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ABOUT US Building a Nation of Learners by Advancing America’s Community Colleges The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) is the primary advocacy organization for the nation’s community colleges. Founded in 1920, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) has, over nine decades, become the leading proponent and the national "voice for community colleges." The association was conceived when a group of presidents representing public and independent junior colleges met in St. Louis, Missouri, for a meeting called by the U.S. commissioner of education. Originally named the American Association of Junior Colleges (AAJC), the association was to function as a forum for the nation's two-year colleges. In 1972, the name of the national organization was changed to the American Association of Community and Junior Colleges (AACJC), reflecting the community orientation of most public, two-year institutions. In 1992, the association’s name was simplified to its present form. Today, the association represents nearly 1,200 two-year, associate degree–granting institutions and more than 13 million students, as well as a growing number of international members in Puerto Rico, Japan, Great Britain, Korea, and the United Arab Emirates. The colleges are the largest and fastest-growing sector of U.S. higher education, enrolling close to half (45 percent) of all U.S. undergraduates. Headquartered in the National Center for Higher Education in Washington, D.C., AACC is the primary advocacy organization for community colleges at the national level and works closely with directors of state offices to inform and affect state policy. In addition, AACC is a member of "The Six" large, presidentially based associations and collaborates with a wide range of entities within the higher education community to monitor and influence federal policy and to collaborate on issues of common interest. The association has ongoing interaction with key federal departments and agencies including the U.S. departments of Labor, Education, Energy, Homeland Security, and Commerce, and the National Science Foundation. AACC supports and promotes its member colleges through policy initiatives, innovative programs, research and information and strategic outreach to business and industry and the national news media. The association's efforts are guided by the AACC 2013-2016 Strategic Plan. Governed by a 32-member board of directors elected by the membership, AACC is a nonprofit organization whose overriding mission is to "Build a Nation of Learners by Advancing America's Community Colleges." The association represents nearly 1,200 two-year, associate degree–granting institutions and more than 13 million students. AACC promotes community colleges through five strategic action areas: recognition and advocacy for community colleges; student access, learning, and success; community college leadership development; economic and workforce development; and global and intercultural education.

ABOUT US AACC strives to: Provide a national voice and advocacy for the community college mission Serve as a national information resource Create opportunities for peer networking and interaction at all levels, professional initiatives, dialogue, and community-building Offer leadership and career development opportunities

AMERICA’S COMMUNITY COLLEGES: A SNAPSHOT See fast facts handout – go over some of the basic statistics; flexible, affordable, inclusive Founded in 1920, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) is the primary advocacy organization for the nation’s community colleges. The association represents more than 1,100 associate degree-granting institutions and more than 12 million students.

U.S. COMMUNITY COLLEGE LOCATIONS Source: AACC analysis of Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS)fall 2013 enrollment data file, U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. April 2015

AACC STRUCTURE Approximately 40 staff in Washington, DC 32 Member Board of Directors Eight member Executive Committee Six Committees 6 Commissions 32 Affiliated Councils Multiple levels of input: Executive Committee Audit and Finance Community College Advancement Directors and Membership Services Program Initiatives and Workforce Training Public Policy and Government Relations Commission on Communications and Marketing Commission on Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Commission on Economic and Workforce Development Commission on Global Education Commission on Research, Technology and Emerging Trends Commission on Academic, Student and Community Development Special Commissions Commission on College Readiness Commission on Structured Pathways Commission on Leadership and Professional Development

WORKFORCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AFFILIATE COUNCILS Community Colleges of Appalachia National Coalition of Advanced Technology Centers National Council for Continuing Education and Training National Council for Workforce Education National Network of Health Career Programs in Two-Year Colleges National Partnership for Environmental Technology Education Organization for Associate Degree Nursing Rural Community College Alliance Affiliate councils highlight subspecialties and expertise

WORKFORCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Mission: Align community colleges with industry, workforce and economic development partners Goals:  Improved talent pipelines, economic prosperity of workers, business, and communities Diversified investments by industry, federal and foundation efforts to drive employment options Share results-driven practice The WED unit is unique because it unites community colleges, offices of economic development, workforce boards, labor market entities, employers, industry and other organizations to improve the economic prosperity of business, workers, and communities. Working with public and private sector partners, AACC incubates initiatives that can be scaled to the wider membership and provides technical assistance to member colleges to align workforce and economic development strategies, resources and partners in response to labor market needs.

Summary of Current Workforce and Economic Development projects

Job Ready, Willing, and Able (JRWA) initiative Women’s Economic Stability Initiative (WESI) Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) initiative Federal Financial Assistance Training for Rural Colleges The Right Signals Initiative California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office International Economic Development Council The Sustainability Education & Economic Development (SEED) Center is a comprehensive initiative aimed to advance sustainability and green workforce development practices at community colleges. AACC achieves this by identifying and sharing innovative models and curated resources through the website, www.theseedcenter.org. The SEED Center builds the capacity of college leaders, faculty, and staff by engaging them in professional development opportunities and facilitates mentorship opportunities amongst community colleges. This initiative utilizes industry partnerships to support community colleges as they train the workforce to support industries such as energy, sustainable agriculture, water, waste, building operations, transportation, and fuels. The SEED Center has curated a network of over 480 community colleges committed to advancing sustainability education and shares promising practices to the greater network through webinars, original guides and toolkits, case studies, conference presentations, and a monthly newsletter.

WHAT LIES AHEAD Work-based learning Effective industry partnerships Data Analytics Non-credit to credit pathways Prior Learning Assessment Competency Based Education The Sustainability Education & Economic Development (SEED) Center is a comprehensive initiative aimed to advance sustainability and green workforce development practices at community colleges. AACC achieves this by identifying and sharing innovative models and curated resources through the website, www.theseedcenter.org. The SEED Center builds the capacity of college leaders, faculty, and staff by engaging them in professional development opportunities and facilitates mentorship opportunities amongst community colleges. This initiative utilizes industry partnerships to support community colleges as they train the workforce to support industries such as energy, sustainable agriculture, water, waste, building operations, transportation, and fuels. The SEED Center has curated a network of over 480 community colleges committed to advancing sustainability education and shares promising practices to the greater network through webinars, original guides and toolkits, case studies, conference presentations, and a monthly newsletter.

INDUSTRY ENGAGEMENT Jobs for the Future’s A Resource Guide to Engaging Employers

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (WDI) Hilton New Orleans Riverside 2 Poydras Street, New Orleans, LA The premier annual convening for community college-based workforce service providers More than 700 attendees Plenaries, workshops, networking Insights from industry, federal agency, and foundation partners. http://www.aaccwdi.com/

Sample of some of our WDI partners from January of last year Note industry partners on page from WDI and others in previous years (e.g. Intel, Amazon) Note federal partners – Labor, Ed (e.g. apprenticeship), Commerce on eshp and Commerce on NIST MEP particular to this group Note foundations – Kresge, Lumina, Joyce, Walmart, Goldman Sachs, etc. Goal is to try to keep multiple and varied partners connected so that when opportunities arise, we can collaborate effectively, which is largely why I believe I was asked to speak with each of you here today.

John Dyer Director Workforce and Economic Development American Association of Community Colleges 1 Dupont Circle Suite 410 Washington, DC 20036 Direct: 202-416-4524 jdyer@aacc.nche.edu