[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 74 (Tuesday, April 30, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3081-S3082]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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    SENATE RESOLUTION 664--RECOGNIZING THE DESIGNATION OF APRIL AS 
 ``COMMUNITY COLLEGE MONTH'' TO CELEBRATE MORE THAN 1,000 INSTITUTIONS 
THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES SUPPORTING ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION AND 
   WORKFORCE TRAINING, AND MORE BROADLY SUSTAINING AND ADVANCING THE 
                ECONOMIC PROSPERITY OF THE UNITED STATES

  Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Ms. Collins, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Risch, Mr. 
Blumenthal, Mrs. Hyde-Smith, Mr. King, Mr. Crapo, Ms. Butler, Ms. 
Hassan, Mr. Welch, Ms. Hirono, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. 
Brown, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Sanders, and Mrs. Capito) submitted the following 
resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 664

       Whereas the first public community college, known today as 
     Joliet Junior College in Illinois, opened its doors to 6 
     students in 1901, as an experiment to accommodate those who 
     wanted to pursue a college education without leaving their 
     community;
       Whereas the term ``community college'' was popularized by 
     the President's Commission on Higher Education in 1947, in 
     recognition of the community-centered nature of the emerging 
     sector of institutions;
       Whereas local community and educational leaders throughout 
     the country developed community colleges at a dramatic pace 
     over several decades to instill civic pride and meet their 
     people's needs for educational and economic opportunity;
       Whereas, today, 1,026 community colleges, including 921 
     public, 36 tribal, and 69 independent colleges, serve 
     10,200,000 credit and noncredit students;
       Whereas public community colleges are an affordable option, 
     charging an average of $3,990 for annual tuition and fees for 
     in-district students, have an average student age of 27, and 
     often serve students who are employed, low-income, parents, 
     veterans, or the first in their family to go to college;
       Whereas community colleges are the primary educational 
     institutions serving the workforce development needs of the 
     United States and respond to current economic conditions by 
     educating professionals in fields ranging from the 
     semiconductor and construction industries to nursing and 
     other health care professions;
       Whereas 49 percent of all students in the United States who 
     completed a bachelor's degree at a 4-year college in 2016 
     had, in the last decade, been enrolled at a 2-year public 
     college;
       Whereas the median distance from a student's home to the 
     student's local community college is only 10 miles;
       Whereas 82 percent of public high schools offer dual 
     enrollment programs that allow students to take college 
     classes, usually at their local community college, thereby 
     offering them the opportunity to save time and money in 
     college and jumpstart career exploration;
       Whereas alumni of community colleges generated 
     $898,500,000,000 in added income to the national economy in 
     fiscal year 2020, or 4.1 percent of the total gross domestic 
     product;

[[Page S3082]]

       Whereas every dollar of public funding for community 
     colleges returns $6.80 in tax revenue generated; and
       Whereas celebrating April as ``Community College Month'' 
     provides the people of the United States with an opportunity 
     to recognize the value of institutions that have long 
     supported this country's prosperity and competitiveness and 
     community vitality and that will be important to the economic 
     future of the United States: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate recognizes the designation of 
     April as ``Community College Month'' to celebrate over 1,000 
     community colleges throughout the United States serving local 
     and regional needs and strengthening the economy of the 
     United States.

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