Oh, those graduation rates! The misuse of them is the bane of all community colleges. The problem is that these troublesome rates do not accurately portray our performance.
Whenever someone begins talking about community college graduation rates, please run — do not walk — to the nearest exit. Anyone who fixates on graduation rates obviously has little understanding not only of the rich mission and value of our community colleges but also how deeply flawed and inadequate those rates are as a principal assessment tool for community colleges.
An example of this misuse currently being spread around the state by the misnamed Coalition for Community Colleges was reported last week in The Standard-Times.
Please know that graduation rate calculations apply to a small fraction of our entire student population (about 15 percent). That is because this national measure focuses only on new students and only on those new students who register for a full-time course load. Thus, the graduation rate for Bristol Community College is 19 percent, the average of the 15 Massachusetts community colleges is 16 percent, and the national average is 22 percent. Why would our outstanding BCC Board of Trustees, made up of business leaders, tolerate for even one more day such a dismal performance, if indeed it actually measured community college performance accurately?
What is wrong with the use of graduation rates as the performance indicator for community colleges? Well, we know that about 85 percent of all community college students work either full or part time; consequently, most do not register for a full load of courses. Consequently, the vast majority of our students do not fall into the graduation rate database. Consider, too, that even those entering students who begin full-time study cannot always maintain that ambitious course load. If students remain enrolled but opt for a reduced course load, they are considered unsuccessful according to the criteria for measuring graduation rates. Similarly, if students excel in their first year and transfer immediately to a baccalaureate-granting institution, then they also are marked against the community college that actually succeeded in preparing them for transfer.
There are more effective performance measures for community colleges. Isn't it more accurate to consider "Student Persistence" and "Student Success" in gauging the effectiveness of our institutions? For example, we have students who, because of their preparatory learning experience, transfer successfully before earning their associate's degrees at BCC. Shouldn't we be praised for spurring student success instead of being castigated that they did not graduate within an arbitrary time frame? In addition, some of our students for personal reasons (employment schedules, child/spouse/parent care, health, finances, etc.), reduce their course load below full-time status. These students continue to persist in their academic pursuits for their degrees. Whether they earn more than 30 credits (the half-way mark to an associate degree) or less, they continue on track despite formidable personal circumstances. Aren't they to be commended? Shouldn't the college that makes this possible be seen as a success?
Let's look at some data. As a response to the terrible distortions about community colleges based solely on those graduation rates, a national commission under Education Secretary Arne Duncan has combined various categories of students to provide a more accurate measure of community college performance. The new national criteria for Student Success and Student Persistence now take into account across a six-year period: (1) student transfers; (2) students who have earned at least 30 credits and either remain enrolled or stop out temporarily; (3) students who have completed less than 30 credits but have not interrupted their studies; and, yes, (4) the traditional graduation rate (which we would never want to eradicate). Under this new cluster of criteria, the Student Success Rate for BCC (and all community colleges) jumps dramatically to nearly 80 percent! Doesn't that better reflect the mission of our community colleges?
Why do some influential voices continue to carp about community college graduation rates? Their fixation leads me to wonder about their motivation. Instead of celebrating the ability of students to use community college flexibility to fit higher education into their lives, these uninformed critics use our flexibility against us. In any event, if you encounter someone describing only graduation rates as a measure — and criticism — of community college performance, either take the time to explain criteria that not only provides more accurate information but also demonstrates how well community colleges are actually performing OR run for the nearest exit!
John J. Sbrega, Ph.D., is president of Bristol Community College
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