In this article, the authors report the results of two studies examining the participation rates of Latino students in postsecondary technical education (CTE) programs in community colleges and two-year proprietary institutions in the United States in 1994 and 2000. It is believed that the quality of the future U.S. Labor market will depend, to a great extent, on this group's education and job skills. Although Latinos are the fastest growing minority group in the United States, they are also the poorest and most undereducated when compared to other minority groups. Results of both studies show that few Latino students enroll in and graduate from postsecondary CTE programs. Of those students that do enroll in and complete CTE programs at the postsecondary level, very few complete programs that are considered high-skill, high-wage.
Community college deans and other senior administrators are faced with a variety of issues and challenges that include, but are not limited to, the ever-changing nature of technology, changes in diverse populations, industry training, and job placements. At this level, the frequently identified emergence of leadership and supervision issues have been more than community college deans can address proactively. Various approaches are used to identify such issues and trends in the field. However, this article describes a 3-round Delphi approach to identifying leadership and supervision issues confronting community college deans over a 5-year period in 4 southeastern states: Florida, Maryland, North Carolina, and Virginia. The results of the study produced 48 major issues and 18 categories that have implications for community colleges throughout the nation. 12 of the 48 issues had a mean score of 4 or more points based on the assigned 5-point Likert-type scale. Community college deans, more than ever before, face increasing leadership and supervisory issues that have far-reaching implications not just for community colleges, but for other 2-year postsecondary educational institutions as well.
The authors discuss how to achieve the school-to-work goal of having a systemic effect. The chapter provides practical examples from prior workforce education innovations and touches on the financial implications of implementing school-to-work programs in community colleges.
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