Last week the President spoke at a White House Summit on Community Colleges (information, fact sheets, and a video of the closing session are available at http://bit.ly/arp7X8). Chaired by Dr. Jill Biden, a community college educator for 17 years and the Vice President’s wife, the summit was designed to “highlight the critical role that community colleges play in developing America’s workforce and reaching our educational goals”.

As a result of the summit, there has been increased attention to the role of community colleges in linking K-12 and higher education (for example, see a report on the summit at http://bit.ly/a9gXJy). This has led to calls for better integration among all three groups of educators. That is definitely a goal worth pursuing, because better communication could address issues of whether students are adequately prepared for college work, how secondary and tertiary curricula could better be meshed, and how transfers in either direction between community colleges and four-year institutions could be made seamless and easier for students to negotiate.

The goal of a single, integrated educational system from K-16 and beyond is well worth pursuing. Its benefits for students and for the society as a whole are great and it is a worthy goal for us to pursue. Let’s see what we can contribute toward that goal.

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