THE PUBLIC COMMUNITY COLLEGE IN AMERICA: ITS HISTORY, PRESENT CONDITION, AND FUTURE OUTLOOK WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO FINANCE

The purposes of this study have been to trace the history, describe the present condition, and suggest possibilities for the future of public community colleges in America. The community college began on a very small scale at the turn of the century. It is not likely the founders of this institution could envision the approximately 1,044 community colleges which serve over 4 million people in America in 1981. The public community college in America became a distinct form of higher education, as well as higher education industry in its own right.;Public four-year colleges and community colleges bear close similarities in terms of students, institutional goals, and faculties. However, the two types of institutions should be regarded as distinct. Public community college students showed less academic ability and more interest in obtaining a job than did public four-year college students. Vocational education was ranked higher by community college presidents, as an institutional goal, than by four-year college presidents. Four-year college presidents favored their institutions' emphasizing general education and promoting scholarly values. Community college teachers spent more hours in classroom teaching and less in research than did four-year college teachers.;Academic freedom and autonomy of community colleges are best preserved when finances are not concentrated in a single source. Generally, the relative dependence of community colleges on local funds is declining, and state monies are becoming the dominant source. Tuition could provide the funds needed to avoid increased dependence on other sources.;This study presents data indicating that modest increases in tuition would probably not lead to a heavy enrollment decline. Data indicate that for each ;Two qualities which set public community colleges apart from other forms of higher education are their emphasis on maintaining low cost to students and the policy of providing open access. These qualities were instrumental in helping to increase the number of educated citizens in this country.;In the future, the public community college will likely serve older students in greater numbers. Occupational curricula will likely continue to outpace all others.