At the last State Fair Community College Board of Trustees meeting, the board unanimously passed a resolution recognizing April as National Community College Month at SFCC. The resolution recognized the significant role State Fair Community College plays in the social and economic benefits throughout the college’s 14-county service area.
“The past year proved beyond any doubt that our college is absolutely vital to our community and our state,” Dr. Brent Bates, SFCC president said. “The opening of the Olen Howard Workforce Innovation Center to increase machining and welding capacity, expanding the Commercial Driving Academy, acquiring 200 acres west of the Sedalia campus to create a working farm, and opening a fabrication lab demonstrate how the college is working hard to provide relevant and responsive learning experiences that empower our students and communities to prosper. Community colleges should be the first choice of many collegegoers because community colleges are first-class institutions that are vital to our local and state economies.”
The national, monthlong campaign (#CCMonth) is coordinated by the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT), with the primary goals of improving awareness of the economic, academic and equity advantages of attending community colleges and to bust longtime stigmas wrongly associated with public two-year colleges.
Public community colleges are affordable, high-quality higher education for all people. They are the primary educators of life-saving nursing and other healthcare professionals. They serve as an onramp to bachelor’s, master’s and higher-level degrees for many students, and particularly for the most demographically and socioeconomically diverse students. Community colleges guarantee fair admissions for all students. They offer supports for adult students who must work to support their families. Without community colleges, many American students would not be able to access higher education at all.
Despite all this, many people wrongly believe that community colleges are inferior institutions, and in most states, universities receive significantly more per-student state support than community colleges do. These negative perceptions support and encourage ongoing socioeconomic and demographic disadvantages and inequities in the United States.
“Community colleges are engines of diversity, equity and inclusion,” said ACCT President and CEO Jee Hang Lee. “They give opportunities to all students, and they support all students throughout their educations, whether they attend to earn an associate degree or certificate, to transfer on for a bachelor’s or higher degree, or to take one or a few courses to learn a new skill or expand their horizons.”
Last year’s #CCMonth campaign made millions of impressions across social media platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. This year, organizers are encouraging students and others to take the message to TikTok, too.
The #CCMonth campaign continues throughout April and is
a precursor to State Fair Community College’s commencement ceremonies in May at the Missouri State Fairgrounds. The ceremonies will celebrate the Class of 2023 as they are awarded certificates and degrees for transfer students and those entering the workforce.
For more information about SFCC, visit www.sfccmo.edu
