Dear Commons Community,

Governor Jerry Brown has asked Chancellor Eloy Oakley of the California Community Colleges to “take whatever steps are necessary” to establish an exclusively online institution.

Chancelor Oakley has until November to report on his plans. He intends to convene a panel of experts to help him decide on its scope and mission. At the moment, he says, he’s leaning toward a model that would reach out to new markets of working adult students, along the lines of Western Governors University or Excelsior College. “This cannot be about cannibalizing” existing enrollments. The college should reach audiences that the 114 existing community colleges don’t. “Otherwise, there’s no point doing it.”

Other states such as Arizona (Rio Salado Community College) have already established colleges that are exclusively or near- exclusively online. A state with a population as large as California would have no problem attracting enough students to such an institution.

Tony