State) determined aneed for assisting emerging local entrepreneurs. Thecollege received a $30,000 grant from the Herb B. JonesFoundation and started a Small Business AssistanceCenter (SBAC) staffed with a part-time counselor. After itsfirst year, the SBAC received state funding and was able tohire an additional full-time counselor. The SBAC iscurrently receiving funding from the cities of Auburn andEnumclaw in the form of federal block grants.

Diverse Funding forSmall BusinessAssistance

What sources of incomebeyond the state doesyour college pursue tofund your workforce

development programs?Have you explored the

widest range of possible options?

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Partnerships: Partnerships with employersand industry can bring in donations,contracts, and equipment. Start-up funds,donations of equipment or machinery,investment in new facilities, and space forclinical experiences are common benefits.College administrators advise that alignmentwith business is key to securing corporatefunding for programs. In several instances,business partners have entirely transferredtheir internal training functions to the localcommunity college.

In-kind donations: Responsive colleges taptheir industry and employer partners to obtaincostly equipment and update technology.Manufacturers have donated or loaned suchheavy equipment as tractors, automobiles andtrucks, forklifts, manufacturing equipment,motorcycles, printing and flexographyequipment, and heating and air conditioningequipment. Although some colleges noted thedrawback of receiving outdated equipment,more supportive partnerships provide the up-to-date technology essential to train a skilledworkforce. York Technical College in SouthCarolina holds two warehouse spaces indowntown Rock Hill, a few miles fromcampus, to store supplies and equipmentdonated by companies closing down or goingthrough buy-outs.

Federal and state initiatives: Federalinitiatives that provide funds directly tocommunity colleges include DevelopingHispanic Institutions grants, PreparingTomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology, andTech-Prep Demonstration Grants.4 Statefunds include training initiatives for specificindustries or companies, grants, and otherallocations. Responsive collegesaggressively ferret out these opportunities.Walla Walla Community College inWashington State - which, according to onecollege official, "never lets a state-levelinitiative go by without pursuing it," - hassecured two Washington State "Title II"grants. The Bill J. Priest Institute forEconomic Development in the Dallas CountyCommunity College District received a $1million grant from the state to train peopleto work in call centers being established inTexas. When Texas Instruments (TI) neededliteracy training, the institute obtained $1million from the state to train its workers.According to one institute administrator,most employers contribute at least 25percent more than the grant provides.

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Okuma America, a leading machine tool manufacturer withits Western hemisphere headquarters in Charlotte, N.C.,outsourced its training division to York TechnicalCollege's Institute for Manufacturing Productivity (SouthCarolina). The company provides new equipment for thefacility on the college's campus and its trainers are nowcollege employees.

Federal-Mogul Sealing Systems, a manufacturing companywith 1,600 employees, outsourced all employee training toOakton Community College near Chicago, most ofwhich is conducted on company property, and providesoffice space at the company for a training manager andan assistant.

Colleges as CorporateTraining Departments

Employers invest nearly $30billion annually in employee

training. Community collegescan provide training more cost

effectively than many otherpublic- and private- sector

organizations because mosthave the capacity to provide

technical training already or candevelop it at a lower cost.

–Richard Drury5

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new training relationships aggressively.Community college presidents in a recent studynoted that, in addition to new income,equipment, and services, contract traininggenerates important political benefits,strengthening the college's support from localand state constituencies and its public visibility.6

Creativity in Generating New Resources

Responsive colleges go beyond ensuring thatthey access a variety of time-tested sourcesfor revenue. Colleges focused on this missionregularly develop creative ways to generatefunds. College leaders encourage their staffmembers to think outside of the box inseeking new ways to raise resources,including entrepreneurial enterprises andlegislative efforts.

Entrepreneurship: Entrepreneurial efforts-typically marketing college services andexpertise on a fee-for-service or consultingbasis-are a source of new funds for somecampuses. The programs themselvesgenerate revenue, but other colleges alsocontract out their institutional researchservices, marketing and learner servicesdepartments, or curriculum development andeducational technology expertise. Somecolleges and districts, such as CentralPiedmont and San Diego, have createdstand-alone not-for-profit organizations tohouse entrepreneurial enterprises. Oneadvantage of this method is to gain morecontrol in allocating revenue from theseservices. At Walla Walla Community Collegein Washington State, many programs havean enterprise component and substantialincome-generating capacity. The collegeowns and operates a vineyard in order to

Self-supporting programs: Someoccupational or workforce developmentprograms operate on a self-supporting basisthrough tuition and fees. This support iscommon among business and technologycourses. Some colleges, seeking to dependless on limited state funding, have offeredcredit occupational classes on a self-supporting basis. For example, North Carolinafunds summer semester credit students atjust 10 percent of what they provide for thespring and fall semesters. Therefore, CentralPiedmont Community College, which islocated in Charlotte, N.C., offers summercredit courses on a self-supporting basisrather than remit tuition to the state.

Contract training: Contract training is aspecial example of a self-supporting program.Because contract training operates in anentrepreneurial environment, these programscan become an actual source of profits ifenough businesses employ the college on afee-for-service basis. Colleges operating instates that have historically subsidizedcorporate training through economicdevelopment funds or noncredit enrollmentreimbursements find it more difficult toconvince employers to pay the actual andreasonable costs of customized training.Although some colleges did not cite contracttraining as a significant source of revenue,more responsive institutions typically pursue

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Central Piedmont Community College's (NorthCarolina) institutional effectiveness office conducted astudy on economic and workforce trends and businessneeds in the region in partnership with the local chamberof commerce. This office, now marketing its ability toconduct such studies to all the chambers in the UnitedStates, generated more money than any other unit of thecollege in a recent quarter.

Using College ServicesAs a FundraisingMechanism

Have you developedinnovative methods toraise funds for high-demand programs?

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teach viticulture (wine making) and sells thewine that students produce. The automotiveprogram generates revenue by refurbishingand selling classic cars. Students handle allaspects of production, marketing,distribution, and sales.

Legislation: Colleges have also secured fundsthrough legislative avenues. These cansupport one employer's training needs orprovide new funding for all community collegesstatewide. The president of Central PiedmontCommunity College has been active in effortsto benefit North Carolina's community colleges.He assembled a state coalition thatsuccessfully pushed the legislature to allocateunused unemployment insurance funds tocommunity colleges to purchase equipment,expected to generate $2 million. Thepresident also advocated for the state tounderwrite the tuition and fees for studentswho enroll in high-demand occupations facinga shortage of skilled workers.

Other examples of creative funding include:actively pursuing large donations throughnaming opportunities for buildings; selectingbusiness leaders to become "President'sAssociates" who donate $5,000 per year andact as an advisory board member; andcreating a venture-capital model in whichprogram start-up funds are a loan, based ona solid business plan, and expected togenerate long-term revenue.

Local Funding Is Key

Many community colleges receive local orcounty funding but effective colleges seemto place a special premium on this sourceof funds. Local revenues came in twoforms: county support and bond initiatives.Strong community relationships areessential to securing or increasing fundsfrom both.

In communities where citizens value the college,bond measures are very effective in raisingfunds to construct new facilities. CentralPiedmont Community College in Charlotte, N.C.,added five campuses in seven years, becauseeach time they were on the ballot for bondfunds, they received overwhelming support.

Increasing county financial support appearedto be a hallmark of responsive colleges.

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Could college fundingfrom local sources

increase?

The Chicagoland Regional College Program (CRCP) is apartnership among Moraine Valley CommunityCollege, Chicago State University, and United ParcelService (UPS) designed to meet workforce needs andprovide financial and other support to individuals who mightnot otherwise enter college. The program is costly, providingfull tuition, fees, books, a $2,000 transportation allowance,a $4,000 housing subsidy, health benefits, and supportservices, including mentors, to UPS employees working atleast 16 hours a week on difficult-to-staff shifts. To obtainthe funding needed, the partnership and UPS workedclosely with the state legislature, securing a $2.2 millionline item to support the first year of operation. They attributetheir success to the leverage of the partners and theeconomically depressed status of southwest Cook County.

Legislative Funding forEmployer Partnerships

Most workforce-development efforts require substantialinvestments of start-up money. At Northern VirginiaCommunity College, programs are treated likebusinesses. The Workforce Development Office requests aloan from the college, and must present a solid plan forcreating income in the long-term and a return oninvestment. "Resources are always a concern, but thisprogram generates its own revenue," stated one director ofcontinuing education. "Our president makes venture capitalavailable. You give him a business plan, and if he likes it,he'll give you the seed money to develop the program."

Venture Capital as aFunding Mechanism

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Responsibility forFundraising

There were many answers to the question asto who on the community college campus isresponsible for pursuing grants and otherfunding opportunities. Many responsivecolleges spoke of the success of theirfoundations in fundraising to help developand run programs. These colleges capitalizeon partnerships the foundation forms, andthe board of the foundation acts as a linkwith business and industry in the community.College personnel whose specific role isfundraising or grant management appear tobe important to accessing the variety ofresources necessary in the current climate.As state resources in most states flow tocredit programs, the continuing educationdivision often needs to be focused onresource development. Building a large newpartnership or finding resources for programcreation requires presidential or boardleadership. Charlene Nunley, president ofMontgomery College in Maryland, secured $1million from the Marriott Foundation (theMarriott Corporation is headquartered inMontgomery County, Md.) for a hospitalitymanagement program at the college. Shecandidly noted that her personal contact withthe CEO of Marriott Corporation wasinstrumental in securing the funds.

Resource Allocation MirrorsCollege Priorities

Allocation of college resources, whatever theirtotal, provides an accurate portrayal of acollege leadership's priorities. Labor-market-

College personnel consistently noted thatthe percentage of local or county funds inthe total college budget was positivelyassociated with their responsiveness. Thecounty is one avenue through which collegeshave made up for state shortfalls. Despite ageneral economic slowdown, many collegesspoke of increasing county support, often 5to 6 percent a year. Among communitycolleges studied, the highest levels of localfunding reached 30 to 40 percent of generalfund revenue or even more. Many reportedreceiving levels of local support above theaverage of other community colleges in theirstate. Administrators at York Technical

College reported thatYork County, SouthCarolina, stands outin the state for itshigh level of supportto the technicalcollege. They notedthat this support isbased on the college'sproductivity and thefact that 93 percentof its graduates

remain in the county. The college hasclearly communicated to local officials thatfunding York Tech is the equivalent ofinvesting in the county's economicdevelopment. College leaders shouldconsider whether they have sufficientlydemonstrated their institution's worth andcontributions to their counties and citizens.

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Have you investedenough time in

developing large-scalepartnerships that fundnew college programs?

At Walla Walla Community College (WashingtonState), the Workforce Division contains the WorkforceEffectiveness Center that is solely responsible for bringingin alternative (nonstate) revenue. The center has a full-time staff of four and serves as a clearinghouse for grantsand other contracts. Center staff are also responsible forseeking out every state and federal training grant that thecollege could potentially secure.

Staff Dedicated toFundraising

Are there sufficientstaff dedicated to

obtaining resourcesthat support

responsive programs?

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responsive colleges put funds behind workforceand economic development. Leadership, ofcourse, plays a key role in this resourceallocation. At stake are issues of fundingequity between credit and noncredit programs.In addition, colleges we visited emphasized theimportance of human resources. Sufficientpersonnel must be devoted to new resourceacquisition for workforce development andsufficient resources are required for facultyprofessional development. Even in hardeconomic times, colleges advised, professionaldevelopment monies should not be cut. Tomaintain a responsive college, faculty musthave the time and resources to remain up-to-date in their professional fields, travel toconferences to learn more and makeconnections, and retrain themselves or spendtime in industry when necessary. Part of aninstitution's commitment to labor marketresponsiveness is thus a commitment toensuring that everyone remains informed onworkforce needs.

New Facilities Can EnhanceLabor MarketResponsiveness

We found numerous examples of collegesundertaking large-scale construction projectsto become more labor-market-responsive.Appropriate and unique physical facilities canbe an important asset in meeting communityand workforce needs. Responsive colleges

allocate resources and raise funds toconstruct the facilities they need to houseprograms geared toward the labor market,training partnerships, or continuing education.Many of these facilities serve multiple usesand off-campus constituencies. Collegeshave constructed continuing educationfacilities that function as conference centers

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In partnership with the Mills Corporation and the collegefoundation, Anne Arundel Community College inMaryland is building a 65,000 square foot, four-storyeducational facility at Arundel Mills, a retail zone. The newfacility is expected to foster the burgeoning growth in thisregion by continuing to develop programs servingbusinesses and county residents. It builds on the college'ssuccessful Retail Skills Center already located in the mall."The location offers easy access, uses the existinginfrastructure, and draws on the Mills' amenities," saidAnne Arundel College President Smith. The estimated costof the project is $10 million. Through an agreement withthe college, the foundation will serve as the facility'sdeveloper and provide construction financing, allowing thecollege to avoid assuming capital debt for the facility. Thefoundation intends to finance the project with tax-exemptindustrial revenue bonds.

A New Facility MeetsGrowing Training Needs

How are discretionaryresources allocatedbetween academic and occupationallyoriented programs? Are you investing

sufficient resources in professionaldevelopment?

Would the addition orenhancement of physical

facilities significantlyimprove the campus'

ability to respond to locallabor market needs?

Have you explored all thepossible avenues for new

construction funds?

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donations to local bond initiatives and statefunds. The Homer S. Gudelsky Institute forTechnical Education at Montgomery College inMaryland was the first community collegebuilding in the United States to be built withprivate funding. Over 10 years ago,administrators believed they could maximizecollege-business collaboration by constructinga high-profile facility. The college raised $3.8million from private sources and the countymatched the other half.

as a way to meet business needs whilebringing corporate leaders to campus, thusmarketing college services. For otherschools, the most important facilities werethose that made the college more accessibleto the community and local business, such assatellite campuses or special off-site centers.

Colleges differed in how they raised funds forthese facilities, from using privatepartnerships and corporate or foundation

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It is difficult to be a truly labor-market-responsive institution while relying on traditional sources of

community college funding. Labor-market-responsive programs tend to be expensive because of

specialized equipment requirements. Institutions must access a wide range of funding sources and

be creative in their fundraising strategies.

Many colleges will need to figure out creative ways to reach beyond their communities to tap

regional, state, and federal income sources.

The college president and board play key roles in developing resources for new large-scale workforce

initiatives and partnerships.

Maximizing local funding through the county or bond initiatives is important.

Public-private partnerships are a leverage point for significant new college resources.

A commitment to labor market responsiveness requires more resources, but can also lead to more

resources.

Leaders of effective community colleges invest financial and human resources in labor market

responsiveness. Sufficient personnel are needed to locate and access new resources, and faculty

professional development enhances the institution's ability to meet community needs.

Lessons Learned

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P R A C T I C A L A D V I C E

Economic Development Strategies

Community colleges can connect to economicdevelopment efforts by engaging in dialogue withkey stakeholders, such as the following:

Local, regional, and state economic developmentagencies

County and municipal planning agencies

State and regional economic developmentorganizations

Employers

Employer groups, chambers of commerce, smallbusiness development associations, and industryassociations

Labor unions

Other community or technical colleges in the region

University economic and political sciencedepartments

Community development corporations

Community-based organizations, such asneighborhood associations, nonprofit serviceorganizations, and faith-based charities

Assets that community colleges bring to economicdevelopment partnerships include the range ofprograms and services that support businessdevelopment, from the growing number ofcommunity college business and industry centers toemployee training for new or relocating companies,to certificates of entrepreneurship for individualswho want to launch their own businesses. Here aresome examples of economic development activitiesat community colleges today:

Helping entrepreneurs start businesses

Providing import-export training

Providing public-private procurement services

Assisting small businesses with needsidentification and service referrals

Providing general business, sales, and marketingtraining

Providing business-related research support

Establishing a user-friendly Web page forentrepreneurs

Developing a business incubator program andfacility

From: "Community, Economic and WorkforceDevelopment," in Leadership Strategies forCommunity College Executives, eds. Gunder Myram,George A. Baker III, Beverly Simone, and Tony Zeiss(Washington, D.C.: Community College Press,American Association of Community Colleges, 2003).

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Information and Data

Leaders of community colleges that engage ineconomic and workforce development need agreat deal of information in order to beresponsive; they first need to understand thelocal, regional, and national economies,including occupational, employment, and othereconomic trends. Specifically, they need toknow about local workforce needs that areunmet. In addition, they want to know how wellthe education and training provided by thecollege prepares graduates for theiroccupations. They would like to know the wageand career progression that their graduatesachieve. They would like to assess the matchbetween their occupational training programsand labor market trends, and to evaluate thecost effectiveness of their offerings. Finally,they would like to evaluate the college's servicesto businesses and other organizations,according to outcomes achieved as well as thesatisfaction of partners.

Various kinds of information gathering and dataanalyses can provide some answers. First, allresponsive colleges stressed that the mostuseful information about local conditions isbest gathered through face-to-face personalcontact with employers and community

leaders. Community college administratorsalso use published data from the U.S. CensusBureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and othersources to inform decision-making. Andcolleges use their institutional research officesto collect their own data on their graduatesand information on local needs by fieldingsurveys, running focus groups, hiringconsultants to perform evaluations, anddrawing upon studies conducted by stateeducation boards and others.

Responsive community colleges use thisinformation and data from partners, publishedsources, and their own studies-to inform andguide their efforts to respond to labor marketconcerns. Such information is the basis ofstrategic planning to better anticipate local labormarket needs and helps to nurture a culture ofcontinuous improvement. Colleges draw upondata to establish new programs and to improveor eliminate current programs. Lastly, data areimportant for a truly objective evaluation of labormarket responsiveness on campus. Communitycollege leaders should consider whether theyhave gathered sufficient information on local andregional business needs and effectivelymeasured the impact of their programs.

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the college usually could not enter, at least aspeers. Independently, or in concert with theboard of trustees or a college foundation,college leaders connect with players at upperlevels in business, government, communitylife, education, and even the media. Apresident committed to the mission ofworkforce and community development isaccustomed to listening for information,resources, or new developments that wouldfurther that mission, whether by informingcurrent activity or suggesting new directions orpartnerships. Because senior leaders know theinstitution's strategic priorities, and arethoroughly briefed on its workforce andcommunity activities, they are alert to what ismost promising or most significant about theintelligence gathered in these circles.

Opportunities for direct and personal contactoccur at many levels within a complexinstitution like the community college.Members of advisory committees, describedby administrators as the "front line people,"are viewed as one of the best sources forinformation about labor market trends anddevelopments in specific occupations. Thebusinesses and clinical sites with which acollege already partners are an immediatesource of information about occupations,industries, and training trends. So too arecollege students, many of whom also work atlocal firms and observe needs firsthand.Students working in clinical placements maylearn much that could be useful to theirfaculty advisers and program administrators.Faculty members, by attending conferencesand simply keeping current in their fields,identify emerging growth areas in knowledgeand training.

Information Gathering Through Personal Contacts

Valuable as economic analyses and laborreports may be, up-to-the-minute andlocalized information about workforce,economic, and community trends comes fromthe individuals and organizations engaged inthe work. Access to networks of well-positioned people supplies the informationthat enables a college to anticipate labormarket conditions and trends. Establishedrelationships with key organizations andindividuals in the community are criticalsources of information for market-responsivecolleges. By virtue of their ability to opendoors, senior administrators are key gatherersof this local information, and programadvisory committees add value through theirsubstantive knowledge of specific industries.

The president and senior administrators of thelabor-market-responsive community collegeplay a cornerstone role in the institution'sinformation-gathering activity. Senior collegemanagement can enter and move ininfluential circles that offer insider information,which other administrators and faculty from

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Jean Floten, president of Bellevue CommunityCollege (Washington State) is intensely involved infinding out what the college can do to respond to thebusiness community. As often as she can, the presidentconducts what she calls a "CEO tour," during which shevisits CEOs and business leaders in the region to find outwhat their needs are. She then brings her findings back tothe college, where a rapid response team quicklyassembles to address the needs. The president notes thatthe CEO tour produces candid, one-on-one conversationswith employers, which yield information that might not beshared at an open meeting, and enables her to trulyunderstand needs that the college can respond to.

PresidentialInformation Gathering

What data collectionmethods does yourcollege employ to

gather knowledge onlocal and regional labor

market needs?

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Insider information is one of the fruits ofdirect personal contact. Insider information islikely to be available in advance, beforepublished sources, and even more up-to-datethan industry reports. It is likely to be richer,more specific, and more localized–moreinformative with respect to a particularcompany or industry or location. Having suchinformation enables a college to sharpen itsresponsiveness, to step up quickly to addressnew trends and developments.

Understanding the LocalAnd Regional Economy

While community colleges rely on extensivenetworks of contacts to learn about local,regional, and national labor market needs,market responsive ones also make strategicuse of formal data collection to improve theirknowledge. This includes analysis and reviewof data from external sources. ValenciaCommunity College uses labor statistics fromthe Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation,which include the number of individualsemployed by occupation and industry,projected occupational and industry needs,the top 100 fastest-growing and -changingoccupations, and occupational earnings, atstate, regional, and county levels. In order tostay abreast of changing market needs,Holyoke Community College relies onMassStats data from the MassachusettsDivision of Employment and Training. Inaddition, the college utilizes data from theMassachusetts Institute for Social andEconomic Research (MISER) and takes fulladvantage of regional economic reports

produced by the Pioneer Valley PlanningCommission to determine which employers toapproach when seeking new opportunities.

A few campuses also work with economicdevelopment agencies to share andstandardize data categories. The San DiegoWorkforce Partnership and other areaeconomic-development entities haveestablished industry "clusters," which they usenot only to collect and analyze data but alsoto develop programs and initiatives. Thecommunity college district has adopted thisframework, relying heavily on informationissued by the partnership to align theirprograms and course offerings with what thecommunity needs.

Other colleges conduct surveys and focusgroups to collect data on local employmentneeds and trends, often in partnership witheconomic development organizations orchambers of commerce. SeminoleCommunity College has used surveys tocollect labor market information fromemployers in conjunction with the FloridaHigh Tech Corridor Council. In 2001, thecollege gathered information through a Website from 100 companies in SeminoleCounty concerning the number of employeesthey anticipated hiring and the skills theywould require.

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Dallas County Community College Districtstudies trends in local training needs through internal datacollection and analysis. They track the number ofemployers that have worked with the college to developcourses and contracted with the college to provide training,as well as the number of students taking these courses.This information is collected, by campus, both for credit-bearing contract training and for continuing education. Thedata are presented monthly by employer, type of training,and funding to the district's board.

Using Data to MonitorTraining Needs

Do you have theinformation or data that you need tounderstand local

labor market needs?

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Program and Internal Review

Most community colleges assess their labormarket responsiveness primarily throughperiodic program reviews. Reviewcommittees generally include administratorsand staff, but at responsive colleges theseresults also reach the senior administratorswho see the overall picture and holddepartments accountable for proposedchanges. Advisory committees are key playersin program review. Every program is usuallyreviewed at least once every five years. Morefrequent attention is given to programs wherestudent (or employer) demand is unusuallyhigh or low. Such reviews usually investigategraduate employment and studentsatisfaction at the program level, in additionto analyzing standard enrollment andcompletion data, often collected for statereporting or accreditation bodies.

The primary "market signals" that manycolleges use to alter resource allocationsappear to be shifts in student course selectionand in the types of training that employers arewilling to purchase. Many community collegeshold that their students are savvy and well-informed on local employment needs, andthus enrollments signal the relevance ofprograms and coursework. However, somecolleges noted that having independentinformation about local demand for a givenoccupation or set of skills was important,because such data at times indicate amismatch between courses popular withstudents and courses that teach the skillsneeded by local employers. A hallmark ofmarket-responsive colleges is their refusal tocut course offerings automatically when facedwith low student interest. Instead, they

Responsive colleges collect sufficient localeconomic and employment information tounderstand business needs and developeffective programs to address them. Hard dataon these needs is an important first step inattracting the resources required to meet them.Kirkwood Community College in Iowa conducteda face-to-face survey with employers in 1998and spent two to three months analyzing thedata to understand employers' training needs.From the data, they developed customercontact training and two supervisormanagement programs, and began or expandedabout 10 credit programs. They received moneyfrom the state for the new programs becausethey effectively demonstrated the need throughtheir data collection and analysis.

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Four years ago, the water-wastewater program atMountain Empire Community College (Virginia)was on the verge of extinction. On conducting someresearch, the college discovered that it has the onlyassociate-level program of this kind in the state, and thatthere are a large number of job openings at water plants.The college revived the program, offering it via the Internet,and created an innovative "lab in a box" kit to allowstudents to complete their lab work on the job. With grantsupport from the Virginia Department of Health and theSlemp Foundation, the program serves incumbent workersinterested in promotion to lab supervision and trains newoperators to staff local plants.

Strategic ProgramRedevelopment

Palomar College (California), historically a "morning"college, has conducted efficiency reviews of its classes,attempting to measure whether classes were utilizing theirspace effectively. The study found most classes operating at72 percent capacity. Staff looked at alternative scheduling,and the college began offering afternoon, evening, andeven weekend classes. Efficiency rose to 93 percent.

Efficiency ReviewImproves Scheduling

How does your collegeassess the range and

value of its programmingand services?

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proactively cultivate student interest inprograms that have low enrollments but highdemand from local employers for graduates.Responsive colleges also pay attention toprograms in which student interest exceedsthe institution's capacity to meet it.Information on the level of demand for aprogram and the employment opportunitiesavailable can prepare a college to obtain theresources to expand it.

Colleges have also used data collection toevaluate the operations of their occupationaland other labor-market-responsive programsin terms of efficiency, productivity, and costeffectiveness, from an institutional point ofview. There may be some resistance fromfaculty and board members when the resultslead to recommendations to eliminateprograms, courses, and even facultypositions. However, improvements inefficiency are clearly beneficial to sustainingprograms in the long term.

Evaluating and MeasuringThe College's Labor Market Services

Few community colleges routinely producequantitative impact assessments of collegeprograms on local economies and employergroups, but some do hire consultants toperform one-time assessments. Colleges thatwish to strengthen their labor marketresponsiveness find various ways to evaluatethe impact of their efforts and the satisfactionof their clients and partners. Many ask thebusinesses they partner with to evaluate theirtraining or other services. Others assessemployer satisfaction with former students ofthe college.

Evaluation of labor-market-responsivenessoutcomes among students may be possibleusing internal data. Standard data onenrollment, completion, and awarding ofdegrees and certificates is the backbone ofmost college information systems. Thesedata, if broken down by field of study, changeover time and age of students, can provideuseful information about labor-market-responsiveness outcomes and the allocationof resources across a college's variousmissions–academic, vocational, basiceducation, and adult education.

Tracking Community College Students and Their Employment

Perhaps the best indicators of labor marketresponsiveness come from determining the

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Indian River Community College (Florida)conducts an annual employer satisfaction survey on theprior year's graduates, which they distribute to employersin person, obtaining a 40 - 50 percent response rate. Thesurvey asks a series of questions related to the "SCANScompetencies." The college tabulates responses andreports them to the college board. The results indicateareas of strength and areas for improvement. A few yearsago the survey reported a decrease in satisfaction withthe math skills of graduates. The college responded byoffering more remediation in math, and employersatisfaction improved.

Measuring EmployerSatisfaction

In what ways does your college evaluate

the impact of its efforts to meet labor

market needs?

Do you gather data on the post-enrollment

outcomes of your students?

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they are generally expensive and, with lowresponse rates, not representative of allstudents and employers.

In contrast, many colleges obtain employmentand earnings information from linkages ofwage records to school attendance data. Inalmost all cases, these data are obtainedfrom state-level education organizations instates with centralized accountability systems.Employment results are available to thepublic at the institutional level. In addition,information that is linked from student wagerecords is available to colleges for their owninternal analyses. College leaders in stateswhere state-level accountability systems arenot currently in place can seek the help ofstate employment agencies, perhaps inconjunction with researchers at universities,to establish an ongoing process of matchingschool enrollment data with employment andwage data.

The advantage of using administrative ratherthan survey data is that it is relatively lessexpensive to collect and more accurate at theindividual student level. The primarydisadvantages of administrative data relativeto survey data are the lack of detail on thematch between training and employment, thelack of information on the satisfaction offormer students with programs offered at theschool, and the inability to track formerstudents who leave the state. To overcomethese disadvantages, some colleges find ituseful to perform limited satisfaction surveysof former students to supplement what theylearn from the employment and wage data.

Several other data sources permit analysis ofoutcomes for former students. One islicensure and certification records available atthe state level. Another is the use of stateand federal information about transfers toother postsecondary institutions. The latter isof particular use to colleges in states thatalso provide information to match wagerecords with college course-taking.

extent to which coursework helps studentsget hired at jobs and perform well after beinghired. Many colleges have found thisinformation helpful for their internal planningpurposes as well as for promoting thesuccess of their programs among state andlocal government officials, business andindustry leaders, and potential students.

The primary sources of this information arematching of enrollment data with statewage-record and data surveys of formerstudents and employers. There arestrengths and shortcomings in bothapproaches - data-matching and surveys -as indicated by the experiences of thecolleges we visited.

About half of the colleges we studied havecomprehensive survey-based informationabout the activities of former students.However, many found the usefulness of thesesurveys to be limited by low response ratesand lack of coverage of all relevant groups.Surveys of graduates (students obtainingdegrees or certificates) were most common atthese institutions. Less common were surveysof other former students. Even less commonwere surveys of employers that hire formerstudents. Thus, while colleges may be ableto obtain detailed information about studentand employer satisfaction and programstrengths and shortcomings from surveys,

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Institutional ReviewProcess

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Information- and Data-Driven Strategic Planning

Labor-market-responsive colleges not onlygather information about the local economy,student outcomes, employers, and so forth;they also rely upon it for strategic planning toimprove their workforce and economicdevelopment efforts and to meet local needsmore effectively. It drives decision-making, ascolleges initiate, improve, or terminateprograms. At Scott Community College ineastern Iowa, staff members assess the cost,the job demand, and entry-level wages,among other factors, before deciding whetheror not to implement a new program. Thecollege surveys employers in the industry inorder to obtain a clearer idea of the proposedprogram's value.

Responsive colleges also use data tomeasure their own effectiveness atresponding to the labor market and todetermine how they can improve. A broaderinstitutional review can examine more thanlocal economic data and program outcomes.It can collect information on and analyzeinternal structures and resource allocation aswell as the external political and policycontexts. Through the process of strategicthinking, data and information are brought tobear for a variety of purposes-planning,problem-solving, vision development, andcontinuous improvement. Such a processcan act as a lever for cultural change oncampus, leading to a rethinking of a college'smission and goals to enhance alignment withcommunity needs.

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Labor-market-responsive colleges use information and data to understand their environment and

evaluate their effectiveness in meeting local employment needs.

Personal contacts, particularly through the president and program advisory committees, are an

irreplaceable source of up-to-the-minute data on local employer needs and economic shifts.

Responsive colleges regularly use published data to learn more about labor market trends. They

capitalize on opportunities to partner with others and survey local employers.

Responsive colleges improve by evaluating their services to employers.

Responsive colleges do not rely solely on student enrollment as a measure of employer demand.

They independently assess this demand and find ways to boost enrollment in courses for which

there are high wages and employer demand but low student interest.

The best indicators of labor market responsiveness come from determining the extent to which

coursework helps students get hired at jobs and perform well after being hired. The primary sources

of this information are surveys of former students and employers and matching of enrollment data

with state wage data.

Strategic planning at responsive colleges is driven by data and information, and resources are

invested to collect and analyze the necessary information.

Lessons Learned

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R E S O U R C E

Responding to Changing Labor MarketConditions Through Technology

In 2000, the Association of Community CollegeTrustees (ACCT) commissioned the creation of aneconomic impact model to accurately measure thereturns to the public from local community colleges.With studies completed at more than 400 collegesin more than a dozen states, the data show thatcommunity colleges provide high rates of return onpublic dollars invested in most cases, returningmore dollars to the public than the colleges receive.Based on this model, a tool was developed to assistcolleges in determining the future industries andoccupations in their service regions, the futuredemand for courses, and the accommodationsnecessary for specific courses as industries moveinto or out of the area.

The Community College Strategic Planner (CCSP),available for a fee through CCBenefits, Inc., isdesigned to help colleges measure and respond tolabor market forces. The CCSP provides thefollowing three components:

1. Occupation and Program Forecaster. Thismodule projects jobs by industry, occupation,and course demand by CIP code (Classificationof Instructional Programs) at the county level.To show industry forecasts in the college servicearea, the CCSP projects county-level industrydata to the forecast year using data from theU.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau ofLabor Statistics (BLS), and U.S. Census. Alltold, the projections draw upon 24 major datasources. To forecast occupational demand atthe county level, BLS data are regionalized andadjusted for emerging technological changes,the age of workers by occupation, and otherfactors affecting occupational demand. Simply

by clicking on the forecast year and counties,subscribing colleges obtain the projections fornew and replacement jobs by occupation. TheCCSP then merges current course offerings withoccupation projections to develop a picture ofthe specific demands for coursework in thefuture, reported in detail to the four-digit CIPcode categories. The CCSP projects the futuredemand for courses currently offered and theopportunities for new course offerings for anyyear 15 years into the future.

2. Curricula Impact Analyst. Embedded in everyCCSP is a regional economic impact input-output (IO) model covering the counties of thecollege service area. IO models are used toestimate the direct and indirect effects of user-specified changes in the direct economicactivity in the region (for example, the startup ofa new or the closing of an old industry in theregion). To model an industry relocating into theregion, a user simply selects the industry from adrop-down menu and enters the estimatednumber of direct new jobs in the box provided.The CCSP then projects the change in: a)industry outputs, b) occupations, and mostimportantly, c) the courses (by CIP code) tooffer to accommodate the changes.

3. Student Profile Projector Forecaster. TheCCSP forecasts the future size, age, gender,and ethnicity of the population in the region forany year 15 years into the future.

More information on CCSP can be found atwww.ccbenefits.com or through www.acct.org.

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Relationship-Building

The community college committed to labor marketresponsiveness is equally committed torelationship-building. Without ongoingrelationships with relevant constituencies, collegesare limited in their knowledge of the community'scurrent needs and the opportunities that exist tomeet them. Without the requisite intelligencegained through active and ongoing relationships inthe public and private sectors, colleges cannotform the types of strategic alliances andpartnerships discussed in the following module.Responsive colleges recognize that relationshipswith other organizations also allow them to markettheir ability to meet local needs. Moreimportantly, they position themselves also asleaders and partners in economic development.

Responsive colleges understand that success inmeeting workforce needs often requires theadditional resources of a consortium ofeducation and training providers, and that such aconsortium can assist colleges in their search fornew resources. Labor-market-responsivecolleges put into practice new strategies foroutreach, networking, and relationship-building.They invest sufficient financial and humanresources into the relationship-building processand understand that it is an ongoing task.

All community colleges have relationships withchambers of commerce, workforce development,social service, civic, or educational groups. Thehallmark of the most labor-market-responsivecolleges is the expanded constituencies withwhich they build relationships, reflected in agreater number and diversity of partnerorganizations. Correspondingly, such collegesare more involved in regional and statewidecollaborations that position the institution togather information and leverage resources moreeffectively. For these reasons and more, buildingnetworks with other community colleges isimportant.

Although the president, board of trustees, senioradministrators, and the workforce developmentor continuing education division normally leadthese efforts, relationship-building is everyone'sjob at a responsive college. New relationshipsare formed through strategic outreach. Collegesdevelop new avenues for marketing their career-oriented services and refine the messages thatthey deliver, portraying the institution as aresponsive and flexible partner in economicdevelopment. Mission and vision statements,strategic plans, and top college personnel areimportant vehicles for these messages.

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Every locale has a unique set of organizationsand networks oriented toward broadercommunity concerns. These resources areuseful to the college as entrees to newpopulations and as routes to building newcollaborations. In the neighborhoods served byMalcolm X College on the west side ofChicago, for example, the ministers and theirchurches are powerful forces in the communityand deeply connected to the needs of itsresidents. The dean of continuing educationserves on the board and the educationcommittee of the Westside Ministers Coalition.The personal relationships that she and othershave developed with church leaders providethe college with a way to reach people in thecommunity and to market educationalopportunities at the college's West SideLearning Center. The college has broughtprograms into the community as a result ofthese connections and become part ofcollaborations like that which led to the WestSide Consortium Training Institute for FamilyChild Care Home Providers.

In other communities, college representativesreach out to ethnic organizations, laborunions, and nonprofit organizationsrepresenting various interests. If the collegehas identified underserved populations in itsdistrict as part of its labor-market-responsiveness mission, staff should explorewhether there are formal groups or eveninformal gatherings that would provide accessto these populations.

Building strong networks requires that thecollege do its homework. "You have to knowyour community," stated the dean of the ITInstitute at Northern Virginia CommunityCollege. "We needed the names of interestedcompanies and specific people in those

Expanded RelationshipsBased on Location

The location of a community college willdetermine in part the most promising placesto network, and colleges need to aggressivelyresearch these possibilities. For a communitycollege to become a vibrant actor ineconomic and workforce developmentrequires that its leaders and staff becomeengaged with others in those circles.Business organizations, such as chambers ofcommerce, Rotary clubs, and tech councils,are obvious places to build relationships withemployers and business leaders. Otherentities include community and regionaleconomic development councils as well asother planning, economic, or workforcedevelopment organizations. Major corporateheadquarters and small business networksare also important places to begin toestablish a presence. College leaders shouldexamine whether they have fully exploredlarger regional development efforts as well.

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With which additionalgroups or organizationscould your college buildstrategic relationships?

Green River Community College (WashingtonState) has built upon its relationship with the AuburnChamber of Commerce to enhance the college's access tocity resources. The two collaborated to open the RegionalEnterprise Center in downtown Auburn, a one-stop providerfor economic development, community resources, andeducational services. Housed in the center are thechamber of commerce and the college's Small BusinessAssistance Center, as well as a visitors center, economicdevelopment and business leadership programs, andmeeting space for community events. The college alsorecently collaborated with the city of Kent on the KentStation. Set for a 2005 opening, Kent Station is a $100million, 470,000 square-foot retail, education,entertainment and residential project. Green River plans tomove its SkillStream continuing education and businesstraining services into the center.

New RelationshipsEnhance College'sReach

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companies to be successful. Knowing theenvironment is critical. You can't wait forpeople to come to you. You must go tothem and build relationships."

Other educational institutions should not beoverlooked. Many community colleges haveexisting relationships with high schools, atraditional source of college students.Responsive colleges market their career-oriented offerings to the K-12 system increative ways. Relationships with local schoolsare important recruitment avenues for career-oriented programs at community colleges.

Building relationships or forming consortiawith other community colleges, trainingproviders, and four-year institutions is a wayto leverage increased resources. From theplatform of a strong working relationship,Springfield Technical Community College andHolyoke Community College in Massachusettsjointly applied for and were awarded theNurse Career Ladder Initiative (NUCLI) grantby the Regional Employment Board ofHampden County, in response to thedesperate need for nurses in the region.Plans are to increase enrollments in bothcolleges' nursing education programs.

Community colleges can also addressemployer training needs throughout a state orregion through a collaborative andcoordinated response. Consortia provide aframework for these responses. ScottCommunity College is part of One Source, acollaboration among all 15 Iowa communitycolleges that allows companies with astatewide presence to go to one source tonegotiate training. Responsive collegesrecognize the resource that other communitycolleges provide in meeting regional industryneeds in a seamless fashion. Advocacy at the

state level on community college funding andpolicy, and marketing at the local level arealso important benefits of partnering withother colleges. Holyoke Community College'spresident joined the presidents of three othercommunity colleges in the region for apresentation to the Holyoke Economic andIndustrial Corporation on the value ofcommunity colleges to the local economy.

Relationship-Building IsEveryone's Job

Most community colleges have eachestablished an office of college relations orcommunity and public relations to promote thecollege's image and provide information aboutits programs and services to the public. Thepresident and trustees play crucial roles asadvocates for the college in circles of powerand influence in business and government.However, at responsive colleges, it is not onlythe top leaders or those in a particular officewho hold responsibility for relationship-buildingand communicating the college's messagesabout its labor market responsiveness. Thistask is shared and embraced not only by thosedirectly involved in a workforce developmentdivision but by all college staff.

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Does the college take a leadership role

in building strategicrelationships?

Both Palomar College and the San DiegoCommunity College District are part of the San Diegoand Imperial County Community College Association(SDICCCA), made up of nine community colleges and ex-officio representatives of local universities and the countyOffice of Education. Presidents and vocational deans meetin separate groups monthly, allowing the colleges tocollaborate and share programs, and the association hasworkforce development committees focused on specificareas such as biotech. SDICCCA received a regional grantfor a customer service training academy, and the collegesstill engage in this cooperative venture even though thegrant is over.

Regional CommunityCollege Cooperation

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services," "corporate training and continuingeducation," or "business and industryservices." While this division managesprograms and services, it also plays a key rolein building relationships and in marketing thecollege to potential partners and clients. Thedivision staff may engage in direct marketing,offering PowerPoint presentations or informaltalks to chamber of commerce meetings,rotary clubs, corporate gatherings, communitygroups, and major businesses. Somecolleges retain sales or marketing employeesin the workforce or training divisions whosesole job is to bring in new business and retainexisting training relationships. In either case,by working directly on a day-to-day basis withbusinesses and other community partners,staff develop personal relationships withpeople in these organizations. Through theserelationships, they gather information aboutindustry trends and needs, while monitoringand assessing the satisfaction of their clients.The staff members who work on a daily basiswith clients, as the most visiblerepresentatives of the college's labor marketresponsiveness, function as "advertisements"of the quality of its services in the way thatthey carry out their work.

Many community colleges sustain aneconomic or workforce development missionbased almost entirely on the work of thepresident and the division dedicated to thatmission. The rest of the college -administrators and faculty - go about theirjobs as these are typically defined at atraditional college. At a few communitycolleges, however, the mission of labormarket responsiveness has so permeated theorganization that everyone on staff feelsresponsible for making it happen. And itseems that the more labor-market-responsivea community college is, the more likely this isto be the case.

New expectations of staff, indeed neworganizational cultures, are in place orevolving at these institutions. Such afundamental shift can occur only if upper

The president and other senior administratorsset the example for the creative pursuit ofrelationship-building. They welcome and seekout appointments to boards and councils,pursuing avenues that will introduce theminto networks that strategically position thecollege. From among many organizations,they choose to participate in those that holdthe most promise for achieving the college'spriorities and goals. Organizations devoted toeconomic, business, or workforcedevelopment-chambers of commerce, rotaryclubs, government-industry tech councils,economic development corporations, banks-are especially promising as sources ofinformation, contacts, and possiblepartnerships for labor-market-responsivecolleges. Every region will have a differentmix of professional, trade, business,nonprofit, and civic organizations with whichthe college might judiciously seek involvementat the leadership level. College leaders whosucceed in proactive relationship-buildingliterally integrate themselves into theeconomic aspects of the community in waysthat were not typical of a previous generationof college leaders.

Usually, a labor-market-responsive college willhave a specialized division, typically named"workforce development and community

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President Carroll of Mesa College in the San Diegodistrict sits on the opera board, serves on the board of SanDiego Youth and Community Services, and sat on the SuperBowl host committee to connect with those who could helpadvance the college's mission.President Nunley of Montgomery College is a boardmember of the Tech Council of Maryland and co-chair ofthe Montgomery County Network, High Technology Councilof Maryland, and other networks that connect her withbusiness leaders.

Presidential Networking

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management directly and unequivocallycommunicates these new expectations. AsPresident Nunley of Montgomery College inMaryland observed, "I tell all of ouradministrators and try to extend it to thewhole workforce. They must be active in thecommunity. They're involved to be known, tobe visible, to be leaders, and to bring ideas."Beyond the setting of expectations from thetop, it is important that the network of senioradministrators and department heads buyinto these expectations and model the factthat relationship-building and marketing labormarket responsiveness are part of everyone'sjob. Administrators and faculty members inrelationships with external organizations-whether advisory committees or clinical orinternship sites or others-understand thatwhat they say and do conveys messagesabout the community college and its interestin cooperating with other organizations.

Vehicles to Carry theCollege's Message

In order to build relationships, a college mustcommunicate its core mission to the public.The college's formal statements of purpose-mission statement, vision, and strategic plan-begin setting forth this message. When labormarket responsiveness is truly integrated intothe core mission rather than being simply anauxiliary service, these formal statementsreflect that stance. Beyond serving as thecollege's internal guiding principles, thesestatements become the bedrock of thecollege's presentation of itself to the world,

both on campus and off. The college's labor-market-responsive mission should be broadlyand intentionally communicated. It should beprominently placed in college publicationsand on the Web site.

Communicating the college's goals and itsability to meet workforce development needscannot be confined to paper, however, butmust enter into the common vernacular ofcollege personnel. The board, president, andkey administrators are all importantmessengers. President Lee of OaktonCommunity College near Chicago identifiedthe Oakton Community College EducationalFoundation, a 23-member volunteer boardconsisting of business and industry CEOs, asa key resource for "spreading the good word"about Oakton to other employers.

The college president's presence in circles ofinfluence is itself a form of communication.The president's public appearances-where heor she appears and with whom-communicateas powerfully as words the mission of thecollege and its interest in being engaged inpartnerships that further economic,workforce, and community development. Thepresident is the college's "logo," Margaret Lee,president of Oakton Community College,observed, attributing the insight to DavidRiesman, the author of Lonely Crowd and anacknowledged expert on social behavior in theUnited States. The president's choices aboutwhere to be active and where to be seen willbe interpreted as messages, not only aboutthe president's priorities, but those of thecollege as well.

Like the president, the dean or vice presidentheading the workforce or continuing educationdivision circulates in the community. Thissenior administrator usually securesappointments to boards and committees thatspotlight the college's expertise in economic orworkforce development. The vice president ofcontinuing education at Oakton CommunityCollege in Illinois is president-elect of theSkokie Chamber of Commerce, for example,

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Chicagoland's economic development needs.The central office of City Colleges plays asignificant role in marshalling the response toemployer requests and coordinating withworkforce development boards.

By connecting with economic developmentagencies, local planning districts, regional,city or county agencies, and businessorganizations, colleges and their servicesbecome part of the promotional efforts ofthese entities. Mountain Empire CommunityCollege's services are marketed through theVirginia Coalfield Economic DevelopmentAuthority's initiative, the Southwest VirginiaPromise, which promotes the region-includingthe college-to businesses seeking a newhome or expansion site. The Eastside Cities'Training Consortium, composed of 31municipalities in Washington State,collaborates with Bellevue Community Collegein Seattle to promote the college'sprofessional development programs to areabusinesses. And the Internet creates newopportunities limited only by the imaginationof its users. York Technical College in SouthCarolina has created a training exchange onits Web site, where it posts a list ofemployers engaged in contract training withthe college or other private firms. The siteplays both a brokering role, as companies cansee the range and type of training optionsoffered, and a marketing one, as companiesthat observe the training offered by thecollege are enticed to become clients.

The Messages ThatMarketing Communicates

In addition to finding new avenues formarketing, responsive colleges are carefulto craft the messages that they want tocommunicate. Convincing prospective

while the continuing education dean at GastonCollege in North Carolina chairs the chamber'sEducation-Workforce Development Committee.College leadership in these rolescommunicates labor-market-responsivepriorities. The dean of continuing education forMalcolm X College in Chicago is constantly outin the neighborhoods, serving on boards andattending meetings. "My goal," she observedhumorously, "is never to be in my office."

New Avenues for MarketingLabor MarketResponsiveness

As the labor-market-responsive college looks todevelop new relationships, marketing is oneimportant mode of communication. The largernetworks within which community collegerepresentatives circulate may offer importantnew opportunities for marketing to a wideraudience. Colleges within urban or districtsystems may find the central office animportant resource, not only of direct referrals,but also of networking and communication-through meetings, studies, committee work,publications, and Web sites. The seven CityColleges of Chicago, of which Malcolm X is one,present themselves as a collective solution to

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The Springfield Technical Community College(STCC) Entrepreneurial Institute offers credit courses in allaspects of entrepreneurship education, ranging from a two-year associate degree to K-8 elementary entrepreneurprograms. In addition to offering programs to K-12educators interested in teaching entrepreneurship, theInstitute runs the YES! (Young Entrepreneurial Scholars)program for high schools in the region and the college'sCommunity Foundation of Western Massachusetts StudentBusiness Incubator. According to administrators, theinstitute has been very instrumental in marketing STCC'snoncredit program offerings to prospective students at ayoung age.

Marketing to K-12Students

Has the college sought out new ways tomarket itself, regionallyand even nationally?

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clients of the value and integrity of whatthe community college has to offer is thefundamental message. Is the communitycollege's essential product, education andtraining, of the highest quality? Is thecollege leadership on top of currentindustry trends? Do college graduates findgainful employment? Whether the field isinformation technology or nursing orintegrated systems technology, does thecollege offer training that is up-to-date,and rigorous, and meets requirements forcertification? Are those managing andteaching in the occupational programsexperts who are current in theirprofessional fields?

Many kinds of evidence discussed earlier canbe useful in answering these questions:graduate and customer satisfaction surveys,evidence of program recognition and facultyachievement, and recommendations frombusinesses and other partners of the collegewho are pleased with the services theyreceived. What matters is that the messageof excellence be conveyed. Thus anadditional benefit of collecting outcome andimpact data on career-oriented programs isits usefulness for marketing the college'sstrengths and successes in meeting localworkforce needs.

Another fundamental message to convey topotential partners and clients is that thecollege's approach is proactive and focusedon solving problems. The responsive collegedoes not provide canned knowledge, butsolutions to real-world problems. During therelationship-building phase, college staffmembers communicate to potential partnerstheir intention to help identify challenges,devise responses, and sustain and refine thisprocess over time.

Closely related to problem-solving is flexibility.The stereotype of the traditional college is theopposite of flexible: classes taught with thesame curriculum in the same room by thesame instructors, year after year. Many peopleoutside of higher education still view collegesthrough this lens. The labor-market-responsivecollege conveys its willingness and ability toadjust traditional structures-course and programscheduling, admission and prerequisites,staffing, credit, curriculum, and location-toaddress the concerns and needs of partners. Itis no longer news that a traditional on-campus,semester-long, three days a week, mid-morningclass is unlikely to appeal to employees or theindustries that employ them. But how far will acommunity college go to serve its customers,without compromising the quality of itsprograms? The community college that wantsto become more labor-market-responsive hasassessed itself on these issues, and lets thepublic and partners know where it stands.

Communication Is a Two-Way Street

Communication is fundamental to allrelationships. In addition to information-sharing and consensus-building, it buildsrapport. Active listening is an important skillin gathering crucial information on localneeds. At colleges that are responsive to thelabor market, all these functions areimportant. Responsive colleges undertake anew and expanded communication andmarketing function: communicating with alarger audience, emphasizing two-way

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Does your marketingactivity encourage othersto approach the collegeas a potential partner?

Do college leaders and staff recognize

that listening is a keycomponent of

communications and marketing?

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Not only do conversations between collegeadministrators and business leaders at thechamber of commerce offer significantinformation. More importantly, they beginthe process of building relationships. Whatis most valued within these relationships isthe personal and direct contact that theyafford. Through such relationships,employers and community and corporateleaders begin to think of the college as aplayer in workforce and economic affairs andto share with its representatives the kind ofinformation, issues, and problems that mayultimately lead to partnerships.

communication, and establishing-as theultimate goal of communications-newrelationships and partnerships.

Every act of communication is understood as(at least) a two-way exchange. In the rush toget the right message out to the right audience,the importance of listening may sometimes beoverlooked. Listening is fundamental to thecommunications process of a labor-market-responsive college. The very term "responsive"implies that the college has "heard" and isdetermined to act upon informationcommunicated to its representatives.

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Responsive colleges develop a wide variety of nontraditional relationships and deepen existing

relationships with economic and workforce development groups, business and industry, community

leaders, community-based organizations, other education and training providers, powerful figures,

and diverse constituencies.

Relationship-building is everyone's job. While the board, president, and workforce development

division have important roles to play, staff and faculty members across the organization accept

responsibility for building relationships through which to communicate the college's interest in

partnerships and community service.

The college's formal statements of purpose (vision, mission, strategic plan) are core vehicles for

broadly communicating the college's market responsiveness on campus and off. The president and

board are key players in communicating the college's interests and building relationships, particularly

within leadership circles. Personal and direct contact is the most effective form of communication.

The messages that are communicated emphasize not only the quality of the college's work, but its

flexibility and commitment to bringing to the table what the partners need.

Lessons Learned

57

P R A C T I C A L A D V I C E

Approaches to Labor MarketResponsiveness

Community colleges vary in their approach to labormarket responsiveness. In no particular order,here's a short list of strategies and approaches,gathered through our case studies, that responsivecolleges take:

Remain current on the skills most in demand bylocal employers.

Offer courses that address the training needs ofemployers.

Develop increased ability to rapidly respond tothese needs.

Thoughtfully recruit and increase "non-credit"enrollment.

Offer more targeted and contract trainingcourses, beyond those listed in the catalog, tobenefit employers and others seeking toupgrade their skills.

Focus on becoming increasingly adept atcurriculum development and modification tomeet the changing needs of students andemployers.

Integrate non-credit training into for-creditprograms, and visa versa.

Continuously expand and refine for-creditofferings to address many of the workforceneeds of the local economy.

Develop close collaborative partnerships withlocal businesses, trade associations, labororganizations, chambers of commerce,economic development agencies, community-based organizations, and municipalgovernments.

Provide entrepreneurial assistance to smallbusinesses, including start-ups.

Launch aggressive outreach programs targetedto local and regional businesses, both to offertraining services and to solicit feedback aboutcourse content.

Use technology and distance learning to expandcapacity to deliver credit and noncredit training.

Recruit adjunct faculty from among localexperts in targeted fields to provide training.

Demonstrate the ability to use resourcesefficiently and deliver effective training at alower cost than for-profit or internal trainingproviders.

Enlist progressive and responsive leaders whopromote market responsiveness.

Collect relevant data, maintain good informationmanagement systems, and ensure thatdecisions are data driven.

Establish and maintain strong links to the localsecondary school system (Tech Prep, DualEnrollment, School-to-Work).

Engage local business and community leadersto help the college develop market-responsivestrategies.

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Partnerships

In their efforts to be labor-market-responsive,colleges inevitably need to partner with localbusiness and industry. Indeed, the programsand services that result in labor marketresponsiveness are most often implemented as apartnership. Partnerships with employers, tradeassociations, economic development agencies,and other educational institutions enable acollege to reach beyond the student populationsthey have traditionally served and build itscapacity in emerging occupational and trainingareas. Through outreach, marketing, andrelationship-building, described in the previousmodule, the community college opens doors tonew contacts and opportunities to demonstrateits leadership, knowledge, and interests tostrategic partners. Relationships build uponeach other, bringing together groups andindividuals with overlapping goals and differentmixes of resources and need. Out of these richnetworks, colleges form partnerships with one,two, or many employers and associations.

Without question, the community college bringsto the table many resources. Depending on thecampus, these are likely to include substantiveand instructional expertise, classroom and labspace, technical equipment, an infrastructure forprogram delivery, and the capacity to leverage

financing. Importantly, they supply brainpower toorganize, develop, and execute educational andtraining programs. But the community college isalso likely to be lacking in some areas: access tonew populations of students, cutting-edgetechnical knowledge and equipment, in-depthand current knowledge of occupations andindustries, and adequate financing for newprograms, to name a few. As senior officials toldus time and time again, labor marketresponsiveness can be achieved only throughthoughtful and intentional partnership.

Partnering is strategic, based on solidrelationships and information gathered aboutlocal employers, community needs, andeconomic trends. Successful colleges partnerwith business and industry leaders-large andgrowing firms and innovative industries.Presidents and boards of trustees play key rolesin connecting with these leaders and initiatingpartnerships. Entrepreneurial staff membersfollow up, developing and sustaining smallerpartnerships. Common features of successfulpartnerships discussed in this module include:win-win-win situations; leveraging for the futurerather than for short-term gain; flexibility inmeeting needs; lasting for the long term; andvisibility that leads to new partnerships.

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to reasoned decisions by the college leadersabout where to focus their efforts. They canthen identify and pursue the specificcompanies and people with whom to partner.They may target particular industries,occupations, or specific corporations. Throughextensive networking and needs analysis, theleaders of Anne Arundel Community College inMaryland, for example, identified informationtechnology as a priority area for the college inthe business environment and the NationalSecurity Agency as a key employer.

Identifying opportunities and setting prioritiesalso means seriously reflecting on themeaning of "community." Many communitycollege administrators mentioned that as theyexplored how to be more responsive, theyfound their service area expanding. "Thisregion is very interdependent," observedRobert Templin, the president of NorthernVirginia Community College. "Economiesknow no boundaries, but politics do. Wehave to think beyond political boundaries."

Modern community colleges must weigheconomic and labor market concerns that gobeyond the traditional interests of the collegeor the immediate needs of local employers.When partnering with economic developmentorganizations, community colleges cancontribute to the demand side of the labormarket by developing local industry andattracting new business. Through suchpartnerships, they can address the loss ofmanufacturing jobs, economic downturns,and the dislocation of workers. Theseconcerns almost always play themselves outon a regional level.

Moreover, the global economy may haveimplications for even the most geographicallyisolated college. Information technology is

Setting Strategic Priorities

Once the network of relationships described inthe previous module has been established, thecollege is poised to develop strategicpartnerships that will achieve the workforce andeconomic development goals of the community.In focusing on partnerships to enhance labormarket responsiveness, each communitycollege needs to set tactical priorities.Considered thinking about where to focus timeand energy is part of the standard "strengths,weaknesses, opportunities and threats" (SWOT)analysis that goes into sound strategicplanning. Where are the college's strengthsand where are the opportunities in thecommunity? Which industries and companiesare most important economically? Which areexpanding? Are there other employers, such asgovernment agencies or school systems, forwhich the college would be an appropriatepartner? As presented in earlier modules,identifying opportunities for strategic alliancesrequires information-gathering and research:looking at data concerning labor market andeconomic development trends, networking withrepresentatives from the chamber, businessesand other community organizations, fieldingsurveys, and perhaps conducting a systematicneeds analysis.

The mutual processes of institutional self-evaluation and community assessment–thematching of strengths and opportunities - lead

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Valencia Community College seeks to be a majorplayer in its region's economic development. CentralFlorida is a high-employment but relatively low-wageeconomy. By far the largest employment sector is thehospitality industry, which offers low wages. The collegeand the community developed a "conscience economystrategy," deciding no longer to pursue low-wage jobs, butrather to focus on identifying clusters of opportunity foreconomic development, building on their strengths inhealth-care, financial software, and dynamic media fields.

Identifying EconomicOpportunity

Does the college engage in sustained,

successful partnershipsthat are responsive to

the labor market?

61

only one example of a growth industry nottied to geographic location. This suggeststhat the search for strategic partners shouldnot be limited to the usual suspects withinthe bounds of the local community or county.Many responsive colleges have sought toestablish partnerships with companies andother employers on a regional basis,sometimes crossing state lines.

Partner With Leaders

Leaders of community colleges withsuccessful partnerships advise that in settingstrategic priorities colleges establishpartnerships with large employers andinnovative industries on the one hand, andthose undergoing dramatic change, growth, orretrenchment on the other. The reasons forthis approach are many. In the first scenario,the more substantial the business or industry,the greater the need for large numbers ofwell-trained workers. The more successfulthe enterprise, the more likely leaders are tobe interested in growth and expansion. Themore visionary the leaders, the more likelythe firm is to be enthusiastic and willing totake risks in the interest of creating newenterprises and partnerships. As arepresentative of Central PiedmontCommunity College in North Carolinarecommends: "Be partners with leaders."

Partnering with national or internationalcorporations is likely to provide a higher levelof resources and greater recognition for thecollege. In addition, regional or nationalconnections are a good leverage point forfuture partnerships. While not all communitycolleges are adjacent to national orinternational corporations, nationalprofessional associations and unions can alsobe leaders in their fields. South Piedmont

Community College in rural North Carolinadeveloped its metallurgical engineeringtechnology program by partnering with theASM Materials Information Society, anassociation for materials engineers andscientists.

In the second scenario, firms undergoingdramatic change are likely to be in the mostneed of retooling and retraining. Employees

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Scott Community College (Iowa) conducted a surveyto determine the training and employment needs of areaemployers and discovered that manufacturers were worriedabout the skills of their current employees and foresaw aneed for nearly 60,000 new and replacement hires by theyear 2000. In response, the college partnered with fivemanufacturers to build the Manufacturing TechnologyCenter to address these skill needs. Ten localmanufacturing employers helped develop the curriculumand marketing plan, went to high schools to recruitstudents, and provided the college with 20 percent of thecenter's operating costs. The state provided $1.5 million tobuild the center. The college is now building anothermanufacturing center in a nearby county with nineemployers and state funds.

Determining the NeedsFor Strategic Partnering

Developed in 1996, the Springfield TechnicalCommunity College (STCC) Technology Park, located ina renovated mill on a 15.3-acre site, provides lease spacefor technology-based and light manufacturing companies.Adjacent to Springfield's downtown central businessdistrict, the park houses 15 companies with approximately950 employees. The Verizon New England Next Stepprogram, a partnership between Verizon and one of itsunions, is located in the park. This $8 million, 11-collegeprogram trains Verizon employees throughout New Englandin telecommunications technologies. STCC is the leadcollege in the program.

Partnering WithRegional Employers

Do the partnerships inwhich your college takes

part anticipate localeconomic development

and growth?

62

stage for other administrators and staff topursue promising relationships with thepurpose of developing partnerships.

A college's board of trustees and itsfoundation board should be composed ofbusiness and community leaders. Asinfluential people with broad networks of theirown, they often play key roles in developingpartnerships for the college. KirkwoodCommunity College in Iowa partners withAegon USA, one of the largest insurancecompanies in the world, with operations inCedar Rapids. Aegon's CEO is the presidentof the college's foundation board. In 1998,Aegon built its corporate data center on thecollege's campus and in exchange built thecollege an information technology center.

Partnerships Extend theEducation and WorkforceDevelopment Pipeline

Community colleges sit at the nexus ofeducational institutions supporting workforcedevelopment. Secondary schools serve asprimary feeders to many community colleges,while four-year institutions receive manytransfers from community college. Together,they form the educational pipeline preparingindividuals for productive employment. Onlythrough partnerships can the various levels ofeducation work as a system.

Most community colleges have articulationagreements or other relationships with K-12institutions. Responsive colleges havetransformed these relationships into innovativepartnerships. San Diego City College hosts a"middle college high school" (a co-located highschool) on campus, of which 300 out of 700students are dually enrolled in high school andthe college. Gaston College in North Carolinaviews dual enrollment programs as a way ofrecruiting more high school students into thecollege's technical programs.

are more likely to seek additional training tostay contemporary and competitive.Dislocated employees will need to be retrainedfor new positions. Small firms that can't affordindividual training programs will need specialassistance. Indian River Community College inFlorida went out of its way to organize smallbusinesses, creating avenues for training thatnone of them could individually afford.

Direct brokering by community collegepresidents has resulted in numerouspartnerships of great benefit to institutions andtheir partners. The personal involvement ofMontgomery College's president in establishingrelationships with Marriott's CEO resulted in a$1 million gift from that company that evensenior administrators would have found next toimpossible to secure. The president ofMalcolm X College in Chicago negotiated anarrangement with the United Center, a sportsarena situated next door to the campus, whichwill bring $1.6 million to the college forscholarships and athletic programs in 2004.The president's strategic leadership sets the

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In 1995, the National Science Foundation designated andfunded the National Workforce Center for EmergingTechnologies (NWCET) at Bellevue CommunityCollege (Washington State) as a National Center ofExcellence in Advanced Technological Education. Thecenter was created to advance IT education and improvethe quality of the IT workforce in the state of Washingtonand nationally. With the support of major donors such asthe Boeing Company and Microsoft Corporation, as well as13 partners in business, education, and industry, theNWCET develops IT skills standards and identifies theneeds of IT employers and prospective IT students. TheEducator-to-Educator IT Institute (E2E) located at thecenter provides IT training for teachers and links the NWCETwith industry leaders in IT instruction. Through E2E, theNWCET is a national Microsoft IT Academy Programprovider, and McGraw-Hill sponsored the 2003 WorkingConnections IT Faculty Development Institutes.

Partnering WithNational Leaders

Are you partnering with the rightorganizations?

63

Other K-12 partnerships focus on increasingcareer awareness and interest in importanttechnical fields. Montgomery College inMaryland sponsors summer camps tointroduce middle school students and theirteachers to careers in biotech, a countywideworkforce training need that the college isaddressing. The science department withinBellevue Community College (BCC) inWashington State has an ongoing partnershipwith a local elementary school in which BCCscience instructors share their knowledge ofscience with the students. Each year BCCand the elementary school host a "YoungScience Celebration" which features groupprojects and hands-on demonstrations.College officials believe such partnershipsbuild an early and abiding interest in sciencecareers. Developing interest and enrollmentin high-demand career areas is a critical steptoward meeting local labor-force needs.

Partnerships with other community collegescan also result in important outcomes. ScottCommunity College in Iowa maintains areciprocity agreement with Black Hawk College,enabling students from each college to enrollin career-oriented programs the other does notoffer. Through distance education inter-collegiate partnerships provide anotherinnovative approach to labor marketresponsiveness. Northern Virginia CommunityCollege brought together other colleges fromacross the country-Dallas, Miami, New York,and Washington-to design a degree programcombining distance education with in-personclasses to train workers in conference planningand facilitation. An administrator explainedthat while the design and development of theonline curricula came out of the consortium ofcolleges, the push came from employers.

In many technical fields, bachelor's degreesare a necessity for entering the labor market.Articulation agreements developed throughpartnering with four-year institutions ensurethat community college students pursuingtechnical careers lose no time throughimperfect alignment with local universityrequirements in those fields. City College inthe San Diego District offers a degree in

industrial technology, but San Diego Statehad terminated the corresponding bachelor'sdegree program. Not wanting a dead-enddegree, the college partnered with FresnoState University, hundreds of miles to thenorth, to provide the additional units in thefield needed for a bachelor's degree, withsome courses taught at the communitycollege and some online. Local employershad a strong interest in keeping students inSan Diego County for their education, in thehopes that they would enter the San Diegoworkforce upon graduation. At MontgomeryCollege in Maryland, students can complete abachelor's degree at the University ofMaryland University College in 10 majorswithout leaving the community college'scampus. Thus partnerships with other highereducation providers enable communitycolleges to be at the forefront of localworkforce development.

Entrepreneurial StaffMaintain and EnhancePartnerships

College staff interface daily with partners andplay a key role in the success and growth ofthose partnerships. Staff members who areeffective in playing this role tend to beentrepreneurial and customer oriented. Theyoften have private-sector experience-inbusiness or in health for example, to name

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In 1999, Kirkwood Community College (Iowa)launched career academies in engineering technology, localarea networks, IT fields, health sciences, and graphicdesign. Each represents a joint venture between localschool districts and the college. High school teachersteach college-level courses the last two years of highschool, which transfer for college credit and allow highschool students to more effectively pursue viable careeroptions. Nearly 1,000 students participate each year andenrollments are growing.

Career-Focused K-12Partnerships

64

successfully operate partnerships and newprograms. These include scheduling,compensation, competition, and "good old-fashioned bureaucracy," to name a few.Leaders ensure, from the initial hiring ofemployees through their orientation, training,and subsequent performance evaluations,that they consistently seek and rewardinitiative for the activities that lead toproductive partnerships. They seek to hirepeople with the right attitudes as well as theright experience and skills.

Colleges that seek to become labor-market-responsive have devised a number of ways toencourage staff to play their parts and rewardthose who do. Staff members may receivestipends beyond their regular salaries tomanage or teach in new programs. Thecollege may underwrite training for staffmembers to enable them to lead the college'sadvancement into new or rapidly changingfields, most obviously in informationtechnology. Colleges may sponsor staffrecognition programs that showcase andreward faculty members and administrators-atall levels-who assume leadership roles inpartnering activities.

Common Features ofSuccessful Partnerships

At colleges with a history of successfulpartnerships, experienced staff members haveidentified the features of this success. At thetop of their list is that all partners must viewthe arrangement as mutually beneficial. Thisensures effective and harmonious workingrelationships. It is perhaps obvious that asuccessful partnership represents a win-win-win situation. Successful labor-market-responsive programs benefit students orworkers enrolled in the program, the businessor industry that the program targets, and the

two high-growth sectors-which gives themcredibility with their business partners and aleg up in understanding the needs, customs,and challenges facing an organization. As theprimary point of contact on a daily basis, theymonitor client satisfaction with the servicesthe college is providing, seek to address thereal issues the client faces, and look for waysto improve upon and, ultimately, expand thepartnership. To the degree that college staffmembers succeed, their clients are likely tospread the word to others in their networks,further enhancing and communicating thecollege's reputation.

Another characteristic of college staff attunedto partnerships is their commitment to theprinciple of continual improvement. "We canalways get better," is a common sentimentamong staff at responsive colleges. They thrivein an organizational culture that rewards stafffor pursuing change and taking risks in theservice of improvement. By communicatingthis ideology to their partners and potentialpartners, these colleges demonstrate theirwillingness and ability to be responsive.

Leadership removes the obstacles socommon in a large organization, which caneasily interfere with creative efforts to

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To what extent does thecollege encourage and

reward its staff forentrepreneurial activities?

Oakton Community College (Illinois) has partneredwith the City of Park Ridge to provide training to itsmanagerial and supervisory staff for about five years.Asked to describe the partnership's advantages, the city'shuman resources director noted that a previous providerhad served up "canned" training and offered consultantsunable to relate well to the city's staff. In contrast, "Oaktondeals with the real issues, and they work hard to make thetraining fit. They've also worked hard with our budgetissues, and the loss of grant funds. One facilitator reallyclicked-I have employees who e-mail her for advice on howto coach a staff member."

College Staff EnsureThe Success ofPartnerships

65

community itself, thanks to the economicdevelopment and workforce enhancementthat result. Senior administrators atresponsive community colleges focusforemost on what the college brings to thepartnership, examining the "value-added" oftheir contribution. For example, the questionPresident Nunley of Montgomery College,Maryland, asks of her partners is, "What canMontgomery College do for you that we're notdoing?" The speed with which the college isable to respond to requests is important indemonstrating its value to business andindustry partners.

Leverage rather than simple profit is the long-term measure of a partnership's value.Colleges in partnerships do indeed realizenew funds, students, and donations ofvaluable equipment. Yet senioradministrators advise that neither the collegenor its partners will benefit as much if eitheris simply trying to sell a product or service fora flat fee. In fact, "given the political natureof college financing, it is misleading to focuson the direct costs and revenues associatedwith specific programs," according to a studycompleted by the Community CollegeResearch Center.7 The authors report that"an activity-even one that loses money-canhave political benefits that generate revenueand resources, and result in a strongerfinancial position for the college as a whole."

Moraine Valley Community College (Illinois)staff explain that in their partnership withCisco, the corporation is building a customerbase through training rather than by trying toprofit from the price set for the training, asother companies do. The college, on theother hand, continues to enhance itscollective expertise and reputation in animportant subfield of information technology,a capability that has continually expanded thepartnership with Cisco and led to other IT

partnerships as well. Other colleges notedthe need for business partners to putsomething on the table (scholarships,equipment, technology, start-up funds) andinvest in a program in order to start thepartnership out on the right foot.

Successful partnerships provide fertile soil forfurther partnerships. Other companies hearabout the college's training and services byword of mouth. Visible collaborations attractattention from others in the area. Thuspartnerships themselves are a powerful wayto market the college's partnering abilities.The Wiremold Company, a Hartford-based

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As a result of Kirkwood Community College's(Iowa) creative partnership with Aegon, Diamond Mills,another local company, approached the college about itsneed for a nutrition research center. Since the collegeneeded a new veterinary technology facility, the twopartnered to build a facility that would address both theirneeds. Diamond Mills paid about 75 percent of the cost inexchange for the college maintaining the grounds andparking lots. The college has a similar partnership withRuffalo Cody and Associates, a fundraising enterprise.Ruffalo Cody is building its facility on the college campusand hires students. In addition, Ruffalo Cody will domarket research for the college.

Successful PartnershipsLead to New Ones

Palomar College's relationship with the San DiegoWater Authority reaches back almost 30 years. It beganwhen the authority was looking for a partner to facilitateprofessional development for its employees. As the programhas matured, it has become not only a mechanism forcurrent water authority employees to upgrade their skillsand certifications, but a primary source of new employees.The partnership includes 23 water districts and cities andaverages about 200 students a semester.

Building PartnershipsOver the Long Term

Are partnershipsassessed on their abilityto leverage long-term

opportunities?

66

education. Similarly, colleges offer creativescheduling of classes and training to meetthe preferences of students and employers.

Successful partnerships are for the long term.Effort is put into sustaining and expandingpartnerships so long as there are needs tomeet. Colleges are proactive in helping theircorporate or employer partners determineadditional needs that the institution couldhelp them address.

Finally, building successful partnerships isoften a prerequisite for receiving othersources of funding. Green River CommunityCollege in Washington State noted thatreceipt of state and federal workforcedevelopment funds and federal grantsrequires the college to demonstrate aresponsive training plan. This is impossiblewithout strong partnerships with the businesscommunity. Thus, leveraging resources leadsto additional resources. Community colleges,regardless of their quality or expertise, cannotfulfill the mission of workforce or economicdevelopment in isolation. Only throughpartnership can the college become trulylabor-market-responsive.

manufacturer of plastics, asked AsnuntuckCommunity College in Connecticut to developa skills upgrade program for its workforce.Asnuntuck agreed to train their employeesand has increased its partnerships with otherlocal employers due to publicity about thecollege's relationship with Wiremold.

Another feature of successful partnerships isa college's willingness to be flexible andresponsive to its partners, rather than simplydoing things as it always has. A communitycollege may locate its programs off-site, awayfrom the campus, within an employmentsetting or a community location. Enrollees ofthe Malcolm X Family Care training programstudy in their own neighborhood at the WestSide Learning Center. Students enrolled inthe Moraine Valley-University of ChicagoHospitals Academy nursing program never setfoot on campus. They complete all theirstudies, even the application process, at thehospital. Such arrangements are moreconvenient for employees and employers, andprovide access to the clinical sites essentialfor allied health training. They require collegefaculty and administrators to move far beyondtraditional thinking about the location of

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Partnerships are essential to ensure that colleges address the needs most important to theeconomic vitality of their communities.

Forming strategic partnerships is essential to the development of market-responsive programsbecause such programs tend to be expensive. Traditional sources of college funding are notsufficient to fund such programs, and business and civic groups often lack the resources to buildthem without assistance.

The labor-market-responsive college selects strategic priorities for its partnerships after thoughtfulassessment and research.

College staff members take an entrepreneurial, proactive, and creative stance toward operating partnerships.

College leaders recognize and reward employees for their partnering activities.

Partnerships are assessed, not simply by their bottom line, but rather by their potential for providingimmediate benefits to the community and long-term opportunities for leveraging.

Labor-market-responsive colleges embrace a continuous improvement philosophy and convey thatcommitment to partners and to the community.

Enlightened self-interest is at the heart of successful partnerships-with the ideal being to identifywin-win-win arrangements that benefit students, businesses, and the community at large.

Lessons Learned

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Concluding Remarks and Next Steps

The value of being a labor-market-responsivecollege extends beyond the college itself to thecommunity and region it serves. For the pastdecade, forward-thinking leaders in education,business, and economic development havebecome increasingly aware of the untappedpotential of community colleges to improve theeconomic vitality of their communities. AlthoughAmerica's network of community colleges hasmade enormous contributions to workforce andeconomic development in response to dramaticshifts in the economy, the well-being of everycommunity is more than ever tied to the qualityof its community college's programs.

This guidebook was designed to help your collegemaximize its potential to be effective andresponsive so it may contribute to the economicgrowth and vitality of its community. From thepreceding modules and findings, you should nowsee more clearly that in order for a college to belabor-market-responsive it must first understandthe area it services and how that area is evolving.It must also have an internal structure and culturethat promote the pursuit of opportunities that leadto partnerships, long-term agreements, and adeeper integration into the local economic area.This requires both strong and visionary leadersand organizational structures that promoteentrepreneurial thinking and action. Communitycolleges that embrace workforce development asan equal part of their educational mission allocate

resources to promote the development anddelivery of workforce-related instruction, engageemployers in the development and deliveryprocess, aggressively pursue trainingopportunities, and ensure that the programs meetthe demands of the industries they target. Theyalso establish themselves as willing and ablepartners with local employers and communityleaders to help improve and support the economicvitality of the region.

To be fully effective, a community college has toknow what its own strengths are with respect toaddressing changing demands on the part ofstudents and employers and where it needs toimprove to be fully able to serve the community.If you have not done so already, we encourageyou and your colleagues to use the self-assessment tools in Volume 3 of thisguidebook. They will help your team discoverthe conditions and policies that exist on andaround your campus that promote or inhibit yourcollege's responsiveness. Your team will alsobenefit from accessing the numerous resourcesand organizations presented in Volume 3 thatcan further guide and support your efforts.Using these tools and resources, in conjunctionwith engaging in a college-wide strategicplanning process, will provide you with a clearerunderstanding of your college's market-responsive potential and what steps you need totake to realize that potential.

68

Notes

1. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Office ofEmployment Projections (2000).

2. Laurence Warford, "Funding Lifelong Learning:A National Priority," Community CollegeJournal 72 (3), December 2001/January2002, pp. 15-18, 23.

3. Davis Jenkins and Katherine Boswell, StatePolicies on Community College WorkforceDevelopment: Findings from a NationalSurvey (Denver, Colo.: Education Commissionof the States, 2002).

4. For more information on federal resources forcommunity colleges, see CommunityColleges: Federal Resources Supporting LocalOpportunities (U.S. Department of Education,2004) available athttp://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/CCLO/brochure.doc.

5. "The Entrepreneurial Community College:Bringing Workforce, Economic andCommunity Development to VirginiaCommunities," Virginia Community CollegeSystem, Inquiry 6 (Spring 2001).

6. Thomas Bailey and Vanessa Smith Morest,The Organizational Efficiency of MultipleMissions for Community Colleges,Community College Research Center BriefNumber 19 (New York: Columbia University,September 2003).

7. Thomas Bailey and Vanessa Smith Morest,The Organizational Efficiency of MultipleMissions for Community Colleges,Community College Research Center BriefNumber 19, (New York: Columbia University,September 2003).

8. Dallas County Community College Districtfigures include the seven communitycolleges, the Bill J. Priest Institute forEconomic Development, and the R. JanLeCroy Center for EducationalTelecommunications.

9. San Diego District figures include threecolleges.

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nc.u

s 19

64U

rban

frin

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f la

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city

21,0

52$

22.4

(704

) 92

2-62

00

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h.ht

tp://

ww

w.gr

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.edu

19

64U

rban

frin

ge o

f la

rge

city

10,6

08

$ 41

.2(2

53)

924-

0180

(cre

dit

only

)

Hol

yoke

Hol

yoke

, M

ass.

http

://w

ww.

hcc.

mas

s.ed

u 19

46M

idsi

ze c

ity3,

105

$ 37

.4(4

13)

538-

7000

Indi

an R

iver

Fort

Pie

rce,

Fla

.ht

tp://

ww

w.irc

c.cc

.fl.u

s 19

63U

rban

frin

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f m

idsi

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ity53

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$ 60

.8(5

61)

462-

4700

Kirk

woo

dC

edar

Rap

ids,

Iow

aht

tp://

ww

w.ki

rkw

ood.

cc.ia

.us

1966

Mid

size

city

62,5

73$

52.0

(319

) 39

8-55

88

Mal

colm

XC

hica

go,

Ill.

http

://m

alco

lmx.

ccc.

edu

1911

Larg

e ci

ty28

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$ 28

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12)

850-

7000

Mon

tgom

ery

Mon

tgom

ery

Coun

ty,

Md.

http

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ww.

mon

tgom

eryc

olle

ge.e

du19

46U

rban

frin

ge o

f la

rge

city

46,4

18$

157.

8(3

01)

279-

5000

AP

PE

ND

IX -

PR

OFI

LES

OF

THE

PA

RTI

CIP

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Nam

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mat

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71

Mor

aine

Val

ley

Palo

s H

ills,

Ill.

http

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ww.

mor

aine

valle

y.ed

u19

67U

rban

frin

ge o

f la

rge

city

16,2

97$

64.6

(708

) 97

4-43

00

Mou

ntai

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pire

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Sto

ne G

ap,

Va.

http

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ww.

me.

cc.v

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19

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986

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72)

523-

2400

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ther

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ww.

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1964

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of

larg

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ther

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323-

3000

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ton

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Pla

ines

, Ill

.ht

tp://

ww

w.oa

kton

.edu

19

69U

rban

frin

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f la

rge

city

47,5

00$

58.2

(847

) 63

5-14

00

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mar

San

Mar

cos,

Cal

if.ht

tp://

ww

w.pa

lom

ar.e

du

1946

Urb

an f

ringe

of

larg

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ty28

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$ 82

.6(7

60)

744-

1150

San

Die

go D

istr

ict9

San

Die

go,

Cal

if.ht

tp://

ww

w.sd

ccd.

net

1914

La

rge

city

116,

206

$ 21

2.8

(619

) 38

8-65

00(c

redi

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ly)

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ttB

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ndor

f, Io

wa

http

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ww.

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/scc

19

66U

rban

frin

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f m

idsi

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ity36

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$

30(5

63)

441-

4001

Sem

inol

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anfo

rd,

Fla.

http

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ww.

scc-

fl.ed

u 19

65U

rban

frin

ge o

f m

idsi

ze c

ity40

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$ 44

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07)

328-

4722

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line,

Was

h.ht

tp://

ww

w.sh

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edu/

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city

11,1

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06)

546-

4101

(cre

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only

)

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ont

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ton,

N.C

.ht

tp://

ww

w.so

uthp

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org

1962

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al2,

596

$ 11

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289-

8588

(cre

dit

only

)

Spr

ingf

ield

Spr

ingf

ield

, M

ass.

http

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ww.

stcc

.edu

19

67M

idsi

ze c

ity9,

573

$ 51

(413

) 78

1-78

22

Vale

ncia

Orla

ndo,

Fla

.ht

tp://

vale

ncia

.cc.

fl.us

19

67U

rban

frin

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f la

rge

city

55,2

30$

97.2

(407

) 29

9-50

00

Wal

la W

alla

Wal

la W

alla

, W

ash.

http

://w

ww.

wal

law

alla

.cc

1967

Larg

e to

wn

9,23

3$

27.1

(509

) 52

2-25

00

York

Tec

hR

ock

Hill

, S

.C.

http

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ww.

york

tech

.com

19

64M

idsi

ze c

ity18

,181

$ 24

.2(8

03)

981-

7114

AP

PE

ND

IX -

PR

OFI

LES

OF

THE

PA

RTI

CIP

ATIN

G C

OLL

EG

ES

con

tinu

ed

Nam

eLo

cati

onC

onta

ct I

nfor

mat

ion

Dat

e Es

tabl

ishe

d

Urb

anic

ity

(Inte

grat

ed P

osts

econ

dary

Edu

catio

nD

ata

Sys

tem

cla

ssifi

catio

n)

Enro

llmen

t(c

redi

t an

d no

ncre

dit

head

coun

ts)

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lR

even

ue(2

000-

01

in m

illio

ns)

72

Photo credits:Main cover photo: courtesy of Springfield Technical Community College.Additional photos:Cover (top to bottom)—courtesy of Miami-Dade Community College, Springfield Technical Community College,and Miami-Dade Community College.

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education