Describes issues affecting the open door policies of community colleges in light of funding cutbacks. Suggests that the central challenges for community colleges will include linking noncredit workforce development programs to the regular college curriculum and ensuring ease of transfer among secondary schools and community colleges. (16…

This book presents concerns and raises questions about the choice programs being proposed and implemented around the United States. It argues that poorly conceived, hastily enacted choice programs may do more harm than good. The demand for educational choice may result in lost opportunities for students (some groups more than others), weakened…

Community colleges concentrate on the neglected first two years of college; raise educational levels of underprepared students; educates and trains students to be qualified, skilled workers; and re-educates those whose skills are outdated; and those who have college degrees but no work skills. Drawing from interviews with community college…

This paper discusses the low college attainment rates in Maine at all levels of the educational continuum. The percent of Maine adults age 25 and older with associate degrees declined from 6.9% in 1990 to 5.4% in 2000. The percent with bachelors degrees increased slightly from 21.5% in 1995 to 24.1% in 2000, but remains far below the New England…

The controversy generated by the CUNY open admissions policy is described by its former president. The combination of tuition charges and the modified open admissions policy lowered student enrollment and the retrenchment of younger faculty lowered the morale of the faculty. (MLW)

First-cycle university courses in France have a special function, both providing education and serving as an adjustment variable, guaranteeing a place in higher education for any student with the "baccalaureat" degree. Suggests criticism of the system for poor completion rates in undergraduate courses is partially unfounded because the…

Based on one Canadian community college's experience with flexible admissions, it is concluded that access to higher education for nontraditional students can be increased if policies are mediated at the department level; these students do not threaten academic standards; and radical change in teaching methods and curriculum is not necessary. (MSE)

For years in Australia some form of public examination has been regarded as the test of the 'good' school or student. As a direct consequence, the examination exerts an influence upon the curriculum that makes reform difficult. An open admissions policy is discussed. (MLW)

Measures to improve parent and student choice of school have recently become an important issue for educational reform in a number of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. This book summarizes the school-choice experiences of selected OECD countries. The data, collected by the OECD/Centre for Educational Research…

Different models of integrated education in the United States, Sweden, and Germany, including open admissions systems, are discussed in 16 conference papers. Titles include the following: "Opportunity and Achievement: An Analysis of Labor Market Experiences among Recent Graduates from the City University of New York" (James Murtha, Barry…

Educational reform by Miami-Dade Community College is discussed by its president, Robert H. McCabe. In an action that is considered unusual for two-year schools, it has tightened controls on its curriculum, faculty, and students. A commitment to achieving higher levels of literacy is advocated. (MLW)

Remediation programs have been successful in boosting poorly prepared minority undergraduates. Several different approaches are described that combine reconditioning, psychology, and simple faith. (JMF)

One of the most important elements of the community college is the open enrollment policy, providing students who may have performed poorly in high school with a fresh start. Serving academically underprepared students is an important objective of community colleges, but the practice is not without pitfalls. Negative outcomes of the open…

Although the community college is a product of the publicly subsidized move to mass higher education during the 25 years following World War II, it now faces a more stringent fiscal environment that severely challenges its comprehensive, multipurpose character. Funding in the current era of consolidation entails an examination and reconciliation…

This paper describes the use of tuition tax credits and vouchers as political alternatives of choice and competition in a progressive society. School and public administration theorists identify two distinct finance models: the rational and the political. The first part of this paper examines and describes these two models. The next part…