A message from the president As the new president of Johnson County Community College, I have a lot to look forward to and a lot to do. JCCC is quite a busy place, as you can see from the activities detailed in this report to the community. I knew that when I interviewed for this job, for which my emphasis was “One Community, One College, One Goal.” Inherent in that position are a variety of challenges. For example, JCCC currently enjoys a unified community behind our college. We cannot take this support for granted. Therefore, we need to envision a college that serves our community’s needs and pursue this vision in the most accountable and transparent manner possible. “One Community” is essential for our success. Colleges are notorious for operating within a “silo” approach when conducting their business (although corporate entities are not immune from this as well). It is critical that our college move forward together as “One College” in its pursuit of success. Everyone at JCCC has the students’ best interests at heart and feels they know the best way to address those interests. Our challenge is to get everyone on the same page. The best way we can do that is a unified pursuit of accomplishing “One Goal.” JCCC enjoys a wonderful reputation as one of the top community colleges in the country. This is quite an accolade when you consider there are more than 1,100 community colleges scattered across the nation. But when we tell you we’re the best community college in the country, on what are we basing that claim? Our goal is to prove it to you based on quantified research. We have identified key performance indicators in the areas of persistence (students returning in pursuit of their degrees), success rates for full-time and part-time students, graduation rates, transfer performance and student satisfaction. We will be able to track our progress in these areas in comparison with community colleges that are comparable to us across various demographic measurements. When we say “JCCC is the best community college in the country,” we’ll be able to prove it to you statistically. We want to make sure we merit the pride you have in us. We’re grateful for the support of this “One Community.” Sincerely,
Joe Sopcich President
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