AACC/Kellogg Foundation Beacon College Project

Conclusions and Recommendations

**Excerpted from: A Climate Created: Community Building in the Beacon College Project, available from AACC Publications, 800-250-6557, $10 members; $13 non-members** 

The AACC/Kellogg Foundation Beacon College Project exceeded expectations by far. Twenty-six community colleges, through modest grants and sheer will, shaped a huge array of partnerships to create a climate of community among all kinds of people, in all kinds of places, and for all kinds of purposes. Many, if not most, of their programs have continued beyond the original grant period and their spinoff effects are astounding. 

While an excellent start has been made by these programs, much is still to be done. Communities across the nation are still in need of means and incentives for building civility and a climate of trust. And they still face enormous challenges. Changes in state and federal immigration, welfare, and other programs will affect the way community members interact with each other and will create new expectations of community organizations. 

In the spirit of community building, the following recommendations are offered for future action: 

1. Community development should be at the forefront of the community college agenda. It should be prominent in the mission statements of all colleges and a guiding principle in all dimensions of the college, including administration and faculty professional development, curriculum design, instructional innovation, and partnering. 
2. A national data collection effort should be undertaken to determine how many and what kinds of local community development programs are already in place, and to distribute information that will help individual institutions implement such programs.  
3. Community colleges should assess their current community building initiatives to determine what works (for what purposes) and what does not work. They should identify similar programs in other institutions and implement collaborative approaches that will strengthen each program.  
4. Training programs should be developed for widespread community development leadership, for which community colleges should act as conveners and facilitators. Such training programs should include components on leadership qualities, community resource assessment, coalition building, and implementation plans. 
5. Community colleges should pay particular attention to multicultural and intergenerational issues that affect interpersonal relationships, workplace teaming, and civic climates; the colleges should incorporate these issues into community development program planning. 
6. Service learning should be supported in community colleges as an instructional method that engages students, faculty, and the community. Emphasis should be placed on the role of service learning in instilling a sense of civic responsibility.  
7. Community colleges should serve as community conveners, hosting "town meetings" and other events that would include all community voices. Community college leaders -- presidents, trustees, chairs, administration, faculty, and staff -- should be visible spokespersons for community building at such events.  
8. Models or standards for responsible citizenship, including citizen rights and responsibilities, should be identified and incorporated into community development activities. These models should have at their heart a goal of community well-being, growth, and sustainability.  
9. Community colleges should encourage and reward community building initiatives on the part of their staffs. The colleges should support even seemingly difficult initiatives, including those that might change direction to take advantage of new opportunities, that demand constant communication and collaboration, and that require time for person-to-person connections.  
10. Community colleges should model community building by creating institutional climates, processes, and opportunities that encourage civility, responsibility, commitment, collaboration, and personal respect within the life of the colleges.