This weekend, reporter Julie Goldberg brought us the news that Alpena Community College now has a two-year waiting list for its utility technology program (those are the students you see up on the tall poles on campus).

The classes for climbing courses already are full for this fall and the next, with 60 students in each semester. Twenty-five high school juniors have already applied for the fall of 2020 and one high school sophomore has already applied for the fall of 2021, Goldberg reported.

Universities exist to provide education needed for the world, the kinds of deep science and complex math and cerebral study of arts and literature that makes the world go ’round.

Community colleges exist to provide education needed for the community.

While they provide a more affordable start on those high-level courses than can be found by going directly to a university, community colleges tend to be more connected to the businesses right in their back yard than a university could. And, because they are smaller, they tend to be more nimble and can therefore be more responsive in building programs those businesses need to develop a skilled talent pool from which to hire.

It appears ACC has done just that with its utility tech program.

The large number of interested students, with so many signing up before they even graduate high school, shows that ACC has crafted a program that its constituents want and need.

And that is just one example.

So we say kudos to ACC for giving the community what it needs. Keep up the good work.

(THE ALPENA NEWS)