The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE): Perspectives on Community Colleges

Abstract

The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) is an interstate compact aimed at improving access to, and success in, postsecondary education for residents of the West. Given the region’s historic reliance on public higher education, rapidly diversifying demographics, and financial pressures experienced by postsecondary education in recent years, community colleges continue to play a key role in serving the needs of students in the West. As such, much of WICHE’s work focuses on supporting member states’ ability to serve the growing numbers of traditionally underrepresented racial/ethnic populations and adults who are making their way to postsecondary education, often at a community college, and to promote more equitable outcomes. Community colleges have the potential to play an important role in reducing the intergenerational transmission of poverty, especially as the college-going population is likely to consist increasingly of low-income and underserved populations.