Thomas Bailey

Primary, Secondary, and Enclave Labor Markets : a Training Systems Approach

While research on ethnic enclaves has shown that workers employed in the enclave appear to enjoy at least some of the advantages associated with the primary sector, this « enclave effect » has not been adequately explained. In contrast to existing explanations that conceptualize the enclave as a special case of the primary sector, we emphasize the distinctive characteristics of ethnic economies, and explain the « enclave effect » using a single, consistent account of recruitment and skill acquisition processes in primary, secondary, and enclave labor markets. Unlike other sectors of the economy, the ethnic enclave is characterized by an external, informal training system that shapes the employment relationship and increases the availability and quality of information for workers and employers. We apply the concept to a case study of the New York garment industry

The Benefits of Attending Community College: A Review of the Evidence.

This article reviews the existing literature on the economic and other benefits of attending community college. First, the article reports on the earnings gains across all students and reviews the evidence for subgroups by gender, minority status, and credits accumulated. The article then reviews the methodological challenges associated with calculating earnings gains from attending a community college. Despite these challenges, the evidence for the significant earnings gains from community college attendance appears to be compelling. The second part of the article reviews the literature on a broader spectrum of gains, such as health, crime, and welfare reliance. This literature is very limited and potentially offers an important area for further research to establish the full returns from community college attendance.

The Returns of a Community College Education: Evidence From the National Education Longitudinal Survey

Using the 2000 follow-up of the National Education Longitudinal Survey, the authors estimated earnings effects of a community college education. Previous research relied on data collected from students enrolled 20 or 30 years ago. Because the labor market and community colleges have changed dramatically since then, the authors provide an update by studying students enrolled in the 1990s. They found substantial evidence that a community college education has positive effects on earnings among young workers. This effect was larger for annual earnings than for hourly wages. Earnings benefits accrued both to those who failed to earn a credential and to those who earned an associate degree. The current results are similar to estimates for earlier cohorts. The stability of the wage advantage of a community college education during a period of growing enrollment provides evidence of a growing relative demand for a community college over a high school education.

For-Profit Higher Education and Community Colleges.

The recent growth of for-profit educational providers has been one of the most watched trends in higher education (Blumenstyk, 2000; Burd, 1998; Selingo, 1999; Strosnider, 1998). Despite the widespread attention, surprisingly little concrete information exists about the for-profit phenomenon. Although the for-profit sector is not the only source of new competition in higher education, the highly publicized growth of some for-profit institutions has generated increasing anxiety among both private non-profit and public colleges and universities. To develop a better understanding of how these institutions compare to public community colleges with respect to their students and programs, the Community College Research Center joined with the National Center for Postsecondary Improvement (NCPI) to conduct a two-year study. The objective was to determine whether these two types of institutions are competitive or complementary and how community colleges have responded to the growth of the for-profits. The study contrasted national data on for-profits with national data on private non-profit and public postsecondary institutions, and examined case study data comparing a high-quality for-profit chain—which we call Tech College—to three public community colleges located near branches of the chain. Overall, the study identified two significant conclusions. Our analysis of available data indicates that although for-profit enrollments are growing, the market share remains small. The for-profits are not likely to become a major competitive threat to overall community college enrollments in the foreseeable future. The increase in community college enrollments in the midto late-1990s exceeded the total for-profit enrollment in the twoyear sector. But our case study suggests that the for-profit experience has important lessons for community colleges, especially with respect to student services, program flexibility, the use of data for program improvement, curriculum development, and a focus on outcomes.

The Organizational Efficiency of Multiple Missions for Community Colleges

Community colleges are complex institutions serving a multitude of constituencies with dozens of programs and activities. Comprehensiveness has flourished since the 1970s, as the colleges steadily adopted more missions, and many community college advocates argue that the constant expansion of activities is a natural outcome of the community-based function of the colleges. But during the past two decades, academics and researchers have almost universally condemned the comprehensive model. Even some community college insiders have suggested that these institutions cannot accomplish their goals by trying to be all things to all people. Despite this backdrop of criticism, the accretion of activities continues unabated. The list of community college missions now goes well beyond the core degree-granting programs. Activities now include developmental education, adult basic education, English as a second language, education and training for welfare recipients and others facing barriers to employment, customized training for specific companies, preparation of students for industry certification exams, noncredit instruction in a bewildering plethora of areas (including purely avocational interests), small business development, and even economic forecasting. This Brief is based on case studies conducted by researchers at the Community College Research Center (CCRC) between August 1998 and November 1999, at eight community colleges in five states: two colleges in each, California, Texas, and Florida, one in Massachusetts, and one in New York. We intentionally sought more than one community college in Florida, Texas, and California because these states alone enroll over one-third of all community college students in the country. We used the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) and college catalogues to find community colleges that were comprehensive. The primary source of data for this study was interviews with administrators, faculty, and some students at each institution. In total, 271 individuals participated in the study, including 162 administrators (60%), 85 faculty (31%), and 24 students (9%). Criticisms of the Multiple Missions Strategy

What Role Can Dual Enrollment Programs Play in Easing the Transition between High School and Postsecondary Education

Dual enrolment programs which link high schools and colleges have increased in recent years in America. They are seen as a way of offering high school students access to coursework not available at high school as well as a way to expose them to the academic demands of college. In addition, dual enrolment programs promote partnerships between the two education sectors. This paper describes dual enrolment programs, the benefits of these programs, two models of dual enrolments, concerns that exist about dual enrolments and outcomes and research findings regarding the academic and postsecondary transition outcomes of participants in dual enrolment programs. The paper concludes with a consideration of whether the federal government, through its legislative and funding tools, promotes the spread of the dual enrolment strategy.

Is Student Success Labeled Institutional Failure? Student Goals and Graduation Rates in the Accountability Debate at Community Colleges

Community colleges are open-door institutions serving many students with characteristics that can make college completion a challenge. Their graduation rates are often considered low, but their students do not always have earning a degree as a goal. While individuals may feel that their college experience was a success, standard graduation rate measures of performance count a student’s enrollment as a failure unless it culminates in a credential or transfer to a four-year institution. This paper explores the impact of students’ reasons for enrollment and educational expectations on their outcomes and, thus, on the performance of their college, showing that community college students with degree and transfer goals are more likely to graduate or transfer. Still, an analysis suggests that even among only students who state that their goal is a degree, certificate, or transfer, fewer than 50 percent achieve that goal within six years. Moreover, large gaps in success rates for Black and Hispanic students cannot be explained by differences in either their reason for enrolling or their educational expectations. We also show that students’ educational expectations should not be treated as fixed, and that, not surprisingly, the experience of college has a role in shaping their expectations. We conclude that educators and policy makers should be cautious in using student goals as benchmarks for success, and that assumptions about student goals should not be used to discourage efforts to improve overall performance and reduce disparities between groups. Colleges need to recognize the dynamic nature of student intentions and expectations, the factors that shape these goals before entering college, and the institutional role in shaping them while at college.

Achieving Scale and Quality in School-to-Work Internships: Findings from Two Employer Surveys.

Work-based learning is a central component of the school-to-work strategy. Yet, a widespread system of work-based learning in the form of internships or apprenticeships will need to involve thousands of employers willing to provide placements. This paper examines the issue of employer involvement in the school-to-work strategy through a survey of employers participating in five school-to-work programs and a survey of a comparison group of nonparticipating employers in those same labor markets. The motivations and potential motivations of employers are identified; the data suggest that participants are motivated by philanthropy, while firms in the nonparticipating sample indicate that they would need more bottom-line-oriented arguments to convince them to join up. We also explore the quality of work-based learning placements provided to try to identify the relationship between the characteristics and motivations of employers and the quality of the internships that they provide.

Jobs of the Future and the Education They Will Require: Evidence From Occupational Forecasts:

Analyses of occupational forecasts have played a prominent role in this debate about the skill and educational implications of changes in technology and other developments in the economy. Unfortunately, some analysts and commentators have used the data to argue that skill and educational demands are rising while others rely on occupational data to support the argument that skills are unchanged or falling. Although the latest occupational data suggest that a dramatic educational upgrading of the occupational structure is not taking place, they do indicate that at the very least there is a steady increase in those occupations that currently employ more highly educated workers. Moreover, there is a case to be made that the projections underestimate the extent of upgrading. In the end, there are severe limitations to the usefulness of occupational forecasting for guiding educational reform. Many of the most significant changes may be taking place within occupational categories, yet occupational forecasts can tell us little about these changes. Moreover, while the occupational data may tell us something about needed changes in the amount of schooling, the most important issues for educational reform probably concern the content, not the amount, of education.

The Continuing Significance of Race: Racial Conflict and Racial Discrimination in Construction

This article is concerned with a single question, one that is simple and straightforward and yet almost always ignored: Why don’t blacks get their fair share of good jobs when educational barriers don’t stand in their way? That this question does not get asked reflects the conventional wisdom about urban change and its impact on minorities as well as the assumptions about black-white conflict that underlie that view. In this perspective, the root problem is the mismatch between the skills of black city residents and the requirements of urban employers. Manufacturing was traditionally the staging ground of unskilled migrants who moved to the city and then moved up. But as mismatch proponents like John Kasarda or William Wilson have repeatedly emphasized, central-city