All Eyes on Community Colleges

Kristin Barsness — Fri, 14 May 2010 18:25:32 +0000

Community colleges are receiving new interest and attention these days starting at the federal level with President Obama’s call to add $12 billion to restart the nation’s community college system. With one eye toward enhancing academic programs to meet the needs of students and businesses during the recession and another toward improving graduation rates, community colleges are suddenly on everyone’s radar. And, with an estimated 11.7 million people studying at community colleges in 2008 alone, the potential base of supporters is enormous.

Historically community colleges have focused their fundraising strategies on special events, corporate partnerships, and for some, faculty and staff giving. However, this is changing as more colleges recognize the untapped potential in their alumni base. Says Tracey Palmer in the March 2010 issue of Currents, the journal of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), “community colleges are enjoying a rare moment in the limelight right now.” In that same article, Stuart Grover, chairman emeritus of The Collins Group, is quoted as saying “The good thing about fundraising at community colleges is that there is no typical donor, and everybody is a prospective donor.”

CASE members can read the full article and check out national community college success stories here.

Additional resources for community colleges can be found at the American Association of Community Colleges website.

And click here to purchase Grover’s recently published book “Getting the Green: Fundraising Campaigns for Community Colleges”.

The Collins Group Blog » Higher Education

All Eyes on Community Colleges