The Coming Tsunami – Leadership Challenges for Community Colleges
By William J. Flynn, Managing Director, NCCET

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of times . . .”

Thus did Charles Dickens begin A Tale of Two Cities. In many ways, community colleges face this ambivalent situation today. In the past 15 years, America’s Presidents have again and again identified community colleges as the best hope for the future of our youth, and have made federal funding available to support new educational and workforce initiatives. Yet never before have community colleges faced such serious challenges as they do today.

The paradigm shift embodied in the learning college movement, coupled with the impact of the Internet and information technology, has vastly changed how we administer and teach. Learning is now a 24/7 proposition, and the relationship between teacher and student has been radically altered. Community colleges are changing, perhaps more rapidly than they would prefer.

The National Council for Continuing Education & Training is one of the oldest affiliate councils of the American Association of Community Colleges. Not long ago its members were relegated to the fringe of college life, identified in one famous article as the “shadow college.” Today, its membership is growing, as they are asked to take on new responsibilities. Because they interact with the community so often, they are more likely to ask the hard questions that need to be raised. They are more likely to see what is on the horizon. They are no longer on the fringe.

It is one thing to write a paper on issues for which there is considerable documentation. University libraries are filled with theses, dissertations and other tomes that are filled with footnotes, graphs, charts and other minutiae, usually cited only when another entry to the list of arcane scholarship is added to the stacks or microfiche. This paper is about one possible scenario for the future. It is not a work of scholarship, but of opinion and concern.

The following sources provided information, perspective and ideas for this paper: National Association of States Budget Officers (NASBO); Community College Research Center; National Education Association; American Association of Retired People (AARP); Bureau of Labor Statistics; American Management Association; National Commission on Accountability in Higher Education; Center for Economic Policy and Research; State Higher Education Executive Officers; Congressional Budget Office; American Enterprise Institute; Eight Strategic Questions for Community Colleges (monograph published by NCCET and SunGard Higher Education); New Game, New Rules – Strategically Positioning Your College to Meet The Workforce Development Challenge (NCCET Abstract); and The Perfect Storm (ETS monograph).

Finally, we wish to acknowledge the generosity and commitment of Augusoft for underwriting this document. If technology has changed the way in which we facilitate learning and manage our institutions, then surely Augusoft has been pivotal in helping community colleges keep ahead of
the multiple challenges of today and tomorrow through their commitment to lifelong learning.

Order your copy today of this executive brief written by William J. Flynn and  co-sponsored by Augusoft and NCCET.

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