Introduction

Colleges function to serve society. Community colleges were founded to provide education to members of a highly heterogeneous and pluralistic society. What makes a community college unique is its relationship to the community. Communities rely on these colleges to provide educational solutions to social problems. As institutions dedicated to community service, they are uniquely qualified to offer solutions to the complex issues facing society today.

As postsecondary educational institutions intending to serve local communities, community colleges are called on to meet the needs of their various constituents: students, employers, four-year colleges and universities, school districts and the other members of the public (Kellin and Blitz, 1994). They endeavor to provide knowledge to the citizenry and serve as a hub for training, networking and/or planning. They strive to appreciate and embrace diversity. They serve youth and adults of all ages and backgrounds and have become major players in the national economic and work force development initiatives. Because these institutions are able to operate "on the leading edge" they are able to respond quickly to community needs.

The gradual demise of the industrial age, movement into the information age, increased governmental fiscal accountability, and educational reform initiatives have changed the very way our society organizes and manages itself. Contemporary life has been transformed and community colleges are not immune to these changes.

The time has come for community colleges to mold themselves into dramatically different institutions. This will be no easy task because American higher education places a high value on autonomy and maintaining the status quo. Predictable, orderly progression is sought and valued (Dougherty, 1991).

The Demise of the Industrial Age

There was a day, not too long ago, when a strong back and a "yes! sir!" attitude was all that was needed for a "good" job. These jobs, a creation of an industrial economy, are long gone. Although society pines for the return of these jobs they have gone the way of the steel mill and the steam engine. The brave, new workplace has shifted from depending on brawn to depending on brain-power.

Recessionary pressures and technological innovations have also intensified the restructuring of the workplace. The workplace is leaner and there has been a shift away from "Taylorism" and the scientific management method to a Total Quality Management (TQM) philosophy that embraces concepts such as worker empowerment, teamwork and participatory management in the workplace.

Colleges and universities, along with the rest of society, are witnessing a permanent shift from an industrial-based to an information-based economy. Colleges and universities are being forced to evaluate the relatedness of the curriculum to the needs of society. Employers of today and tomorrow expect workers to be active learners, team players, problem solvers, and goal-oriented decision makers. Business and industry leaders continually reiterate the need for technologically literate workers. Corporate leaders recently requested an increase in immigration quotas that would allow for the global recruitment of engineers. The United States Department of Labor projects that by the year 2000, 15% of workers will be in unskilled jobs, 65% of workers will be in (technically) skilled jobs and 20% of workers will be employed in the professions.

Movement into the Information Age

Transitioning to the information age will bring with it an interconnectedness and interdependence of significant proportions. Successful transition to this age will begin when higher education organizations begin to view themselves as part of a much larger socioeconomic system, rather than independent and semi-autonomous entities. (Lorenzo and LeCroy, 1994).

Colleges and universities are coping with unprecedented demands to update their technological infrastructure from inside and outside their institutions. As the providers of advanced educational and training experiences the pressure to upgrade campus technology is mounting.

Fiscal Austerity

The current fiscal crisis is viewed by many as a catalyst for reform and as an opportunity to implement changes. Competition for scarce resources will lead to innovations in curriculum, delivery systems, and administrative processes. As reform based action plans are implemented, colleges will emerge stronger and more focused, and learning and instruction will be enhanced.

Anyone involved in education knows that there is a reform movement afoot. Dozens of federal, state and foundation reports and initiatives have called for school reform.

Table 1                                            Select Foundation Sponsored Educational Reform Initiatives

Table 2                                                         Select Federal Educational Reform Initiatives

1993
"The Secretary's Commission on Achieving the Necessary Skills, Teaching the SCANS Competencies," U.S. Department of Labor.

"America 2000," U.S. Department of Education.

"National Education Goals, National Education Goals Panel," Office of Education Research and Improvement.

Table 3                                              Select New York State Educational Reform Initiatives - 1990's

"A New Compact for Learning: A Partnership to Improve Educational Results in New York State," The University of the State of New York; The State Education Department.

"Education That Works: Creating Career Pathways for New York State Youth," Career Pathways Task Force; New York Job Training Partnership Council; The University of the State of New York; State Education Department.

Table 4                          Select New York State Educational Reform Initiatives - 1980's

Schools are being pressured to change the way they are managed and to change the way young people are educated. Organizations are shifting away from a centralized, top-down, bureaucratic, scientific management model to a collaborative, learning centered management model. In the classroom we are shifting away from a regimen of rote memorization and passive learning to providing active learning experiences that integrate the world of ideas with the world of work (Wirth, 1993).

Pressure to revamp the education sector is being exerted in the United States as well as in many other western countries. The origin of these forces comes from the belief that the nature and environment of the workplace is undergoing a drastic change.

Serious concerns are being raised that educational institutions, including colleges and universities, are not adequately preparing students for the post-industrial economy characterized by high technology, rapid change and an intensely competitive international marketplace.

Politicians and educators have stressed the need for increased cooperation among educational institutions. Faculty and administrators are raising concerns about unacceptable drop-out rates, student academic and technical skill under-preparedness, and career undecidedness. Some educators believe these issues are related to the democratization of the higher education process and changes in the student population. Teacher under-preparedness and greater competition for college students are also cited as impetuses for inter-institutional cooperation.

VanPatten (1987) views school-college partnerships as an essential tool to be used to address issues such as student college preparation, curricular coordination, facility sharing, faculty exchanges and inter-institutional communication programs. Most of the school-college literature supports these findings and the top three areas identified as needing to be addressed are: (1) student preparedness for college; (2) faculty exchanges and professional development opportunities; (3) and inter-institutional cooperative ventures such as curricular coordination and communication.

New York State has a public system of higher education that encompasses sixty-four units, thirty of which are community colleges. These community colleges are very involved in school-college initiatives. Dozens of locally grown, school-community college partnerships have been designed to meet the educational needs of their community. These innovative programs are attempting to deliver education in a different manner. New York State high school-community college collaborations fall into three major categories: Student College Preparation Programs, Faculty-to-Faculty Partnerships and Inter-institutional Partnerships.

Student College Preparatory Programs

The community colleges in New York State offer many programs and services to high school students. Colleges value these programs because they are utilized to meet the educational needs of their community and they prepare young people the college experience. Seven program areas are highlighted below: University/College-Based College Credit Programs, School-Based College Credit Programs, Early Admissions Programs, Academic Enrichment Programs, College Preparation Programs for the Under-prepared and At-Risk, and Career Exploration Programs.

University/College-Based College Credit

Many high school students enroll in college credit classes at their local community college as juniors or seniors to earn college credit as a way to "get ahead" on the college experience. These students are able to enroll in college courses at their local community college when they are not in school, such as in the evening, on weekends or during the summer. They attend class on the college campus, they are enrolled in a regular college class, and they are taught by regular college faculty members. In most instances these students are considered non-matriculated and all community college in New York State offer this learning option.

School-Based College Credit

Progressive school districts now offer high school junior and seniors the opportunity to use college credit in place of specific high school courses while still enrolled as high school students. These high school students earn dual credit while taking a college level course at their high school during their regular school day. These classes are taught by regular high school teachers on the high school campus. Students use this option to get "double credit" from their high school experience. Five community colleges in New York State formally offer this type of program: Cayuga County Community College, Genesee Community College, Monroe Community College, Niagara County Community College and Onondaga Community College.

Early Admissions Programs

Many community colleges also have early admissions programs for high school seniors. Any senior, having met certain criteria, may attend a community college in lieu of their senior year. This experience allows a student to simultaneously complete high school while working towards a college degree. The courses are taken on the college campus, with other college students and they are enrolled in courses taught by regular college faculty. Fulton-Montgomery Community College has a formal early admission program that is designed for students who rank in the top 50% of their class. These high school seniors study full-time and are enrolled in college courses that count toward the completion of the requirements for a high school diploma.

Academic Enrichment Programs

Many programs are offered to provide academic enrichment opportunities for high school, middle school or elementary school students. Some programs are geared toward gifted or talented individuals. Hudson Valley Community College offers a Summer Technology Enrichment Program (STEP) designed for kids grade 5-8 which exposes them to state-of-the-art technology as it prepares them to make career decisions about technology-related fields. Onondaga Community College has two programs: The College For Kids Program which provides summer and after school enrichment programs for kids ages 8-12 and their Leaders For Tomorrow Program which provides focused leadership training for high school students involved in leadership positions.

College Preparation Programs for the Under-prepared or At-Risk

Although much more evident in the 1980's some community colleges still provide programs for under-prepared or at-risk students. Cayuga County Community College offers a Non-Traditional Careers For Women: Role Models and Networking program which seeks to inspire middle school girls and college women to pursue non-traditional careers. Niagara University and Niagara County Community College jointly sponsor the Liberty Partnership Program to students in their local school districts. Geared to students ages 6-12 case managers encourage students to consider attending college as they are completing high school. Economically disadvantaged high school students may also be served by one of the many TRIO programs administered by the United States Department of Education. Sponsored locally by colleges and universities, these programs seek to serve academically at-risk high school students in the hope that they consider enrolling in college. Some programs also have goals related to sending these first generation students to college.

Career Exploration Programs

In the 1990's community college faculty began, in earnest, to share their career planning expertise with elementary, middle, and high school educators and students. Examples of career exploration partnerships are Hudson Valley Community College, offering a program which targets sophomores and juniors hoping that they will choose to enroll in the colleges Construction Systems or Automotive Systems Technology Programs; Erie Community College, offering a program which encourages juniors and seniors to consider engineering technology as an area of study; and Jamestown Community College, piloting a Youth Apprenticeship program for students interested in technical career areas.

Faculty-to-Faculty Partnerships

Community colleges have been working on inter-institutional faculty alliances for many years. Locally grown to meet the needs of the community, these partnerships are slowly developing in two major areas: professional development/in-service training and curriculum articulation, development and evaluation.

Onondaga Community College sponsors the Elementary Science Mentor Network. This network offers high school faculty opportunities to improve problem-solving abilities and to develop higher level thinking skills. This program also offers faculty a unique experience in using science manipulatives. Schenectady County Community College is involved in a Statewide Telecourse Instruction in Math/Science. This high school faculty in-service program offers workshops via New York Network/SUNYSAT. Topics such as constructive geometry, cooperative learning, and gender equity are telecast live to down-link sites on weekdays between 3:45 P.M. and 5:45 P.M.

Although conceived as a program for students, Tech Prep is well known for the valuable contribution it has made in the area of curriculum articulation, development and evaluation. Begun with legislation and funding in 1990, the goal was clear: design and offer new learning experiences to high school students in the middle quartile or general education track. Institutional leaders in the secondary and postsecondary setting were called upon to provide to these students a seamless program of study in technology areas such as agriculture, allied health, applied science, business, engineering technology, industrial, mechanical or practical arts. In addition to providing equal access for all students, four essential elements were mandated: a formal articulation agreement among all member institutions, a core of courses in math, science and communications (referred to as 2+2, a program of study in which the last two years of high school and the first two years of post secondary education are linked), a curriculum appropriate to the needs of all participants (including students and the productive sector), and provisions for in-service training for all instructors, counselors, and staff.

Tech Prep program student participants may be involved in internships or cooperative education and tech prep faculty may be involved in team teaching, applied research projects, writing across the curriculum, computer simulation, or case studies. At least five community colleges are currently involved in Tech Prep: Broome Community College, Corning Community College, Fashion Institute of Technology, Genesee Community College, and Niagara County Community College.

Inter-institutional Partnerships

The most visible example of inter-institutional partnership in New York State is the School-to-Work initiative. Signed by President Bill Clinton in June 1993, The School-to-Work Opportunities Act encourages the development of formal connections amongst educators and between systems with a goal of easing the transition of all students from school to work.

The School-To-Work Opportunities Act created a comprehensive system for helping American youth make a smooth transition from high school to productive, skilled employment and further learning. According to the act, school-to-work initiatives must include three components: school-based, work-based, and connecting activities. This initiative is based on the belief that true learning takes place when theory and application are integrated. Students would be offered opportunities to learn in the classroom and in the workplace. School-to-Work opportunities take many forms: Tech Prep, Youth Apprenticeship, Career Academies, Vocational-Technical Schools, Cooperative Education and College Prep to name a few.

Community colleges in New York State have affirmatively chosen the school-to-work initiative as their response to the school restructuring/reform movement and as a way to prepare students for the changing nature and structure of the tomorrow's workplace. At least nine community colleges have been found to be involved in school-to work: Adriondack Community College, Cayuga Community College, Corning Community College, Jamestown Community College, Monroe Community College, Niagara County Community College, Onondaga Community College, and Sullivan Community College. This historic legislation has changed forever, the relationship between these community colleges, their school districts, and their business community.

Conclusion

The time has come for leaders in higher education to take a fresh look at the nature and the breadth of their involvement with the public schools. The time has also come for community colleges to begin to think and act differently toward this constituent. Although school-community college partnerships in New York are alive, well and thriving much more needs to be done. Haycock (1996) believes that by supporting the following tasks higher education will forever secure school-college partnerships: communicate the need for educational reform, develop standards for all students, align college admissions and placement with these new student standards, expect high school and college faculty to develop professionally, improve the pre-service preparation of teachers, and reframe the research agenda around these issues. When these tasks are accomplished, community colleges can pride themselves on satisfying their commitment to this important constituency.

About the Author: Virginia Taylor is a Doctoral Candidate at The State University of New York at Buffalo in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy and is also the Dean of Enrollment Management at Genessee Community College.

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