CC types in my area tend to be the 2.5 GPA high schoolers who couldn’t get into a 4-year college

Things have changed a lot in the last ten years. Sure, that might be the case in podunk nowheresville but not in cities.

many people rightfully consider the “college experience” to be a highlight of their life

That’s depressing.

Why?

Because if the best days of your life are spent sitting in a dorm room drinking cheap beer in your early 20s I fell bad for you. Life is far more fulfilling than that. Were those days fun? Sure. But definitely not the best days of my life. If they were, I feel bad for people's families.