By Matthew Ladner
Last week, I explained Johns Hopkins University’s work on “dropout factories,” public schools where 60 percent or fewer students graduate on time. Under this definition, all of Arizona’s community colleges qualify as dropout factories, even if you consider their graduation rates after three years instead of two. I received an avalanche of email in response.
Several people objected to the data, noting that many people take a community college course for various reasons – like receiving a certification or for personal betterment – but have no intention of graduating. This is true. But the federal data that I reviewed only tracks the academic progress of students enrolling in a fall semester as full-time students. Casual course takers are not counted in the calculation of dropout rates.
A number of readers also noted that students sometimes enroll in community colleges but transfer to a university and graduate from the four-year institution. This is also true. In Arizona, however, all three of our public universities are also dropout factories – with on-time graduation rates below 35 percent. While some community college students do transfer to universities and graduate on time, I haven’t seen data that show they are doing so in large numbers.
The bottom line is that our taxpayer-funded higher education system needs to do a much better job of matching students to institutions that meet their level of academic preparation. To do this, both community colleges and universities should raise their admission standards in concert and refocus their efforts on their core academic mission.
Learn More:
Goldwater Institute: Arizona’s community colleges produce dropouts, not graduates
Goldwater Institute: Community colleges have administrative bloat and low graduation rates
Goldwater Institute: Administrative Bloat at American Universities: The Real Reason for High Costs in Higher Education
Dr. Matthew Ladner is vice president of research for the Goldwater Institute. Prior to joining Goldwater, Ladner was director of state projects at the Alliance for School Choice, where he provided support and resources for state-based school choice efforts. Ladner has written numerous studies on school choice, charter schools and special education reform. Ladner is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin and received both a Masters and a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Houston. Ladner previously served as director of the Center for Economic Prosperity at the Goldwater Institute and as vice president of policy and communications at Children First America. 
Not that I have any vested interest in this, but it sounds like you’re suggesting that higher education be made less accessible to the masses by making entry into the system more stringent. This is all well and good, but you’re not taking into consideration why this is happening.
In all fairness, the lack of preparation and quality in the public school system here in Arizona is largely at fault for this. Personally, I don’t see how changes in the college system can be effected in a positive manner until we fix the root of the problem.