Luis G. Pedraja
Updated: June 8, 2020
Viewpoint
Community colleges can bridge uncertainty gap
By Luis G. Pedraja
The challenges we face as a nation due to the coronavirus pandemic have left no one untouched. Higher education has been disrupted in ways still being played out, with college students being sent home from their residential campuses; instruction moving to remote methods, and fall college choices now unclear. As I write this, traditional residential colleges and universities remain up in the air about their fall status. Families are uncertain about their financial future, and students are rethinking their academic options.
While no one knows what will happen in the months to come, there is a way to take a smarter, safer, step forward – community college.
Community colleges offer a way for high school graduates to continue their education in a safe way, as they are local and offer less risk than sending students away from home with the fear and uncertainty of being evacuated from campus housing, should there be another wave of the virus. They are a choice for students who were hoping to head off to college this fall but are now uncertain if that will happen. For some students the idea of taking off the coming year may seem ideal. However, I disagree. Why should students delay their future when they can start at a community college and transfer to a four-year college or university? Not only will credits transfer, but students will realize a substantial savings. Massachusetts even provides programs and incentives to make the transfer process seamless. MassTransfer and Commonwealth Commitment are ways in which students can save even more when they transfer.
There is much more to community colleges than one may realize. They are the choice in higher education traditionally offering convenient and varied options. They have academically strong online programming, professors who are proficient in online instruction, and offer dozens of degrees and hundreds of classes taken remotely. Community colleges offer small class sizes and robust support services to ensure students have everything they need to succeed. Students are taught by professors who have real world, industry experience, many of whom teach at four- year schools on the side. Social life is a part of this collegiate experience. There is a strong social aspect to community colleges encompassing everything from clubs and sports to mentoring and career training/placement.
Community colleges are a vehicle for people looking to change or advance their careers, or for those displaced workers looking to gain new skill sets to become more marketable. Businesses rapidly transitioning their physical workplace to a remote workplace, are now finding their employees lack the necessary skill sets in order to remain successful. Community colleges can provide this needed education to both employees and employers, so companies can remain viable.
The true strength of community colleges lies within their ability to be creative and quickly adapt, while effectively serving the ever-changing needs of the community.
Luis G. Pedraja is president of Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester.
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