Our view: Erie County community college could meet critical need
This article was originally posted on GoErie.com on October 16, 2016.
Efforts to establish a community college in Erie County traveled a tortured path before finally collapsing in 2010.
The idea drew support from key employers.
The Erie Regional Chamber and Growth Partnership, a strong advocate, formed Rethink Erie to do the research to inform the application
Then-Erie County Executive Barry Grossman spearheaded the plan, only to meet defeat as sponsorship of the college was first supported and then rejected by both Erie County Council and the Erie School Board.
Backers said the college would not rely on local tax dollars. But in the end, neither County Council nor the School Board would assume the risk that funding the entity would fall back on their constituents.
When County Council voted in October 2010 against the community college, Grossman declared, "Tomorrow's another day."
It seems that new day is here.
Among the $10 million in
The grant gives Empower Erie $300,000 to conduct a planning study for a community college. If Erie County Council then votes to act as sponsor, the Susan Hirt Hagen Fund, the Erie Community Foundation and the Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority will release an additional $3.7 million in support.
The need for a community college has only ratcheted up since 2010, along with Erie's alarming poverty rate. And now, County Council Chairman Andre Horton assures, there is the political will on the seven-member council to create one. County Executive Kathy Dahlkemper voiced her support in the grant application.
Area employers continue to say that they experience difficulty in finding skilled workers to fill modern, sophisticated factory jobs. The Erie Regional Manufacturing Partnership in a strategic action plan released in July said such employers could face widespread shortages in the future.
We agree with Horton, who said Wednesday that "a technically focused community college" could help fill those jobs and drive down poverty.
Since 2010, several forces -- especially anti-poverty initiatives by the United Way of Erie County and the largess of entities that fund the Shaping Tomorrow grants -- have coalesced and gained the kind of momentum needed to divert the Erie region from its descent into poverty,
The city of Erie's comprehensive plan, Erie Refocused, and the regional
A community college, per se, is not contemplated in those documents.
Still, it would seem to be in line with initiatives here and nationwide to strengthen the economy by forging collaborations between business, educational
A community college for Erie County deserves another chance.