Global Is Not the Opposite of Local: Advocacy for Community College International Education

Abstract

The vast majority of US community college students enroll in educational programs to advance a career pathway that often has labor market value. Most of these programs are terminal and hence, the only opportunity that a student has to gain international knowledge is during studies at the community college. International education is not new to US community colleges. For 60 years, faculty and leaders have understood the benefits of learning beyond borders, be it between local neighborhoods, inter-state, or cross-national. Internationalization is included in curriculum and pedagogy as community colleges define educational programs and student services to serve changing multicultural communities (Raby and Tarrow 1996) and to create new credential and degree requirements to serve changing global employment needs (Treat and Hagedorn 2013). There are now multiple generations of community college leaders who argue that internationalization is an inherent component of community colleges that advances student knowledge and serves the needs of local communities (Gleazer 1975; Hess 1982; Eddy 2014; Ardalan and Sevanthinathan 2015).