In April, six national organizations representing the country’s 1200 community colleges–and their governing boards, faculty, and students–signed off on “Democracy’s Colleges Call to Action,” a vision to increase the U.S. student-completion rate in community colleges by 50% over the next decade. Last week, there was a call to states to improve policies to improve the college-readiness gap, as well as a report that emphasized the need for college-educated workers in the future workforce. Recent research shows the diversity issue is clearly one that community colleges need to address as minorities drive freshman-class enrollment.  Yesterday, Inside Higher Ed described some campuses trying fast-track options to accelerate motivated students through programs more quickly, indicating that community colleges are indeed thinking about innovative ways to get more students to finish their degrees. Source: Education Week