Vision and Action:
Community Colleges as Leaders in Building Pathways to New Jersey’s Future
The COVID-19 virus is having a significant impact on all New Jersey residents, on our economy, and on our state. New Jersey’s community colleges are proud to play a critical and lead role in responding to this emergency and to ensuring that our students, communities, and state can rebound from this crisis. New Jersey’s agile and innovative community colleges will lead in the recovery and secure a brighter future for all New Jerseyans.
Already, New Jersey’s community colleges have served as testing centers, donated equipment, adapted their manufacturing labs to make face shields and other Personal Protective Equipment before commercial manufacturers could respond, and have partnered with county governments. Within days, the colleges executed an almost seamless transition to online learning, sustaining student momentum and making all support services available online. The past few months have been inspiring and once again New Jersey’s community colleges have proven how transformative and powerful they are.
To respond to this crisis and emerge stronger than before, New Jersey’s community colleges believe New Jersey will need to:
1
Build and Support the Healthcare Workforce;
2
Immediately Assist the Significant Number of Unemployed Residents to Secure New Career Opportunities;
3
Offer Cost Effective and Time Efficient Pathways to Earn a Post-Secondary
Degree or Credential for All New Jerseyans; and
4
Provide Workforce Training and Education Programs to Meet Immediate Critical Labor Market Needs.
New Jersey’s community colleges are prepared to play a leadership role in these efforts. All of our efforts will continue to make education affordable for a more resilient and equitable New Jersey while supporting economic opportunity for all residents and building a skilled workforce to propel economic recovery.