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Session #T104: Geoscience Programs at Community Colleges: Models for Success and Innovation Conveners Frank D. Granshaw – Portland Community College, Portland Oregon Eric M. Baer – Highline Community College, Seattle Washington Description for publication: Community College programs are diverse and multifaceted. This session will highlight a variety of programs and how they successfully achieve their goals. Rationale: Community College Geoscience programs are a critical part of the geoscience education system. Because they serve more than 10 million students currently enrolled in these institutions, they play a critical role in educating the general public and future graduates of colleges, training future K-12 educators and recruiting geoscience majors from a diverse and variable pool. This session will look at the questions that community college geoscientists face in fulfilling this mission. Chief among these are following: · What makes for a strong community college earth science program? · Given the student population of most community colleges, what is the focus of these programs, career training, geoscience literacy, or both? · What strategies are useful for helping students become geoscience literate? · How do community college earth science department successfully encourage and prepare geoscience majors? · What role does university - community college and high school-community college collaborations play in making a strong program? · How do community college geoscience programs relate the vocational programs in their own institutions? · What role do community college geoscience courses have in providing science background for future teachers? · How do professional networks enhance the mission of community college geoscience program? · Given the large number of adjunct faculty teaching community college earth science courses, how do science departments mentor these faculty to help them address these questions?