President Barack Obama’s proposal to make two years of community college free for all Americans is getting the attention of cash-strapped college students and their parents.
But students aren’t the only ones who could benefit. If enacted, the president’s proposal could help small business owners too.
I’m not just saying that because I work for Everett Community College as EvCC’s Dean of Business and Applied Technology.
Some small businesses are struggling to find skilled employees.
According to a 2013 survey by staffing firm Robert Half, 60 of small business owners list finding skilled workers as their most significant workforce challenge.
Nearly half of the new skilled jobs small businesses are creating are “middle skill” jobs requiring a post-secondary credential less than a bachelor’s degree. As the competition heats up for these workers, smaller firms often lose out to their larger counterparts.
Few start-ups or even mature small enterprises can compete with well-staffed recruiting teams and lavish marketing budgets — not to mention higher salaries and excellent benefits.
Small businesses can offer sublime perks compared with working for a large organization, such as the opportunity to rapidly learn new skills and to really be a key part of an emerging enterprise.
In a recent business class at EvCC, I facilitated a discussion about leadership styles and what made a good workplace. Students that had worked for both large and small companies seemed to prefer the smaller environments. They found themselves more empowered, felt part of a team and valued the fact they were part of producing the end product or service.
The work was often harder, but they enjoyed the challenge. Free tuition at the community college level, as opposed to large universities, may help land skilled talent looking to help your business thrive.
Expanding access to community college by removing the tuition barrier would grow the pool of skilled workers across the nation. More importantly, the source of the new talent would be accessible to small businesses in the local community.
New college graduates would have roots in the region, and a higher likelihood of wanting to stay to work for a homegrown venture. With more college graduates in their back yard, local business will find increasing opportunities to engage with their local college to target the talent they need to grow and expand.
Additionally, the proposal would create a way for small business to grow from within. Most emerging businesses cannot afford tuition reimbursement benefits like Fortune 500 firms. With tuition waived, companies of all sizes will have access to higher education for their workforce to earn certificates and degrees without footing the bill.
Pairing the opportunity to learn new skills on the job with a pathway to a degree would help level the recruiting playing field in the search for talent.
The free tuition proposal is unlikely to find traction in the current political climate. Critics of the policy decry its cost, and some question whether tuition costs are the best way to spend additional higher education dollars. Surely the end policy would need further refining to meet its ultimate ends.
However, if our community entrepreneurs and business owners add their voice to the discussion, this may be a policy idea that can grow to satisfy both populists and pro-business camps alike.
Ryan Davis is dean of Business and Applied Technology at Everett Community College.
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