In the United States, 1,200 community colleges enroll over ten million students each year—nearly half of the nation’s undergraduates. Yet fewer than 40 percent of entrants complete an undergraduate degree within six years. This fact has put pressure on community colleges to improve academic outcomes for their students. Redesigning America’s Community Colleges is a concise, evidence-based guide for educational leaders whose institutions typically receive short shrift in academic and policy discussions. It makes a compelling case that two-year colleges can substantially increase their rates of student success, if they are willing to rethink the ways in which they organize programs of study, support services, and instruction. Community colleges were originally designed to expand college enrollments at low cost, not to maximize completion of high-quality programs of study. The result was a cafeteria-style model in which students pick courses from a bewildering array of choices, with little guidance. The authors urge administrators and faculty to reject this traditional model in favor of “guided pathways”—clearer, more educationally coherent programs of study that simplify students’ choices without limiting their options and that enable them to complete credentials and advance to further education and the labor market more quickly and at less cost. Distilling a wealth of data amassed from the Community College Research Center (Teachers College, Columbia University), Redesigning America’s Community Colleges offers a fundamental redesign of the way two-year colleges operate, stressing the integration of services and instruction into more clearly structured programs of study that support every student’s goals.

A significant contribution to the literature about American community colleges, this guide describes the community college system in each state in terms of its purpose, history, and the current status of its governance, funding, and enrollment. Forty-eight contributors, who are professional community college leaders, have written about the schools in their respective states. The coeditors all have substantial high-level administrative experience in individual community colleges or state community college systems. This publication provides valuable insights regarding how community colleges began in each state, their amazing growth in the 20th century, and the challenges they face as they enter the next millennium.

Praise for The American Community College "Since 1982, The American Community College by Cohen and Brawer has been the authoritative book on community colleges. Anyone who wants to understand these complex and dynamic institutions--how they are evolving, the contributions they make, the challenges they face, the students they serve, and the faculty and leaders who deliver the services and the curricula--will find The American Community College both essential reading and an important reference book." --George R. Boggs, president and CEO, American Association of Community Colleges "I have been a community college president for over forty-one years and a graduate professor for three decades. This book has been an inspiration to generations of students, faculty members, and administrators. It has become the classic of the field because it has great 'take-home' value to us all." --Joseph N. Hankin, president, Westchester Community College "In this latest edition of The American Community College, the authors continue to manifest their unique, highly knowledgeable perspective about the community college. This book is must-reading for all who desire to understand one of the most important educational institutions in the twenty-first century." --Barbara K. Townsend, professor and director, Center for Community College Research, College of Education, University of Missouri-Columbia "Cohen and Brawer's classic work is the touchstone for a comprehensive overview of the American community college. This is a seminal book for graduate students as well as seasoned professionals for understanding this uniquely American institution." --Charles R. Dassance, president, Central Florida Community College

Taking on the cherished principle that community colleges should be open to all students with a high school education, Scherer and Anson argue that open access policies and lenient federal financial aid laws harm students and present the case for raising the minimum requirements for community college entry.