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Argument: Community colleges should focus on meeting local educational needs, not the needs of foreign students
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Supporting evidence
- Jessica Vaughan, Senior Policy Analyst. The Economist Debate Series, Opposition Opening Statement. December 7th, 2007 - "Community colleges and small state colleges especially should resist the lure of the foreign student market. The admission of large numbers of foreign students to community colleges around the country is a dramatic departure from their long-established mission to serve the needs of local non-traditional students, those who lack the resources or time to commit to a four-year program, and those seeking vocational or non-degree programs.
- These schools are heavily subsidized by local taxpayers so the programs are accessible to all members of the community and can contribute to their self-sufficiency and upward mobility. Many community and state colleges play a vital role in the local economy, serving as small business incubators or offering specialized training to fill the needs of local employers, such as hospitals or technology companies. It is doubtful that taxpayers in these towns would support extending these subsidies to foreign students, who traditionally have been expected to pay their own way. In addition, it makes little sense to provide job training or internships to foreign students who might displace locals from these opportunities."
- GoldenBear, commenter. Economist Online Debate Series. December 12, 2007 11:55 - "I think the argument does turn on the word 'everywhere' and the implication that *all* governments and universities should compete. If the statement is not qualified, then we must lean toward the Con side of the argument, since there are undoubtedly institutions (like community colleges and many public universities) whose mission dictates a focus on the needs of local citizens and for whom the contributions of foreign students would be outweighed by the social cost of lost enrollment slots for locals or other resources that would otherwise have been deployed in support of the core mission."
