A policy alert from the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education calls attention to the increasing importance of community colleges.

·         Community colleges account for approximately 40% of all higher education enrollments.  Enrollment in community colleges varies by state, reaching as high as 70% in Wyoming in 2007-2008.

·         Students who enroll in community colleges are more likely to be low income, the first in their families to go to college, and members of underrepresented racial or ethnic groups.  Among low-income students (with family income below $25,000), 44% attend community colleges as their first college after high school.

·         Students who intend to complete a Bachelor’s degree but enroll in a community college first are about 15% less likely to complete their degree, even after background characteristics are taken into account.

More on education in the United States, Michigan, Mississippi, and New Mexico.