goals are dreams with deadlines preparing students for successful transfer experiences through their...
TRANSCRIPT
Goals are Dreams With Deadlines
Preparing Students for Successful Transfer Experiences Through Their
First-Year Experience at the Community College
Rico R. Reed
Outcomes of this Session• Explore how the First-Year Experience in the
community college sets the foundation for a successful transfer process
• Highlight the characteristics of community colleges that support a comprehensive and effective first-year experience
• Provide rationale and highlight best practices for establishing an efficient and effective pipeline for best supporting students as they strive to execute their transfer dreams
Fulfilling the Promise of the Community College: Increasing First-Year Student
Engagement and Success
Transfer Students in Higher Education: Building Foundations for Policies, Programs and Services That Foster Student Success
Institute on First-Year Success in the Community College
November 2011
Life’s Greatest Lessons:20 Things that Matter
Why are you here?
What are your biggest challenges?
What do your students need?
Why hasn’t this been done in the past?
What resources do you have?
Who are your champions?
Who are your supporters?
What’s the ultimate payoff?
• Motivation and goals are the greatest source of human power and the seeds to success.
• All achievements are ignited as goals and fueled through motivation.
• The goals we set and the depth of our motivation determines what we make of our lives.
Limitless
Describes the distinctive characteristics of first-
year student experiences and
challenges in community college
based on research and effective practice.
Community colleges have gone from being the stepchild to being the
golden child…
Dr. Frank Chong, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Community Colleges
Key to nation’s effort’s to double the number of college graduates in the next ten years
The first-year, indeed the first few weeks of the beginning semester, is a pivotal point in
students’ academic careers.
Brown, King, & Stanley, 2011
Why Are Goals So Important?• Success is the progressive accomplishment of
worthy goals.• Success starts with a mission: a specific goal
accompanied by a strong desire.• Living without goals is like going on a trip
without a destination!• “What the mind of man can conceive and
believe, it can achieve.” Napoleon Hill
We Know That …community colleges will play a central role in improving
educational access for increasing numbers of U.S. college students
• In order for increased access to be meaningful, students must persist in college, complete their programs, and where applicable, transfer to four-year institutions.• Effective first-year programs turn access into
success by keeping students in college and helping them overcome barriers that might otherwise prevent them from reaching their goals.
Two important themes ….(a) The first-year, as the springboard for student success, matters just as much in two-year institutions as it does in their four-year counterparts, and(b) even when considering specific institutional contexts and cultures, standards of best practice for institutional support and success of first-year students in community colleges are emerging.
Students whose first experiences are positive …
are more likely to persist toward their goals, whether that is a certificate, an associate
degree, or transferring to a four-year institution.
Overarching principles...
The learning college movement: how do you know what students are learning and achieving
20
Overarching principles...
The multiple missions of community colleges make them unique in the nation and world
Overarching principles...
Measures of students success differ between two and four-year colleges due to diversity of
students
The Evolution of Colleges of Opportunity
Community Colleges have evolved to include workforce and community development,
lifelong learning and developmental education.
Distinctive Characteristics of Community Colleges
•Access, to Persistence, and Inclusion•Community Responsiveness and Innovation•Small class-size and a focus on teaching
The Learning College Model and the Success and Completion Agenda now
includes:Achieving the Dream
Gates Foundation Postsecondary Success Initiative
The Obama Administration Higher Education Agenda
Voluntary Framework of Accountability
Learning from Student VoicesDr. Kay McClenney, Director of the Center for
Community College Student Engagement, created a portrait of the new community college student
Asked why they persisted, students typically referred to a strong early connection to someone at
the college…
Benefits of Setting Goals• Motivation - Goals are the starting blocks of motivation. • Independence - Goals help us take charge of our own lives. • Direction - Goals give us a destination. We’re far more likely
to get someplace when we know where we’re going.• Meaning - Goals give us a sense of purpose. Life has more
meaning when we’re clear on what we want..• Enjoyment - Goals are the antidote to the most dreaded of
all social diseases: boredom. • Fulfillment - Goals, more than anything else, help us reach
our potential. Setting goals helps us see what’s possible
Benchmarks of Effective Practice with Entering Students
some areEarly connectionsClear academic plan and pathwayAcademic & social support network
What needs to be doneSome are:
Build a Culture of Evidence
Commit to the discipline of routine student cohort tracking
Bring programs to scale
Goals = Greatness• Each goal completed helps us see more of
what’s possible and leads to more goals and more success!
Emerging evidence suggests that certain educational experiences may contribute significantly to the
likelihood of students success. Examples include:
College orientation programsFirst-year seminars
Student success coursesLeaning communities
When A Dream Becomes A Goal• Goals are dreams with deadlines.• Goals become a blueprint for a very rewarding life.• Dreams don’t become a reality when they don’t
have enough clarity.• The human mind won’t move in the direction of a
generality; it will move when it has something specific to aim at.
At some point it behooves community college educators to overcome their
reluctance to make mandatory experiences shown to enhance
student learning, persistence, and attainment.
McClenney, 2011
Setting A Goal1) Understand the difference between a goal and a wish.
2) Write down your goals and make them specific.
3) Categorize and balance your goals.
4) Review and revise your goals regularly.
Recommendations Create intentionally-designed comprehensive programs
Bring programs to scale Cultivate support from campus leadership
Build coalitions on campus Develop community partnerships
Provide campus-wide professional development opportunities
Support transfer Establish relevant benchmarks for success
Build a culture of evidence
Create intentionally designed comprehensive programs
Prioritize student programs and services focused on the initial adjustment to college
Include academic and learning support programs
Seek innovative and effective interventions
Create intentionally designed comprehensive programs
Academic advising and career development are the pillars of a comprehensive program
Empower staff to accomplish the program mission
Group services together
Bring programs to scale
Include a transition plan for movement from:Boutique service to universal student access
Grant funding to base budget
Link programs to accreditation processes
Remember, students don’t do optional!
Goal: 75% participation rates for FY students
Cultivate support from campus leadership
Include campus leadership in program: Development
Implementation
Maintenance
Communication is key
Select the right people to coordinate the program
Cultivate support from campus leadership
Connect the program to the mission, vision, values, and culture of the campus
Have data toSupport program decisions
Document effectiveness
Draw support from leadership across the campus
Build coalitions on campus
Cross-campus collaboration is likely to draw the attention and support of campus leadership
Draw upon the “horizontal” nature of FYE to build partnerships
New partnerships contribute to program evolution & improvement
Develop community partnerships
Enlist political, business, and community leaders
Campus messaging should show campus as a destination of choice
Include community leaders and members in the communication plan
Develop community partnerships
Career focused programs create a bridge to the community
Placement servicesMembers of advisory board and committees for
career programs
Use career programs as a model for other community partnerships
Provide campus-wide professional development opportunities
Professional development is an ongoing commitment
Opportunities should fit the context:Community college specific
Fit with the campus mission and student needs
Consider professional development as a requirement
Provide campus-wide professional development opportunities
Programs should create a safe space for reflection and innovation
Focus on cross-training across roles, programs, disciplines, etc.
Integration into reward, recognition, & promotion expectations
Support transfer
Successful transfer begins when students enter the community college
Examine the connections of current programs with four-year institutions
Efforts and initiatives for transfer must be present in marketing efforts
Support transfer
Programs at the community college that are critical to successful preparation and transfer
include:Academic advising
Career development
Academic support
Initiatives that support STEM students
Establish relevant benchmarks for success
Connect success metrics to your institution’s mission, goals, and student needs
Create multiple success measures
Develop new metrics for success Still need to consider completion
Establish relevant benchmarks for success
Establish a realistic timeline to achieve the benchmarks
If your benchmarks are normative, be sure to identify appropriate comparison groups
Important to commit to accountability
Build a culture of evidence
Draw upon quantitative and qualitative data
Link assessment data to metrics of successCritical to use consistent definitions
Establish comprehensive information and tracking systems
Build a culture of evidence
Employ accountability measures that provide meaningful data
Model data-driven decision making
Engage in national data collection/research efforts
Make data widely available to campus partners
Summary• Goals give us direction and purpose.• Goals add meaning to our lives.• Goals challenge us.• Goals make life more interesting.• Goals make life more rewarding.• Goals make life better.
SETTING GOALS
What are three things you can do in the next MONTH to advance your plans for transfer student
success?
February
262012
SETTING GOALS
What are three things you can do in the next 6 MONTHS
to advance your plans for transfer student success?
July
262012
SETTING GOALS
What are three things you can do in
the next YEAR to advance your plans for transfer student
success?
January
262013
QUESTIONS?
ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS?
Goals are Dreams With Deadlines
Rico R. ReedAssistant Director for Administration and
Resource Development
National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition