Community College Cuts

Your editorial raises and rightly answers the question of role and mission of the community college system. We do exist to serve equally vocational education students and those who plan to transfer to the CSU or UC system. It is clearly evident that, as funds for higher education become subject to more and more cuts, none of us will be able to serve the educational needs of the people of this state.

What are the consequences of cuts in community college budgets? As an English instructor at a local community college, I have diverse students with diverse goals and needs; the adult who has been laid off from his/her job and seeks further education or retraining; the young single mother who is dependent on public funds but wants to become self-sufficient; the recent immigrant who desires to improve language skills and to pursue educational goals; the working adult who never started--or never finished--college and has enrolled for one or two classes while working full time; the woman facing divorce and return to the work force; the high school graduate who realizes that a diploma provides limited access to jobs--mainly at minimum wage; the adult who truly believes that lifelong learning is a value and taps the resources of the local community college.

For all of these students, education is not a luxury. Especially in times of a recession with high unemployment and a tight job market, people are in college to better themselves and to better their opportunities for independent living through employment.

Why would the governor and state legislators deprive people of those options by cutting back on funds for education? In the long term when the people of California are penalized by education cuts, all of us will be victims in a society that is ill-prepared to provide leadership and an educated work force in a changing world.

LENORE NAVARRO DOWLING

Los Angeles