The Smart Investment 2002 Public Opinion Survey measures public opinion about the importance and effectiveness of college programs, interest in possible future participation in colleges classes, satisfaction with information received from other colleges, and other topics. The survey was conducted on the phone and used 1,190 adult Washington residents from seven geographic regions. The sample has a margin of error of +/- 2.9%. Areas of investigation include community awareness and usage, college priorities, college performance, funding and tuition report, public information, and demographics. Key findings included the following: (1) 70% of Washington residents are familiar with community colleges and 67% of these residents rate the quality of education in these schools as good or excellent; (2) the top concern for colleges is job training; (3) two year colleges should be accessible and affordable for students; (4) the college's highest area of effectiveness is their geographic convenience; (5) colleges need to reduce dependence on welfare and reduce illiteracy among adults; (6) Running Start is the most highly regarded program offered by the colleges; and (7) there is a significant gap between the importance the public places on affordability and their perception of how affordable colleges are. Survey is appended. (Contains 22 tables.) (MZ)