Moves Magazine - Louisiana Community and Technical College ...

The Route to the Middle ClassLouisiana’s Community andTechnical Collegesccording to Dr. Frank Luntz in his book,“WhatAmerican’s Really Want...Really” almost everyonewants the opportunity to succeed and the ability topursue the American Dream. While everyone wantsthe good life, data indicates that for several decades,Louisiana’s middle class has been in decline.Recognizing the implications on the Louisianaeconomy, Governor Murphy James “Mike” Foster,Jr. led an effort to create a new higher educationsystem in Louisiana. The Louisiana Communityand Technical College System was created to put inplace the programs and services that would build avibrant middle-class in Louisiana. One of the mostimportant aspects of creating a state-wide system ofcommunity colleges was the establishment of theLouisiana Community and Technical College SystemBoard of Supervisors. This meant that for the firsttime, Louisiana had a board of higher educationthat exclusively focused on the important role ofcommunity and technical colleges in addressing theneeds of individuals, employers, and communitiesthroughout Louisiana.Having a board that is exclusively focused on thesecolleges is working. In 2011, Louisiana’s communityand technical colleges enrolled over 110,000individual students. Six of its sixteen colleges wereidentified among the fastest growing in America:Delgado Community College, L.E. FletcherTechnical Community System, Louisiana DeltaCommunity College, Nunez Community College,River Parishes Community College, and SOWELATechnical Community College.While enrollment growth is a great achievement,the most significant indicators of success are jobplacement and salaries. Not only do our programslead to employment, they lead to salaries that, onaverage, are higher than those of individuals thatearned a baccalaureate degree. In fact, eighteenmonths after completing an associate degree ourstudents earn an average of $35,544 per year whilethose who have earned a bachelor’s degree haveearnings of $32,742.This economic reality has caused almost everyonefrom President Obama to local chamber of commerceexecutives to identify community and technicalcolleges as the solution to rebuilding America’smiddle class. Today, Louisiana acknowledges thatcommunity and technical colleges are a principalplace to develop the knowledge, skills, and abilitiesneeded to participate in a knowledge-based societyand economy. These colleges are one of Louisiana’sprimary solutions to building a stronger, morecompetitive workforce.Despite the tremendous growth and the economicimpact of Louisiana’s community and technicalcolleges, we still have a significant gap betweenthe skills needed by business and industry and theapplicants for jobs. It is this skill gap that has causedthe middle-class decline that we have witnessed inLouisiana.Between 2009 and 2010, 75,000 Louisianan’s fellout of the middle class into poverty. Almost all ofthe affected individuals lacked skills to compete in4 | Moves Magazine