Group says community college falls short

By Harold Gwin

Group says community college falls short

The group said the Mahoning Valley should be getting more in a community college.

YOUNGSTOWN — A faith-based local community organization believes that the creation of Eastern Gateway Community College short-changes the Mahoning Valley.

A day after Gov. Ted Strickland, U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan and Ohio Chancellor of Higher Education Eric Fingerhut came to Youngstown to tout the opening of EGCC, members of ACTION held their own press conference to say the Valley deserves more.

They said the creation of the new school is the result of a lot of collaboration and partnerships that allow Eastern Gateway to “borrow” programs already in place at other community colleges in the region and hold classes that are in locations convenient to students.

Eastern Gateway is a college without walls. It has no central campus but is offering classes at six locations across Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana and Jefferson counties as well as online. It has opened a headquarters with some classroom space on Gypsy Lane.

ACTION is asking only for what has been given to all other areas of Ohio — a comprehensive community college on a central campus, said James Walker, co-chairman of the group’s Comprehensive Community College Committee.

The governor and the state have given the Mahoning Valley neither, he said.

ACTION is in the midst of a petition-signing drive in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties seeking community support for a comprehensive community college with a central campus. It set a goal of 10,000 signatures and has passed the 5,000 mark.

Rose Carter, ACTION organizer, said the plan is to continue that drive until Oct. 19 and then present the petitions to state and federal officials.

The group realizes that its demand can’t be met immediately, but it is seeking a written guarantee from the state that it will happen within five years, Carter said.

Eastern Gateway launched this fall, offering 180 classes leading to 11 associate degrees and six certificate programs. Organizers said the curriculum will grow as the demand grows. It has 2,050 students enrolled, the bulk of them at its Jefferson County Campus, formerly Jefferson Community College. Enrollment from Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana totals about 170.

Gov. Ted. Strickland has been quoted as saying he is investing in people rather than buildings, but that’s not the case everywhere, Walker said, pointing out that House Bill 562 earmarks $9.7 million for a health-care technology building at Cuyahoga Community College. There’s also $325 million the state budget for college campus and community college renovations across Ohio, he said.

The state put no money into its biennial budget for Eastern Gateway, where the start-up is being funded primarily with federal and other grant funds, Walker said.

ACTION isn’t asking for a brand new campus. There are facilities that can be rehabilitated for that purpose, he said, adding that would mean some construction and maintenance jobs for the valley.

There is a federal-level push for the creation and development of community colleges as part of the continuum of education, said A. Mustafa Ali, chairman of ACTION’s Jobs and Economic Development Committee.

The lack of a community college leaves a big gap, he said, adding that a physical plant is necessary. Companies looking to locate in an area look to community colleges to help provide specific training programs required for employes, so a comprehensive community college becomes a development tool, he said.

“You can’t do that at scattered sites,” he said.

Community college tuition is significantly less than traditional four-year campuses, allowing people to get the first two years of education toward a bachelor’s degree at about one-third the cost, said Gregory Galluzzo, a committee consultant and director of the Gamaliel Foundation.

If any community needs an affordable path to college, it is this community, he said.

gwin@vindy.com