Community College of Aurora (CCA) President, Dr. Mordecai Brownlee joined a group of esteemed panelists on Friday in a spirited discussion of helping underserved communities access high-quality education through resources such as the General Education Development (GED).
The event titled “Partnerships for Success: The Future of Work” was hosted jointly by CCA and the City of Aurora’s Office of International and Immigrant Affairs. The group focused on communities such as non-English speaking people who may not have equitable access to not only education, but also food resources, transportation, financial assistance, technology and more. Panelists work in a variety of industries, including education, non-profit, and consultation.
Dr. Brownlee placed a special focus on the economic barriers underserved communities face, saying industry and education need to address needs such as food insecurity, high cost of living, and infrastructure. Dr. Brownlee said, for example, online education is not accessible for Aurora’s surrounding rural communities when there is a lack of internet resources in those areas.
“What good is online education, if you have no place to plug in your laptop,” Dr. Brownlee said. “We have to figure out collectively, how do we educate our underrepresented communities on what institutions they can choose for themselves that are not predatory in nature.” Dr. Brownlee said too often, for-profit institutions prey on prospective students, and it’s the role of higher education institutions to educate people on where to find legitimate academic institutions.
Speakers also shared strategies they use to address these needs. Dr. Brownlee said CCA addresses hunger needs through partnerships with food providers, and is working through ways to ensure its student population has access to vital resources.
