Community colleges plan to focus on essential classes only. During World War II, there was food rationing. In 2012, California's community college leaders are poised to approve education rationing for thousands of students. The proposal is controversial, with many students and educators critical of a shakeout that could end free courses offered for generations, including classes such as music appreciation and memoir writing. Also squeezed out would be students who linger at college for years, sampling one class after another. The problem is as basic as a butter shortage. Essential classes are in critically short supply as the state's economic crisis lumbers on.
