Part 1 While reviewing available educational opportunities in Cuyahoga County, it became apparent that inequity and disparity as it pertains to the disadvantaged and deprived citizens in this County is enormous, especially when the future is a serious consideration. In an interview with Dr. Alex Johnson, we discussed efforts in the county and especially in the Cleveland area to raise educational levels as well as the state of consciousness to improve one’s perspective on oneself.These changes a
Dr. Alex Johnson: So Tri-C has indeed, evidently, been at the educational forefront of delivery in our community, but it also has a national reputation that means that a lot of what we do to promote educational excellence is recognized at the height of Americas Community Colleges. Most specifically, our responsibility is to serve as a driver of the economy in the region with the laser light focus on those communities, which have been essentially underserved. Therefore, as we move forward in our transformation, what we know is that Tri-c has to have a closer connection and engagement in the community. We need to make certain that our neighborhoods are given a chance to develop themselves due to people who live there. One way you can do that is by first providing education and training and then moving these individuals into jobs which have value, that provide a family sustaining wage and that will ultimately contribute to the economic growth and development of the communities. So a couple of things we are doing in that regard: 1. We are identifying areas in our community where Tri-C’s presence would be pivotal. The first thing we have done is open up access centers on the Eastside and the Westside and those are designed to give individuals an intermediate point before they actually come to one of our campuses. 2. We provide education and training, outreach and opportunities with businesses for individuals to gain employment and have a sense of continued well being. For us that is an important responsibility. One access center is located at the Otis Moss Community Development Center at 89 th and Quincy. The second is located at Esperanza, Incorporated on the near Westside at 3104 W. 25 th Street. Both of these organizations have longstanding relationships with Tri-C. They have a constituency. They are a group of organizations that really depend on these individuals for their well being. They have partners. The Otis Moss Center has University Hospitals. Esperanza has ATT. They both have represented educational attainment and excellence in their mission as well as in their goals and objectives, so that is where the first two will be established. In the foreseeable future we hope to establish one at MetroHealth through their transformation project and another in Slavic Village which has been undergoing some challenges in recent years and most notably since the financial crisis. That is one of the biggest efforts, which is before us right now.
DR. ALEX JOHNSON AND TEAM Tri-C Strive For Higher Learning
