It’s not always a glamorous campus. There isn’t an expansive quad with students relaxing in between classes at some famous university, nor is there ivy. However, when you enter practically any community college in California on a Tuesday morning, you can tell right away that the place is vibrant. People are at work. After years away, some are going back to school. Others are eighteen and trying to figure out what to do next. Some are already working and obtaining a certificate that may increase their pay. No four-year institution can quite match this combination.
Over 2.2 million students are served by the California Community Colleges system, which consists of 116 accredited institutions. According to most estimates, it is the third largest in the world and the biggest in the United States. These numbers are repeated so frequently that they begin to sound familiar. They ought not to. They are the result of a century-long institutional experiment that has subtly and steadfastly influenced who in this state has access to education.
The idea of junior colleges was first promoted in 1907 by Stanford president David Starr Jordan and a Berkeley professor named Alexis Lange, not always for good reasons. They wanted universities to concentrate on research instead of lower-division courses. sensible, even if a bit self-serving. However, there was a significant unintended consequence. Representing a rural county remote from any major university, Senator Anthony Caminetti had a different perspective. Junior colleges, in his opinion, allowed students in areas like Amador County to receive an education while remaining close to home and saving money. That was a compelling argument.
In the fall of 1910, Fresno High School enrolled 28 students in what it called a Collegiate Department. Eventually, it evolved into Fresno City College, one of the oldest community colleges in the nation and the oldest in California. The way it all began—a high school choosing to provide more, with Berkeley and Stanford discreetly helping—is almost accidental. It’s possible that nobody involved anticipated it would develop into what it is now.
The system expanded and changed over the years, frequently in an untidy manner. School districts and junior college districts were confused by early legislation. State teacher colleges made an effort to take over nearby junior colleges. For years, the state was plagued by bureaucratic turf wars. All of that conflict, however, resulted in a model that the rest of the nation would eventually attempt to emulate: it is publicly funded, locally run, and accessible to almost anybody who enters.
Today’s value proposition is difficult to refute. For in-state students, tuition at many of these institutions is well under $2,000 annually. With more than 25,000 students enrolled, American River College in Sacramento charges slightly more than $1,200 per year. About 1400 people attend Bakersfield College, which serves almost as many. That distinction is crucial for first-generation students, working families, and individuals changing careers in the middle of their careers.
There is still a perception issue that needs to be addressed. Community colleges occupy a peculiar place in American perceptions of higher education; they are frequently viewed as a backup plan rather than an option, a consolation prize rather than a purposeful course. This framing seems more and more at odds with the real direction of the economy. Policymakers are at least beginning to think differently, as evidenced by California’s new Career Passport initiative, which aims to connect skilled workers with employers with or without a four-year degree. It remains to be seen if public opinion catches up.
It is evident that these 116 colleges are not a fallback option for millions of Californians. They are the strategy, and it’s usually a good one.
