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A new community college for CUNY
The City University of New York has unveiled plans for a new community college, and it looks promising. According to Inside Higher Ed, the college will have a narrow, pre-determined core curriculum with focused academic and pre-professional programs aimed at giving the students the education and training they need--and in a timely manner. The concept paper calls for all first-year students to attend full-time, allowing for "more sustained time to develop, practice, and demonstrate beyond the level of minimum proficiency the skills and knowledge they will need for associate degree completion, baccalaureate transfer and/or workplace readiness." The entire report is here.
This is not the first time that CUNY has shown what inspired leadership can achieve. It was CUNY chancellor Matthew Goldstein and the CUNY Board of Trustees (along with a group of concerned and dedicated alumni, parents, and citizens) that some years ago faced down opponents of higher standards to demand an end to open admissions and for limits on the number of remedial classes. And it is this same combination of administrators and trustees that has overseen the development of the stellar Macaulay Honors College, which continues to build its reputation for high admissions standards.
The fact is: The higher education landscape is changing, and institutions that are flexible and responsive to student needs and that bring an entrepreneurial spirit to the challenges at hand will be those most likely to succeed. CUNY deserves praise for giving students more options--and the higher education community a model in their proposed new community college.
Posted by Sandra E. Czelusniak on February 06, 2009 at February 6, 2009 04:22 PM
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