The Case for Community Colleges

As an economic developer for almost 20 years, I’ve promoted the benefits of working with community colleges hundreds of times. The institutions are nimble, can build customized course offerings that respond to the needs of industry, and provide higher education pathways for millions of students who want access to more knowledge and credentials without having to enroll in a four-year institution, and for a fraction of the cost.

Recently, by happenstance, I actually became a community college enrollee. It’s been an interesting time. For starters, I hadn’t given any thought to what it would be like to share classroom space with recent high school graduates. While it’s true that some students in my program are older than me, most are just beginning to live their lives and may not even be thinking about how our classroom instruction relates to how quickly they can move on to more freedom and success. The other thing I hadn’t thought about was just how exciting it is to actually be learning something new. Whether we process and complete the program requirements similarly or not, we’re all being offered an education that can enhance our lives and the lives of others. It adds new context to the importance of working with these strategic partners and to how much economic developers can advocate for community college systems in our work.

Last year, the Richmond Federal Reserve Bank issued its 2025 Survey of Community College Outcomes. First piloted in 2021, the survey looks at the success rates of students enrolled across 189 community and technical colleges in the US. Compared with students in traditional four-year institutions, 49.8% of students at community colleges experienced their intended outcomes, compared with just 33.8% on the more traditional pathway. When the numbers are limited to full-time enrollees, success rates jump to 56.6% at the community college level. In an interview about this study, Stephanie Norris and Davy Sell of the Richmond Fed tell us that success includes more than graduating with an associate’s degree. It includes measuring characteristics like persistence, demonstrated by students who maintain good standing after four years and have earned at least 30 credits.

How does this translate to economic development, you ask? According to the American Association of Community Colleges, beyond using this education to become skilled workers and build personal wealth, community college grads generate more tax revenue by contributing to the economy. Even more, for every dollar invested in community college education, society gets an $11.60 yield. Put differently, the benefits of community colleges in our communities are valued at $1.3 trillion, compared with the costs of attending community college, which total about $111 billion.

Sometimes, in the hustle and bustle of our work, it's easy to forget the true impact of what we’re doing on individuals and the community writ large. This is a reminder that economic developers change lives in many ways. Promotion of the community college system is just one.

If you need help rethinking how you connect with your community college system and use it as the powerhouse resource it is to further economic development, connect with our team today.