ACCT HELPING LEAD NEW ACCOUNTABILITY EFFORT TO ASSIST COMMUNITY COLLEGES BENCHMARK SUCCESS
ACCT HELPING LEAD NEW ACCOUNTABILITY EFFORT TO ASSIST COMMUNITY COLLEGES BENCHMARK SUCCESS
WASHINGTON, D.C. — October 6, 2009 — Today, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Lumina Foundation for Education announced a new accountability standards initiative that will help prepare community college governing boards to demonstrate the effectiveness and relevance of their institutions. The partnership, which includes the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT), the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and the College Board, will identify a voluntary framework for accountability that will more accurately capture the unique roles and varied missions of the nation’s 1,200 community and technical colleges.
“Community college governing boards are responsible for setting the direction for community colleges,” said Dr. Arthur C. Anthonisen, Chair of the Board of ACCT. “Community college boards have always emphasized the mission to offer accessible, high-quality education to all students. It is now time to demonstrate our value through relevant standards that better reflect our institutions.”
Guided by a National Task Force, the work on identifying standards began more than one year ago, assisted by a planning grant from the Lumina Foundation. With today’s announcement, work will begin in earnest to identify relevant benchmarks that more accurately reflect community colleges and the students they serve.
Standards can then be adopted by all of the nation’s community colleges giving them, for the first time, the common metrics and data points to evaluate their effectiveness, both internally and against one another. Eight initial pilot sites for the new system include: Cuyahoga Community College, OH, Dallas Community College District, TX, Greenville Technical College, SC, Ivy Tech Community College, IN, Laney College, CA, Louisiana Community and Technical College System, LA, Oklahoma City Community College, OK, and Pima Community College District, AZ. This two-year project will result in the creation of a voluntary accountability system to be piloted in up to 20 community colleges by 2011.
“This partnership is extremely timely, and will complement the Obama Administration’s goal of increasing student success and completion,” said J. Noah Brown, ACCT’s President and CEO. “The partnership between ACCT, AACC, and The College Board is invaluable in bringing this work to the forefront. ACCT will assist boards in using the framework once developed to increase public understanding and appreciation for our institutions.”
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About ACCT
The Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) is a non-profit educational organization of governing boards, representing more than 6,500 elected and appointed trustees who govern over 1,200 community, technical and junior colleges throughout the United States and abroad.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — October 6, 2009 — Today, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Lumina Foundation for Education announced a new accountability standards initiative that will help prepare community college governing boards to demonstrate the effectiveness and relevance of their institutions. The partnership, which includes the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT), the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and the College Board, will identify a voluntary framework for accountability that will more accurately capture the unique roles and varied missions of the nation’s 1,200 community and technical colleges.
“Community college governing boards are responsible for setting the direction for community colleges,” said Dr. Arthur C. Anthonisen, Chair of the Board of ACCT. “Community college boards have always emphasized the mission to offer accessible, high-quality education to all students. It is now time to demonstrate our value through relevant standards that better reflect our institutions.”
Guided by a National Task Force, the work on identifying standards began more than one year ago, assisted by a planning grant from the Lumina Foundation. With today’s announcement, work will begin in earnest to identify relevant benchmarks that more accurately reflect community colleges and the students they serve.
Standards can then be adopted by all of the nation’s community colleges giving them, for the first time, the common metrics and data points to evaluate their effectiveness, both internally and against one another. Eight initial pilot sites for the new system include: Cuyahoga Community College, OH, Dallas Community College District, TX, Greenville Technical College, SC, Ivy Tech Community College, IN, Laney College, CA, Louisiana Community and Technical College System, LA, Oklahoma City Community College, OK, and Pima Community College District, AZ. This two-year project will result in the creation of a voluntary accountability system to be piloted in up to 20 community colleges by 2011.
“This partnership is extremely timely, and will complement the Obama Administration’s goal of increasing student success and completion,” said J. Noah Brown, ACCT’s President and CEO. “The partnership between ACCT, AACC, and The College Board is invaluable in bringing this work to the forefront. ACCT will assist boards in using the framework once developed to increase public understanding and appreciation for our institutions.”
###
About ACCT
The Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) is a non-profit educational organization of governing boards, representing more than 6,500 elected and appointed trustees who govern over 1,200 community, technical and junior colleges throughout the United States and abroad.