What is the biggest issue facing the...

What is the biggest issue facing the district?

Our state funding mechanism is unpredictable for community

colleges, making it difficult on our colleges -- Orange Coast, Golden

West and Coastline -- to plan effectively from year to year. The

district needs a funding policy that ensures adequate and predictable

funding so that we can offer our students a high-quality, affordable

and accessible education.

What can be done to keep test scores on the rise?

Unlike K-12 school districts, community colleges do not give

standardized tests that measure student progress. But there is one

important fact you should know about the Coast Community Colleges --

the Coast Community College District transfers more students to major

California universities than our neighboring college districts.

Moreover, our students, according to tracking research, do as well or

better than students who entered those universities as freshmen.

Our professional education programs, such as nursing, police

science, radiology technology and paralegal education, have been

evaluated by accreditation associations to be among the best in the

nation.

What is the secret of Coast’s success? We reward outstanding

classroom teachers -- this is our top priority.

What needs to be done to bolster the budget? What programs should

take priority?

As I stated in the first question, the California budget must

establish predictable funding mechanisms for all community colleges.

Legislators must come to realize that community colleges are the

workhorses of California’s higher education system.

Community service programs are fee-based and those offerings are

paid for directly by those who participate in them. The academic and

vocational programs, such as English, history, the sciences, police

science and nursing, are paid by state funds, that is, by your

property taxes. The Coast Community College District has already cut

technical and academic programs to the bone. Any more cuts will

severely cripple our institution.

How can school board members better communicate with parents and

the community?

Unlike K-12 districts, the Coast Community College District

educates adults, those who are legally responsible for their lives

and education. As a result, we don’t communicate directly with the

parents of our students.

We do, however, reach out to the local high schools to educate

students and their parents about the advantages of attending the

first two years of their college education at Orange Coast, Golden

West or Coastline colleges.

We also reach out to local businesses on a regular basis to tell

them about our professional programs and to determine how we can help

them in training our workforce.