Community college resiliency: combating declines in student persistence and retention with effective, multifaceted strategies

This blog summarizes the key takeaways from our fiscal resiliency podcast, episode seven.

Higher Ed Advisor podcast host and industry practice leader Dave Capitano recently welcomed Lenore Rodicio, a nationally recognized higher education leader and strategist, to our fiscal resiliency podcast series.

After several podcast discussions about the entire higher education landscape, we dive deep into creative resiliency strategies for community colleges to consider coming out of the pandemic and for the broader future.

Many institutions faced enrollment declines before the pandemic, and the decline has continued even as campuses are seeing certain situations get back on track over the last few months. Enrollment challenges are not limited to community colleges, but the current environment has substantially exacerbated downward trends in their enrollment numbers and has disproportionately impacted certain student populations.

Community colleges are encouraged to follow proactive approaches to re-attract students and remain competitive. First and foremost, community colleges should pivot to “strategic mode.” Understandably, institutions have been very reactive over the past year – creating or reinstating emergency response task forces, shutting down in-person activities, moving their courses online, retraining faculty for virtual learning and quickly implementing many other changes motivated by COVID-19.

Now though, with restrictions lifting in most states and campuses planning to return to normal, community colleges should switch their mindsets back to focus on effective, long-term strategy.

A long-term view

One way institutions can position themselves for long-term fiscal resiliency is by investing in critical infrastructure. Community colleges should pursue available funds and strategically invest them in developing technology that supports students’ unique needs and institutional growth. The technology required to support more complex financial arrangements as well as more complex and diverse student supports is much different than legacy information technology infrastructure. Faculty members also need additional training in how to effectively deliver online learning in a more permanent format because the demand for flexible education models (virtual and hybrid) is continuing to trend upward, especially among the student populations served by community colleges.