These standards, however, do not capture the important impact community colleges have on students lives. Traditional measures, for example, do not highlight the economic impact of community colleges on their students and their communities. LaGuardia s graduates stay in New York, support the local economy, and pay more in taxes. That is a very powerful statistic, she said. She went on to say that another measure of the college s success should be the economic viability of Western Queens.
Most analysts assert that our economy has entered the knowledge era.
As we help our local businesses to gain knowledge, we can materially enhance the economic fabric of our community. President Mellow knows the importance of community colleges from personal experience. In 1972 her family s finances fell off a cliff, and she had to end her studies at the University of Michigan. Returning home to Jamestown, New York, she worked full-time and enrolled at Jamestown Community College, taking classes in the evening and on weekends. She graduated and went on to The State University of New York at Albany, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa, and then enrolled at George Washington University where she received her master s and doctorate.