This episode of In The Know features Kim Hunter Reed, Commissioner of Higher Education for the State of Louisiana, Joseph Garcia, Chancellor of the Colorado Community College System, and Sandy Caldwell, Executive Director of the Wyoming Community College Commission discussing the intricacies and future of public higher education governance. 

This episode was recorded at our annual congress this past year in San Francisco. 

Since 2015, over 25 community colleges throughout the United States have been offering college programs in prisons funded by the Department of Education’s Second Chance Pell Grant experiment. Part of ACCT’s congressional advocacy has been to support a repeal of the ban on using federal financial aid in prisons.

This episode, recorded live during the 50th Annual ACCT Leadership Congress, explains how trustees can help to bring their colleges' educational resources to area prisons.

The episode features colleges that have been offering college in prison programs and campus reentry services. You will also hear from two students whose participation in college in prison transformed their lives.

Panelists include:

• Moderator: Brian Walsh, Senior Program Associate, Vera Institute of Justice, NY

Related information:

• Study on Prison-Based College Program (Inside Higher Ed)

Since 2015, over 25 community colleges throughout the United States have been offering college programs in prisons funded by the Department of Education’s Second Chance Pell Grant experiment. Part of ACCT’s congressional advocacy has been to support a repeal of the ban on using federal financial aid in prisons.

This episode, recorded live during the 50th Annual ACCT Leadership Congress, explains how trustees can help to bring their colleges' educational resources to area prisons.

The episode features colleges that have been offering college in prison programs and campus reentry services. You will also hear from two students whose participation in college in prison transformed their lives.

Panelists include:

• Moderator: Brian Walsh, Senior Program Associate, Vera Institute of Justice, NY

Related information:

• Study on Prison-Based College Program (Inside Higher Ed)

The leadership at Amarillo Colleges in Texas wants nothing more than for its students to succeed. And they knew that in order to empower every student to make the most of their potential, they need to understand every student. But how? The college has operated in its community for 90 years, and the makeup of the community and the needs of students have changed dramatically over time.

In this episode, Amarillo Colleges Regent Jay Barrett and President Russell Lowery-Hart profile the college's most significant student, Maria, and explain how getting to know her has transformed the institution. 

Maria is a “the typical student at Amarillo College. She’s...female. She’s first-generation; 71 percent of our students are first generation. She goes to school part time; 60 percent of our students go to class 12 (credit) hours a year. She’s working two part-time jobs. She’s the mother of at least 1.2 kids, and she’s 28 years old," according to Lowery-Hart. She is highly intelligent and tenacious—but she won't reach her potential without higher education. Maria is a composite representative of the typical Amarillo College student, and understanding her needs and motivations has proven to be the key to success for the college.

By empowering Maria as a secret shopper, asking her to write the college values, and redesigning systems around her, completion rates at the college improved from 19 percent to 48 percent over three years. 

This episode was recorded live during the 50th Annual ACCT Leadership Congress in San Francisco, California.

The leadership at Amarillo Colleges in Texas wants nothing more than for its students to succeed. And they knew that in order to empower every student to make the most of their potential, they need to understand every student. But how? The college has operated in its community for 90 years, and the makeup of the community and the needs of students have changed dramatically over time.

In this episode, Amarillo Colleges Regent Jay Barrett and President Russell Lowery-Hart profile the college's most significant student, Maria, and explain how getting to know her has transformed the institution. 

Maria is a “the typical student at Amarillo College. She’s...female. She’s first-generation; 71 percent of our students are first generation. She goes to school part time; 60 percent of our students go to class 12 (credit) hours a year. She’s working two part-time jobs. She’s the mother of at least 1.2 kids, and she’s 28 years old," according to Lowery-Hart. She is highly intelligent and tenacious—but she won't reach her potential without higher education. Maria is a composite representative of the typical Amarillo College student, and understanding her needs and motivations has proven to be the key to success for the college.

By empowering Maria as a secret shopper, asking her to write the college values, and redesigning systems around her, completion rates at the college improved from 19 percent to 48 percent over three years. 

This episode was recorded live during the 50th Annual ACCT Leadership Congress in San Francisco, California.

On this episode In The Know, ACCT Director of Strategic Communications David Conner and Educational Events Director Christina Simons talked with Dr. Kim Dale, the incoming president at Western Wyoming Community College, and Dr. Karla Leech, the outgoing president. They discuss how they have worked together to avail Dale of Leech's extensive experience and her relationships throughout Wyoming, while handing the college reins to Dale so that she can run the college in her own way. Their mutual respect is evident throughout the conversation, and it sets an example for an ideal presidential transition.

This episode was recorded in August 2019 during the Governance Leadership Institute (GLI) for New Trustees. Check out our events page for more information about the GLI and other events.

On today’s episode, ACCT Associate Writer Jacob Bray spoke with Director of Government Relations Jennifer Stiddard about what's at stake for community colleges in the coming year. In addition to an overview of the 2020 Community College National Legislative Summit, Jennifer discusses the legislative priorities that all community college leaders and advocates should be aware of during the next legislative session. A lot is changing next year with a presidential election, along with house and senate elections. It will be important to make sure your voice is heard in the higher education conversation.

To register for the National Legislative Summit visit NLS.ACCT.org. For more information, you can email Jennifer at [email protected].

For this episode of In The Know, we pulled together a panel of trustees and faculty from across the country to discuss the advantages of open educational resources, commonly referred to as O.E.R. Each of the three institutions represented, Pima Community College, Harper College, and South Florida State College, are at different stages in their adoption of OER, and everyone had valuable knowledge and experience to share.

Towards the end of the episode, our panelists shared a few resources they thought would be helpful. They are linked below. 

• Rice University OpenStax

The United States has a unique, ever-changing culture made up of people who migrate from throughout the rest of the world. Committed to open educational access, diversity and inclusiveness, community colleges have a special and vital role in guaranteeing a high-quality education to everyone in the country. Paying attention to demographic changes today and knowing what to expect tomorrow are imperatives for community college leaders.

In this episode of In the Know with ACCT, Pew Research Center Director of Global Migration and Demography Mark Hugo Lopez addresses the changing demographics of people within the United States.

Topics discussed include:

• What are diversity, equity and inclusion from a research perspective?

For more information from Pew Research Center, visit www.pewresearch.org. 

Trustees are busy people who volunteer their time to govern community colleges through board and committee meetings. Are retreats really worthwhile? If they're done right, one trustee says, they can be indispensable. 

In this episode of In The Know, ACCT Board Member and Northern Virginia Community College Trustee Rosie O'Neil speak with ACCT Director of Strategic Communications David Conner and Director of Retreat and Evaluation Services Colleen Allen about how retreats at her college and at ACCT have enabled her to grow as a trustee and have enabled the board to set clear strategic visions, monitor those visions and follow them through to completion. 

For more information about ACCT's board services, visit our website.