Letter was historically inaccurate
The Monday letter from Martha Quimby, while admirable for her support of community college education, was historically inaccurate.
In the late 1990s, while serving as a Washington County commissioner, I called for a blue ribbon panel to study whether Washington County would benefit from a community college. With the support of my colleagues, the panel was selected and they diligently studied the issue and solicited proposals from neighboring colleges.
Their final conclusion – unanimous, if I recall correctly – was that Washington County would benefit from the availability of community college-level courses, and that the proposal from Allegheny County Community College (CCAC) was recommended to the board of commissioners. The proposal asked for a very modest fee of $50,000 to bring CCAC to Washington County. Although I was ecstatic regarding the proposal and its potential to elevate the educational level of our citizenry, my two colleagues rejected it.
The good news is that CCAC came anyway. They ignored the rejection from two of the commissioners and began providing post-secondary education around 2000. They have continued to provide service to Washington County to this day. The proposal to open a campus in Donora is an expansion of services to the county residents – not something new.
I salute CCAC for the years of service to Washington County and welcome the expansion into Donora.
Bracken Burns
Washington
Burns is a former Washington County commissioner.