El Paso Community College President’s Forum

April, 2006

El Paso Community College President’s Forum

April, 2006

What is Achieving the Dream?

• Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count is a multiyear national initiative, funded by the Lumina Foundation, to help community college students succeed.

• Achieving the Dream (AtD) also includes research, public engagement and public policy.

• AtD emphasizes the use of data to drive change.

AtD Participants

• Thirty-five colleges in seven states (Connecticut, Florida, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas and Virginia).

• Original 27 colleges will receive $400,000 over four years to implement strategies for improving the success rate of community college students.

EPCC Goals for Student Success

All EPCC students:

• Avoid/Complete Developmental Education courses*• Complete gatekeeper courses• Complete the credit hours they enroll in• Re-enroll from one semester to the next• Earn certificates and degrees• Transfer to 4-year institutions

*Focus of AtD initiative at EPCC

Current Activities for Achieving the Dream

Avoiding DE Courses

• Working with school districts– College Readiness Consortium– Sharing students data– Improving transfer of College Knowledge– Early testing

• Improving the student intake process

• Re-evaluating the placement testing process

Completing DE Courses

• Re-examining DE programs– Content– Alignment– Sequencing

• Upgrading DE labs

• Implementing supplemental support systems

• Expanding Title V services

Future Plans for Achieving the Dream

Future Plans for AtD

• District-wide emphasis – Self-examination– Training for faculty and staff– Best Practices importation/expansion

• General Session• Math Summit• Including ESL• Establishing a culture of evidence

Establishing a Culture of Evidence

• Implementing SAS– Sharing data with school districts & UTEP– Providing performance data when & where

needed

• Using internal & national survey instruments to measure performance

The Community College Student Report

CCSSE’s survey instrument, The Community College Student Report, provides information on student engagement, a key indicator of learning and, therefore, of the quality of community colleges.

Why is Student Engagement Difficult in Community Colleges?

Most Students are Enrolled Part-time

60% Part-time Students

Source: IPEDS, Fall 2003.

Most Students Work

57%Students who workmore than 20 hours per week

Source: CCSSE 2005 data.

Most Students Commute

93%Students who commute.

Source: CCSSE 2005 data.

Many Students Care for Dependents

36%Students who spend11 hours or moreper week caring fordependents.

Source: CCSSE 2005 data.

The CCSSE Benchmarksof Effective Educational Practice

•Active and Collaborative Learning•Student Effort•Academic Challenge•Student and Faculty Interaction•Support for Learners

Active and Collaborative Learning

Active and Collaborative Learning

Through collaborating with others to solve problems or master challenging content, students develop valuable skills that prepare them to deal with the kinds of situations and problems they will encounter in the workplace, the community, and their personal lives.

How Did EPCC Rate?

What do you think?

Top Performers Within Their Size CategoryActive and Collaborative Learning Benchmark

Chandler-Gilbert Community College (AZ)El Paso Community College (TX)*+†Guilford Technical Community College (NC)*†North Harris Montgomery Community College District (TX)*†Northwest Vista College (TX)*†Skagit Valley College (WA)†Southern University at Shreveport (LA)*+†Vermilion Community College (MN)†

*denotes minority-serving institutions +denotes institutions that serve high proportions of first-generation students †denotes institutions that serve high proportions of academically under prepared students

Active and Collaborative Learning Strategies at EPCC

•Service Learning

•Borderlands

•Chrysalis

•Learning Communities

Student Effort

Student Effort

“Time on task” is a key variable, and there are a variety of settings and means through which students may apply themselves to the learning process.

How Did EPCC Rate?

What do you think?

Top Performers Within Their Size Category Student Effort

• Community College of Denver (CO)*+†• El Centro College (TX)*+†• El Paso Community College (TX)*+†• Georgia Perimeter College (GA)*• LaGuardia Community College (NY)*+†• Paul D. Camp Community College (VA)*+†• Southern University at Shreveport (LA)*+†• Spokane Community College (WA)

*denotes minority-serving institutions +denotes institutions that serve high proportions of first-generation students †denotes institutions that serve high proportions of academically under prepared students

Student Effort Strategies at EPCC

The Student Technology Services (STS) organization at EL PASO COMMUNITY COLLEGE (TX) delivers quality computer and technology services to students, faculty, and staff — and prepares its student employees with

professional and technical skills. STS, which is staffed and managed by students, has grown from four to 40 students since it began in April 2002.

Academic Challenge

Academic Challenge

• The nature and amount of assigned academic work

• The complexity of cognitive tasks presented to students

• The standards faculty members use to evaluate student performance

How Did EPCC Rate?

What do you think?

Top Performers Within Their Size Category Academic Challenge

• El Paso Community College (TX)*+†• LaGuardia Community College (NY)*+†• Mercy College of Health Sciences (IA)• Sinclair Community College (OH)†• Southern University at Shreveport (LA)*+†• Spokane Community College (WA)• Tacoma Community College (WA)†• Wilbur Wright College (IL)*+†

*denotes minority-serving institutions +denotes institutions that serve high proportions of first-generation students †denotes institutions that serve high proportions of academically under prepared students

Academic Challenge Strategies at EPCC

•The Honors program

•Phi Theta Kappa

•The RISE program

•The Technology Academies

•Service Learning programs

Student-Faculty Interaction

 Student-Faculty Interaction

• Discussions with faculty outside of the classroom

• Working with an instructor on a project

• Serving with faculty members on a college committee

How Did EPCC Rate?

What do you think?

Top Performers Within Their Size Category Student-Faculty Interaction

• Austin Community College (TX)*• Dona Ana Branch Community College - NMSU (NM)*+†• Gainesville College (GA)• Guilford Technical Community College (NC)*†• Parkland College (IL)• North Harris Montgomery Community College District (TX)*†• Northwest Indian College (WA)*+†• The Community and Technical College at WVU Tech (WV)+

*denotes minority-serving institutions +denotes institutions that serve high proportions of first-generation students †denotes institutions that serve high proportions of academically under prepared students

Student-Faculty Interaction:

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Student-Faculty Interaction:Student Experiences / Faculty Perceptions

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Support For Learners

Support for Learners

Services targeted to assist students with • academic and career planning, • academic skill development, • and other areas that may affect learning and

retention.

How Did EPCC Rate?

What do you think?

Top Performers Within Their Size Category Support for Learners

• El Centro College (TX)*+†• El Paso Community College (TX)*+†• LaGuardia Community College (NY)*+†• Louisiana Delta Community College (LA)*†• Pueblo Community College (CO)*+†• St. Philip’s College (TX)*+†• Sinclair Community College (OH)†• Southern University at Shreveport (LA)*+†

*denotes minority-serving institutions +denotes institutions that serve high proportions of first-generation students †denotes institutions that serve high proportions of academically under prepared students

Support for Learner Strategies at EPCC

• The RAP program• The PASS program• Title V Activities• Center for Students with Disabilities• The Transfer Center• Reading/Writing/Math Centers• Open Computer Labs• Wireless support for internet use

EPCCThe only community college to rate “High Performer” in 4 out of 5 benchmarks on the 2005 CCSSE survey.

Mike Klimansky, a 20-year-old full-timestudent, plans to transfer to the Universityof Texas at El Paso. He started his work atEl Paso Community College with developmental courses, and he now is doing college-level work in all of his classes except for mathematics.

Asked about his experience at El PasoCommunity College, he says, “It is ablessing to be there, to be able to get myeducation.”

Klimansky credits his instructors and thecollege’s writing center and other supportservices for his success at the college.“The way Mr. Casey taught [English]helped me learn to write essays,” herecalls. “I learned more from him in onesemester than in all my years of English inhigh school.”

Mike KlimanskyEl Paso Community College

Source: CCSSE 2006 National Report.

EPCC hasmany Mike Klimanky’sand many Tom Casey’s

Celebration Time!!!!!!

The Best Place to Start