Community colleges need your support

I write to you as a member of the College of DuPage board of trustees and also as a recent COD graduate.

More than 40 years after many community colleges opened, these valuable institutions are at last receiving the recognition they deserve, with our Washington leaders touting our critical role in the nation's economic recovery.

Despite this, we face considerable funding challenges. Illinois community colleges educate more than 60 percent of the state's undergraduates. Yet we receive just 13 percent of the state's higher education dollars. And that share is declining-from $347 million in fiscal year 2002 to $297 million in the just-completed fiscal year 2009. These cuts are occurring when community colleges most needed. At College of DuPage, fall enrollment is 16,183 full time equivalent students, a 7.9 percent increase over last year.

Many institutions have been forced to raise tuition beyond normal increases to partially make up for diminished state funding. Further, state financial aid has been radically cut, with monetary award program grants eliminated for the spring semester 2010. A community college education works by providing a wide range of program choices, bachelor's degree transfer and career preparation, small classes and flexible course scheduling for days, evenings and weekends.

A 2007 study showed that a 25-year-old COD program graduate can expect a total lifetime earnings premium of $594,054. This is 49.5 percent more than projected total lifetime earnings of $1.2 million without program completion. We have found that 97 percent of COD graduates were satisfied with the content of their courses and 98 percent felt their work at COD had adequately prepared them for their current work or study.

Community colleges deserve our continued support.

Sandy Kim

College of DuPage trustee