From the Aspen Institute: For community colleges, a lack of trust contributes to a lack of students

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Community colleges were created to broaden access to higher education in this country, and they’ve largely succeeded in that goal—including for students from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds. On the foundation of open access, community colleges have worked to understand and mitigate the challenges their students face as they complete their degrees. Colleges nationwide have been helping students stay enrolled and move towards graduation, including by adding more advisors, developing clearer course sequences, offering faster ways for students to catch up, and providing much needed additional support such as food assistance. The results have been positive, and graduation rates have improved substantially over the past decade.

While these gains are important, they are not enough. Many colleges still miss something important—the fact that students don’t come to college to graduate, but to improve their lives. For community college students, success means starting on the path to a bachelor’s degree or attaining the skills needed to land a good job right after graduating. Unfortunately, too many students—more than half—don’t graduate. Of those that do, too many don’t earn degrees that offer strong labor market value. Only about a quarter (23%) of associate degree graduates and a little more than a third (37%) of occupational certificate completers earn at least $35,000 two years after completion, according to CCRC. To rebuild trust, colleges must make sure more of their degrees are pathways to social mobility while also developing talent to meet the needs of employers in their communities.