Community Chat

[terrier3]

On 1/10/2015 Snowpuppy said:

Community Colleges are very good at what they do, short term technical training, retraining for a new career or preparation for transferring to a 4 yr university.

That said before you begin to cheer or jeer, check your local community college's graduation rates. Statistically they are extremely low, less than 20% ever stay long enough to graduate.

That factors two things. One is that many students go for a few classes as refreshers to enter the workforce or renew some skills. They don't stay to graduate.

The other is community colleges generally have no admission requirements other than HS graduation and many waive that. There are no ACT/SAT scores so these students are generally not able to get into a state university.

Here in Mi the reception was very cool to the proposal. U of M and MI State run the board of regents here and they make transferring from a CC to a University very difficult.

You left off another reason they have low graduation rates.

Many students are working poor and find they cannot afford to continue. It's both too expensive and too difficult to work, study and maintain good grades.

Making it free or low cost (as many CCs were for years) would help.

[terrier3]

FYI - Did anyone else know that the Fashion Institute of Technology is a NY State community college?

When people from other counties attend, their home county has to pay a percentage to NYC. Here is the tuition info -

1. Its in-state tuition and fees are $5,105 (2013-14); out-of-state tuition and fees are $13,955 (2013-14). The Fashion Institute of Technology is a State University of New York (SUNY) school that focuses on art and design education.

[Ms X]

I believe in financial assistance for college or job training, but I oppose a totally free ride for students who lack funds. They should have to work and save their money because it builds character and teaches them discipline and hard work. I think kids have to take out too much in loans these days, but I oppose the other extreme of free schooling.

[ms traditional]

an unintended benefit of this whole idea - it will probably deflate all college costs including those of private universities if it pulls a lot of students its way. the present day outrageous tuition costs which have yet to be satisfactorily justified in my mind would likely come down in a bid to remain competitive. i like that.

[Qwackertoo]

The Tennessee Lottery for Education has been going on for around 10 years. Last time I checked, it gave 3700.00 or maybe it was 3400.00 to all TN college students who maintained at least a B average.

Here are many links IF you are interested in reading more.

http://www.tn.gov/collegepays/mon_college/lottery_scholars.htm

The *free* CC is a new addition to the existing program(s).

Current amounts for a 4 yr institution:

For entering freshmen beginning with fall 2015 and thereafter

Four-Year Institutions and two-year institutions with on-campus housing: Up to $1,750 per full-time enrollment semester as a freshmen and sophomore; then up to $2,250 per full-time enrollment semester as a junior and senior

[terrier3]

On 1/11/2015 mstraditional said:

an unintended benefit of this whole idea - it will probably deflate all college costs including those of private universities if it pulls a lot of students its way. the present day outrageous tuition costs which have yet to be satisfactorily justified in my mind would likely come down in a bid to remain competitive. i like that.

I think this is actually an INTENDED side benefit!

[occasionalrain]

People seldom value what they get for free.

[Cha1k]

On 1/11/2015 occasional rain said:

People seldom value what they get for free.

occasional rain, students who participate in the Tennessee Promise program will indeed have to contribute to their education. Books, travel expenses, time and effort will be each student's responsibility.

Additionally, each student will be required to complete 8 hours of community service before enrolling each term. Mentors will assist with the selection of community service opportunities.

[dooBdoo]

On 1/10/2015 Cha1k said:

On 1/10/2015 dooBdoo said:

Hey, <em>Cha1k</em>! I didn't know you were a fellow Tennessean! Cool!

Thanks for posting the information. Even though it's my "home state," I have to say there's huge room for improvement (example, being in the "10 States with the Worst Quality of Life"). I've been reading as much as I can about this program, and I hope and pray it can be a success. We know that doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results is pointless, so it's time for big changes in my opinion.

Doobs! Hey there you ole Volunteer! Born and raised in Tennessee.

Me, too, Cha1k!

[dooBdoo]

On 1/11/2015 terrier3 said:

On 1/10/2015 Snowpuppy said:

Community Colleges are very good at what they do, short term technical training, retraining for a new career or preparation for transferring to a 4 yr university.

That said before you begin to cheer or jeer, check your local community college's graduation rates. Statistically they are extremely low, less than 20% ever stay long enough to graduate.

That factors two things. One is that many students go for a few classes as refreshers to enter the workforce or renew some skills. They don't stay to graduate.

The other is community colleges generally have no admission requirements other than HS graduation and many waive that. There are no ACT/SAT scores so these students are generally not able to get into a state university.

Here in Mi the reception was very cool to the proposal. U of M and MI State run the board of regents here and they make transferring from a CC to a University very difficult.

You left off another reason they have low graduation rates.

Many students are working poor and find they cannot afford to continue. It's both too expensive and too difficult to work, study and maintain good grades.

Making it free or low cost (as many CCs were for years) would help.

There's a 4th reason, too: Some CC students attend for a short time but then transfer to 4-year universities (I did that myself), so they're counted as non-graduates.