Community College Workforce Education Study. Methodology Report and Data Book

Opportunity America received a grant from Lumina Foundation to conduct a national research study of community colleges' credit and noncredit occupational education programs and their relationships with employers. Opportunity America contracted with Wilder Research to manage data collection and analysis for the study. The purpose of this study was to learn more about the important role that community colleges have in training and upskilling the U.S. workforce and how these institutions work with employers to address local and regional workforce demands. The study aims to answer the following questions: (1) How extensive is the workforce education offered on community college campuses? (2) How extensive are the workforce programs offered by community college noncredit divisions? and (3) What share of colleges are adopting the innovations seen at pioneering two-year schools, including intensive employer partnerships, shorter job-focused programs, and stackable credentials? The goal of this study is to produce and share knowledge with researchers, administrators, state-level leaders, and policymakers to inform community college workforce education policies and programs. This report describes the study methods and includes a data book of the study results. The Appendix includes supplementary information, including the survey instrument and glossary. [The individual studies are indexed in ERIC.]