(Des Moines, Iowa) Today, the Iowa Legislature and Governor designated February 28th, 2023 as Community College Day to educate others about the success that Community Colleges have had, continue to have, and will have in the future for Iowa’s students, workforce, and economy. All of Iowa’s 15 Community Colleges are represented during the Community College Day on the Hill Event in the Capitol Rotunda on February 28, 2023 from 7:30 AM – 12:00 PM , showcasing the wide variety of opportunities provided by our Colleges, benefitting our state’s economy and communities. This will include interactive demonstrations of programs like commercial driving, welding and aviation and the Governor plans to attend.
The first “junior” college, two-year postsecondary education institution, was established in Mason City in 1918 and credit enrollment in Community Colleges has increased progressively since their inception with nearly 118,000 students taking over 1.5 million credit hours in the past year.
Minority enrollment continues to increase with a record high of 24.3 percent recorded in the last academic year and more than 17,000 credit awards were successfully achieved by students and 15.7 percent of students continuing their education at a four-year school after receiving an award.
The Iowa Skilled Worker and Job Creation Fund provided training and support to more than 1,000 Gap participants, 2,800 PACE participants, and 95,000 K-12 students and teachers.
###
About Community Colleges for Iowa: Community Colleges for Iowa advocates with one voice for accessible excellence in education. We are a nonprofit, volunteer membership association and the primary advocate for Iowa’s 15 Community Colleges. We provide leadership on issues affecting the colleges and represent the collective needs, vision, and values of the colleges to state and federal policymakers.