Times Record, February 21, 2007

Invest in our community colleges

John Fitzsimmons, president of Maine's Community College system, delivered his biennial address to the Legislature last Thursday. Now in his 18th year as president, Fitzsimmons has the unique perspective of one who knows firsthand how far Maine's community college system has come during that time.

More importantly, he's passionate in expressing a vision of where the system needs to go.

Here are a few highlights of his talk that underscore the wisdom of the 2003 initiative by Gov. John Baldacci and the 121st Legislature to transform the state's technical colleges into community colleges.

In 2003, Fitzsimmons noted:

Median household income in Maine was 42nd in the nation.
Jobs requiring an associate degree or higher were increasing by nearly twice the rate of jobs requiring only a high school diploma.
Only 35 percent of Mainers held a college credential as compared to the New England average of 44 percent.
And while Maine's high school graduation rate was — and remains — among the best in the nation, we were in the bottom third of states when it came to sending our graduates on to higher education.
In 2003, Maine was one of only three states in the nation that did not have community colleges.
Nationally, 17 percent of high school graduates were enrolled in two-year colleges, as compared to 7 percent in Maine. Forty-four percent of the nation's undergraduates were enrolled in two-year colleges, but in Maine that figure was only 17 percent.

Four years later, here are the results:

Enrollment has soared 47 percent.
The number of students enrolling directly from high school has increased by 57 percent.
The number of students transferring on to the University of Maine System has increased by 40 percent.
Enrollment in occupational programs, which represents about 65 percent of the community colleges' student body, has increased by 16 percent.
95 percent of community college graduates are placed in jobs or continue their education, and of those who are placed in jobs, 95 percent are placed right here in Maine.

As satisfying and significant as those results are, more needs to be done to make sure our community colleges continue to enhance economic opportunity in our state.

As Fitzsimmons concluded: "Today, our system is already at a crossroads, and the choice before us is clear. We can keep our community colleges at their current size, serving those fortunate enough to find a seat in one of our classrooms. Or we can make the commitment to expand the pipeline, which is, in all honesty, a lifeline for hard-working Maine people who need access to higher education in order to compete for good jobs at good wages."

We agree, and encourage the 123rd Legislature to support fully the funding requests that will enable our seven community colleges to grow and fully meet the needs of Maine students, businesses and communities.