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April is National Community College Month—an opportunity to reflect on the vital role Indiana’s two-year institutions play in creating pathways to higher education and economic mobility for hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers. And as the state continues to shatter records for committed capital investment in emerging industries such as microelectronics and semiconductor manufacturing, clean energy production, biopharma and more, our community colleges have never been more important to fueling the engine of Indiana’s workforce and economy.
Nearly 200,000 Hoosiers are pursuing affordable, high-quality education and training with Ivy Tech Community College, the state’s largest postsecondary institution and the nation’s largest singly accredited statewide community college system. Nearly half of these students are pursuing college credit while in high school and on track to save families $100 million in college costs.
More than 40,000 Hoosiers completed a credential or degree at Ivy Tech in the last academic year. The sheer scope and scale of our statewide community college system allows Indiana to respond to a dynamic economy “at the speed of life,” ensuring students earn credentials that are highly relevant and aligned to the workforce needs of Indiana’s employers.
From standing up the nation’s first Industry 4.0 degree to serving as the top producer of associate-level nurses in America, Indiana’s community college system serves as a model other states are striving to emulate as they race to attract investment and jobs in the industries of the future.
Indeed, our status as a great state to do business in is due, in part, to our thriving higher education ecosystem that provides the gateway to affordable and industry-aligned training and education. When companies choose to invest and create jobs in Indiana, they know Ivy Tech stands ready and able to produce the pipeline of diverse, highly skilled talent they need to reach their goals.
This standing is only strengthened by Indiana’s commitment to creating robust and interconnected pathways to transfer and completion between two- and four-year institutions. With many Hoosier students starting from and transferring into community college, our state boasts some of the nation’s strongest transfer statutes ensuring that students’ credits follow them seamlessly to the next stop on their higher education journey.
This approach ensures that community college students, many of whom identify as low-income or the first in their family to pursue higher education, can save more than $10,000 in tuition alone toward their bachelor’s degree. Many students complete community college with a certificate or associate degree without intentions to pursue a bachelor’s degree. Indiana has strong policies to support those students no matter where their career and educational journey takes them.
Community colleges are deeply rooted in and serve as vital hubs for their communities—whether rural, urban or suburban. They are centers for high-speed internet, food security, emergency aid and more. They cultivate a spirit of belonging that anchors talent to the communities where they learn and work, keeping Indiana’s brightest minds in the state. It’s no wonder that more than 90% of Ivy Tech alumni choose to remain in Indiana after graduation.•
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Ellspermann is president of Ivy Tech Community College. Lowery is the Indiana commissioner for higher education.
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