In higher education, the two-year community college serves many roles. Probably the most well-known roles include serving underrepresented populations--those students who are the first in their families to attend college, those whose families don't have the financial means to send their children to a four-year college, and/or those whose academic preparation falls short of meeting the requirements of four-year college admissions. But there are two interesting new trends involving two-year colleges. The first trend involves well-prepared students beginning their education at two-year colleges because they are cheaper than four-year institutions and because they are close to home. The second, perhaps more interesting trend involves reverse transfer students: students who leave their four-year colleges and enroll at community colleges because of rising tuitions, a feeling that they have made a mistake, or a dissatisfaction with the quality of the education they are receiving. Transferring either way can result in difficulties for students, but the author emphasizes that whether students are starting at a four-year institution and transferring to a community college or beginning their studies at their local community college, many of them are discovering a nurturing environment where they can figure out what they want to do with their lives, enjoy faculty support and mentoring, and get a solid education as well.