BOSTON — Community colleges have helped push recovery forward in past times of economic hardship,and their advocates say federal funding will help them do it again.
Lily Bohlke – Commonwealth News Service
President Joe Biden’s American Families Plan includes $109 billion for two years of community college tuition for anyone.
Dave Koffman, government affairs director for the Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges, pointed out investments in community-college learning have economic benefits for students, as well as local and regional employers and the Commonwealth.
“Frankly, 95, if not sometimes more, percent of the students that attend a community college are going to be staying rooted in their local community, within miles of that college campus,” Koffman explained.
The American Families Plan is a follow-up to last month’s American Jobs Plan, which included funding for workforce development, a key component of which is aligning educational programs with the needs of the local community and region, as well as $12 billion for technology and infrastructure updates at community colleges.
The schools also serve the highest proportion of low-income students in higher education. Thirty-four percent of the Commonwealth’s Pell Grant recipients attend a community college.
Koffman argued the funding is important for ensuring an equitable recovery, especially for communities of color that have been hardest-hit by the pandemic. And with the college affordability crisis, Koffman added, community colleges look like a better option for many prospective students.
“It’s making sure that when we have a student debt crisis of trillions of dollars, that individuals know that the best place to go, and most affordable option for high-quality education, is going to be available to them at a community college,” Koffman contended.
Koffman thinks the Biden plans also reflect the value of community college flexibility. Students can attend for a couple of years and transfer to a four-year college or university, or get the degree or credential they need to enter the workforce directly.