Albany Technical College Overview Goals Student Success and Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps...

Transcription

1 ?33333 Dr. Josephine Reed-Taylor Chief Academic Officer Technical College System of Georgia 1800 Century Place, NE Atlanta, Georgia December 2015

2 Contents Albany Technical College... 8 Overview... 8 Goals... 8 Student Success and Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Athens Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Atlanta Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Augusta Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion and Next Steps Central Georgia Technical College Overview Goals by Performance Metric: Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps... 63

3 Chattahoochee Technical College Overview Goals Student Success and Implementation Team Conclusions Next Steps Coastal Pines Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Columbus Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Georgia Piedmont Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Georgia Northwestern Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Gwinnett Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps

4 Lanier Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps North Georgia Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Oconee Fall Line Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Ogeechee Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Savannah Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Southeastern Technical College Overview Goals: Student Success Implementation Team: Conclusion: Next Steps:

5 Southern Crescent Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps South Georgia Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Southern Regional Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps West Georgia Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps Wiregrass Georgia Technical College Overview Goals Student Success Implementation Team Conclusion Next Steps

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7 Albany Technical College Albany Technical College 7

8 Overview Albany Technical College According to #DC241, 2015 Report-CCA Report Year 2014, between the years of , Albany Technical College s (ATC) full time student population grew from 2,012 to 3,889 students, a percentage increase of 93% over the five year span. The population Albany Technical College serves has continued to be largely homogeneous in its racial makeup, with Black (non-hispanic) being the largest racial group. Black (non-hispanic) students from , experienced a growth increase of 135% while the White, (non-hispanic) students only experienced a 3% increase. In 2007, Black (non- Hispanic) students represented 67% of the full time population, and in 2012, this population represented 81% of the full time student population. Between the same time span, the college s male population experienced a percentage increase by 72%, however the data indicated that females still outnumbered the male population. In 2007, the female population represented 58% of the full time student population and in 2012, represented 63% of the total full time students. As an additionally note, the college s greatest age population between the noted years were those twenty-five and over. This population group experienced a 117% increase from 2007 to 2012, representing 54% of the full time population in 2007 and representing 61% of the full time population in The data indicated that students who received Pell grants showed a percentage increase of 191% from ATC recognizes that this data suggests that age, gender and socio-economic status are the largest factors to consider when structuring course delivery and interventions. ATC recognizes that these populations that represent the largest portion of the school s population present specific needs, and perhaps challenges, that traditional students do not. This includes but is not limited to variation of learning styles, working circumstances and social constraints. While these conditions may not be exclusive to females, low income or nontraditional students, they are much more prominent in them. These factors influence the design and the execution of all of the college s strategies and interventions created to aid student success. ATC works to ensure that working families and/or nontraditional students have the necessary platform for ideal learning, proper accessibility to courses and materials, and most effective teaching delivery to provide the optimum opportunity for student success. Goals Albany Technical College continues to strive to not only meet but exceed expectations in the goal areas of retention, remedial education success, and graduation rates. As such, the college has engaged in a number of interventions, strategies, and measurement tools to help increase desired results within these areas. The major strategies include the continued participation with Achieving the Dream (ATD), the continued modification to the Enrollment, Retention, Completion and Placement Program Review and Technical Assistance Process (DREAM Report), and the creation of three (3) internal Lean Six Sigma Teams (LSS) to identify and alleviate systemic issues impacting recruitment, matriculation and graduation rates. Each of these three strategies identified above is briefly addressed herein relative to the performance metric(s) most closely associated with the respective strategy. Increase the number of graduates: Performance Metric(s)- ATC utilizes various KMS (#DC119, #DC241, #DC265, #CR263), CCG(#DC293, #294), and internal data reports to measure the college s success in increasing the number of graduates. Additionally, the college utilizes a projected graduate report each term to help determine how many graduates the college has. Strategies/Interventions- Achieving the Dream; Six Sigma Teams; Enrollment, Retention, Placement, Graduation ATC aims to increase graduation and placement rates. ATC uses KMS as well as internal data to track the college s CCG and general graduation progress. Per #DC241, a comparison of degree production between the years showed an overall percentage increase for students who obtained certificates/diplomas production within one year, less than two years, and less than four years. Albany Technical College 8

9 Degree production for certificates/diplomas obtained less than two years gained the largest percentage increase at 123%. The data also indicated that degree production for associate degrees obtained experienced a large percentage increase of 327% between years Analyzing #DC241, students obtaining a credential within 150% of time, at 33%, there was no percentage change from RY 2014 and RY 2015 between full time students who obtained certificate/diploma credential. However, part-time students showed a 4% graduation rate (certificate/diploma) decrease from RY 2014 (24%) to RY 2015 (20%). The data also indicated that full time associate degree graduation rates within 150% of time showed a 4% increase from RY 2015 (14%) to RY 2015 (18%). Per KMS #CR263, ATC realized a 22% (325) increase for AAS graduates over AY 2014 (267). Additionally based on #DC293 Degree Production Goal Tracker, ATC has continued to surpass our CCA graduate goal with AY2015 exceeding it by 23% for a total of 1,429. Of the 1,427 graduates, 311 received an AAS. To date, ATC is at 71% of its CCG 2020 goal, 77% of its cumulative TCCG graduates goal and has exceeded our CCG cumulative Goals through AY 2015 by 149%. The table below shows a summary of ATC s Complete College Georgia as well as overall graduate summary. Table 1.1 ATC Graduate Summary Complete College Graduates 1429 Percentage of CCG Goal Met 71% Unduplicated Graduates 1810 Technical Certificates of Credit 1958 Diplomas 920 Associate Degrees 325 Total Awards 3203 Placed in Field by Program 93% Total Placement 99% Cumulative CCG Goals through AY 2015 (77%) ,627 CCG Goal by ,795 Cumulative TCCG Graduates to Date/CCG Goal by 2020= Met to Date (149%) 10,627 ATC believes, along with quality instruction, the continued participation with Achieving the Dream (ATD), which focuses heavily on data measurement, is one of the contributors that has aided the college in continuing to meet and/or exceed expectations for degree production and completion. Through ATD, ATC identified priority areas and have implemented various interventions that allow the college to measure its effectiveness around student enrollment and navigation, advisement, late registrants, and gateway courses (General Education and Learning Support). An additional strategy employed by the college focuses on Enrollment, Retention, Completion and Placement. ATC continues to modify and utilize the DREAM report, launched Summer 2013, as it has been found to provide meaningful program specific data for faculty and academic affairs leadership on how each program performed from term to term in the areas of in-field placement (80%), program retention (70%), and the attraction of five new students per fulltime faculty per program. Per past DREAM reports, ATC maintained on average a 70% retention rate for AY However, the reports also indicated that approximately half of the programs do not meet the retention benchmark for each term. Through continued data mining, the college identified that during Summer 2015, 11% of the retained population from Spring 2015 to Summer 2015 were documented as having migrated into different programs of study from one term to the next. This directly affects programs retention rates term to term. The college is investigating further to understand reasons behind the program shifts and how the college can help to limit these occurrences. Albany Technical College 9

10 Leadership for programs that have consistently met or exceeded the performance benchmarks were recognized with a presidential award for teaching and learning. The recognition during an awards luncheon served as inspiration for other faculty members to work toward meeting or exceeding the benchmarks in future terms. The Office of Institutional Effectiveness holds the responsibility of tracking the performance outcomes for each program and provides an analysis of performance to determine the awards recipients. Performance within all three academic year semesters (summer, fall, spring) were analyzed to determine performance. For AY 2015, a category for General Education instructors was added, as the college found that they played a critical role in not only aiding students through gateway courses but also providing them with the skills needed to be successful within their program areas. Three (3) General Education instructors were chosen based on the overall retention rates of cohort beginning in their class Summer 2014 through Spring Graduation rates and average GPA of those students were also taken into account in the selection of the instructors. Leadership (administrators & faculty) for programs that did not meet one or more of the benchmark areas within the DREAM report were requested to participate in the program review process that includes written documentation of any noted causes and plan of action to improve the measure/s. The review process is designed to promote dialogue, garner ideas, and ultimately improve enrollment, retention, completion and placement. A consolidated report is drafted with faculty members and deans for the President and members of senior staff. In addition to the DREAM report, the college also monitored students that identified as continuing their education (#DC119) and provided a full report to the President, per semester within AY 2015, on the status of each student. This report was organized by division and program of study and indicated which students have graduated with the highest credential within their respective programs, those that were not retained, those that were still enrolled, and those that were on academic/financial suspension. Students on academic/financial probation were also noted within the report and shared with appropriate personnel to either continue advisement of those students enrolled and/or pursue rerecruitment of those students not retained. In conjunction to the above strategies, Spring 2015, ATC secured a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt consultant to lead three internal multi-disciplinary and intra-departmental Lean Six Sigma teams in identifying opportunities to improve student enrollment, retention and graduation rates. These teams employ the use of Lean Six Sigma methodologies to help the college mitigate loss in relation to process, time, and resources. These teams have begun to investigate root causes of process bottlenecks, duplication of efforts, and other identified non-value added steps that impede students from having the maximum service within the college. Resources Allocated: ATC has been an ATD college since The contract between ATC and ATD includes visits with data coaches twice a year to help the college move forward with its initiatives. Additionally the college has pulled together an ATD core team, comprised of vice presidents, deans, faculty and staff. The core is coordinated by a full time staff member who utilizes a percentage of her time to coordinate the group, which meets bi-weekly to discuss the interventions and progress. ATD leans heavily on data to measure student success. Thus, all of the college s initiatives are continuously monitored by its data team. For AY 2015, the data team provided an analysis of the outcomes for each of its initiatives on enrollment and gateway courses. The core team utilized this information to strengthen, modify, or continue efforts around these initiatives Analysis of academic grades and student satisfactory surveys shows evidence that positive changes are occurring throughout the college. ATC believes that these changes will help the college retain and graduate its students at a greater level than previous years. ATC will continue to survey its students and improve on the activities and collaborations as deemed necessary. For the college s Six Sigma teams a Black Belt consultant has been allocated to help lead three teams: a total of twenty-seven faculty, staff and deans. Obstacles: The Lean Six Sigma teams have experienced challenges with the pace at which the work has been implemented across departmental lines. There have been challenges communicating the work throughout the entire organization while keeping the groups motivated and focused on the endpoints. Albany Technical College 10

11 There is some resistance to changing systems and work responsibilities as one would expect in any planned transition. To address these challenges, the teams are developing a communications plan for the entire college. Additionally, the college continues to celebrate successes garnered from the teams. The college plans to keep all parties, especially the customers (students) and the stakeholders abreast of progress made toward realizing the college s Vision. Transform Remediation: Performance Metrics - ATC utilizes KMS #DC241, Grades First, Early Alert and internal data reports to measure the college s success in transforming remediation. Strategies/Intervention: The use the Academic Achievement Center, Blended Learning Courses, COLL 1020 course Per #DC 241 Year 2015, ATC experienced a total remedial enrollment decline by 21% (353) from RY 2014 total enrollment (445). Students that took remedial Math only for RY 2015 (70%) experienced a 10% completion decrease from RY 2014 (80%). However, the data indicated that students who took English only experienced a 4% increase from RY 2014 (67%) to RY 2015 (71%). Students that took both Math and English remedial courses for RY 2015 (56%) experienced a 2% decrease for completion from RY 2014 (58%). Overall, the total completion rate for remedial courses taken for RY 2015 (66%) realized 2% lower completion rate over RY 2014 s cohort (68%). ATC s redesign of Learning Support into blended courses has had a positive impact on student success and retention. The college s blended courses were designed to provide remedial instruction within college credit courses for students that tested within five points of the entry score. These courses have allowed students to still receive the additional help needed to be successful but within a course for which they can receive college credit. Since the redesign of the remedial courses, the college has monitored the success rate of those students. Table 1.3 provides data for AY 2015 to show how students within the blended courses performed in comparison to the general student population. The data indicates that students in the college s blended courses have maintained a substantially higher pass rate over the overall population pass rate within the noted courses. The college will continue to monitor all students each term and analyze how the groups are performing in comparison to one another. Table1.3 English 1010 and Math Academic Year 2015 Courses Fall 2014 Spring 2015 Summer 2015 Pass % Pass % Pass % English (All) 49% 47% 56% English(Blended) 61% 55% 70% Math (All) 57% 55% 59% Math (Blended) 66% 63% 63% As noted in ATC s RY 2014 Progress Report, ATC is committed to maintaining and measuring the impact of the Academic Achievement Center (ACC) after the expiration of the Title III grant in One of the services provided by the AAC is targeted remediation in the areas of Math and English. The center also aids students with the COMPASS placement test. For Spring 2015, the college conducted an analysis, using data from three instructors, on usage of the AAC as well as the academic outcomes of students who utilized the center. The findings showed that of the documented students that utilized the Center and maintained an enrollment status with the college, 76% indicated that they were seeking help in the areas of Math, English, or improving COMPASS scores. These students demonstrated a collective hour usage of 1,695 for the Fall 2014 semester. Further analysis was done on these students to show their pass/fail rate within their Math and/or English courses and found an overall 67% pass rate. A complete breakdown of the pass/fail rate can be found in Table 1.2. This data would suggest the students benefitted from the additional reinforcement given within the AAC. Albany Technical College 11

12 Table 1.2 Pass/ Fail Rate within English and Math for Students utilizing the AAC. Passing total 76 67% Fail Total 26 23% Withdraw 12 10% Total % Along with helping to ensure the success in English and math courses with the AAC, ATC also strives to transform remediation and restructure courses in efforts to assist students to be successful as they become prepared for college credit courses. During AY 2015, ATC tracked its remedial enrollment and redesign of remedial courses. Resources: The college commits the time of three faculty members during set hours to assist students in the above noted areas. The AAC is fully equipped with a complete computer lab, study materials, and an administrative assistant. In addition to the creation of English and Math blended courses, General Education instructors of courses identified as those most frequently failed have worked to improve communication with students and offered after-class assistance. The English faculty collaborated on a series of Friday Writing Workshops the last two semesters on such topics as grammar, essay and resume writing, oral presentations, research and communication in the 21st Century, which were well attended. These sessions were recorded, and links for them may be added to online course shells for future viewing. All of the instructors participated in the Early Alerts system, and those with provisional students piloted the Technical College System of Georgia s new retention system, TEAMS, for identifying and helping at-risk students this spring. Obstacles: The above listed data indicates that the AAC is beneficial to the success rate in English and Math, however the college has experienced a challenge with directly correlating hour usage of the center with pass rate scores. As such, the college will continue to refine how data is captured and analyzed for the AAC. There have been no observed challenges with the implementation of blended courses, however changes to the courses will be made as deemed appropriate. Restructure Delivery: Performance Metric(s) - ATC utilizes KMS #DC302 and internal data reports to measure the college s restructure delivery progress and success. Strategies/Interventions: COMP 1000 redesign, Guided Pathways, Block Scheduling Focus was placed on improving success rates of COMP The course was redesigned in Fall 2014, as the college found it to be the highest failed course. The redesign has proven to have a substantial benefit for student success with a pass rate increase from Spring 2014 of 47% to Fall 2014 s pass rate of 60%, a 13% increase that has been maintained for two terms consecutively. As of Spring 2015, the college further retooled the course by designating its requirement to a particular segment of students. Students taking COMP 1000 are those in associate degree programs or diploma level students pursuing careers in which the course content will be essential. For other diploma programs, a new student success course, COLL 1020, is now required instead of COMP Of those 208 registered for this course Spring 2015, 72% passed, a very encouraging start! ATC continued to collect data on this particular cohort through Summer 2015 and saw that the college retained 62% of this population from Spring 2015 to Summer 2015 and all but one were retained throughout the entire semester. Of those remaining, an analysis was done across all classes taken by this cohort; findings include a 69% pass rate, a 23% fail rate and an 8% withdrawal rate among the students. The average GPA to date of this cohort was 2.3 with males representing 53% and females representing 47%. As noted in ATC s 2014 CCG Progress Report, the college implemented guided pathways and block scheduling. ATC continues to be committed to this course of action. Both Guided Pathways and block scheduling are tactics applied as a part of all ATC s strategies. They aid in the shortening of completion time by giving clear direction regarding needed courses to complete a program as well as offering courses at specified times to accommodate working students. Albany Technical College 12

13 In AY 2015, Guided Pathways were still offered for Pharmacy and Law Enforcement. Through Guided Pathways, ATC realized an accomplishment. Five high school students graduated with an associate s degree and high school diploma simultaneously. These students have all been admitted into universities and have a sophomore or higher classification. Their success is just an example of the effectiveness of Guided Pathways. For AY 2015, ATC continued its block scheduling in the following programs: Air Conditioning Technology, Auto Collision, Automotive Technology, Diesel Equipment Technology, Masonry, and Welding & Joining. The college, as a whole, will continue to work towards increasing its enrollment numbers. Below, shows data from # DC 302 in regards to retention and graduation rates to date for the cohort entering Fall The noted programs above, with the additional programs Accounting, Medical Assisting, and Networking Specialist, are represented in the table below. The data indicated that block scheduling programs during AY 2014 showed an average retention and graduation rate of 37% and 34% while AY 2015 showed an average retention rate of 48% and 35%. The college compared these rates to a sample of non-block programs (Marketing Management Degree, Fire Science Diploma, Culinary Arts Diploma, Business Management Diploma and Hotel, Restaurant, Tourism Management Degree) and found that these programs experienced a 17% retention rate and 17% graduation rate for AY For AY 2015, non-block programs experienced a 40% retention rate and a 12% graduation rate. This data gives the indication that block scheduling is helping student to both retain and graduate in their respective programs. The college will continue on the course of block scheduling in order to provide the necessary courses for its students. Table 1.4 #DC 302 Albany Technical College Fall 2014 & Fall 2015 Cohort Comparison- Block Scheduling Data Level Major Academic Year Cohort # Total Retained Retention Rate Total Graduated Graduation Rate Diploma Accounting % 7 21% % 4 31% Degree Accounting % 4 40% % 3 25% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % 5 20% % 0 0% Diploma Auto Collison % 20 71% % 11 44% Diploma Automotive Technology % 12 43% % 7 47% Diploma Law Enforcement % 11 10% Degree (Criminal Justice) % 7 6% Diploma Diesel Equipment % 10 53% Technology % 12 63% Diploma Masonry % 1 20% % 1 33% Diploma Medical Assisting % 1 25% % 1 17% Diploma Networking Specialist % 3 33% % 3 38% Degree Networking Specialist % 3 33% % 4 67% Albany Technical College 13

14 #DC 302 Albany Technical College Fall 2014 & Fall 2015 Cohort Comparison- Block Scheduling Data Level Major Academic Year Cohort # Total Retained Retention Rate Total Graduated Graduation Rate Diploma Pharmacy Technology % 5 18% Degree % 7 35% Diploma Welding & Joining % 24 60% Technology % 17 53% Total Avg. 37% 106 Avg. 34% Avg. 48% 77 Avg. 35% Total Non-Block Scheduled Avg. 17% 9 Avg. 17% Programs Avg. 40% 4 Avg. 12% Resources: The General Education Dean as well as assigned general education faculty worked to restructure the remedial classes into the blended courses. This group of dedicated faculty also worked to redesign COMP 1000 and to create COLL Obstacles: The redesign of COMP 1000 presented the greatest challenge. During the latter part of AY 2014 and into AY 2015, the course experienced three revisions. This made it very challenging to measure the effectiveness of the instruction and how that affected student success. Still, the college persisted with analyzing pass/fail rates of students and continued to share results with the dean of general education. The redesign team utilized this information to determine which elements to keep within the course. The course has since been taught using the same instruction design for three consecutive terms. There were no noted challenges surrounding the implementation of block scheduling. Instructor feedback suggests that the system is beneficial, however the programs have not witnessed an increase in enrollment as of yet. Student Success and Implementation Team The student success implementation team, which is comprised of the college s senior staff provides overall leadership and guidance for all of the college s initiatives, lending support to faculty and staff as interventions are executed. Shared communication between executive leadership and staff throughout the follow through and follow up process is imperative. Findings are shared interdepartmentally with management. During the weekly senior staff team meetings, these results are further discussed, adjusted as deemed necessary and communicated back within the departments. The table below lists the student success implementation team, which is comprised of the college s senior staff, the admissions director, and the institutional effectiveness department. Dr. Kim Lee, Executive VP and VP for Institutional Effectiveness serves as the team s point of contact. Full Name Title/Position Role (Point of Contact or Member) Address Dr. Anthony O. Parker President Overall leadership aparker@albanytech.edu Dr. Kim Lee Executive VP, VP for POC klee@albanytech.edu Institutional Effectiveness Dr. Dorothy Garner Interim VP for Academic Member dgarner@albanytech.edu Affairs Ms. Linda Coston VP for Adult Education Member lcoston@albanytech.edu Ms. Angela Davis Grants Coordinator Member adavis@albanytech.edu Dr. Edward Alexander Director of Admissions Member ealexander@albanytech.edu Ms. Wendy Howell Executive Director of Public Member whowell@albanytech.edu Relations Dr. Lisandra De Jesus VP for Student Affairs Member ldejesus@albanytech.edu Ms. Judy Jimmerson Associate VP for Career Services Member Jjimmerson@albanytech.edu Albany Technical College 14

15 Full Name Title/Position Role (Point of Contact or Member) Address Mr. Joe Najjar Special Assistant to Member President Ms. Kathy Skates VP for Administration Member Ms. Sarah Spurlin Administrative Coordinator Member for IE Mr. Matt Trice VP for Center for Business Member Solutions Ms. Daa iyah Salaam Research Analyst Member Conclusion Through data evidence, ATC has experienced several positive outcomes as it relates to completion time, graduation, and improved services. The college has experienced an increase in its graduation while providing the best quality instruction and services for its population. This has been done through the exceptional instruction and services provided to the students both within and outside of the classroom. The college leads the region in unduplicated graduates, certificates, diplomas, associate degrees, and overall awards. The college is within the top ten of all TCSG colleges within these same measurements. Most Successful: Through the use of data, the college has determined that one of the most successful interventions for student success comes from the college s instructional redesign of its gateway English and Math courses. Within the Achieving the Dream strategy, the redesign of the college s remedial courses into blended courses has allowed the college to realize steady trends in pass/fail rates among students taking blended math and English courses. As previously stated, students taking blended learning courses continue to outpace the general population pass rates. The college is pleased with the instruction methodology used within these courses as well as the continued success rates of students. The College is beginning to look at the utilization of specific aspects of the blended learning model to use within the general population courses in efforts to align the success rates of both populations to each other. The college has also experienced a steady increased pass rate for those students taking the retooled COMP 1000 course. The college believes this is a result of the decision to only require students whose careers are directly related to computer application competencies to take COMP 1000 courses. All other diploma and degree students take the newly created COLL 1020 college success course, which provides only the basic skills needed for computer application. This allows COMP 1000 to be tailored specifically for students who will need a higher level of proficiency in all areas of computer applications. COLL 1020 provides a rudimentary overview of computer applications, thus, making COMP 1000 less of a hindrance for those students only needing basic knowledge of computer applications. While more data is needed to determine if COLL 1020 is successful with helping to retain students, the preliminary data does indicate that COLL 1020 has been successful in preparing students for their respective courses, as the Spring 2015 cohort realized a 69% pass rate in their program courses. The Enrollment, Retention, Completion and placement strategy has witnessed the most success around completion and placement. ATC realized a 95% in field placement rate and a 99% overall placement rate for AY As stated earlier, the college also realized an increase in its diploma and degree graduates. The areas that hold the greatest potential for improvement are enrollment and retention. Least Effective: Along with COLL 1020, the AAC data indicates a positive impact on the students. However, the college has not been able to correlate success rates with time spent within the AAC. As such, the following adjustments are being made: 1) The college will examine the comparison between the preparation level of the student, time spent within the AAC and the success rate of the students, 2) The college will examine the overall performance rates of students that attend the AAC to determine if those students are performing fairly or poorly in all classes. Albany Technical College 15

16 This will help to determine intervention focus areas. Depending on the findings, the college will look into mandating a specific amount of time students must dedicate to the AAC. Adjustment to obstacles: The college continues to data mine causes of student drop outs, stop outs and program changes. Along with the creation of the Lean Six Sigma teams, the college recently secured a Retention Coordinator. Both the Student Navigator and Retention Coordinator collaborate efforts with faculty and staff to re-recruit and retain students. Regarding new student attraction, the college has several concurrent efforts launched: 1) a Six Sigma team is dedicated to investigating ways to attract new students, 2) the program referral process of referring five prospect students is currently being streamlined to increase the efficiency of the follow up, and 3) the college is exploring the idea of creating a marketing plan to attract new students. Next Steps By the end of AY 2015, the Lean Six Sigma Teams presented a list of fourteen recommendations to the President deemed critical to improving the college s efforts around attraction, matriculation, and retention and graduation of students. Subsequently, the recommendations have been shared with Senior Staff. As an immediate follow up, the teams have begun to execute four LSS projects between now and December 31, These projects consist of a pilot self-registration of four programs, streamlining electives to tighten the Guided Pathway model, completing the process mapping of internal systems and conducting a comprehensive student assessment and satisfaction survey. To aid these efforts, the college will continue to utilize a Black Belt Consultant to lead the three teams, consisting of staff, faculty and deans. Additionally, the college will utilize the time of key stakeholders within the college to support and accelerate the execution of certain projects. ATC will continue to track and measure progress against the baseline data available. The Department of Institutional Effectiveness will continue ongoing monitoring of students whom have identified themselves as continuing education per #DC119 and communicate findings with both the Student Navigator and the Retention Coordinator. The college will provide the appropriate advising, re-recruitment, and/or encouragement needed for those students to complete their studies through the highest credential possible. The college will also continue to refine its recruitment process to help the enrollment and matriculation of students entering the college. ATC stays committed to refining strategies and interventions, utilizing data as measurement. Albany Technical College 16

17 Athens Technical College Athens Technical College 17

18 Overview Athens Technical College An analysis of report #DC241 (2015 Report for Report Year 2014) for Athens Technical College (ATC) reveals the following information concerning student demographics. From fiscal year 2007 to academic year 2012 for all students, there was a 16% decline in full-time enrollment. However, full-time enrollment increased for some subgroups. For example, full-time enrollment increased for Hispanic students (24%), American Indian/Alaskan Native students (100%), students of unknown race (500%), students receiving the Pell Grant at entry (55.7%), and students taking developmental courses at entry (2.9%). For all students, part-time enrollment increased 68.2%. With the exception of students of two or more races (who experienced an 87% decline), most subgroups exhibited significant percentage increases in part-time enrollment, namely Hispanic students (306.8%), Asian students (94%), American Indian/Alaska Natives (1300%), students directly from high school (17-19 years old) (85%), students of unknown race (712%), students receiving a Pell Grant at entry (246%), and students taking developmental courses at entry (111%). For all students, full-time transfer enrollment declined 1.2%. Alternatively, however, within this group, the percentage of full-time transfer students who received the Pell Grant at entry increased (98%), as well as the percentage of those taking developmental courses at entry (34%). Also, among full-time transfers, the percentage of those reporting their race as unknown increased substantially (5200%). For all students, part-time transfer enrollment increased 58%. However, some subgroups exhibited declines in part-time transfer enrollment, namely Asian students (-53%), and students of two or more races (- 64%). Some subgroups experienced significant increases, such as students of unknown race (1720%), students years old (98%), and students who received the Pell Grant at entry (289%). Goals a. Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7% annually over the previous year An analysis of degree production benchmarks and degree completion ratios revealed that ATC has not met this goal during the academic year. ATC s 2015 CCG degree production goal was 1,038 graduates. ATC had 900 unduplicated graduates in 2015, 138 graduates (13.3%) short of attaining this goal (Data Source: #DC198). From FY 2011 to AY 2012, ATC s award completion ratio, (or awards per 100 FTE) declined from 31.3% to 24% (Data Source: #DC241, p. 3). However, an examination of process indicators, such as recent retention, degree production, graduation rates, and time/credits to degree data revealed that ATC is making some positive progress toward accomplishing this goal. Most recently, ATC s actual retention rate for 2015 was 65.6%, up 1.5% from 64.1% in 2014 (Data Source: #DC198). Degree production rates increased 98.2% from FY 2007 to AY 2012 for certificates and diplomas of less than one year and 39.8% for certificates and diplomas of at least one but less than two years for the same time period (Data Source: #DC241). For full-time, part-time, and transfer students earning a certificate or diploma of at least one but less than two years, the rate of students graduating in 100% time increased. For the Fall 2008 cohort, 12.6% of full-time students graduated in 100% time. For the Fall 2009 cohort, 16.8% of full-time students graduated in 100% time. For part-time students, 9.5% of the 2008 cohort graduated in 100% time, and 13.7% of the 2009 cohort graduated in 100% time. For transfers, 10.5% of the 2008 cohort graduated in 100% time compared to 14.9% of the 2009 cohort (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, pp ). Additionally, for full-time, part-time, and transfer students, slight gains were made within subcategories. For example, students grouped by gender, students directly from high school (17-19 years old), students receiving the Pell Grant at entry, and students taking developmental courses at entry. In the Fall 2008 cohort, 15.2% of full-time Pell Grant recipients graduated in 100% time with a certificate or diploma of at least one but less than two years. For the Fall 2009 cohort, 18.1% of full-time Pell Grant recipients graduated in 100% time with a similar credential (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, pp ). For full-time students seeking an associate degree, the average length of time to degree in years declined from 4.3 years in FY 2011 to 3.2 years in AY 2012 (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, p. 36). For full-time and part-time students, the average number of credits to degree in semester credit hours declined from FY 2011 to AY For full-time students the average dropped from 78.8 to 75.1, and for part-time students the average dropped from 75.5 to 68.7 (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, p. 38). Athens Technical College 18

19 Data on credit accumulation, course completion, degree production, and historical retention rates point to some declines over time, even in situations where percent increases were occurring. That is to say that most recent percent increases lagged behind percent increases of prior time periods. Using historical retention data, the 2014 DC241 report tracked the Fall 2007 cohort and the 2015 DC241 report tracked the 2008 cohort. In comparing the retention rates reported in these two documents, it was revealed that the CCG one-year retention rate of full-time students enrolled in the next consecutive semester dropped from 71.6% (cited in the 2014 report) to 68.9% (cited in the 2015 report), a decline of 2.7%, and the CCG one-year retention rate of part-time students enrolled in the next consecutive semester dropped from 63.8% (cited in the 2014 report) to 51.6% (cited in the 2015 report), a decline of 12.2%. The course completion rates (percent of semester credit hours completed within the first year) that were reported in the 2014 DC241 document revealed rates for full-time, part-time, and transfer students as 103%, 102.6% and 99.1%, respectively. In the 2015 DC241 report, completion rates for full-time, part-time, and transfer students were 81.7%, 78.9% and 76.2%, respectively. Although degree production increased for certificates/diplomas (less than 1 academic year), as reported by the DC241 report--with a 98.2% increase from FY 2007 to Full Year it was not as big of a percent increase as was recorded between FY 2006 and FY 2011, which was 109%. Similarly, degree production increased for certificates/diplomas of at least 1 but less than 2 years, with a 39.8% increase from FY 2007 to full year Yet from FY 2006 to FY2011, the percent increase was 191.8% (See 2014 and 2015 DC241 reports). Unfortunately, associate degree production was down 14.8% from FY 2007 to full year In the previous time period (FY 2006 to FY 2011) associate degree production showed a 62.5% increase. Interventions being implemented to increase the number of graduates include modifying the college s process for early alerting students who are at risk of not completing. The reports from Summer 2013 to Fall 2014 showed that 45 percent of the students who were reported as at risk returned the next term, and 80 academic plans were created. In contrast, the most recent report from Summer 2015 to Fall 2015 shows that 75 percent of the students who were submitted as at risk in the summer returned to the college in the fall, and 63 academic plans were created. The college is moving from an in-house system of notification to TEAMS, a system developed by the Technical College System of Georgia. With TEAMS, faculty, advisors, and staff can submit an alert on a student that will be sent directly to the retention coordinator s office. From there, the alert is analyzed and forwarded to the appropriate person (financial aid, disability services, tutoring, counseling, registration). Students are contacted within 48 hours by phone and with an offer of assistance. Students on academic or financial aid probation and students who are returning to college after having been on dismissal are offered the opportunity to create an academic plan for success with an academic coach. Additionally, first generation students are monitored and contacted with messages of support, encouragement, and offers of assistance during their first term in an effort to retain them through to graduation. The college employs a director of retention and four academic advising coaches to oversee the early alert process and all faculty are being trained. The only obstacle at this time has been making sure that the college s sizeable adjunct faculty workforce receives the same notices and training as the full time faculty so that they are easily able to use the TEAMS system. Additional interventions being implemented include the introduction of Degree Works Plans. Each program chair is developing a pathway to graduation for full- and part-time students for each possible entry term (fall, spring, summer). These plans will be loaded into Degree Works and reviewed with students during each semester advising appointments. In addition, the office of registration and records will begin publishing the course schedule a year at a time. Using the published schedule and Degree Works Plans, students and advisors will map out a student s schedule from first to final semester. The idea is that students will be more likely to continue to enroll and persist to graduation if they have a solid plan with an end in sight. No additional resources are needed to meet this initiative; however, there is a possible obstacle of faculty and advisors having time for training and entering their Degree Works templates and plans. Athens Technical College 19

20 Another intervention that is expected to improve graduation rates is the full-scale implementation of our first semester seminar FSSE This course, discussed in more detail in section II.b., is required of all students entering the college with 60 or fewer credit hours of college credit. It is designed to introduce first-time college students to the campus resources and academic skills necessary to achieve their educational and career goals. Emphasis is placed on promoting connections between student needs and college resources, and the development of college-level learning and success skills (study skills, career exploration, goal planning, time management, financial planning). Through the use of academic strategies and self-discovery, students will acquire knowledge and skills to help them succeed in college and in life. The resources necessary to complete this initiative are additional adjunct faculty to fill the number of sections of the course required each semester and adequate classroom space to schedule the courses on each campus. This course is not offered in online format. The learning support redesign undertaken by the college in fall of 2012 is continuing with some adjustments being made based on recently received data. A review of associate degree, credit-level math requirements revealed that only six programs required MATH 1111, College Algebra. Our data showed that the success rates in MATH 1111 are very low, compared to MATH As a result, the decision was made to advise students to take MATH 1101 and begin a redesign of learning support math to better prepare students for MATH Additional information about the learning support redesign can be found in section II.d. Once the obstacle of successfully completing a college-level math course has been addressed, students should be more likely to persist from semester to semester and reach graduation. Current faculty teaching learning support math are working together to develop these courses. A final effort being made to help improve graduation rates is the development of the success certificate for faculty. Faculty who are better trained are more likely to have the skills needed to help students persist to graduation. As explained in section II.c., due to personnel changes and retirements, we have had to delay the start of this certificate, although much of the design and development work for the certificate is complete. The Dean for the Center for Teaching and Learning has been charged with continuing the process and implementing the plan by Summer Transfer and articulation (collaboration) During the academic years, chemistry faculty and the Life Sciences Division dean at Athens Technical College pursued and obtained a transfer agreement with the University of Georgia for general chemistry, organic chemistry, and biochemistry. For many years ATC students have attempted to transfer to the University of Georgia to continue their education, but the university has required them to re-take chemistry courses to earn credit. The agreement requires students to complete an associate degree, earn a grade point average of 2.0 or higher, and score in the 50 th percentile or higher on the American Chemical Society (ACS) national exam. This agreement opens the door for many biotechnology graduates to continue their education past an associate degree. In addition, the college has worked with Valdosta State University to develop articulation pathways for students who complete an associate degree in any major at the college to transfer to VSU as a rising junior to complete bachelor of applied science or bachelor of science degree. This agreement will allow all students at the college to have the opportunity to complete a four-year degree by seamlessly transitioning from the two-year to the four-year institution. On average, 38 percent of the past four cohorts eventually transfer to a four-year institution The introduction of Senate Bill 2 allows high school students to enroll in a technical college if they can meet college entrance exam requirements and have completed freshman- and sophomore-level high school course work. When they complete a degree, diploma, or two-certificate program, their college-level courses satisfy 11th- and 12th-grade requirements and allow them to receive a high school diploma as well as the college credential. Additionally, Senate Bill 132 streamlines the existing dual enrollment opportunities into one program (Move On When Ready) with one funding source. By consolidating the existing programs into a single program, it will be easier for students and parents to navigate and take advantage of the available options to enroll in college courses while still in high school. MOWR also includes provisions to help remove some of the financial barriers that may prevent students from participating in dual enrollment. Athens Technical College employs a high school coordinator and a high school enrollment liaison to make the communication and implementation of these two options a smooth process for students. The college deans and Athens Technical College 20

21 executive vice president / chief academic officer have worked over the past several months to make sure that the college s programs and course offerings align with the high school students needs and time restraints. These new high school initiatives are expected to grow rapidly as they become better known and understood by the general public. Improve college readiness and access During the academic year, Athens Technical College continued making progress toward the implementation of its Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), which was designed to improve the first-year experience by providing a foundation for academic and career success. The center of the QEP was a first-semester seminar (FSSE First). All new students to the college are required to complete FSSE 1000 during their first semester of enrollment unless they are entering a certificate program that is less than 20 semester credit hours in length or they have already completed a minimum of 60 semester credit hours of coursework at other postsecondary institutions. FSSE 1000 is a three-semester credit hour course offered in a hybrid format (a blend of face-to-face and online instruction). In addition, an instructor preparatory course and a Student Success Certificate for faculty and staff were planned. Potential instructors must complete an instructor prep course before they can teach FSSE The prep course provides participants with information about active and collaborative learning and information about the FSSE 1000 course content. Table 1 shows the plan of work for the implementation of the QEP. We are on schedule with all items except for the Student Success Certificate. Due to personnel changes and retirements, we have had to delay the start of this certificate, although much of the design and development work for the certificate is complete. The Dean for the Center for Teaching and Learning has been charged with continuing the process and implementing the plan by Summer Full-scale implementation of the First Semester Seminar (FSSE 1000) occurred during Fall As reported in the document, 2015 Achieving the Dream Annual Reflection and Leader College Application Worksheet, this course was designed to introduce new students to the academic skills they will need to attain their educational and career goals (p. 9). Because one of the underlying goals of FSSE was to improve retention rates, a local study comparing the term-toterm persistence rate of FSSE participants to the persistence rate for all ATC students was conducted. It was found that the persistence rate from Fall 2014 to Spring 2015 for the FSSE group was slightly higher than the persistence rate for all ATC students (69.76% versus 67.83%, a difference of 1.93 percentage points) (2015 Achieving the Dream Annual Reflection and Leader College Application Worksheet, p. 10). The resources required for this initiative were significant. As reported in the Achieving the Dream report, During Fall Semester, 60 sections were taught with a total enrollment of 1111 students Spring Semester 2015 had 41 sections being taught with a total enrollment of 637 students It is expected that FSSE enrollment will exceed the first year projection by approximately 6.1%, serving 2,123 students in 126 class sections (p. 10). Additionally, FSSE 1000 instructors must undergo required training by taking a FSSE Instructor Preparation course. To date, 45 individuals qualified to teach FSSE instructors comprise ATC full-time instructors, ATC full-time staff, and adjuncts (p. 10). Few obstacles have been identified in the implementation of FSSE; however, program chairs have requested that the possibility of having FSSE courses set up by academic discipline be investigated. As a result, the core and data teams are planning focus groups to find out if this method of delivery would be helpful to students and if other faculty are receptive to the idea. Athens Technical College 21

22 Fall Spring Summer Fall Spring Summer Fall Spring Summer Fall Spring Summer Fall Spring Summer Table 1 Implementation and Assessment Timeline Year Year Year Year Year Implementation Timeline First Semester Seminar Finalize course development Pilot FSSE Offer FSSE to provisional students Offer FSSE for all new students to the college (except where exempted) Student Success Professional Development Program Finalize FSSE instructor preparation course development Develop Students Success certificate program Pilot FSSE instructor preparation course Offer FSSE instructor preparation course Pilot Student Success certificate program Offer Student Success program Assessment CCSSE and CFSSE surveys Student Satisfaction Survey Survey of Entering Student Engagement Student Focus Groups FSSE Course Evaluations FSSE Instructor Preparation Course Evaluations Student Success Certificate Evaluations Annual QEP Program Review Fifth-Year QEP Program Review Transform remediation When comparing the Fall 2009 and Fall 2010 cohorts, demand for developmental education rose slightly. Namely, mathonly enrollment increased from 24.4% to 25.5%; English-only enrollment increased from 9.2% to 10.1%, and both math and English enrollment increased from 21.3% to 21.9%. Demand overall for developmental education increased from 54% to 57.8% (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, p. 4). Unfortunately, the success rates of students completing developmental courses within their first two academic years declined when comparing the Fall 2009 and Fall 2010 cohorts. Success in math-only dropped from 67.3% to 61.7%. In English-only, success dropped from 75.8% to 66.1%, and for both math and English, success dipped from 60% to 49.2%. Athens Technical College 22

23 Overall, developmental completion dropped from 65.9% to 57.7% (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, p. 5). However, when investigating the rates of students completing a college-level course in the same subject within their first two academic years, the outlook is slightly better. When comparing the Fall 2009 to the Fall 2010 cohort, success in math-only college-level courses rose from 34.6% to 39.7%. Success in English-only college-level courses rose from 41.4% to 44.6%, and for both math and English, success in relevant college-level courses rose from 19.1% to 22.7%. Overall success in courses completed at the college level rose from 29.7% to 34.1%. The core team is in the process of reviewing the data and analyzing potential strategies for intervention. The delivery of developmental coursework was redesigned in the fall of The decline in success seems to coincide with the redesign. As a result, the data team is developing questions for student focus groups to determine what they think the causes might be. Students who were not successful in the redesigned courses will be asked to identify reasons for their withdrawals or poor performance. These responses will be reviewed by the core team in the hopes of additional changes being implemented. Restructure delivery (includes block scheduling) Athens Technical College will pilot a guided pathways scheduling intervention in January of 2016 with a plan to implement the plan college-wide Fall The guided pathways project uses the plans function of the Degree Works Student Advising System to set up academic plans for all students. Plans will be created for fall, spring, and summer start terms for students attending full time or part time in any degree or diploma program. Program chairs are currently working on their plans, and training is being offered by the offices of registration and records and retention. The guided pathways plans will allow students and advisors to begin with the end in mind, scheduling every semester until graduation at the first advising appointment. Plans can be adjusted as changes occur for students, but the end will always be visible. Reports from Degree Works plans can be pulled for faculty to determine scheduling needs from semester to semester, and for retention and advising coaches to see who is getting off track so that they may intervene early. Performance Indicators of Specific Block-Scheduled Programs Identified for CCG Overview. For the most part, block-scheduled programs appear to have performed at least as well as other programs at ATC, and sometimes they performed better. A review of comparative performance indicators such as starting enrollment counts, number of awards conferred, placement rates, and attrition rates revealed that globally, blockscheduled programs were performing within or above the middle 50% of all programs on enrollment counts. When considering all the block programs together, for about 72% of the time the number of awards conferred by blockscheduled programs fell within the midrange (Q1 to Q3) of the distributions, and for about 28% of the time the number of awards exceeded the midrange. When compared to TCSG s cautionary placement threshold of less than 90%, it was found that two-thirds of the block-scheduled programs had placement rates above 90% for all years. However, two of the six block-scheduled programs reported placement rates below the cautionary threshold for some but not all years. Finally, attrition rates for block-scheduled programs generally fell within the midrange (Q1 to Q3) and below average attrition rates. For specifics, see the following discussion and tables. Starting Enrollment Counts. From AY 2012 to AY 2015, univariate statistics and distributions of starting enrollments were examined to determine how each block-scheduled program performed relative to other programs at ATC. Generally, starting enrollments in block-scheduled programs fell within or above the midrange (Q1 to Q3) of the distributions; the programs that fell within the midrange exceeded the median. During this time frame, starting enrollments in block-scheduled programs were just as likely to fall below the average for all programs as above it. However it should be noted that the averages were influenced by extreme values in the upper ends of the distributions. Four out of six block-scheduled programs (viz., AC13, NS14, NS13, and MA22) exhibited upward movement in the percentile rankings from AY 2012 to AY So although starting enrollments in these programs generally declined over time, their relative positions within the distributions of program enrollments improved. Athens Technical College 23

24 Unfortunately, however, because enrollments were down for the institution overall, there was little or no benefit gained from such upward mobility in relative standing. [Data Source: KMS LB178; KMS LB177; 2015 Internal ATC Study of Attrition in Courses and Programs]. [See Tables 2a and 2b for details.] Number of Awards Conferred. From AY 2013 to AY 2015, univariate statistics and distributions of the number of awards conferred were examined to determine how each block-scheduled program performed relative to other programs at ATC. Considering all the block programs together, 72% of the time the number of awards conferred by block-scheduled programs fell within the midrange (Q1 to Q3) of the distributions, and for about 28% of the time the number of awards exceeded the midrange. In two of the six programs, the number of awards conferred annually was consistently below average (viz., AC12 and NS14). One program (i.e., AC13) conferred awards in excess of the average each year, while the other programs vacillated annually, conferring numbers that exceeded, fell below, or equaled the mean. It should be acknowledged that the averages were influenced by extreme values in the upper ends of the distributions. [Data Source: KMS Report DC109] [See Tables 3a and 3b for details.] Placement Rates. From AY 2013 to AY 2015, placement rates of block-scheduled programs were compared to the cautionary benchmark as provided in TCSG s KMS Report DC 112, which highlights programs in red that have placement rates below 90%. The comparison revealed that two-thirds of the block-scheduled programs had placement rates above 90% for all years. Alternatively, two of the six block-scheduled programs reported placement rates below the cautionary threshold for some but not all years. These programs were AC13 in AY 2014 and NS14 in AY 2013 and AY Generally, only a small percentage of ATC s programs had placement rates below 90%: the percentage of all program majors with placement rates below 90% was about 3% in AY 2013, 7% in AY 2014, and 3% in AY 2015 [Data Source: KMS Report DC112]. [See Table 4a for details.] Attrition Rates. From AY 2012 to AY 2015, univariate statistics and distributions of attrition rates were examined to determine how each block-scheduled program performed relative to other programs at ATC. For the most part, attrition rates for block-scheduled programs fell within the midrange (Q1 to Q3) and below average attrition rates. Two blockscheduled programs (i.e., NS14 and MA22) had attrition rates that fell within the midrange (Q1 to Q3) of the distributions every year, and excepting AY 2012 for NS14, their attrition rates were at or below the medians. Only one block-scheduled program during one year (viz., MA22 in AY 2013) reported zero attrition. [Data Source: KMS LB178; KMS LB177; 2015 Internal ATC Study of Attrition in Courses and Programs]. [See Tables 5a and 5b for details.] Table 2a. Starting Enrollment Counts in Block-Scheduled Programs by AY Table 2b. Starting Enrollment Counts Statistics for All Programs at ATC by AY AY AC12 DIP AC13 AAS ACT2 DIP NS14 DIP NS13 AAS MA22 DIP MIN Q1 25th %-ile Q2 Median Q3 75th %-ile MAX AVG N Athens Technical College 24

25 Table 3a. Number of Credentials Awarded in Block-Scheduled Programs by AY Table 3b. Number of Credentials Awarded Statistics for All Programs at ATC by AY AY AC12 DIP AC13 AAS ACT2 DIP NS14 DIP NS13 AAS MA22 DIP MIN Q1 25th %-ile Q2 Median Q3 75th %-ile MAX AVG N Table 4a. Placement Rates in Block-Scheduled Programs by AY AY AC12 DIP AC13 AAS ACT2 DIP NS14 DIP NS13 AAS MA22 DIP % % 88%* 100% 100% % 89.5* 100% 100% 100% 100% % 100% 100% 83%* 100% 100% TCSG's cautionary benchmark placement rate is less than 90%. Programs below this rate are marked with an asterisk (*). ( Note: MA22 in 2015 had a 100% placement rate for graduates at the Athens Campus; graduates at the Elbert Campus were classified with Unknown Placement (or N/A) status. Table 5a. Attrition Rates in Block-Scheduled Programs by AY AY AC12 DIP AC13 AAS ACT2 DIP NS14 DIP NS13 AAS MA22 DIP Table 5b. Attrition Rates Statistics for All Programs at ATC by AY MIN Q1 25th %-ile Q2 Median Q3 75th %-ile MAX AVG N % 1.7% 0.6% 4.4% 1.2% 1.6% % 5.7% 100% 4.8% % 1.6% 3.6% 2.1% 7.9% % 6.2% 100% 5.3% % 1.7% 9.0% 2.6% 2.1% 4.6% % 6.4% 100% 8.7% % 7.9% 1.1% 2.1% 2.4% 1.7% % 6.0% 100% 5.8% 114 Automotive Technology AT14 (diploma). A review of KMS report LB177 revealed that there were no starting enrollment figures for academic years A review of KMS report DC109 revealed that no awards were conferred for AT14 from AY2012 to AY2015. The college has offered the UT02 Automotive Fundamentals diploma for the past several years; however, beginning Fall 2015, the college will offer the Automotive Technology diploma and degree in block scheduling format for its day students. The possibility of ATC offering an associate of applied science in Automotive Technology has generated a lot of interest from current and former students. Students currently in the diploma program have expressed a desire to get the degree in addition to their diploma in order to maximize their future economic, employment, and educational opportunities. Employment opportunities for automotive fundamentals students will increase with the change to automotive technology, giving them the option to apply for lead, supervisor, or management positions as their careers progress within the automotive industry. Athens Technical College 25

26 The diploma program is completely embedded in the degree program, making the transition from diploma to degree a smooth and financially efficient option. The program will follow the existing state standards and meet State Board and general program standard requirements for programs at its award level. As we currently offer all of the courses in the programs, there are no first year costs associated with the program s implementation. The program should begin with 15 students in the first year and enrollment is projected to be close to 50 by year three. Shorten time to degree Athens Technical College recognizes that individuals can develop mastery of course competencies through nontraditional educational environments such as employment, training, professional certifications, non-credit courses, and other life experiences. The term prior learning is used to describe these methods of learning. In an effort to shorten time to degree for many of these students, the college awards credit for prior learning when the equivalency is validated by academically sound and rigorous assessment. Credit will be awarded only for demonstrable college-level learning, not for experience. Students must demonstrate mastery of course competencies through testing or appropriate documentation such as portfolios or certifications received from professional organizations. Students who believe they have the appropriate prior learning to request credit should make an appointment to speak with the dean responsible for the courses students are seeking prior learning credit. Among the programs in which students earn credit for professional certifications are fire science, automotive technology, automotive collision repair, criminal justice, and paramedicine. In addition, students doing equivalent coursework in high school courses may submit a portfolio of their work to the appropriate program chairs for evaluation. If the work demonstrates the necessary skills and level of knowledge, the program chair can approve credit for an introductory course. This method of earning credit has been piloted in the welding program. The agricultural science program will be the next program to offer students this opportunity. The plan is for all programs in which students select a high school pathway to offer a college portfolio option by Fall Athens Technical College also awards credit for courses completed at military service schools. The awarding of credit is based American Council of Education (ACE) recommendations as listed in A Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Services. For full-time students seeking an associate degree, the average length of time to degree in years declined, from 4.3 years in FY 2011 to 3.2 years in AY 2012 (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, p. 36). For full-time and parttime students, the average number of credits to degree in semester credit hours declined from FY 2011 to AY For full-time students the average dropped from 78.8 to 75.1, and for part-time students the average dropped from 75.5 to 68.7 (Data Source: #DC241, 2014 and 2015 reports, p. 38). Athens Technical College 26

27 Student Success Implementation Team The college s core and data teams work together to track, share and use student data. The core team meets weekly to discuss progress and plans. The core team then submits data requests to the data team using a recently created data request form. The data team collects the data and provides it to the core team as requested. In addition, the college is in the process of redesigning its website. A part of this redesign includes an Achieving the Dream and Complete College Georgia information site. On this site, the college community will be able to access the minutes of core and data team meetings, data reports, and intervention strategies that are proposed or implemented as a result of the data analysis. Full Name Title/Position Role address Dr. Gail Thaxton Interim President Facilitator gthaxton@athenstech.edu Dr. Andrea Daniel Executive Vice Core Team Leader (Point dsmith@athenstech.edu President of Contact) Caroline Angelo Executive Director of Data Team Leader cangelo@athenstech.edu Academic Affairs (Point of Contact) Core Team Members Sherry Abrams Director of Public Core Team Member sabrams@athenstech.edu Relations Jennifer Benson Interim Vice Core Team Member jbenson@athenstech.edu President for Student Affairs Dianne Campbell Dean of Business, Core Team Member dcampbell@athenstech.edu Education, and Humanities Thomas Heard Director of Core Team Member theard@athenstech.edu Recruitment and Retention Dr. Alysen Heil Mathematics Core Team Co- aheil@athenstech.edu Instructor Chair/Member Glenn Henry Dean of Life Sciences Core Team Member ghenry@athenstech.edu Dr. Tawana Mattox FSSE Coordinator Core Team Member tmattox@athenstech.edu Lenzy Reid Executive Director, Core Team Member lreid@athenstech.edu Walton County Campus Stuart Rolf Program Chair for Core Team Member srolf@athenstech.edu Machine Tool Technology Howard Sokol Paralegal Studies Core Team Member hsokol@athenstech.edu Program Chair Carol Stanley Core Team Member Athens Technical College 27

28 Full Name Title/Position Role address ata Team Members Geoff Barrow Webmaster Data Team Member Virginia Bramblett Accounting Program Data Team Member Chair Sibley Bryan Director, Greene Data Team Member County Campus Dr. Mary Clare DiGiacomo Dean of Center for Data Team Member Teaching and Learning Dr. Bobbi Johnstone Data Analyst Data Team Co- Chair/Member Dustin McDaniel Assistant Director of Data Team Member Financial Aid Dr. Margaret Morgan Dean of Technology, Data Team Member Engineering, and Mathematics Vidya Nahar Mathematics Data Team Member Instructor Dr. Crystal Robinson Anatomy and Physiology Instructor Data Team Member Conclusion As the information in the Goals section of this report indicates, Athens Technical College is moving forward with its Complete College Georgia plans and seeing success with several initiatives. Plans for college-wide implementation of the TEAMS Early Alert system to help improve retention and increase the number of graduates, new articulation agreements with four-year colleges and Move On When Ready programs for high school students, more faculty training for the first semester seminar, a re-evaluation of our developmental education offerings, guided pathways to keep students on track to graduation, and credits for prior learning to shorten time to degree work together to increase retention and graduation rates at the college. Among the most successful strategies to-date have been the increased number of faculty reporting Early Alerts and the success of the academic plans. The students who have completed FSSE 1000 have a 2.74 percent increase in retention as compared to the students who did not take FSSE, which we consider a success for our first full-year of implementation. The time-to-degree has shortened for full and part-time students which can be credited to the more student-friendly prior learning and military credit policies the college has implemented. Our most significant success, however, is the reinvigoration of our Achieving the Dream/Complete College Georgia core and data teams. Athens Technical College has experienced a year of changes. Form the retirement of the president, vice president for academic affairs, and dean of technical and industrial programs to the resignation of the vice president for student affairs and the re-organization of academic divisions and departments, the college has let the Achieving the Dream/Complete College Georgia initiatives stagnate. However, the interim president and the executive vice president /chief academic officer have re-formed the two teams. The core team now meets once a week to review progress toward our goals, and the data team has developed a smoother system for anyone at the college to request data. This next year should see significant improvement in communication, accountability, and student success. Athens Technical College 28

29 Next Steps The college will focus on a number of initiatives in the upcoming year. First, the college will work on the initiatives identified in the Goals section of this document. The resources necessary to implement these initiatives consist primarily of faculty time and effort. Second, the college plans to develop a mechanism to recognize programs that significantly improve retention and graduation rates. While this idea is still in its infancy, one possible resource needed would be funds for an engraved plaque or award certificate for the honored area. Reports generated by the institutional effectiveness data analyst will be used to determine the programs that are making positive progress. A third initiative is to create guided pathways for students using Degree Works plans to encourage full time students to complete their credential in two years. No additional resources are needed to complete this task; however, time and effort of faculty, advisors, and staff building the plans will need to be considered. The college will need to provide extensive advisor and student training sessions to roll out guided pathways plans in Degree Works. Another initiative is to complete work on and implement the student success certificate for all full-time faculty and staff. Again, the primary resource needed for this initiative is faculty and staff time and effort; however, possible funds for conferences or off-site training institutes such as Patrick Henry Community College s SCALE may be needed. The college is also investigating adding a collegewide attendance policy and repeat coursework policy. The Faculty Council has subcommittees working on these proposals. Implementation of these policies may require resources such as Banner training for faculty and staff and software to track attendance. The college also hopes to create additional associate of science degrees to provide students the opportunity to seamlessly transfer to the University System of Georgia colleges. Articulation of these degrees takes time and effort on the part of the administration, faculty, and staff. Finally, the college plans to track applicants to competitive selection programs to determine whether they enroll in the associate of applied science degree in Health Sciences with specializations in personal fitness, emergency preparedness, and gerontology that were developed during 2014 academic year. Resources necessary for this data collection include the time and effort of a data analyst and the office of institutional effectiveness personnel. Athens Technical College 29

30 Atlanta Technical College Atlanta Technical College 30

31 Overview Atlanta Technical College Atlanta Technical College (ATC) enrolled 7,453 students in Complete College Georgia (CCG) programs in Report Year The CCG Report Year (RY) 2014 programs include Certificates of less than one academic year, Certificates/Diplomas of at least one year but less than two, Certificates/Diplomas of at least two years but less than four, and Associate Degree programs. Total unduplicated enrollment increased by 4% from 2011 to 2012 in CCG programs. Of the 7,453 students enrolled in 2012, 2,278 (32%) were full-time and 5,080 (68%) were part-time. Full-time enrollment decreased by 20 percentage points from the prior year. Part-time enrollment increased by 20 percentage points from 2011 to Approximately 8% of the student population took remedial courses in Report Year 2014 compared to 9% in the previous year. There were approximately 42% males and 58% females enrolled in ATC students enrolled in CCG programs in 2012 were mostly age 25 and over which represents 63% of the total enrollment. Students that received the Pell grant represented 73% of the total enrollment in Based on the above information, in 2012, the majority of ATC students were low income Black females age 25 and over. Goals Atlanta Technical College implemented the overall goal of increasing the number of graduates in 2015 by 5% or 796 graduates. In addition, Atlanta Technical College 2015 goals include transforming remediation and restructuring delivery. Strategies and interventions to address each goal and performance metrics to measure goal attainment are discussed. Atlanta Technical College utilizes various data sources to assess the effectiveness of the strategies and interventions in achieving the goals as stated above. The Student Success Implementation Team reviewed: Complete College Georgia All Metrics Summary report Achieving the Dream metric reports Knowledge Management System (KMS) reports Survey reports Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2015 Complete College Georgia (CCG) Progress Summary Metric Goal Actual Result Degree Production To produce 796 CCG graduates in ATC produced 1,301 CCG graduates in Graduation Rate Success in Remedial Education To increase the graduation rate by 2% in CCG Report Year To increase the number of students successfully completing remedial education requirements and collegelevel courses in the same subject as remedial education by 3% in CCG Report Year The 100% graduation rate increased by 10%, 150% increased by 2%, and 200% decreased by 1%. The number of students successfully completing remedial education requirements increased by 2% and students successfully completing college-level courses in the same subject increased by 3%. Goal 1: Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7% annually over the previous year. Performance Metric: Complete College America (CCA) Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production Strategies/Interventions: Atlanta Technical College exceeded the CCG degree production goal for the seventh consecutive year. Atlanta Technical College increased the number of CCG graduates by 6% in There were 1,301 total CCG graduates in The college awarded 26% more certificates less than 1 year in length, 1% more certificates/diplomas of at least 1 year but less than 2 years, and 3% more associate degrees than the prior year. Atlanta Technical College 31

32 There was a 22% decline of certificates/diplomas of at least 2 years but less than 4 years in length awarded since Similar results are found when reviewing the KMS CR363 Grads and Awards Conferred report (Table 1.1). KMS CR363 reports all awards including non-ccg programs at Atlanta Technical College. Table 1.1 shows an overall 4% increase in credentials awarded in The number of certificates awarded increased over prior year by 7%. The increases in certificates awarded are a result of continuing to focus on increasing the number of embedded TCCs in diploma and associate degree programs. Table 1.1 Awards Conferred Year Certificates Diplomas Degrees Total Awards , , , , , , , , , , , ,875 % of Increase/Decrease 32.84% 9.23% % 34.30% 4.38% Staffing, workload, and time constraints posed obstacles in reviewing each program for potential embedded TCCs. To alleviate these obstacles, ATC utilized human resources to include the curriculum coordinator and academic deans from each division. In 2015, the curriculum coordinator and the deans of academic programs worked to identify new certificate programs to embed in existing diploma and degree programs. Embedded technical certificates of credit (TCC) offer students the opportunity to obtain one or more credential(s) while matriculating through a diploma or degree. This strategy to increase the number of graduates proved to be effective by yielding 26% more TCC credentialed students in 2015 than in There was an overall 164% increase in TCC graduates from 2013 to 2015 (Chart 1.2). Atlanta Technical College 32

33 # of CCG Graduates Chart 1.2 Complete College Georgia Graduates Goal Total CCG Graduates 908 1,222 1,301 Advisement sheets have been modified to illustrate at which point the student has earned an embedded TCC included in a higher credential. Throughout this past year, the curriculum coordinator in conjunction with the deans, programs chairs and other key stakeholders at ATC have identified, developed and/or implemented 10 new embedded TCCs which has had a direct impact on the graduation rate. The curriculum coordinator will continue to collaborate with the deans and program chairs to identify additional programs eligible for fast-tracking in Goal 2: Transform Remediation Performance Metric: CCA Progress Metric 2a: Success in Remedial Education Strategies/Interventions: In 2015, Atlanta Technical College aimed to increase the number of students successfully completing learning support (LS) requirements and college-level courses in the same subject as remedial education by 3% in CCG Report Year Atlanta Technical College enrolled 895 students in remedial education in fall 2010 (CCG RY 2014). Of the 895 students, 486 or 54% successfully completed remedial education courses within their first two academic years of enrollment. Table 2.1 shows there was a 2% increase in the success rate of the fall 2010 cohort over the fall 2009 cohort. The college did not meet the goal for students successful completion of remedial education requirements. Although ATC did not meet the 2015 goal of 3% increase in success, students in the fall 2010 cohort that were required to take both Math and English learning support courses were 13% more successful in completing than the prior year cohort. The success rate of students enrolled in Math only or English only learning support courses declined this year by 2% and 8% respectively. Table 2.1 Success in Remedial Education Student Success in Remedial Education Fall 2007 Cohort Fall 2008 Cohort % change Fall 2009 Cohort % change Fall 2010 Cohort % change Total Remedial 48.2% 47.2% -2.1% 53.3% 12.9% 54.3% 1.9% Math Only 64.1% 46.9% -26.8% 61.0% 30.1% 60.0% -1.6% English Only 46.9% 44.9% -4.3% 55.1% 22.7% 50.8% -7.8% Both Math and English 41.6% 50.3% 20.9% 47.4% -5.8% 53.5% 12.9% Atlanta Technical College 33

34 The most current remedial education data available in CCG Report Year 2014 is information on the fall 2010 cohort. Atlanta Technical College implemented the Learning Support Redesign in The first cohort of students to matriculate under the Learning Support Redesign was in the fall 2011 cohort. CCG report data is not yet available to assess the Success in Remedial Education metric. As an alternative, ATC analyzed the data shown in the Achieving the Dream Outcome 1 report of students successfully completing developmental course requirements in 2 years. The ATD data is shown in Table 2.2 and Chart 2.2. Table 2.2 Successful Completion of Remedial Education Requirements in 2 years Successful Completion of Developmental Courses in 2 years 2011 (Includes fall 2010) 2012 (Includes fall 2011) % change 2013 (Includes fall 2012) % change Math 51.4% 23.8% -53.7% 19.6% -17.6% English 37.4% 42.3% 13.1% 42.5% 0.5% Table 2.2 shows the first cohorts to matriculate under the Learning Support Redesign. The fall 2011 cohort (first LSR cohort) students enrolled in learning support Math were 54% less successful than the prior year cohort. The fall 2011 cohort of students enrolled in learning support English were 13% more successful than the prior year cohort. There was a 17% decline in the success of developmental Math students in the fall 2012 cohort than the fall 2011 cohort. Again, developmental English students in the fall 2012 cohort were 1% more successful than the previous year cohort. Chart 2.2 provides a three-year comparison of the success of Math and English developmental education students. Chart 2.2 Successful Completion of Remedial Education Requirements in 2 years 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 51.4% 37.4% 42.3% 42.5% 23.8% 19.6% 0.0% 2011 (Includes fall 2010) 2012 (Includes fall 2011) 2013 (Includes fall 2012) Math English Atlanta Technical College 34

35 To address the Learning Support Redesign (LSR) intervention, a Learning Support Task Force was developed. The task force identified a cross-section of faculty and staff to serve as human resources to address issues of the Learning Support Redesign. The learning support task force identified obstacles in the success of the LSR to include poor success in LS Math and the lack of faculty engagement in the redesign process. To address the poor success in LS Math and the lack of faculty engagement in the process, members of the task force met with LS faculty to collaboratively revise the LS policy manual. The LS policy manual revisions specifically addressed the 2015 CCG plan regarding the success of students matriculating through the LSR and the non-completers in developmental education. The Learning Support Task Force piloted a Co-Requisite Math Course to address the declining success rates in developmental Math. In fall 2014, the College ran a pilot Co-Requisite Math course to provide an opportunity for students to complete their LS Math course and their General Education Math course in one semester. The first 7 weeks of the semester, students took the LS Math course. If the students passed the LS portion of the Co-Req., they sat for the College Algebra (MATH 1111) portion of the course the last 7 weeks. Students with COMPASS scores qualified for the Co-Req. The college also ran a second pilot in spring 2015 but the results are pending. There was a 100% completion rate in the LS Math portion of the Math Co-Requisite course in fall There was also a 20% attrition rate, which represents our average attrition rate in Arts and Sciences division of the college. There was a 90% completion rate in the General Education Math portion of the Math Co-Requisite course in fall The attrition rate was approximately 8%. Because of the success of the Math Co-Requisite, the college will create four additional Math Co-Requisite courses in fall 2015 in order to further examine the model, collect, and analyze the student data. If this model shows similar success rates, the college will use the model to transform Math Learning Support across the division. The Student Success Implementation Team and the Learning Support Task Force will monitor the effectiveness of the Co-Requisite model in Goal 3: Restructure Delivery Performance Metric: CCA Outcome Metric 2: Graduation Rates Strategies/Interventions: The Report Year 2014 CCG Outcome Metric 2 tracks the fall 2009 cohort for CCG certificate and diploma programs and the fall 2008 cohort for associate degree programs. Table 3.1 shows the CCG Report Year 2014 graduation rates for 100%, 150%, and 200% time to graduation. Table 3.1 CCG Outcome Metric 2 Graduation Rates All Award Levels RY 2013 RY 2014 % change 100% Time 16% 18% 10.4% 150% Time 22% 23% 2.0% 200% Time 24% 23% -1.4% Atlanta Technical College s 2015 goal was to increase the graduation rate by 2%. The goal was met for 100% time to graduation and 150% time to graduation. The goal was not met for 200% time to graduation. The data indicates the cohorts graduated in less time than the prior report year cohorts. The decline in 200% time to graduation could be an indication of an increase in students that leave and do not complete their degree. More recent data was available from IPEDS. The IPEDS graduation rates are shown in Table 3.2. Table 3.2 IPEDS Graduation Rates 2009 Cohort 2010 Cohort % change 100% of normal time 17% 11% -35.3% 150% of normal time 23% 24% 4.3% 200% of normal time 34% 35% 2.9% Atlanta Technical College 35

36 The IPEDS graduation rates indicate a 35% decline in 100% time to graduation in the 2010 cohort from the prior year cohort. The 150% time to graduation rate increased 4% and the 200% time to graduation rate increased 3% for the 2010 cohort versus the 2009 cohort. The IPEDS graduation rates indicate students are taking longer to graduate in more recent years. Prior to 2015, an early alert program and mandatory advising were put in place to address on-time graduation. In 2015, the lack of a centralized advising process became an obstacle to implementing these strategies. To alleviate the obstacles, the Student Success Center became the physical resource to house first-year student advising and management of the early alert program. The human resources needed to manage the early alert program included fulltime advisors and the cooperation of faculty to communicate and track student success through the early alert system. Implementation of the Early Alert program has helped to address those students needing intervention prior to failing courses and consequently not completing course requirements for their program. The Early Alert System was streamlined and integrated with the Technical College System of Georgia s electronic system (TEAMS). The electronic system allows faculty and staff to track their referrals and offer progress updates to advisors. After students are submitted via the electronic process, Student Success Advisors provide one-on-one coaching, advising, and/or referring. These interventions are in place to address the issue of students taking courses out of sequence due to the inability to pass a "difficult" course. Students are strongly encouraged to utilize both internal and external resources. Some of the resources include, but not limited to; the Student Success Center, the Learning Support Lab, the Reading Oasis reading and writing lab, and Seedco. Over 70% of ATC students received Pell grant funds in Students that continue to perform poorly are at risk of being placed on academic warning and/or probation which can lead to losing their financial aid funding. The Student Success Center successfully piloted and has fully implemented the Student Completion Plan program in collaboration with the Financial Aid office. Atlanta Technical College s 2015 CCG plan outlined an intervention to address retention and program completion. The goal of the Student Completion Plan is to help students regain good academic standing in the college. Some students experienced difficulty balancing school, work, and other personal commitments. These students may take longer to complete their program and has a direct impact on ATC s graduation rate. The Student Success Center works with these students to devise a Student Completion Plan that considers the normal program time to completion as well as the student s academic and personal capacity. Academic plans are derived based upon students academic history, potential risk factors which may impede academic success, and the student s overall academic/career goals. After being awarded a Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) appeal from the Office of Financial Aid, students complete a needs assessment packet and meet individually with an advisor to plan how to successfully get back to good academic standing. Qualitative data from student surveys revealed the obstacle of the availability of courses needed to graduate. According to the 2015 CCG plan, ATC continued block scheduling of 5 programs to provide students with availability of courses needed to graduate in the appropriate sequence and at the appropriate time. The college provides block scheduling of the Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Automotive Technology, Medical Assisting, and Networking Specialist programs. Table 3.3 and Table 3.4 provide the retention and graduation rates in the blocked scheduled programs and compare the rates to all programs combined. Atlanta Technical College 36

37 Table 3.3 Block Scheduled Program Retention Block Scheduled Fall to Fall Retention Level Major Description Fall 2013 Cohort Fall 2013 Retained Fall 2013 Retention Rate Fall 2014 Cohort Fall 2014 Retained Fall 2014 Retention Rate % change Diploma Accounting % % -12% Degree Accounting % % -28% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % % -37% Diploma Automotive Technology % % -97% Diploma Medical Assisting % % 59% Degree Networking Specialist % 7 0 0% -100% Diploma Networking Specialist % % -44% All Block Scheduled % % -50% All All Programs % % -32% Table 3.4 Block Scheduled Program Graduation Blocked Scheduled Program Graduation Rates Level Major Description Fall 2013 Cohort Fall 2013 Grads Fall 2013 Grad Rate Fall 2014 Cohort Fall 2014 Grads Fall 2014 Grad Rate % change Diploma Accounting % % 8% Degree Accounting % % 575% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % % 101% Diploma Automotive Technology % % 16% Diploma Medical Assisting % % 394% Degree Networking Specialist % % 586% Diploma Networking Specialist % 6 0 0% -100% All Block Scheduled % % 57% All All Programs 1, % 1, % 61% The retention rate of the fall 2014 cohort blocked scheduled programs was 26% compared to 33% for all programs. The blocked scheduled programs retention rate fell 50% from the prior year cohort. Since the retention rate decreased by 32% for all programs, the cause of the decline is likely not solely due to block scheduling but the decline is an indication of an issue that affects all programs. Although the fall to fall retention rates declined, there were significant increases in the blocked schedule program graduation rates. The fall 2014 cohort blocked schedule graduation rate increased by 57% over the prior year cohort. Several blocked scheduled programs more than doubled their graduation rate over the prior year including Accounting (Degree), Air Conditioning Technology (Diploma), Medical Assisting (Diploma), and Networking Specialist (Degree). Based on the above analysis, the current blocked schedule programs will remain in place in The Student Success Implementation Team will be the human resources needed to review the effectiveness of the blocked schedule programs as a part of the annual program review process. The team will continue to explore other opportunities to block schedule programs. Atlanta Technical College 37

38 Student Success Implementation Team Name Dr. Alvetta Thomas Dr. Murray Williams Dr. Rushton Johnson Dr. Kimberly Frazier Ms. Debra Saunders Mrs. Sonya McCoy-Wilson Ms. Jocelyn Peterson Ms. Donna Boisseau Ms. Elaina Chance Ms. Juli Gilyard Mr. Ronald Laws Mrs. Lauren Lopez Title President Vice President of Academic Affairs (Point of Contact) Vice President of Student Affairs Associate Vice President of Institutional Effectiveness Associate Vice President of Adult Education Dean of Arts and Sciences Director of Intuitional Research Curriculum Coordinator Interim Student Success Coordinator High School Coordinator Faculty, Learning Support Department Chair Faculty, Math Department Chair The leadership, faculty, and staff of Atlanta Technical College are transforming its campus into an evidence-based culture. The college has many ways of collecting data for evaluation and assessment, from an academic program review level of assessment to college-wide assessment of progress toward student success goals. The institutional effectiveness process requires all academic and student support service programs to develop program and student learning outcomes; use multiple methods to assess them; and use the assessment results to improve the programs. The Student Success Implementation Team extends this practice to student success interventions by developing outcomes and assessment plans for each major intervention. Expected outcomes are used to measure the effectiveness of the student success interventions in achieving college level goals that link directly to competencies required to ensure successful student retention, graduation and employment within the student's field of study. The institutional research office disseminates data through a monthly Let s Talk Data newsletter, campus-wide presentations at Fall Convocation, and Faculty and Staff meetings where the results are available for use in individual department planning, as well as annual review of the campus strategic planning and budgeting process. Atlanta Technical College also engages students, faculty, staff and community members in sharing of results and continuous improvement through various teams such as the Student Success Implementation Team and the Learning Support Task Force. Additionally, the college s Institutional Effectiveness Quality Team serves in an advisory capacity regarding the collection and dissemination of data to institutional stakeholders, therefore enhancing the institution s decision-making capacity and improving its overall effectiveness. Conclusion Atlanta Technical College s 2015 CCG metrics increased in the areas of Degree Production, Graduation Rate, and Success in Remedial Education. The current year interventions continued from 2014 include the Learning Support Redesign, Embedded TCC programs, Early Alert Program, and Blocked Scheduling. The Learning Support Redesign was enhanced by convening the Learning Support Task Force to finalize a policy for the LSR. The college identified 10 new TCC programs to embed in existing programs. The Early Alert Program added the TEAMS system. There were no changes to the Blocked Scheduling intervention in 2015.These strategies/interventions were effective and will be continued in Parts of the Learning Support Redesign were ineffective with respect to success in LS Math. Based on this finding, adjustments were made to LS Math courses in the form of a Co-Requisite Model. The college implemented two new strategies/interventions in 2015, the Student Completion Plan and the Co-Requisite Model. The Student Completion Plan was implemented in fall 2014; therefore sufficient data to assess the success of the intervention is not yet available. As shown in Chart 2.2, there is a large gap in the success of LS Math students versus LS English students. During 2015, the Learning Support Task Force looked more closely into ways to increase success in LS Atlanta Technical College 38

39 Math courses. The Co-Requisite Model is an intervention to address the success rate in LS Math. The Co-Requisite Model is in the early stages and while positive success was achieved with the pilot cohorts, more time is needed to monitor long term success of the intervention. The Student Success Implementation Team will discuss assessment plans and develop reporting tools to further analyze the effectiveness of the Student Completion Plan and the Co-Requisite Model. As a result of the successes and opportunities for improvement in 2015, Atlanta Technical College will continue the committees and sub-committees that contribute to the college s overall student success plan. There are no new planned committees for The college has developed a shared definition of student success that is specific to the mission of Atlanta Technical College. Student Success means that our students persist, grow and develop, complete their educational goals and programs of study, and continue on to work or further study. In other words, Atlanta Technical College students start strong, stay strong, and finish strong. Next Steps Table Planned Strategies/Interventions Strategy/Intervention Description of Strategy/Intervention Resources Learning Support Redesign Enhance tutoring and early alert wrap-around services. Develop and implement an assessment plan for the current phase of the LSR. Early Alert Program Embedded Technical Certificates of Credit Student Completion Plan Co-Requisite Model Blocked Scheduling Mandatory Advising Develop a plan to assess the effectiveness of the Early Alert Program. Monitor course sequences to embed new TCC programs into Diploma and Associate Degree programs. Identify additional programs eligible for fast-tracking Maintain a process to assess student need for services. Based on the needs assessment, create instructional resources to meet the students individualized needs. Emphasize the Co-Requisite Model for Math. Explore the possibility for a Co-Requisite English Model. Maintain currently block scheduled programs offered at Atlanta Technical College. Monitor graduation rates by program and perform analysis to determine programs that can benefit from block scheduling. Provide mandatory one-on-one, face-to-face faculty advisement for students. Utilize the alternate PIN as a means of preventing students from self-advisement. Encourage students to speak with their advisor to register for courses and advisement. Learning Support Task Force General Education Institutional Research Student Success Center Faculty Advisors Institutional Research Curriculum Coordinator Academic Deans Student Success Center Learning Support Task Force General Education Academic Deans Curriculum Coordinator Student Success Center Faculty Advisors Atlanta Technical College 39

40 Augusta Technical College Augusta Technical College 40

41 Overview Augusta Technical College Augusta Technical College continues to implement, assess, and refine strategic approaches that promote improvement in college completion and student success rates; i.e. successful completion of a remedial education course and earning a grade of C or better in a college-level general education course, increase retention and placement rates, and reduce time to completion to name a few. As the nation and various industries to include higher education continue to experience paradigm shifts in methodologies, demographic changes have occurred at the College that have prompted a need to modify current approaches and consider new strategies. Over the past decade, the College s annual enrollment steadily increased for the first seven years and has struggled with the national trend of declining annual enrollment for the latter (See Figure 1). At present, enrollment for the Fall term of AY 2016 increased by 4.6% in comparison to Fall term of AY Should this trend continue, it is anticipated that the College will report an increase in annual enrollment for the 2016 CCG progress report. In reviewing the student demographic data provided in KMS Report #DC241, a significant change in annual fulltime/part-time enrollment is noted, especially during Academic Year 2012 (AY 2012), the initial year of the quarter to semester conversion. Data analyses show significant changes in full-time and part-time enrollment status for both students with and without student type transfer (See Figures 2 and 3 Note students with student type high school are not included). Analyses also show that transfer student total enrollment has continued to decline since AY 2012 (See Figure 3). Prior to the conversion to semester terms, the student population was majority full-time; however, since the conversion, the student population is majority part-time. While this trend is starting to decline, the part-time enrollment was approximately three times greater than full-time enrollment in AY [FT = 1491; PT = 4365] Estimates for AY 2015 show the gap has decreased with part-time enrollment at about 1.35 times greater than full-time enrollment. [FT = 2417; PT = 3413] One possible cause for this shift in enrollment status is improvement in the economy (See Figure 4). During the recession, persons partnered with our unified mission statements and enrolled in the technical colleges to train or retrain in areas that would afford employment opportunities. As the economy continues to stabilize and demonstrate signs of growth, some persons are maintaining employment while continuing or pursuing their education. Another notable shift in demographics includes a decline in female student enrollment for FY 2011 AY 2014, with the largest being a three-percent decline between AY 2013 (n=3677) and AY 2014 (3423). Estimates for AY 2015 show a 0.7% increase however (See Figure 5). The College continues to serve a student population where the majority of its students are African American (See Figure 6). Additionally, greater than 50% of the student population is age 25 and over (See Figure 7). Goals Various strategic efforts continue to positively impact the TCSG-CCG goals of Transform Remediation, Restructure Delivery, and Shorten Time to Degree; however, Augusta Technical College is continuing to refine efforts that will show significant improvements in meeting the mandatory objective of increasing the number of graduates to meet the prescribed goal. A summary of the outcomes for major strategies and the performance metrics used to measure success follows. Increase the Number of Graduates by 4.7% Annually Over the Previous Year Degree production has increased over the past two years for the college (See Figure 8). However, the cumulative degree production degree production total through AY 2015 is 3091 below the Complete College America Goal. College strategies to improve degree production include New Student Orientation (NSO), Early Alert, and Advisement Services. Augusta Technical College 41

42 Participation in the NSO sessions continues to improve as evidenced by the 23.3% increase for AY 2015 (n=2,067) over AY 2014 (n=1,586.) An adequate amount of human resources have been dedicated to this strategy to make it an informative and effective bridge to the college experience. For AY 2015, the Student Navigator was tasked with the overall planning and implementation of the NSO experience. Additionally, an online reservation process using Survey Monkey was implemented. The goal of mandatory NSO continues to be an obstacle for the College. The challenges include no consequences for persons that do not attend, and no scheduled sessions for late applicants and/or ongoing admission after the start of the term. To resolve the latter, earlier acceptance and notification of NSO dates has been implemented. Efforts to improve the College s Early Alert Program as a means to improve retention and increase the number of graduates have evolved through two (2) system-wide training phases. The Academic Counselor and Student Navigator were part of the initial November training and they now coordinate TEAMS training for the College. Phase I of the TCSG Early Alert Management System (TEAMS) went live on January 2015 with full-time learning support faculty working as the pilot group. Two trainings were offered in Atlanta to faculty and staff who would be using TEAMS, in addition to two sessions offered on the Augusta campus. Trained faculty began using TEAMS beginning Spring Term Phase II was introduced at the TCSG Enterprise Technology Summit in March For Summer Term 2015 all full-time Arts & Sciences & Learning Support instructors trained in TEAMS. Prior to the start of Fall Term 2015, Industrial Technology and Information Engineering Technology faculty were offered TEAMS training. Known challenges include faculty participation in TEAMS training and overall faculty usage of TEAMS. In an effort to increase training participation and TEAMS usage, the Student Navigator will continue to promote usage of TEAMS by offering training opportunities and requesting support of the Academic and Operations Deans, along with the Vice President of Academic Affairs. Also, the Academic Counselor continues to use a manual early alert process until TEAMS training is complete at the end of Spring Term Guided Pathways for each program of study were developed and implemented during the Fall Semester 2014 to enhance academic advisement services. The pathways are available on the College s website. However, communication of curriculum changes is not consistently received in order to update the Guided Pathways simultaneously with catalog updates; therefore, a process has been implemented through the Academic Affairs Division to eradicate this obstacle. The pathways; along with a degree audit from Degree Works are essential tools utilized by the academic advisement team. The academic advisement team is comprised of the Academic Counselor, Career Services Director, the state funded Student Navigator, and three (3) grant-funded academic advisors/navigators (Predominantly Black Institution (PBI) Competitive and Formula). Each individual within the unit is tasked with individual advisement of constituent groups, as well as overall current student advisement and registration. Accutrack Software is used to monitor service activity for the advisement team. Tracking reports show that the total number of visitors decreased from AY 2014 (3051) to AY 2015 (3412). However, the frequency of visits increased by 12.9% [AY 2014 (10457); AY 2015 (12003)] as well as time spent which increased by 34.1% [AY 2014 (4383 hours); AY 2015 (6650 hours)]. This increase in positive advisement interactions may have contributed to the increase in the number of CCG graduates. Restructure Delivery (includes block scheduling) Online course demand continues to grow at Augusta Technical College. Online course offerings provide flexible scheduling options for students, particularly for those where the traditional classroom experience is not feasible. As the major focus of the College s SACSCOC approved Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), the Distance Education unit has exerted much effort in coordinating the scheduling of online courses in addition to assisting with the promotion, tracking, and evaluation of the goals of the QEP. Augusta Technical College 42

43 The QEP focus statement is: To improve student learning in distance education through course design enhancements focusing on required orientations and the use of innovative resources and advanced multimedia. Currently, the QEP is in the implementation phase. Students, who plan to register for an online course for the Spring 2016 term, must complete and pass Badge training, a required online orientation. The Badge Training was piloted during the Summer and Fall 2015 terms. This pilot required students registering for two identified courses to complete the training prior to registering for the online courses. 100% of the summer and 94.3% of the fall semester pilot course students completed the training. In addition to Badge Training, the first four QEP pilot courses are currently being developed and will go live in Spring The added strategies and media combined with the required Badge training should assist with the success and retention of our online students. Beginning Fall Semester 2015, the Distance Education Coordinator half-time position was expanded to full-time. By growing this position, there has been more opportunity to implement strategies and gather data for continuous improvement, such as Badge registration, surveys, and the development of quality distance education courses. The Badge Training will be a resource to provide the students with the opportunity to learn more about Distance Education courses, and to find out if that type of modality will be a good fit. Using the Badge Training as guidance, it is anticipated that students who are able to successfully pass should have a higher rate of online retention. For those unable to pass, this is a good indicator that online learning may not be in their best interest right now. Online course growth is exciting for the College; however, the demand for more course offerings has proven to be a challenge. Since the online courses continue to fill rapidly during the first few weeks of the registration periods, the Distance Education unit has implemented a proactive approach to offer more sections of the high-demand courses at the genesis of the registration periods rather than waiting for the courses to fill and determine additional section needs. This approach affords instructors the opportunity to prepare sooner. Also, this approach eliminates the need for last minute schedule changes and the loss of students who do not have an opportunity to enroll in online sections. Another strategy utilized by Augusta Technical College to restructure delivery is block scheduling. The block scheduling model for the College is an option for most on-track degree and diploma seeking students; i.e., students are able to register for courses by choosing a day or evening block. For the 2014 CCG report, it was determined that the annual attrition rate for the TCSG mandated block scheduling programs of study would not exceed 40%. Moreover, annual evaluations would demonstrate a two-percent decrease in attrition for each program area. Results for the Fall 2013 CCG retention cohort are illustrated in Figure 9. The goal of not exceeding a 40% attrition rate was met by the Automotive Technology and Medical Assisting Diploma programs of study; however, the attrition rate did not decrease for either program. In review of the 2014 baseline date illustrated in Figure 10, it is noted that there is no significant change in raw data performance. In some instances, the success rates are greater than the Fall 2013 cohort data; however, this is due to a smaller cohort size. It is also noted that the average retention rate for the Fall 2014 CCG cohort enrolled in any degree or diploma program of study offered by the College is 54%. (See Figure 13) A major obstacle for this strategy is that successful tracking and evaluation requires extended knowledge of the many variables that impact the success results. Therefore, a block scheduling committee was formed in October 2014 as a result of the creation of a position to coordinate the College s initiatives. Transform Remediation Augusta Technical College continues to refine the Learning Support (LS) Redesign initiative implemented during the Fall Semester As illustrated in Figure 11, the need to transform remedial course delivery was great. Various changes focused on placement and exit testing scores improved course success rates; however the CCG data shows that less than 50% of those enrolled in the pre-redesign LS cohorts for Fall 2007 Fall 2011 successfully completed the college-level gateway course (with the exception of English in Fall 2011). Post re-design analysis has prompted the College to modify its two-fold learning support redesign initiative in order to increase student success/completion rate of both learning support courses and identified critical gateway courses. The modifications are being planned to continue the efforts of improving student success rates for the CCG metric Success In Remedial Education. Augusta Technical College 43

44 During AY 2015, the Learning Support English courses were modified to provide a broader scope of writing and a more robust experience to equip students for more rigorous writing exercises assigned in the college-level gateway courses, while modifications to the degree track Learning Support Mathematics course included restructuring the content of three (3) modules for better alignment with the student learning outcomes for both the learning support course and for students transitioning to the college-level gateway Mathematics course. Moreover, a new software platform was piloted during Fall Semester 2014 with evening students to determine which platform bests meets the content for mastery of the identified student learning outcomes. Data Analyses for all students enrolled in a college-level gateway course for AY 2015 show an improvement in success rates post-redesign. For the college-level Mathematics course at the diploma level, success rates of those who earned a grade of C of higher for learning support students [Fall 2014 = 73%; Spring 2015 = 63.7%] and non-learning support students [Fall 2014 = 66%; Spring 2015 = 57.1%] are greater than fifty-percent. Rates for the college-level Mathematics course at the degree level are also greater than fifty-percent. [LS Students: Fall 2014 = 57.4%; Spring 2015 = 63.8%; Non- LS students: Fall 2014 = 66.7%; Spring 2015 =69.6%] The same is true for the college-level English courses (See Figure 12). While success rates have increased, the LS team continues to discuss ways to decrease the amount of time it takes a student to complete a LS course. Proposed refinements are discussed in the conclusion. Shorten Time to Degree Time is the Enemy is what Complete College America emphasizes in its many publications. In addition to publishing the Guided Pathways, Augusta Technical College promotes the Fast to the Finish campaign on the homepage of the website. The College is committed to expanding and enhancing advisement services as the primary strategy to shorten the time to degree completion. Challenges include staffing reduction and shifts due to grant transitions. It was further determined that unit cross training on advising tools is of immediate need. As mentioned in the overview, with a student population that is majority part-time, other advisement strategies must be considered. Those planned for AY 2016will be discussed in the conclusion and next steps sections. Student Success Implementation Team The table below is a listing of the college s student success implementation team members. Full Name Title Role (Point of Contact or Member) CCG Strategy Assignment or Responsibility Evett Davis High School Coordinator Member Promote the college as an option to the directly from high school (ages 17-19) population Dr. Melissa Frank-Alston SVP Institutional Effectiveness and Research Member Tracking, Evaluation, and Reporting Shanan Glenn Student Navigator Member Advisement Services, Early Alert, and New Student Orientation Dr. Charles R. Hall, Sr. SVP Academic Affairs Member Capacity Building and Block Scheduling Dr. Nichole Kennedy VP Student Affairs Member Advisement Services, Early Alert, and New Student Orientation Amy Laughter Academic Counselor Member Advisement Services, Early Alert, and New Student Orientation Johnica Mitchell AVP Strategic Initiatives Point of Contact Capacity Building, Block Augusta Technical College 44

45 Full Name Title Role (Point of Contact or Member) CCG Strategy Assignment or Responsibility Scheduling, Distance Education Tammy O Brien Associate Dean of Distance Education Member Randall Peek Institutional Research Analyst Member Tracking and Evaluation John Richardson Dean, Arts and Sciences, Member Learning Support Redesign Learning Support, and Personal Services Donna Wendt Director, Career Services, Academic Advising, Navigation Member Advisement Services, Early Alert, and New Student Orientation Crystal Willis Student Success Coordinator Member Share retention strategies with the college community Each member is responsible for the coordination, tracking, and evaluation of one or more strategies as identified in the table. Presently, the majority of student data analyses is performed by the Institutional Research Analyst and is shared with the college community in various ways. The Institutional Research Analyst performs analyses upon request and department specific data is shared with each academic division upon closing the loop of annual IE assessment plans. TCSG benchmark performance data for the college is provided on the Institutional Effectiveness and Research page of the college s website. Complete College Georgia and Achieving the Dream data is shared through annual progress reports via , in faculty and local board meetings, and through the college s annual report and fact book. Other ways to share data consistently in a real-time manner (e.g. via a college dashboard) have been discussed and are being planned. Conclusion and Next Steps To conclude, Augusta Technical College will continue to research and determine best practices that promote College completion. Moreover, present strategies will continue to be modified to meet the needs of the students in their quest to be successful. For example, the NSO planning team has been tasked to research the online orientation programs of other TCSG colleges to assist in the development of an effective program that will target persons unable to attend the face-to-face orientation. With the recent hiring (August 2015) of a Director of Community Engagement and Public Affairs, meetings have been held to determine a course of action to promote Distance Education. Faculty workloads have been adjusted to allow for more flexibility in online course scheduling and a plan to hire adjunct faculty for online instruction is being reviewed. Increase the Number of Graduates by 4.7% Annually Over the Previous Year To help improve the tracking and evaluation efforts of the advisement strategy, the maintenance of the guided pathways will transition to Academic Affairs for consistency eradicating the obstacles mentioned and cross unit training is planned to begin prior to the start of Spring Semester Additionally, the block scheduling committee plans to improve communication and data sharing with the Academic Affairs leadership team. The committee plans to recommend standardized training of the admission assistants, student navigators, and program chairs on methods to intrusive advising. It is also planned that the committee will generate cohort numbers earlier in the academic year so that program advisors may perform a cohort pulse check to coincide with census reporting dates: 7-day, 21-day, and 60%. Training on the usage of TEAMS will be expanded to adjunct faculty of the Division of Arts and Sciences, Leaning Support, and Personal Services, in conjunction with the Division of Allied Health Sciences and Nursing, and the Division of Business, Public Safety, and Early Childhood Care and Education. We anticipate college-wide TEAMS participation by all in Spring Term Through its Predominately Black Institutions Competitive and Formula Grants, Augusta Augusta Technical College 45

46 Technical College will continue to provide three academic advisor positions to meet its students needs: Learning Support, Allied Health and Nursing, and Business and Computer and Information Systems. Transform Remediation The LS faculty will continue to monitor the success rates of the LS redesign initiative. Refinements to be considered for English include: continue using the same methodology for helping students complete certain modules at a more rapid pace and revise the generic evaluation rubric (analytical) for learning support and gateway course descriptors. For Mathematics, complete the new platform adoption by Spring 2016; evaluate the benefits of co-enrollment; and discuss re-implementation of exit testing. Additionally, with the funds granted to Augusta Technical College through the Department of Education s Predominately Black Institutions (PBI) Competitive Program ( ), the College plans to continue the progress accomplished in the first grant ( ), and expand programs and services which include: (1) intrusive academic advising through a Learning Support Academic Advisor position, (2) utilization of TEAMS to track student progress and facilitate interventions at the first sign of at-risk indicators, (3) provide ten (10) part-time Instructional Support Specialists to provide tutorial services at all college locations, (4) provide through the Student Success Center, workshops on time management, goal setting, study skills, test taking, etc.., and (5) provide funding for learning support math instructors (one each year for life of grant) to obtain national certification at the Kellogg Institute for Certification of Adult and Developmental Educators. Restructure Delivery (includes block scheduling) Through the use of the Predominately Black Institutions Competitive Grant, Augusta Technical College will provide funding for professional development training for support services of online courses. Because interpersonal interaction between students and instructors is critical, professional development training will focus on (1) how instructors should provide adequate guidance to students in terms of the requirements of online courses, and (2) how to improve interpersonal interaction between student and instructors. In addition, the College will provide (1) online tutoring software (Smarthinking) to all online students; (2) in-person tutoring services provided to all online students through the Instructional Support Specialists housed in Student Success Center; 3) targeted intervention by course instructors for content; and 4) designated support staff who will utilize TEAMS to track student progress and facilitate interventions at the first sign of at-risk indicators. Shorten Time To Degree As a result of its participation in Achieving the Dream and Complete College Georgia, Augusta Technical College has become increasingly aware of the impact of Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) credits on reducing time to completion. PLA credits are especially appropriate for non-traditional students, including veterans. With a military base in its service area and a significant veteran population, Augusta Technical College is well-positioned to utilize PLAs to reduce time to completion for a wide range of students; however, the College does not currently have the capacity, policies, procedures or trained personnel to implement Prior Learning Assessments. With the newly granted Predominately Black Institutions Competitive Grant ( ), the College will establish policies, procedures and training to support a formal Prior Learning Assessment process. Activities will include but not be limited to: 1) hiring a PLA Coordinator; 2) establishing a PLA taskforce to ensure institutional buy-in and sustainability; 3) completion of PLA certification through the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL); and 4) communicating to its service area the opportunity to reduce time to completion via the PLAs. Augusta Technical College 46

47 Supporting Figures Figure 1: Annual Enrollment (FY AY 2015) Source: KMS Reports #DC241 and #DC 131 for AY 2015 Note: AY 2015 Enrollment may include students enrolled non-ccg recognized certificate programs of study FY 2005 FY 2006 FY 2007 FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 AY 2012 AY 2013 AY 2014 AY 2015 Total Enrollment Figure 2: CCG Full-Time and Part-Time Enrollment (FY AY 2014) - Non-Transfer Source: KMS Reports #DC241 and #DC131 for AY 2015 Note: AY 2015 Enrollment may include students enrolled non-ccg recognized certificate programs of study FY 2005 FY 2006 FY 2007 FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 AY 2012 AY 2013 AY 2014 AY 2015 FT PT Augusta Technical College 47

48 Figure 3: CCG Full-Time and Part-Time Enrollment (FY AY 2015) - Transfer Source: KMS Reports #DC241 and #DC131 for AY 2015 Note: AY 2015 Enrollment may include students enrolled non-ccg recognized certificate programs of study FY 2005 FY 2006 FY 2007 FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 AY 2012 AY 2013 AY 2014 AY 2015 FT Transfer PT Transfer Figure 4: Augusta Technical College 48

49 Figure 5: Annual Enrollment Percentage by Gender Source: KMS Reports #DC241 and #DC131 for AY 2015 Note: AY 2015 Enrollment may include students enrolled non-ccg recognized certificate programs of study AY 2015 AY 2014 AY 2013 AY 2012 FY 2011 FY 2010 FY 2009 FY 2008 FY 2007 FY 2006 FY % 37.6% 36.7% 38.8% 37.9% 38.7% 38.4% 0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% 60.0% 70.0% 40.3% 42.6% 41.0% 43.3% 57.4% 56.7% 59.7% 59.0% 61.2% 62.1% 61.3% 63.1% 62.4% 61.6% 63.3% Female Male FIGURE 6: ANNUAL ENROLLMENT PERCENTAGE BY RACE (FY AY 2014) SOURCE: KMS REPORTS #DC % 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% FY 2005 FY 2006 FY 2007 FY 2008 FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 AY 2012 AY 2013 AY 2014 Hispanic Black, non-hispanic White, non-hispanic Asian Augusta Technical College 49

50 12.6% 14.4% 15.0% 15.3% 14.7% 13.9% 14.8% 16.1% 14.6% 14.0% 29.6% 29.5% 30.4% 29.8% 31.1% 30.2% 29.8% 30.3% 31.4% 32.2% 57.8% 56.1% 54.6% 54.9% 54.2% 55.9% 55.4% 53.6% 54.0% 53.9% F I G U R E 7 : A N N U A L E N R O L L M E N T P E R C E N T A G E B Y A G E ( F Y A Y ) S O U R C E : K M S R E P O R T S # D C and Over F Y F Y F Y F Y F Y F Y F Y A Y A Y A Y Figure 8: CCA Graduates Actual (FY AY 2015) Source: KMS Report #DC FY 2009 FY 2010 FY 2011 AY 2012 AY 2013 AY 2014 AY 2015 Augusta Technical College 50

51 Figure 9: CCG Block Scheduling Tracking Fall 2013 Cohort (Source: KMS Report #DC302) Level Major Cohort Total (A) Total Matriculating (B) Fall 2014 Fall 2015 Total Graduated (C) Fall 2014 Fall 2015 Retention Rate (A+B)/C Attrition Rate (100% - Retention Rate) Fall 2014 Fall 2015 Fall 2014 Fall 2015 Diploma Accounting % 0% 70% 100% Degree Accounting % 42.9% 33.3% 57.1% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % 50% 50% 50% Diploma Diploma Diploma Degree Automotive Technology Medical Assisting Networking Specialist Networking Specialist % 65.1% 32.6% 34.9% % 62.5% 37.5% 37.5% % 50% 50% 50% % 32% 56% 68% Augusta Technical College 51

52 Figure 10: CCG Block Schedule Tracking Preliminary Baseline Data (Source: KMS Report #DC302) Level Major Fall 2014 Cohort Total Matriculating (A) Total Graduated (B) Total Retained (A+B) Still Enrolled Fall 2015(201612) Matriculation Rate Graduate as of Fall 2015 (201612) Graduation Rate as of Fall 2015 (201612) Retained as of Fall 2015 (201612) Retention Rate Attrition Rate (100%- Retention Rate) Diploma Accounting % % 29% Degree Accounting % % 64% Diploma Diploma Diploma Diploma Degree Air Conditioning Technology % % 20 77% 23% Automotive Technology % 15 50% 18 60% 40% Medical Assisting % % 65% Networking Specialist % % 10 45% 55% Networking Specialist % % 57% Augusta Technical College 52

53 Central Georgia Technical College Central Georgia Technical College 53

54 Overview Central Georgia Technical College Central Georgia Technical College had a number of activities over AY2015 in support of completion efforts. The performance target was for CGTC to have a 4.7% increase in graduates over the prior year. The AY2014 CCG graduate report indicated 1,713 graduates and AY2015 reported 2,037 graduates, an 8.9% increase in CCG graduates for Degree Production. In AY2015 CGTC serviced 11,715 unduplicated students of which 77% (8,984 of 11,715) received some form of financial aid. Enrollment was composed of 63% female and 37% male. 52% of students were African American and 42% were White with 6% from all other IPEDS reporting categories for race/ethnicity. CGTC met its benchmarks for retention rate (60%) and graduation rate (55%). End of Year data (AY2015) indicated a retention rate of 68.4% and a graduation rate of 67% which were great improvements from the previous year (KMS Report #DC198 as of 9/21/15). Although there were no significant demographic changes from prior years further review of DC#241 is provided in this report under section header Performance Metrics. Goals by Performance Metric: In an effort to meet or exceed established benchmarks outlined in the College s CCG plan under each metric, CGTC improvement goals strategies included the need to: Improve success of students enrolled in remedial courses (Success in remedial) Ensure enrollment in the required general education courses which correspond to needed Learning Support courses (Success in remedial) Provide block scheduling in targeted programs as well as design guided pathways (Improve Grad Rate) Support and expand the Accelerating Opportunities (AO) and REACH programs (Improve Grad Rate) Provide resources to assist students to persist from term to term (Improve Grad Rate; Shorten Time to Degree) Provide resources to help students earn a certificate, diploma, or technical certificate of industry value/certification (Improve Grad Rate; Shorten Time to Degree) Provide professional development opportunities and resources for faculty and staff (All Metrics) Goal 1. Transform Remediation. Learning Support (Success in Remedial) improvement is measured by the number of successful grades and the number of subsequent enrollments in the next course in the sequence of courses for that particular subject. The goal performance target for the success in remedial metric was to increase the number of successful students in remedial education by 10%. The College results reflect an increase from 563 successful remedial students in FY2014 to 610 in FY2015, an increase of 47 or 8.34% (KMS #DC241). There was an improvement in student success rates from FY2014 to FY 2015 in every learning support course but one. Table CGTC-1 below shows the success rates for these courses from FY2015 and FY2014. Table CGTC-1. Gateway Course Completion Rates AY2015 (Success in Remedial) Total AY2015 Total Enrollment Successful (A,B,C,S) FY2014 % successful FY2015 % Successful All Learning Support Courses 2, % 56% ENGL % 62% MATH 1, % 53% READ % 63% ENGL % 58% ENGL % 67% MATH % 47% Central Georgia Technical College 54

55 Total AY2015 Total Enrollment Successful (A,B,C,S) FY2014 % successful FY2015 % Successful MATH % 52% MATH % 56% READ % 59% READ % 71% Redesign Courses: % 55% (ENGL0090, MATH0090, READ0090) COMPASS Gatekeeper Courses: 1, % 60% (ENGL0098, MATH0099, READ0098) % Successful = Successful Grades / Total Enrollment Activities Goal 1 (1) R.E.A.C.H. (Raising Expectations of Achievement) Organization an organization which mentors and develops the academically disadvantaged student, in the College s underperforming population, for success. Academically disadvantaged status is determined by the student s enrollment in at least one learning support course. (Success in remedial) Progress, Obstacles, and Steps Taken Progress was made with 50 participants for FY2015. Participants were paired with one of ten mentors who would work with them throughout their college experience. Students attended seminars and group outings. Obstacles include gaining buy-in of students, recruitment and scheduling of mentors. Steps Taken: A marketing plan has been developed. Current REACH students are being used to recruit new eligible students. The pool of mentors has expanded to ten to aid in scheduling. Resource Allocations and Funding -Initiative is grant supported: funded by PBI & FITW grants, and foundation scholarships. Resource Needs: -funding for increased marketing efforts -funding for expansion to campuses As a result, the volume of students participating will increase, as will retention. (2) Learning Support Redesign restructured learning support courses (MATH 0090, ENGL 0090, and READ 0090) to include a webenhanced format that uses the Pearson MyLab products (Success in remedial) (3) Co-requisites - Classes are held in a lab environment with selfpaced modules of lab work, Progress shows an improvement from AY2014 success, shown in Table CGTC-1 below. Obstacles: computer access available at sites, compass placement transition to Accuplacer, Pearson is a costly product for students. Steps Taken: exploration of Pearson alternatives, ongoing scheduling alternatives, and training on utilization and comparisons among COMPASS and Accuplacer. Progress: In , CGTC implemented the first pilot of the co-requisite model allowing students to enroll in both MATH0099 and MATH1111 concurrently. In Resource Needs: -Funding needed to remove financial burden from students for MyMathLab -Additional computer labs to support instruction and testing As a result, more students will move on to occupational courses and graduate. -Faculty used are inplace MATH faculty As a result, more Central Georgia Technical College 55

56 Activities Goal 1 traditional lecture, one on one small group tutoring. Simultaneous enrollments in LS and the next credit course in the sequence, e.g. MATH 0099 and MATH 1111 as co-requisites. This strategy is coupled with intentional/intrusive advising (Success in remedial) (4) Academic Success Center - expansion to other sites Expanded tutoring and academic support services to the Putnam County Center and Warner Robins campus thereby providing on-site academic support services in four locations as an extension of online services. (Success in remedial) Goal 2. Increase the number of Graduates. Progress, Obstacles, and Steps Taken , then a second pilot of the co-requisite model allowing students to enroll in both MATH0099 and MATH1111 concurrently. As an attempt to improve consistent and contextual instruction, both MATH0099 and MATH1111 were taught by the same instructor. Success rates improved with the latter pilot. Obstacles: recruitment of students into this model. Steps taken: purposeful advisement process that includes a review of this program with eligible students. Progress: ASC services expanded to include a renovation on the Warner Robins campus beginning Fall 2014 as well as increased the number of student and professional tutors by occupation. Obstacles include Peer Tutor Turnover. Steps taken: Continuous recruitment of peer tutors to increase pool. Resource Allocations and Funding students will move on to occupational courses and graduate. -Funding is a challenge as grant funding ends As a result, more students will be engaged with the College, develop greater study skills, which leads to more graduates. Performance Metric 1: The CGTC target for the degree production metric was to experience an increase by 4.7% or 385 awards over the prior year. CGTC data for FY2014 results indicated an annual enrollment of 12,165 students with 3,346 unduplicated graduates and 4,935 awards. Even though AY2015 data indicates 3,194 unduplicated graduates, a 4.5% (n=152) decrease over AY2014, there were 4,997 awards, a 1.2% (n=62) increase. The CCG goal performance target for AY2015 was 1,874 graduates and the College experienced an increase of 163 total graduates to 2,037, or an 8.6% increase (CGTC Scorecard DC #198). Activities Goal 2 (1) Guided Pathways a means of defaulting students into one degree plan. (Degree Production) (2) Purposeful Advising: Student Success Coach for Health programs position works to ensure that students in health programs are guided toward the path of course, certificate, diploma, or degree completion by developing and implementing individual and small group intervention and prevention strategies in an effort to provide for goal establishment and increase persistence in learning; (Improve Grad Rate; Shorten Time Progress, Obstacles, and Steps Taken Progress was made as CGTC works to standardize the competitive selection handbooks. A pilot was deployed in the Surgical Technology program. Obstacles are personnel changes. Steps taken: Ongoing faculty recruitment. Progress was made with the implementation of the Health Science Success Coach position; a part time, grant funded position with the task of visiting all BlendFlex courses to provide updates and information about the services provided to students in the BlendFlex courses. The Coach is able to advise and register students for BlendFlex and non-blendflex courses to assist them when primary advisors are unavailable. Obstacles expanded technology and infrastructure to replicate BlendFlex across all programs, a system of accountability for the monitoring/advising of students not selected into the Health programs. Steps taken: Leveraging of First in the World grant funding for additional equipment, purposeful Resource Allocations and Funding -Continued faculty recruitment As a result, personnel changes will be decreased -The Health Science Success Coach is funded through TAACCCT grant Resource Needs: -Additional funding needed to employ two additional full time Health Success Coach positions at other locations. As a result, student engagement will increase and Central Georgia Technical College 56

57 Activities Goal 2 to Degree) (3) Faculty Development Academy a structured series of professional development seminars for faculty and staff to improve student learning through engagement, active learning and teaching strategies; (all metrics) Goal 2. Increase the number of Graduates. Progress, Obstacles, and Steps Taken advisement process that includes reporting of unadvised students, and addition of Health Sciences Success Coach. Progress includes the development of The CGTC Success Initiative, a series of four training sessions that address: 1. Understanding our Students, 2. Understanding Ourselves, 3. The Classroom session discusses using techniques reviewed in the previous sessions in the classroom, and 4. The Office uses those techniques when interacting with students in the office. Developed Teaching Tune-Up as a review of teaching techniques for veteran teachers which include an understanding of our students. Developed Titan Teaching Collaborative to introduce a data-driven approach to instruction. Performed needs assessment analysis for teachers of under-prepared, under-served students. Obstacles include faculty scheduling/availability. Steps taken: multiple delivery methods and times to include secured online training and morning sessions. Resource Allocations and Funding subsequently, retention, which leads to greater degree production. Resource Needs: -Funding issues with faculty scheduling. (faculty must get someone else to cover classes to attend) As a result, more faculty will participate which leads to improved instruction. Performance Metric 2: The CGTC performance target for the increase grad rate metric was to experience an increase of 5% annually. The prior year FY2014 grad rate was 61.5%. The College results indicated a graduation rate of 67%; an increase of 5.4%. Complete College Georgia cohort data indicated that the majority of students enrolled in Associate Degree programs full-time graduated at 200% of time at a rate of 21.5% and 100% of time at a rate of 16.3%. Part-time graduates in the same credential area graduated in 200% of time, at a rate of 8.7% and 100% of time, a rate of 4.2% (KMS Report #DC241). Activities Goal 2 (1) Blended Learning offering course instruction to students anytime, anywhere; students have the opportunity to get their instruction by sitting in class or from a remote location via electronic device (Improve Grad Rate; Shorten Time to Degree) Progress, Obstacles, and Steps Taken Progress included an expansion of the BlendFlex course offerings to including degree level courses in ENGL and MATH which brings BlendFlex course offerings to 14 with an additional 6 courses planned to be added Summer 2016 and Fall In addition, CGTC has been nominated for a 2015 Excalibur Award from the Technical Association of Georgia (TAG) for our success with the BlendFlex strategy. Obstacles include technology infrastructure not available to expand to other disciplines, space allocations at satellite locations, student access to success coaches. Steps Taken: Leveraging of First in the World grant funding for equipment, addition of Health Sciences Success Coach. Resource Allocations and Funding - TAACCCT grant funds utilized in AY2015 Resource needs: more physical classroom space to accommodate additional crosslinked TelePresence sessions, and more digital space to accommodate storing more recorded lectures. As a result, more students will be served and retention will improve, leading to greater degree Central Georgia Technical College 57

58 Activities Goal 2 (2) Purposeful Advising: Student Success Coach for Health programs position works to ensure that students in health programs are guided toward the path of course, certificate, diploma, or degree completion by developing and implementing individual and small group intervention and prevention strategies in an effort to provide for goal establishment and increase persistence in learning; (Improve Grad Rate; Shorten Time to Degree) (3) Accelerating Opportunities (AO) providing dual credit opportunities for students working towards a GED credential. Student is enrolled in GED basic skills and in a certificate of credit (Improve Grad Rate; Shorten Time to Degree) (4) Resources to improve retention and graduation: Contributing efforts by the following: Special Populations, Financial Aid Initiatives, TEAMS Early Alert System, QEP: purposeful advising focus, etc. (Improve Grad Rate; Shorten Time to Degree) Progress, Obstacles, and Steps Taken Progress was made with the implementation of the Health Science Success Coach position; a part time, grant funded position with the task of visiting all BlendFlex courses to provide updates and information about the services provided to students in the BlendFlex courses. The Coach is able to advise and register students for BlendFlex and non-blendflex courses to assist them when primary advisors are unavailable. Obstacles expanded technology and infrastructure to replicate BlendFlex across all programs, a system of accountability for the monitoring/advising of students not selected into the Health programs. Steps taken: Leveraging of First in the World grant funding for additional equipment, purposeful advisement process that includes reporting of unadvised students, and addition of Health Sciences Success Coach. Progress: During FY2015, 71 GED students were enrolled in college credit programs. 24 students earned TCC awards (33.8% completion rate). With IT updates, AO students were able to complete homework assignments, AO has expanded to the Milledgeville campus (12 students enrolled this term), Signing Day events will be ongoing; students are pictured with signing documentation indicating their wish to become college credit students. Obstacles include computer lab access for testing. Steps taken: creative scheduling with classrooms. Various resources and strategies are being implemented to improve retention and graduation efforts. Obstacles were determined and discussed: Obstacles with graduation notification: Devising enrollment management task force to revamp system. Will include purposeful advisement that will help with the expired courses issue. Review of policy causing barriers. Obstacles within TEAMS Early Alert system: Manpower, perception of success coaches role, adjustments needed with the process, improvements to the follow-up flow to become streamlined and less cumbersome, challenges with implementing system external issues. Improvements are underway. Obstacles with Special Populations: The name special pops can be an obstacle. Need proper marketing and re-branding. Steps taken: college-wide training on special populations and services. Resource Allocations and Funding production. -The Health Science Success Coach is funded through TAACCCT grant Resource Needs: -Additional funding needed to employ two additional full time Health Success Coach positions at other locations. As a result, student engagement will increase and subsequently, retention, which leads to greater degree production. -various grant funding is being used for AO expansion As a result, more students will transition to credit instruction, leading to a greater number of graduates Resource Needs: -funding for marketing efforts -funding for additional TEAMS support staff As a result, more students receive valuable supports and are more likely to complete their programs of study and graduate. Central Georgia Technical College 58

59 Goal 3: Restructure Delivery - Block Scheduling Progress was made during FY15, CGTC continued to offer courses in multiple blocks, locations, and through an increasing variety of delivery options. Obstacles include faculty recruitment, challenges with scheduling times and locations, the inability to expand BlendFlex course offerings to other programs due to grant restrictions. Steps Taken: Expansion of TelePresence offerings to programs likely to use future full BlendFlex options. Expansion of the recently opened Peach County Workforce Development Center for various courses. Resource Needs: -Increased operational budget in remote locations to add to the course schedule Funding for faculty recruitment for additional sections of courses Outcomes : As a result, more sections of courses will be offered making access greater and subsequently, degree completion. CGTC implemented and expanded block scheduling to the following programs: Accounting diploma and degree; Air Conditioning diploma; Networking Specialist diploma and degree; Medical Assisting diploma; and Automotive diploma (TCSG CCG Plan Implementation Report 2011). During FY2015, CGTC continued to offer courses in multiple blocks, locations, and through a variety of delivery options. Courses are offered through flexible scheduling in day, afternoon and evening blocks for many of its programs. Flexible block scheduling is illustrated through the representative sample programs listed below: Program Accounting Air Conditioning Networking Specialist Medical Assisting Automotive Day Campuses Macon, Milledgeville, Putnam, Hawkinsville, Warner Robins Macon, Milledgeville, Warner Robins, Putnam, Department of Corrections Macon, Milledgeville, Warner Robins Macon, Milledgeville, Warner Robins Macon, Milledgeville, Warner Robins, Department of Corrections Night Campus Online TelePresence Dual Enrollment Milledgeville, Macon, Warner Yes Putnam, Robins Hawkinsville Macon, Warner Robins Macon, Milledgeville, Warner Robins Warner Robins Yes Yes Putnam High School Houston County Career Academy Student performance is measured by grads and placements as identified in Table CGTC-2 and successful course completions as shown in Table CGTC-3. Central Georgia Technical College 59

60 Table CGTC-2: Block Program Graduates and Placement Rates AY2015 (Degree Production) Program # of graduates AY 2014 Placement Rate AY 2015 Placement Rate Accounting Diploma % 100% Accounting Degree 19 94% 95% Networking Specialist Diploma % 100% Networking Specialist Degree 7 100% 100% Medical Assisting Diploma 36 98% 100% Automotive Diploma % 100% Air Conditioning Diploma % 100% Table CGTC-3. AY2015 Block Program Course Completion Data (Degree Production) Program Course Enrollment # Successful Grades # Unsuccessful Grades AY2014 Course Completion Rate AY2015 Course Completion Rate Accounting (Diploma / Degree) 1, % 68% Networking Specialist (Diploma / Degree) 1, % 68% Medical Assisting (Diploma) % 85% Automotive (Diploma) % 81% Air Conditioning (Diploma) % 76% Central Georgia Technical College 60

61 Student Success Implementation Team The College structure includes a broad-based CCG Implementation Team which corresponds and meets regularly on student data analyses and to share results of progress and student success initiatives. Valuable input is shared and gathered to determine accomplishments and/or obstacles towards student success strategies. New departmental staff will be added to the team as seen fit to benefit all sectors of the College. Full Name Title/Position Role (Member) Address Deborah Burks VP for IE Management, Assessment, and Planning - IE Sabrina Coneway Donna Dutcher Special Populations Director, North Special Populations Director, South Special Pops tracking and reporting Student Affairs Special Pops tracking and reporting Student Affairs Dr. Amy Holloway VP for Academic Affairs Assessment and Planning Academics Pat Ivey Career Services Executive Director Placement performance/ tracking Student Affairs Craig Jackson VP for Student Affairs Assessment and Planning Student Affairs Bonnie Quinn Sam Lester Julia Nell Shaw Rolandria Tolbert Director for Institutional Effectiveness Director for Professional Development Assessment and Planning Data tracking and reporting - IE Faculty/ Staff Training - IE (Point of Contact) Assistant VP for Student Affairs Assessment and Planning Student Affairs Program Specialist for Institutional Effectiveness Planning, Data tracking and reporting IE dburks@centralgatech.edu sconeway@centralgatech.edu ddutcher@centralgatech.edu aholloway@centralgatech.edu pivey@centralgatech.edu cjackson@centralgatech.edu bquinn@centralgatech.edu slester@centralgatech.edu jshaw@centralgatech.edu rdtolbert@centralgatech.edu Data Analysis and Dissemination. Members of the Institutional Effectiveness staff receive data from a number of sources related to CCG. These sources include the composition of data reports from the current student data repository system, front-line faculty and staff in the form of reporting of course results, and from external agencies such as reporting made by TCSG. The data is analyzed and discussed among the IE staff using a variety of statistical analytics and institutional knowledge. The results are disseminated through a series of staff and faculty meetings, online reporting to faculty and staff in the form of secured informational slideshows, simply attaching pertinent reports to staff via , or training sessions. Analysis, guidance, and advice is given by IE staff in many occasions as appropriate and based upon current research and best practices. The Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness reports pertinent data analysis at weekly CGTC Leadership meetings. Central Georgia Technical College 61

62 Activities Data Analysis (1) Tracking Outcomes A) Gateway Courses: a comprehensive review of term to term outcomes in gateway courses as compared to an institutional success rate; longitudinal study of a gateway course with high failure rates; B) Tracking Enrollments, graduates, placements, special populations, etc.; C) Tracking Cohorts of students specifically those in the underperforming population. (Data Analysis) (12) Conduct course and activity level data reviews (Data Analysis) Progress, Obstacles, and Steps Taken Progress: Tracking of Gateway Course performance led to detailed course completion data by term and CRN provided for the following courses: COMP 1000, ALHS 1011, BIOL 2113, and ENGL These results were used to identify best practices and course-level revisions. Tracking enrollments and outcomes for various student populations led to the identification of three at-risk groups at CGTC 1) first time at CGTC, 2) first generation college student, and 3) students enrolled in learning support courses. These three groups are being targeted for on-going interventions through the QEP, etc. Obstacles: scheduling time, many are still unsuccessful in COLL1500 taught with Steps taken: restructuring of COLL 1500 faculty to include new Program Chair designation to improve similarity among sections Progress; provided High Enrollment Course Completion reports, including both student success and course attrition rates and detailed Course Completion Data on courses targeted for improvement, including COMP 1000, ALHS 1011, BIOL 2113, and ENGL Provided report showing the impact of enrollment in student success course (COLL 1500) on performance in 0090 Learning Support courses. Provided three professional development workshops on accessing program-, major-, and division-level data using inet reports. Resource Allocations and Funding Resources: Working with Academic Affairs to identify regular data needs for Deans and Program Chairs and then to work with Knowledge Management to establish relevant inet Reports. As a result, College stakeholders guided to make better-informed decisions. Resources: Working with Academic Affairs to identify regular data needs for Deans and Program Chairs and then to work with Knowledge Management to establish relevant inet Reports. As a result, College stakeholders guided to make better-informed decisions. Conclusion The strategies and interventions discussed above are means of producing solutions to increase graduates over the previous year in order to meet our mandatory goals. Several initiatives will be expanded to increase these success efforts and are identified within the College s next steps. The Accelerated Opportunities program offers a great opportunity to allow Adult Education students the ability to participate in college credit courses with the supports in place to facilitate their success. There is early success with the program in terms of GED success as well as credit credential attainment. Expansion of this program can only bear more fruit. Similarly, the REACH program learning community and mentorship model suggests success for a critical and somewhat fragile population of students. BlendFlex is the future of instructional design and is being successful and very well received by not only our Millennial populations one might assume, but the older students as well since technology has progressed and been embraced by all students in the form of smartphones and on-demand entertainment. Scheduling of BlendFlex courses with the brick-and-mortar courses was a challenge in the early stages and continues to Central Georgia Technical College 62

63 be. Using a class type code that reflects the multiple instructional delivery options for students would be an incredible benefit for accurate classroom utilization. Although early in its implementation, Purposeful Advisement opens the door for remarkable improvement in the appropriate advisement of students, not just for academics but to remove other barriers to their success and greatly improving the engagement of students with their advisor and subsequently, their College. The volume of use in the recently expanded Academic Success Center can only benefit students as they embrace this valuable support. Although the Learning Support Redesign and the Co-Requisite Math Course (Learning Support and Algebra) implementations had mixed beginnings, a thorough analysis and investigation into results have led to early positive returns in the most recent semester. The Co-Requisite Math Courses were initially taught by separate instructors; now each are taught by the same teacher and results are improving. BlendFlex was not without initial growing pains as well; strategies and techniques for instruction were in many cases developed on the fly as teachers explored their own preferences and new techniques. Next Steps CGTC will continue to deploy activities under each of the aforementioned metrics in an effort to gain insight in the long term which will prove to inform future decisions concerning deploying strategies for success. Many activities will be ongoing as a result of meeting our benchmarks. Effective strategies for success at CGTC will include: 1) Purposeful Advisement the College s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) will improve the academic counseling/advisement process by Addressing the ALFAA Bs: Identifying Barriers and Setting Benchmarks through purposeful advisement. Implemented strategies are designed to improve student performance of at-risk students by providing them with all the tools necessary to devise a thorough academic plan which will promote program completion. This correlates with the metric of improving degree production and graduation rates. A detailed structure has been established through broad-based formed committees of faculty, staff, and students who have gathered and analyzed data to lead the decisions and actions towards student success. Resources needed will include adequate funding, marketing, and ongoing faculty and staff training to support the initiative. 2) R.E.A.C.H. organization expansion - in an effort to meet the needs of more applicable men of color, the following changes will be implemented: the age requirement criteria will be raised from age 24 to age 28; the College will continue tracking student performance and compare participants within the REACH organization with eligible opted-out students; and expand the Brother to Brother organization. The REACH program is expanding to the Milledgeville and Warner Robins campuses in an attempt to increase success in remedial metrics across College locations. Resources needed will include further mentor recruitment efforts and mentor incentives as well as continued marketing efforts towards student awareness. 3) BlendFlex course expansions the addition of several flexible course offerings including diploma and degree level ENGL and MATH courses. The plan will increase BlendFlex by 20 courses through Fall of The initiative has provided greater flexibility and expanded educational opportunities via technology enhancements for health care students while maintaining student success rates that are better or comparable to other sections of the same course. This has a positive impact to the degree production and graduation rate metrics. A major obstacle is not having the technology and infrastructure to afford the model across all program disciplines. Future resources needed would include more faculty professional development training, more physical classroom space and more digital space for more recorded lectures. 4) Titans Teaching Collaborative a ten-month professional developmental program designed to provide faculty a cohort experience while focusing on teaching and learning. In addition, participants will have the opportunity to develop data-curious teachers by developing a data-based Action Research Project that addresses a data-supported need for improvement in their courses. The initiative will be measured through poster sessions that will discuss results of skills learned. This activity will impact all metrics. Resources needed will include technology development components to measure success. Central Georgia Technical College 63

64 5) Ongoing inet training a means of helping faculty/staff to find relevant data for decision making. Additional sessions on using inet reports will be conducted with the intent to become regular workshop offerings on the professional development schedule. Workshops will be offered at various campus locations. Faced obstacles may include faculty scheduling. Resources needed will include marketing and effective scheduling of workshops for maximum participation. 6) Resources to improve retention and graduation - Various resources and strategies are being implemented to improve retention and graduation efforts. Central Georgia Technical College 64

65 Chattahoochee Technical College Chattahoochee Technical College 65

66 Overview Demographic Changes at Chattahoochee Technical College Chattahoochee Technical College In the years since Fiscal Year 2007, data indicate shifts in Chattahoochee Technical College s demographic population. Between 2007 and 2012, CTC experience dramatic growth in the student population from 10,314 students over the course of the year, to 17,985 students, an increase of 74.37%. According to the data provided by CCG, the College does show movement among certain subpopulations in growth and decline. The Hispanic student populations for full time and part time students exhibit the greatest jump by any Racial/Ethnic group in growth by 100.9% and 269.8% respectively. White, non-hispanic full time students (-7.3%), multiracial full (-49.2%) and part-time (-16.7%) students and non-resident alien full (-76.7%) and part-time (-18.5%) students showed the only decrease in population of all race/ethnicity groups. The socioeconomic level of students attending CTC did indicate a shift from 2007 to 2012 as full time students showed an increase by 126% and part time students an increase of 365% in those students receiving the Pell Grant. These increases in student population seem to indicate an increase in student diversity, however, when compared with the increasing enrollment as a whole, most populations had less than a 5% change in the overall population of the college. The college s demographic saw little shift with the exception of a slight decrease in White/non-Hispanic students (-5%) in the overall college make up. Asian, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native students saw no change in their overall percentage of the college population. Hispanic students and black students saw a slight increase in their percentage of the college population with increases of 3% and 4%. Age and Gender additionally saw little change with shifts of 2%. However, the percentage of students who received Pell, indicative of socioeconomic demographics, saw a large increase in the student population between 2007 and In 2007 approximately 27% of students received Pell, in 2012, that increased to 56% of students. Full analysis of DC241 report Review of the DC241 reports for 2015 and 2014 provide information on shifts in the overall success of students between the Fall 09 and Fall 10. First-time entry students for Fall 2010 (201102) showed an increase in the enrollment as compared with Fall 2009, however, there was also an increase in the percentage of students requiring remedial work and increase to 63% of the new student population from the previous 56%. Ethnic/racial groups saw little change in their percentage of those needing remedial work, but students older than age 25 did have greater representation among those students needing remedial work upon admissions. For those students enrolled in remedial education, a greater percentage of the students from the Fall 10 (201102) cohort successfully completed their courses from 39.1% of those enrolled from cohort Fall 09 in remedial work to the 44.4% enrolled for cohort Fall 10. Gains specifically appeared for Hispanic students in Math only (31.6% to 65.2%) and for those taking both Math and English (14.3% to 36.6%) and an overall complete rate growth (32.3% to 52.6%). All age groups indicted large increases in success for English remediation (50% to 70% - directly from HS, 26.8% to 47.5% - over 25, and 25% to 42.9% for 20-24) but only age 25 and over showed larger increases for Math (from 46.8% to 61.0%) while the others remained relatively stable. Shockingly, Pell students saw a decreasing rate of success in remedial courses in all areas. For these students enrolling in remedial work, data indicates an increase the in completion of the college level courses for almost all demographic groups except Hispanics in English only (decrease from 53.3% to 50.0%) and again for Pell students in all areas with an overall decrease from 22.3% to 18.9%. Chattahoochee Technical College 66

67 For all students, success in gateway courses remains crucial to college progression and success. For students entering Fall 10, data indicates a small increase (from 28.6% to 29%) of students completing at least one entry, college-level course in Math or English. Hispanic and Asian students indicate the largest growth in success rates as well as the highest rates of completing one gateway English or Math course at 37.2% and 40.9% respectively. Whites and Blacks saw little change from Fall 09 to Fall 10. Overall, little significant change occurred between Fall 09 and Fall 10 numbers for students successfully completing their gateway courses in English and Math. In order to progress towards completion and graduation, students must remain on target to complete the required credit hours. Between Fall 09 and Fall 10, Chattahoochee Technical College saw a dramatic shift in the number of credit hours completed by students. Specifically, each demographic breakdown as well as the total student population indicated a drop in the number of students reaching the 24 semester hour (full time students) or the 12 semester hour (part time students) check point for the end of their first year. Over all, the percentage of full time students reaching at least 24 credit hours within their first year dropped from 25.5% in cohort Fall 09 to 20.6% for cohort Fall 10 and a drop for part time students to reach 12 credit hours from 32.8% (Fall 09) to 23.5% (Fall 10). Overall, retention rates for Chattahoochee Technical College students registering for the following term increased as compared to the previous year. Most significantly was the increasing retention of black students from 58.7% to 69.5% and the increasing retention of students over the age of 25 from 58.4% to 67.7%. The data indicates that most other demographic groups had minimal increases and decreases of retention. Unlike the previous measures Pell students experience an increase in this measure from 65.8% to 68.1%. Measures of the two year retention rate indicate a drop in retention of full time students who began Fall 08 as compared to full time students who began Fall The total full time student retention from Fall 08 to the following fall term measured only 37.3% as compared to the Fall % retention rate. Additionally, the retention rate continues to fall for the Fall 08 entries as the data accounts for one additional term of Spring 2010 (falls from 44.8% for Fall 2007 cohort to 2 nd Spring to 37.1% for Fall 2008). However, the three year retention rate did increase to 40.1% for the Fall 2008 full time student population and again with the four year retention rate to 42.5%. This compares to the four year retention rate of the previous full time cohort positively as the Fall 2007 cohort maintained only a 27.5% rate much less than the improved rate for the Fall 2008 full time cohort. Part time students indicate different measures for retention. These data indicate a slight drop in retention of part time students who began Fall 08 as compared to part time students who began Fall The total part time student retention from Fall 08 to the following fall term was 51.7% as compared to the Fall % retention rate. Additionally, the retention rate continues to fall for the Fall 08 entries as the data accounts for one additional term of Spring 2010 (falls from 33.1% for Fall 2007 cohort to 2 nd Spring to 27.7% for Fall 2008). However, the three year retention rate did increase to 27.8% for the Fall 2008 part time student population and again with the four year retention rate to 29.2%. This compares to the four year retention rate of the previous full time cohort positively as the Fall 2007 cohort maintained only a 18.8% rate much less than the improved rate for the Fall 2008 full time cohort. The transfer student retention rate mimics both the full time and part time student pattern of decreasing retention for the first and second year as compared to the previous cohorts but indicated an increase in retention for the third and fourth years resulting in a 49.6% retention rate for transfer students, up from the 44.3% rate for cohort Fall The final set of performance metrics for review are the course completion numbers. Between the 2014 report and 2015 report difference are found in the number of semester hours attempted, those completed and the percentage completed. Completion rates ran very high for this cohort at 100.1% (Full-time students), 98.7% (Part-time students), and 98.4% (transfer students). However for the students enrolled in the Fall 2011 cohort these numbers are dramatically different completion rates within one year of 76% (Full-time), 75.6% (part-time), and 73.8% (transfer). However, these numbers may be skewed due to the transition in 2010 from the quarter system to the semester system and the inclusion of an additional summer for the academic year. Chattahoochee Technical College 67

68 The outcomes of interventions and activities of the college may be reflected in the data gathered to evaluate degree production, graduation rates, the transfer out rates, and the time and credits to degree. When reviewing the degree productions from FY 2007 and comparing that to FY 2012 data indicates an overall increase in the certificates of less than one year production, an increase for certificates greater than one year but less than 2, a decrease in certificate/diplomas greater than 2 years but less than 4 and an increase for Associates. Data associated with graduation rates is less extreme than data associated with completion. Reviewing graduation at the 200% of Time data indicates that certificate programs at least one year but less than 2 showed a decrease in the graduation rate from 10.9% for the Fall 08 cohort to 9.6% for the Fall 09 cohort for full time students and 8.2% to 7.2% for part-time students, and 11.7% to 10.2% for transfer students. Associate Degrees showed a small increase in production from 10.6% (Fall 07) to 13.1% (Fall 08) for full-time students, 4.9% to 8.0% for part-time students, and a small decrease for transfer students from 26.1% to 19.2%. Some students choose to transfer out of Chattahoochee Technical College to pursue additional education elsewhere. These students are not losses for the college but represent the number of students continuing towards a four year program. For full time student who began Chattahoochee Technical College in Fall 2008, 20.6% transferred out to a four year institution. This number is an increase from the previous year s cohort which saw a rate of transfer of 19.6%. The part-time student transfer rate however decrease from 12.5% (Fall 07) to 9.3% (Fall 08). Additionally, the transfer in population maintained a similar rate only dropping.2% from 25.1% (Fall 07) to 24.9% (Fall 08). The amount of time a student remains in school may correlate to their ability to complete their program of study. Therefore, it is important to review the time to degree, how long, on average it takes students to complete their first award. Comparing Fiscal Year 2011 and Academic Year 2012, the data indicate that for all students (full-time, part-time, and transfer) striving toward certificate/diplomas of at least one year but less than two or Associates Degrees, the average time to completion increased by as much as.8 years. Additionally, the number of credit hours students actually completed increase as well for both levels of programs. Goals In the course of participating in the Complete College Georgia program, Chattahoochee Technical College identified five goals of improvement. Specifically, the college continues to focus on: Increasing the Number of Graduates, working on Transfer and Articulation, Transform the Remediation program, Restructure Delivery of courses, and Shorten the Time to Degree. With these goals in mind, the college selected twelve strategies to contribute to meeting these goals. Specifically the college selected to focus on: 1. Prior Learning Assessment; 2. Academic Advising (CTC's Quality Enhancement Plan - QEP); 3. College Reorganization Focusing on Retention; 4. Development of Associate of Science (AS) Degree Options for Students; 5. Continued Evaluation of Business/Industry Needs; 6. Expansion of Orientation Information Sessions for Pre-Health Students; 7. Implement Teacher's Academy; 8. "Recruiting" Effort Targeting Stopped Out Students; 9. Block Scheduling in Select Programs. 10. Pairing select learning support courses with appropriate general education courses; 11. Intensive Learning Support Instructor Training; and 12. Scheduling Learning Support Courses on Sub-Terms. Increase the number of graduates Performance Metric(s). To measure the college s success increasing the number of graduates the CCG reports each year provide a long-term picture of the ability for the college to produce their necessary share of the 79, 531 graduates TCSG should supply. Additionally, the annual graduate reports completed by the registrar s/records office provides yearly data on the success in producing graduates for the most recent year. Current year data indicates a great amount of growth for Chattahoochee Technical College in the number of students completing a program of study and receiving an award from 2,311 awards conferred in academic year 2014 to 4,449 in academic year Chattahoochee Technical College 68

69 Graduate/Awards. Academic Year Awards Conferred Growth from Previous Year AY % AY % AY % AY % Strategies/Interventions. Current strategies employed to assist in increasing the number of graduates from Chattahoochee Technical College includes the review of Prior Learning Assessments through collaboration with Veterans services to award credit to current and former service men and women for work and training completed in services as well as exemption exams offered in various courses and programs across the college and specifically in the Business and Technical studies. Additionally, enhancing the academic advising program through the hiring of full-time professional advisors, collaboration between academic and student affairs to provide high quality advisement from the beginning of student enrollment provides more support for students on a continuum towards graduation and the emphasis placed by making academic Advising the college s QEP provide dedicated and college wide attention to the importance of good and timely advising towards a student s success. Reorganization to focus on student retention promotes a college wide attitude towards completion which allows dedicated staff to focus on student needs inside and outside of the classroom with tools such as data collection and evaluation as well as the Early Alert System. The college has placed emphasis on targeting those students who stopped out prior to graduations at various points in the process. Scripts were created in previous years to identify students and effort has been made in reaching out to these populations of students from various entities through phone calls, s, and mailings. Finally, work with business and industry continued to identify possible TCCs that may be embedded in existing programs allowing students to work toward a higher level degree while obtaining the knowledge base as well as earning a credential allowing the student to demonstrate a competencies needed in industry. Resources Allocated. The college dedicated numerous staff to growing the number of graduates including hiring full time academic advisors, the plans to add 1 additional advisor and 1 additional advising coordinator before the end of the academic year in addition to time and effort in creating reports, evaluating data, and collaboration between departments to ensure correct and timely reviews of previous credit are achieved. Additional work, dedication and time from the Records Office continues to identify the numerous embedded certificates and swiftly process and award these credentials to students as they are earned. Obstacles. For Chattahoochee Technical College, the greatest ongoing obstacles include the service area in which the college serves and the diverse populations within the service area. Utilization of technology allows members of the college community to most effectively communicate regularly through s and instant messaging as well as new video phones. Additionally, a large population of Chattahoochee students enroll in the college with the goal of transferring out rather than actually completing a program of study with the college. In academic year 2015, 2,781 students of the unduplicated 14,624 students enrolled listed their program of study as Technical Specialist, a program specifically designed for student transfer to a Board of Regents institution. Some students will complete this program, but additional work must be done to convince all students in the value of completing this certificate program prior to leaving the college. Enhancing the advising process by dividing out the Technical Specialist population provides the college greater opportunity to target this group of students and assist them in setting and obtaining completion goals. Chattahoochee Technical College 69

70 Transfer and Articulation Performance Metric(s). Data provided in the DC241 report (page 32) indicate the rate at which students choose to leave the college and transfer to another institution before completing a program of study. The data reported in the 2015 report indicates a slight rise in the number of individuals transferring to another institution of higher education. Additionally, future data gathered from Student Tracker will provide the college more detailed information in regards to where students attend after transferring out. Rates of Transfer Out First Time Entry Term Full Time 18.2% 20.3% 19.6% 20.6% Part Time 9.4% 11.2% 12.5% 9.3% Transfer 21.1% 23.8% 25.1% 24.9% Strategies/Interventions. One strategy implemented to enhance Chattahoochee Technical College s transfer and Articulation included seeking opportunities for offering AS degrees. One such approved degree in conjunction with Kennesaw State University allows students to complete their AS in Culinary Arts with us, then transfer to Kennesaw State University to complete their Bachelor s degree. At this time, the AS in Culinary Arts is the only AS degree offered by CTC. Resources Allocated. The largest resource allocation the college gives towards this goal is the time commitment of Academic Affairs administration to foster relationships and work toward obtaining more agreements with other institutions. Additionally, time from Retentions services is dedicated to identifying the students who plan to leave the college and providing those students with accurate and timely advising enabling those students to transfer and continue on successfully. Obstacles. While the AS approval process has been more difficult to navigate than anticipated, CTC firmly believes that additional AS program offerings would allow more students to quickly attain desired workforce skills while also permitting students to continue on a path to a four year degree, if they so desire. As the College is currently equipped to accomplish this with little or no additional resources, it is our belief that this would be a feasible option for the State to extend additional AS degree-earning opportunities in the CTC service area, particularly in parts of the service area where few (or no) options currently exist. As a college, CTC will continue to nurture the college s relationship with Board of Regents institutions as well as local private colleges which may open doors in the future to further AS programs. Additionally, in the community the existing articulation agreements and programs offered by CTC may not be widely known, but an increase in awareness of faculty and staff as well as an increased effort to share this information will improve enrollment in those programs which may provide direct access to further education outside of Chattahoochee Technical College. Transform Remediation Performance Metric(s). Internal data measures such as grade reports allows the college to continuously review the success rate of the changes made to the learning support programs. Chattahoochee Technical College 70

71 ENGL 0090B and ENGL 1101 Results TERM Number of Students RESULTS % Passed ENGL 1101 with C or Higher % Passed ENGL 1101 with C or higher, 20% earned a D in ENGL % Passed ENGL 1101 with C or higher, 11% Withdrew, 22% Failed ENGL TBD Math 0090B and MATH 1111 Results TERM Number of Students RESULTS % Passed MATH 1111 with C or higher % Passed MATH 1111 with C or higher % Passed MATH 1111 with C or higher % Passed MATH 1111 with C or higher, 10% Withdrew; 5% earned a D in MATH % Passed MATH 1111 with C or higher TBD Strategies/Interventions. Chattahoochee Technical College continues to change the way we treat students needing remediation by modifying the learning support process to allow eligible students to progress more quickly through the hurtle of learning support by pairing learning support courses with the gateway college level course such as READ 0090 with PSYC 1101, ENGL 0090 with ENGL 1101, MATH 0090 with MATH 1111 and an attempt at offering MATH 0090A in conjunction with MATH Ongoing education of new and current Learning Support faculty, ensuring constancy and a greater understanding of the tools used to teach in the Learning Support classroom including training on Connect the online platform for modular instruction in ENGL 0090 and READ Continued education also helps transform the way the college thinks about remedial work ensuring constancy and awareness of all resources for the faculty charged with assisting students in these classes. Faculty are also encouraged to attend meetings and trainings outside of the college. Finally, the college also began scheduling learning support courses during the mini-terms and continues to seek the right balance in the best time to offer these courses while allowing the students to actually be successful. Resources Allocated. In order to provide students the opportunity to complete both their learning support course with their college level course in the same term requires time from staff and administration to identify eligible students, as well as the funds to continuously provide training to faculty in best practices, software, and college policy and procedure. Chattahoochee Technical College 71

72 Obstacles. One challenge for changing the way the college, the faculty, and the students view learning support work requires identifying the students who most greatly benefit from strategies such as pairing the learning support course with the college level course. The MATH 0090A and MATH 1012 pairing continues to struggle for eligible and interested students. Continued evaluation of incoming students and revision of the offerings must always be ongoing. Training established faculty in new methods of teaching may always prove challenging but encouraging internal and external workshops as well as in group and individual settings allows for faculty to expand their knowledge base in a way that is best for them and meets their needs. Restructure Delivery Performance Metric(s). KMS data report DC200 provides the college with the ability to track success of those program taught in the block model. Level Major Academic Year Cohort # Total Retained Retention Rate Total Graduated Graduation Rate Diploma Accounting % 4 18% % 5 56% Degree Accounting % 9 27% Diploma Diploma Air Conditioning Technology Automotive Technology % 7 19% % 21 47% % 14 47% % 15 63% % 15 58% Diploma Medical Assisting % Diploma Degree Networking Specialist Networking Specialist 2015 Non-Block model programs (for comparison) Diploma Degree Diploma Degree Diploma Degree Computer Programming Computer Programming Business Management Business Management Criminal Justice Technology Criminal Justice Technology % 4 50% % 4 57% % 7 35% % 3 20% % 8 18% % 0 0% % 5 38% % 5 14% % 2 10% % 1 5% % 4 8% % 4 8% % 3 19% % 1 9% % 3 12% % 0 0% Chattahoochee Technical College 72

73 Strategies/Interventions. By pairing learning support courses with the comparable gateway course, Chattahoochee Technical College allows students to progress more quickly through the hurtle of learning support and rethink the way as a college we view the learning support courses. Additionally, the college established a Network for Effective Teaching (NET) through the intranet site used by faculty and staff as a method of delivering information and education to faculty and assisting them in their education of students for 21 st century careers, prepare faculty through deeper pedagogical knowledge, facilitate workshops designed to enhance best practices in teaching, provide appropriate resources to faculty, and support faculty through collaboration using peer mentoring, coaching, and current research. Finally, the use of block scheduling to promote student completion continues to be used in Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Automotive Technology, Network Specialist, and Medial Assisting. Students remain able to complete each of these programs within the same time block. Additionally, programs such as Cosmetology and Barbering are cohort programs can be completed in one block over four semesters (including the core). Resources Allocated. Time and effort continue to be the greatest resources allocated to the constant improvement of teaching and our programs of study. Time commitment by those providing the research and data for our Network for Effective Teaching as well as the constant evaluation by faculty of their programs allows the college to continue to improve the method in which we deliver our education to best meet the needs of our students. Obstacles. As a college, we have limited obstacles outside of the constant changes to the economy and as the economy continues to improve registration in many of these programs decreases and students in the programs may leave as job opportunities become available. Shorten Time to Degree Performance Metric(s). Measurement of Time to degree can be found in the DC241 report from Complete College Georgia. Changes from report year 2015 and 2014 do indicate a lengthening of time to degree with students enrolled in academic year 2012 as compared to those students enrolled in academic year However, preliminary data for more recent years does not reflect a decrease in time to completion but rather a continued steady increase. Time to Completion (in average years) Academic Year Full Time Students Part Time Students Transfer Students Certificates (Between 1 and 2 years) Associates Certificates (Between 1 and 2 years) Associates Certificates (Between 1 and 2 years) Associates ** ** Data appears flawed. Chattahoochee Technical College 73

74 Strategies/Interventions. Prior Learn Assessments through collaboration with Veterans services to award credit to current and former service men and women for work and training completed in services as well as exemption exams offered in various courses and programs across the college and specifically in the Business and Technical studies. Additionally, enhancing the academic advising program through the hiring of full-time professional advisors, collaboration between academic and student affairs to provide high quality advisement from the beginning of student enrollment provides more support for students on a continuum towards graduation. Reorganization to focus on student retention also promotes a college wide attitude towards completion which allows dedicated staff to focus on student needs inside and outside of the classroom with tools such as data collection and evaluation as well as the Early Alert System. By pairing learning support courses with the comparable gateway course, Chattahoochee Technical College allows students to progress more quickly through the hurtle of learning support and progress towards their program of study. Current parings include ENGL 0090B with ENGL 1101 as well as READ 0090 and PSYC 1101, Resources Allocated. Primary resources allocated to reducing the time to completion included staff time and commitment to evaluate credit for veteran students and time and effort in creating, facilitating and scoring exemption exams. Additionally, the personnel hired for academic advising reduces the case load per staff member allowing each advisor additional time to speak with students and identify their needs. Obstacles. Changes to HOPE and Pell funding streams have discouraged many students from taking larger course load thus extending the time to completion. Increasing services to students to help them correctly identify their program of study (thus potentially changing their aid package) as well as increased support from other entities such as the college foundation counter balance the challenges associated with the changes to funding streams and student needs. Communication Performance Metric(s). Measuring the success of communication proves difficult. However, data collected through TEAMS indicates that faculty perceive a greater level of understanding of both student needs, what puts a student at risk, and how to help the students. In academic year 2015, the first year of TEAMS, the college had a total of 923 unduplicated alerts issued. For students, communication through advising and the health care sessions appear to be positive through the comments and results of surveys and evaluations completed by new students for the fall 2015 terms. Strategies/Interventions. Many strategies set by the college serve to enhance and improve college-wide communication internal among the faculty and staff as well as communication with the student population. Reorganization within Student Affairs to focus on student retention promotes a systemic focus on retention of current students, the needs of the students, and providing students and faculty the needs and resources they need to be successful. Through consistent communication with Business and Industry to evaluate their needs and how we as a college can meet those needs through our programs. Each program of study continues to meet with their advisory committees regularly and the college encourages programs to constantly update their committees, so that we are always recruiting new members and staying in touch with the entire business/ industry segment for each program. In addition, the college expanded the orientation process for pre-health care students by first changing the name to Health Care Q&A sessions. These sessions allow current and prospective students the opportunity to learn more about the various health care programs offered. These sessions enhance students understanding of how the competitive programs work, the requirements for obtaining admission to these programs and a better understand of the challenges associated with high pressure health care education programs. Finally, some departments proactively reach out to students at stop out points such as registration for future terms in able to attempt to encourage continued enrollment rather than losing the student. Resources Allocated. Increased staffing in Retention Services through a Retention Specialist (in progress) and the hiring of full time academic advisors allows the college to provide greater access to students to the resources necessary for assisting them in their success. Additionally, work with Information Technology has allowed the use of preexisting tools to reach out to students through new and improved communication methods such as enhanced s, reminder texts, and mass call blasts. Chattahoochee Technical College 74

75 Obstacles. As will all attempts at improving communication, the ability to make processes perfect does not exist. As a large institution, spreading across a large geographical region with many faculty, staff and students, delivering the right message to the right people and the right time is difficult. Technology provides assistance but is not perfect and may be a challenge to use or may not work as expected all of the time. Excellent support from IT allows other departments to overcome challenges with technology and a constant message from the college to students in regards to the importance of the student account helps to overcome many barriers associated with the regular use of technology for communication. For faculty advisory committees, challenges may arise in finding appropriate members for the committee as well as seeing regular attendance of the members to all meetings, however consistently watching for new potential members and fostering relationships in the communities allows the college a greater pool of individuals willing and able to share their knowledge with us. The Health Care Q &A sessions experienced a temporary stoppage due to a loss in staffing, however remaining staff did visit inside of classrooms to provide continue communication to students and with the resolution of missing staff, sessions will once again resume. Student Success and Implementation Team Full Name Title Prior Learning Assessments Marcy Smith Debbie Daly Dean of Business and Technical Studies Associate Dean of Business, Computer, and Public Services Academic Advising (CTC s Quality Enhancement Plan) Bethany Schultz Mickey Austin Director of Advising Director of Academic Success College Reorganization Focusing on Retention Lauren Lunk Bethany Schultz Mickey Austin Cheri Mattox- Carroll Alaina Abney Executive Director of Retention Director of Advising Director of Academic Success Director of Student Support Services Director of Student Engagement Development of Associate of Science (AS) Degree Options for Students Jason Tanner Marcy Smith Vacant Vice President for Academic Affairs Dean of Business and Technical Studies Dean of Arts and Sciences Continued Evaluation of Business/Industry Needs Jason Tanner Marcy Smith Debbie Daly Diane Geis Lindsey Holtzman Vice President for Academic Affairs Dean of Business and Technical Studies Associate Dean of Business, Computer, and Public Services Associate Dean of Technical Studies Director of Records Expansion of Orientation Information Sessions for Pre-Health Students Kathleen Bombery Implement Teacher s Academy Jason Tanner Associate Dean of Health Sciences Vice President for Academic Affairs Chattahoochee Technical College 75

76 Full Name Title Special Projects Manager for AA Recruiting Effort Targeting Stopped out Students Scott Rule Vice President for Student Affairs Lauren Lunk Executive Director of Retention Block Scheduling in Select Programs Jason Tanner Vice President for Academic Affairs Marcy Smith Dean of Business and Technical Studies Ron Webb Dean of Health Sciences Vacant Dean of Arts and Sciences Pairing Select Learning Support Courses with Appropriate General Education Courses Elizabeth Anderson Associate Dean of Mathematics Vacant Dean of Art and Sciences Julie Holland Associate Dean of Humanities Intensive Learning Support Training Elizabeth Anderson Associate Dean of Mathematics Vacant Dean of Arts and Sciences Julie Holland Associate Dean of Humanities Scheduling Learning Support Courses on Sub-Terms Elizabeth Anderson Associate Dean of Mathematics Julie Holland Associate Dean of Humanities Vacant Dean of Arts and Sciences Data analysis and Sharing of Results. Chattahoochee Technical College utilizes various sources of data collection and analysis to determine the level of success and tracking of progress for the Complete College Georgia goals and college initiatives. Competency verification activity validity for Prior Learning Assessments continues to be measured through comparison with alternative assessments, such as exemption exams. Academic Advising as well as the information sessions for Health Sciences students utilize survey tools to evaluate student retention of information as well as student satisfaction with the information presented and services provided to the students. Similarly, survey and satisfaction results will determine the level of success for the Teachers Academy (NET) as attendance and event completion records will allow the college to track the continued training of learning support faculty. Analysis of year to year comparison data pulled from banner allow the college to evaluate and establish baseline data for the new college focus on retention. Internal banner reports also provide information to the college community in regards to student enrollment and completion of the AS program as well as determining the number of graduates the college is able to produce through the increase of embedded TCCs. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of block schedule, review of the retention and graduation rates of students who participate in the programs offering this form must be regularly tracked and monitored. Comparison data allows the college to compare the success rate of students participating in co-requisite course (learning support + college level course) as compared to students following the traditional format. Chattahoochee Technical College 76

77 Committees, faculty meetings, college wide events, and small departmental meetings provide one setting for sharing the results of the data collected. Two events a year provide an opportunity to share data with the faculty and staff of the college in a face to face format. Smaller committees such as the Council on Advising receive regular updates on data pertaining directly to their function and in doing so, a continuous feedback loops exists allowing for data flow to the committee and recommendations from the committee based on data to improve processes. Conclusions Most successful strategies/interventions. The move of the college to allows students to complete both their learning support course in conjunction with the college level course has provided many students the opportunity to speed up the rate in which it takes them to complete their program of study. For the students who elect to participate in this program and high percentage who are successful, this time of program may reduce their time to completion by one semester or more. Recruiting or re-recruiting the large population of students that have stopped out provides an accessible population to target the direct marketing, and direct communication through s, phone calls and tests. One very simple early target population targeted were those students who selected not register for a subsequent term, direct communication with these students reminded them of registration and encouraged them to follow up through registering themselves or meeting with an academic advisor thus increasing, if only slightly the retention rate from Spring and Summer term to the following Fall. Finally, all of the initiatives that enhance the CCG goal of graduate production have thus far greatly enhanced the college productions numbers. Better evaluation of student completion using banner reports, finding and including more embedded TCCs for students, and providing better academic advising has driven more students towards credential completion. Least Effective. According to the data collected to this point, the least effective initiatives put into place by Chattahoochee Technical College include the expansion of AS degree offerings, though the college added one, at this time there are none apparent for the immediate future. Continued relationship building and ongoing research to find the right expansion opportunities must continue until more AS options can be available. Additionally, the success of all initiatives as it directly reflects on time to completion has, at this time, not yet made a significant impact on the data. Although data indicate positive satisfaction with Academic Advising, positive feedback from the work on revising the learning support model, and opportunities for new delivery methods, the data on time for students to complete their programs shows little movement. What adjustments have we made? Changes to initial ideas and strategies remain ongoing as data collection and evaluation continues. The QEP and Academic Advising data along with conversations with faculty and staff involved in the process indicate a need to modify the way in which students and their programs are distributed and handed off between the Student Affairs professional advising staff and their program faculty. The current proposal recommends the creation of teams of faculty and staff advisors to provide a more seamless transition for students and to provide a sense of greater access to advisement for students regardless of their program of study, their location, or, where they are in their program. Chattahoochee Technical College 77

78 Next Steps As the college moves forward and continues to strive for greater levels of student success through retention and ultimately graduation new ideas will emerge. Continued work on the current initiatives will progress and evolve over time as the college determines what works and what does not. Additionally, ongoing data collection and evaluation specifically focusing on student needs will continue. New initiatives and strategies in development from Student Affairs include a focus on African American males and other minority males on campus and how to best serve and encourage their success. Additionally, new programming targeting First Generation students and their unique set of needs remains in development with implementation slated for late fall semester As well as an increased focus on engaging students within the college community through enhanced campus involvement opportunities such as leadership and wellness programming and opportunities. Academic Affairs will continue to seek out new articulation opportunities for students as well as increase collaboration with the local K-12 system to provide seamless educational transition for students. In order to continue making strides towards student success, resources must be dedicated to the ongoing improvement of the college, from encouraging existing faculty and staff to ensure a positive atmosphere as well as continued professional development opportunities to assist current faculty and staff to continuously improve their own skill sets. Support proves to be one of the greatest resources available when given from all levels including the state, college administration, faculty, and staff. Additional funding to allow the college to hire the best faculty and staff possible to support all initiatives will always remain crucial to the success of the college and to the students. Chattahoochee Technical College 78

79 Coastal Pines Technical College Coastal Pines Technical College 79

80 Overview Coastal Pines Technical College When comparing CPTC student demographics for the 2014 year to the 2015 year using the KMS #DC241 Report, the following observations were noted. The data for 2014 was prior to the merger of Altamaha (ATC) and Okefenokee (OTC) Technical Colleges. The 2015 year represents the first year of Coastal Pines Technical College (CPTC). Student demographic data was analyzed by totals for type of enrollment, ethnicity, gender, age groupings, Pell recipients, and remedial enrollment in two or more courses at time of entry. When analyzing full-time, part-time and transfer students, the number of full-time students attending CPTC increased during the 2015 year and the number of transfer students decreased. Ethnicity data showed that CPTC s student enrollment remained consistent in that the black student population represented 26% of total student enrollment, and the white student population represented 70% of the total student enrollment. For both groups during 2015, the black population decreased by 2% from the year 2014, whereas, the white population increased by 2%. The Hispanic population represented 2% of the total student population for both 2014 and All other ethnicity categories, Asian, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native, Two or More Races, Unknown, and Non-Resident Aliens represented only 2% of total student enrollment for both 2014 and Disaggregated data in reference to ethnicity showed no significant change in the number of black or white students attending full-time, part-time, or transfer status. The Hispanic disaggregated data as well as all other ethnicity categories remained relatively the same according to the type of attendance status, each representing 2% or less of the total population. Overall gender data for CPTC showed that male and female student attendance remained constant when comparing the 2014 and 2015 data, with a 2% increase for males in 2015 and a 2% decrease for females in Male students attending CPTC part-time increased by 8%, while full-time and transfer categories remained relatively constant. Female students attending CPTC remained relatively constant in regards to all attendance categories. In reference to age categories for 2015, CPTC students ages 25 and over represent 55% of the total student population, year old students represent 27%, and 18% of the population represents students years old coming to CPTC directly from high school. When comparing to the 2014 data, each age category increased only slightly, representing an insignificant change. During 2015, 58% of full-time students attending CPTC received Pell, representing a slight increase over the 2014 year. Forty-eight percent (48%) of CPTC s student enrollment received Pell in 2015, representing a slight decline from Full-time and part-time transfer students made no substantial change, increasing slightly for full-time students and decreasing slightly for part-time students. Students who entered CPTC in 2015 needing two or more remedial courses only represented less than 2% of the total student enrollment. Because the numbers were so closely related to the 2014 year, no significant change was noted. Goals Goal 1: Increase the number of graduates annually over the previous year The following information establishes a trend report for CPTC degree production. The data shows combined information for the individual colleges during AY2014, prior to the official merger in AY2015. An increase of thirty-eight (38) additional students graduated in AY2015 over AY2014. While the number of graduates in 2015 show that the goal was not attained for the academic year, CPTC remains 944 graduates ahead of the overall CCG initiative goal. See Chart 1 at the end of the report which shows CPTC s total progress towards increasing the number of graduates annually for the Coastal Pines Technical College 80

81 years , with the data representing Altamaha Technical College and Okefenokee Technical College data prior to the merger for Degree Production KMS Report DC#293 Graduate Number Difference between Actual CCA Graduates and CPTC Goal Academic Year Academic Year Academic Year Cumulative Through ,128 actual graduates of the total initiative goal of 10, above goal Strategies/Interventions Implemented. In reviewing the data, the following strategies were used to increase the number of annual graduates per year for CPTC. Although the strategies implemented did not produce the number of graduates projected for academic year 2015, the deficient was only 67. Strategy 1. During AY2015, the first year of the merger, a concentrated effort was made on evaluating degrees, diplomas, and technical certificates of credit (TCCs) and how faculty advised students and assisted students in applying for graduation for programs completed, including embedded TCCs. The Engineering Technology (AAS) program was launched by hiring an instructor and purchasing of equipment. Enrollment for the Engineering program will begin in AY16. Culinary Arts (AAS) program included enrollment of 22 students. Health Care Assistant program increased by 12 students; Early Childhood Care and Basics (TCC) increased by 2 students, the Railroad Technology program cluster increased by 2, and the COMP TIA A+ Certified Preparation program did not increase. While the Health Care Science and Computed Tomography Specialist program were not fully implemented during AY15, the strategy of developing the programs was accomplished and will result in new enrollment in AY16. Strategy 2. In order to ensure that all awards were granted, the Registrar s Office audited the designated CCG tracked programs and notified faculty of additional awards that could be granted to students. The audit also produced student results showing awards available after completion of one more class. Faculty were trained in advising and assisting students in applying for graduation for all awards earned, including embedded TCCs. Strategy 3. An additional strategy for increasing the number of graduates per year was the redesign of the Naval Maintenance Apprentice (TCC) program taught for King s Bay Naval Base in Camden County. CPTC requested that TCSG evaluate this program to be added to the Complete College Georgia list of tracked programs. The request was granted, thus providing an additional 74 graduates in Strategy 4. The Institutional Research department developed an internal CCG tracking report to more closely monitor enrollment in the CCG tracked list. Upon development of this report, the Institutional Effectiveness and Academic Affairs department evaluated the feasibility of implementing CCG programs not currently offered at CPTC. Approximately 45 programs were identified and CPTC will continue to evaluate and seek approval to offer these programs during AY16. Strategy 5. In order to increase the number of graduates and increase the number of students prepared for jobs aligned with Georgia s plan for filling jobs in the identified Strategic Industries, CPTC initiated the development of TCCs to be offered in Ware State Prison. Resources Allocated: Money was allocated to hire the Engineering instructor and purchase Engineering equipment. Other resources included the devotion of time to track CCG tracked programs, and making the request to TCSG to add the Naval Maintenance Apprentice program to the list of CCG tracked programs. The new building on the Golden Isles instructional site was completed, equipped, and staffed in late AY2015. Coastal Pines Technical College 81

82 Obstacles Encountered: A delay in hiring a full-time credentialed Engineering instructor due to a low applicant pool hindered the start-up of the program during AY2015. The instructor was hired in AY2016 and classes will begin spring Semester During AY2015, the completion of the new building on the Golden Isles campus ran slightly behind schedule resulting in a delay of program start-up from spring 2015 to spring Program expansion and increased student enrollment at the Golden Isles campus is planned for AY2016. Goal 2: Shorten Time to Degree In reviewing the data, the following strategies were used to shorten the time to degree for CPTC students. Graduation Rate Performance Metric: In analyzing the graduation rates using KMS Report DC#242 for students earning certificates/diplomas, the rates of completion time remained exactly the same for full-time students during AY14 and AY15. A one-percent (1%) increase occurred for part-time student completion for each of the completion time frames of 100%, 150%, and 200% of time. Students who transferred to CPTC also remained the same with a 1% increase for those completing in 200% of the time allocated. While the cohort of associate degree seeking students was extremely small (less than 12 students), full-time students completing in 100% of the time stayed the same for AY2014 and AY2015, with an increase of 5% in the 150% and 200% categories for AY2015 over AY2014. For transfer students, the graduation rates for all time categories decreased. CCA Outcome Metric 2: Graduation Rates Reported to CCA: Certificates/Diplomas Associate Degrees 2014 (Final Data) KMS Report DC# % of Time 150% of Time 200% of Time 100% of Time 150% of Time 200% of Time Full-Time Students 20% 26% 29% 20% 20% 20% Part-Time Students 12% 18% 19% 0% 0% 0% Transfer 19% 23% 24% 68% 75% 75% Reported to CCA: Certificates/Diplomas Associate Degrees 2015 (Final Data) KMS Report DC# % of Time 150% of Time 200% of Time 100% of Time 150% of Time 200% of Time Full-Time Students 20% 26% 29% 0% 25% 25% Part-Time Students 13% 19% 20% 0% 0% 0% Transfer 19% 23% 25% 9% 27% 27% Strategies/Interventions Implemented Strategy 1. CPTC continued to implement early intervention processes to assist students identified as having academic difficulties and attendance issues. CPTC staff and faculty were trained on the implementation of TEAMS that assists in early identification of at-risk students, and TEAMS began to be used. Strategy 2. Block scheduling continues to be utilized for degree, diploma, and TCC programs. In order to report information on student success in the TCSG identified programs using the block scheduling format, the KMS report DC200 report was used to report retention rates for each of the block scheduled programs. In CPTC s AY14 Complete College Georgia report, FY2014 data was combined for Altamaha Technical College and Okefenokee Technical College. This year s report reflects the AY15 data to design a trend report for CPTC to further analyze. Seven out of nine programs following a block scheduling format indicated an increased percentage of change. Two additional programs have been added to the block scheduling list of programs being tracked for CCG purposes. The Locomotive Electrical Systems and Coastal Pines Technical College 82

83 the Locomotive Mechanical Systems TCCs have also shown positive increases for AY2015 compared to AY2014 rates. For comparison purposes, two non-block scheduled programs retention rates are listed in the following chart. AY2014 and AY2015 Block Scheduling Cohorts BLOCKED SCHEDULE PROGRAMS Level Diploma AC12 Degree AC13 Diploma ACT2 Diploma AT14 Diploma CJT2 Degree CJT3 Diploma MA22 Diploma NS14 Degree NS13 TCC LE51 TCC LM31 Major AY14 Cohort AY14 Total Retained AY14 Retention Rate AY15 Cohort AY15 Total Retained AY15 Retention Rate % of Change Accounting % % 16% Accounting % % 17% Air Conditioning Technology Automotive Technology Criminal Justice Technology Criminal Justice Technology Medical Assisting Networking Specialist Networking Specialist Locomotive Electrical Systems Locomotive Mechanical Systems NON-BLOCKED SCHEDULE PROGRAMS Diploma EP12 Diploma FT12 EMS Professions Forest Technology % % 27% % % -1% % % -9% NA NA NA % 100% % % 33% % % 10% % % 15% % % 17% 5 0 0% % 29% % % -34% % 1 0 0% -67% Strategy 3. A major focus for CPTC during AY2015 has been the expansion of dual enrollment and ACCEL opportunities within 15 high schools in CPTC s service delivery area. High school enrollment increased by 366 students during AY2015. See Chart 2. Strategy 4. In order to assist in promoting graduates equipped for jobs within the identified strategic industries of Georgia plan, CPTC began to develop partnerships with the prisons in CPTC s service delivery area. Ware State Prison Coastal Pines Technical College 83

84 contacted CPTC to offer two welding TCCs with the possibility of adding some diesel mechanic TCCs. Preparations began in AY2015 to add Ware State Prison as an off-campus instructional site with SACSCOC for programs to begin in AY2016. Strategy 5. CPTC joined the Achieving the Dream (ATD) initiative in AY2015. Data strategies inside the initiative focus on determining obstacles that hinder students from completing programs of study and graduating. In cooperation with the TCSG Data Center and the National Student Clearinghouse, ATD s data coaches are actively assisting CPTC s leadership in identifying hidden concerns often embedded in data analysis. Specifically, data is being reviewed based on ethnicity, gender, students receiving Pell, and course analysis specifically in relation to remedial courses. Resources Allocated: To assist in identifying and implementing early intervention strategies, CPTC with financial support from TCSG, hired a Student Navigator. The Student Navigator s primary responsibilities are to monitor the TEAMS tracking system, administer early alert procedures, making contact with at-risk students, and providing students with the support needed to overcome obstacles hindering the continuation of their program of study. Personnel served as the major resource in promoting and increasing dual enrollment opportunities. Personnel assigned to work directly with dual enrollment expansion included four high school coordinators. Two director-level positions were assigned specific tasks related to the development and promotion of dual enrollment. These positions included a Dean for Academic Affairs and the Executive Director for Student Affairs. Adjunct faculty pay was provided to ensure that courses/programs were offered as requested by area high schools. In order to prepare for the implementation of programs at Ware State Prison, Student Affairs staff have been assigned to travel to the prison to administer placement testing and receive admissions application materials. The membership fee for joining the ATD initiative was paid for by TCSG s Foundation for the first three years. CPTC allocated travel expenses for five staff members to attend the Achieving the Dream Kick-Off Institute meeting in Cincinnati, OH in June The ATD data coaches consulted with the entire CPTC staff and ATD committees in August 2015 to gather information to assist in developing strategies for improvement. Obstacles Encountered: The primary obstacle CPTC encountered in the implementation of TEAMS was ensuring that appropriate staff was trained on TEAMS. CPTC has six instructional sites in addition to the main campus. This required training approximately 200 full-time faculty and staff. The dedication of time required a great undertaking for Student Affairs staff to ensure that all faculty were trained. CPTC was committed to ensuring that all faculty and staff who needed to use TEAMS was appropriately trained. The challenge of expanding dual enrollment opportunities required the commitment of time by the High School Coordinators. The Dean for Academic Affairs and the Executive Director for Student Affairs devoted a great deal of time in planning and scheduling high school visits with the appropriate personnel. After the initial meetings, the Dean and the Executive Director developed the programs, hired the faculty, scheduled the high school coordinator s visits to the high school for assessment, admission processing, and financial aid consulting. CPTC was able to successfully meet all high school requests by being committed to maintaining a detailed schedule that included constant and consistent follow-up with high school representatives and interested students. The obstacle that hindered CPTC from beginning classes in AY2015 at Ware State Prison was the time needed to seek SACSCOC approval for offering programs at Ware State Prison. CPTC prepared the materials and submitted to SACSCOC and is waiting for final approval before beginning the programs. An obstacle faced in dealing with the prison involves the limitations created by the potential students not having access to computers. Paper copies of all admission and financial aid information has had to be supplied rather than by electronic means. Coastal Pines Technical College 84

85 GOAL 3: TRANSFORM REMEDIATION The following strategies were used to transform remediation at CPTC. Success in Remedial Education Performance Metrics: When analyzing the data of students completing remedial courses during the first two academic years using the KMS report, DC#251, CPTC found a decline in Math (8%), English (6%), both Math and English (27%), and total remediation (10%). The total number of students enrolled in remedial Math courses was less in 2015 than the total number enrolled in Math during Although the percentage completing declined in 2015, there were less students enrolled but the actual number of completers remained approximately the same. CPTC will continue to review internal data on individual courses in an effort to improve the completion rates. Success in Remedial 2014 KMS Report DC#251 & DC#254 Math English Both Math & English Total Remedial Students Completing Remedial within first 2 Academic Years 52% 57% 56% 54% (DC#251) Students Complete Next Level Course in Same Subject within first 2 Academic Years (DC#254) 32% 32% 17% 29% The data analysis of the students who successfully completed a college level course in the same subject as that in which they took a remedial course, KMS Report DC#254, showed that students enrolled in the subsequent Math course during academic year 2015 passed at a six percent (6%) higher rate than those in The same percentage of students enrolled and successfully completed the subsequent English course in 2015 as in For those students enrolled and successfully passing both Math and English subsequent courses in 2015, the percentage of students passing declined by seven percent (7%) when compared to 2014 rates. The total passing rates for remedial remained the same in 2015 as compared to CPTC will continue to review internal data on students enrolled in remedial courses in relation to the passing of the subsequent course(s) courses in an effort to improve the pass rates. Success in Remedial KMS Report DC#251 & DC#254 Math English Both Math & English Total Remedial Students Completing Remedial within first 2 Academic Years 44% 51% 29% 44% (DC#251) Students Complete Next Level Course in Same Subject within first 2 Academic Years (DC#254) 38% 32% 10% 29% Strategies/Interventions Implemented Strategy 1. Learning support redesign was implemented in Math in AY2015 by structuring the course on a more individual learning basis. Students are allowed to work at their own pace, offering an incentive for students to complete the material in a more expedited fashion. Strategy 2. Tutoring schedules were developed providing students with weekly tutoring opportunities on the Waycross, Jesup, and Golden Isles campuses. Full-time Math and English faculty set aside time each week for student tutoring. Strategy 3. All math faculty (full-time and adjunct) participated in a professional development training session to provide information to instructors on how to work with students in remedial courses. This training also included tips on how to provide tutorial services to students in remedial math and/or other subsequent math courses. Strategy 4. Smarthinking online tutorial services have continued to be offered to students. Coastal Pines Technical College 85

86 Strategy 5. The lead math instructor created a learning support math advisement guide that was distributed to all faculty and academic advisors. This guide is used by faculty to properly advise students for all math classes offered at CPTC. Strategy 6. The Dean for Academic Affairs, General Education and Learning Support, created a COMPASS readiness resource to enable prospective students a means of review prior to taking the COMPASS entrance exam. This resource gives students the opportunity to review the competencies covered on the exam. Rather than a student taking the entrance exam without any knowledge of what is covered on the exam, the resource serves as a refresher of skills the students have previously learned. Often this has helped a student improve their scores on the entrance exam and bypass remedial courses. Resources Allocated: Adjunct instructors were encouraged to provide expanded tutoring schedules for students. Tutoring schedules are designed and provided for students. CPTC continues to provide the Smarthinking service through a continuation contract each year. The math department is utilizing MyMathLab developed by Pearson. MyMathLab is a learning support management system that utilizes online homework, tutorials, and assessment products for mastery of mathematics. Faculty use the integrated system for all math courses offered at CPTC. Obstacles Encountered: Remedial and general education instructors realized that occupational faculty advisors and general academic advisors experienced difficulty in understanding the sequencing of learning support math courses. Thus, the reason for the creation of the math learning support advisement guide. The guide has enabled the faculty to provide more structured and accurate advisement in reference to remedial math courses. CPTC has experienced difficulty in securing credentialed Reading faculty. CPTC is currently working with the Adult Education department to share faculty. Student Success Implementation Team The Institutional Effectiveness and Research departments utilize a variety of reports from KMS and locally generated systems to analyze student success data. Information is made available to CPTC employees through the College s intranet, distribution, and shared during meetings with the President s Cabinet, College Council, and the Complete College Georgia Committee. Full Name Title/Position Role Address Vincent E. Jackson Lonnie Roberts Dr. Teresa Allen Katrena Taylor Dr. John Rowe Dr. Al Cunningham Eddie Aycock Abraham Pallas Patsy Wilkerson Amanda Morris Austin Johnson Chad Swanson Cathy Montgomery Karen Boyle Stephanie Roberts Janet Carter Lauren McCullough IR Director Provost Vice President for IE Psychology Instructor Allied Health Instructor VP for Academic Affairs Industrial Sys. Instructor Dean, Academic Affairs Dean, Academic Affairs Dean, Academic Affairs Exec. Dir. Student Affairs Dir., Distance Education Counsel/Spec Serv. Dir. Special Services Coord. Student Activities Coord. Assistant Registrar Student Navigator Point of Contact Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member vjackson@coastalpines.edu lroberts@coastalpines.edu tallen@coastalpines.edu ktaylor@coastalpines.edu jrowe@coastalpines.edu bdelaney@coastalpines.edu eaycock@coastalpines.edu apallas@coastalpines.edu pwilkerson@coastalpines.edu amorris@coastalpines.edu ajohnson@coastalpines.edu cswanson@coastalpines.edu cmontgomery@coastalpines.edu kboyle@coastalpines.edu sroberts@coastalpines.edu jcarter@coastalpines.edu lmccullough@coastalpines.edu Coastal Pines Technical College 86

87 Conclusion The most effective strategies include: 1. The promotion of dual enrollment opportunities for high school students. This strategy is assisting in creating interest in CPTC so that high school students recognize and choose CPTC as their postsecondary option. 2. Continual review of program offerings specifically aligned with the Complete College Georgia tracked programs. 3. Continual monitoring of student completion progress to identify students who have completed or are close to completing a Complete College Georgia tracked program. This information is then shared with faculty for more focused advisement efforts to encourage student completion of available awards. The least effective strategy includes: 1. The affiliation with The Achieving the Dream initiative will assist the college in designing future intervention strategies; however, the initiative has been less productive in improving the 2015 data than all other internally developed strategies, due to the fact that ATD is a new initiative begun in CPTC is establishing strong working relationships with the ATD data coaches, the data provided locally, and by the TCSG Datacenter which is focused on ATD strategies. During AY2016, more positive results should be shown. Next Steps Degree Production CPTC has implemented numerous strategies/interventions to increase completion toward meeting the College s CCG goal for As referenced earlier in this report, the Institutional Research department has identified approximately 45 CCG tracked programs that are closely associated and/or embedded with the College s current program offerings. During AY2016 CPTC plans to continue developing and adding these program offerings to provide more opportunities for student enrollment and program completion. Closely associated with developing new program offerings, CPTC will realize greater enrollment prospects as a result of the expansion of the Golden Isles campus offerings. Occupancy of the new building during spring 2016 will provide students with additional training in the areas of Cosmetology, Commercial Truck Driving, Computer Information Systems, Paramedicine, Practical Nursing, and Business Office Technology. New programs will begin in Neuromuscular Therapy and Health Information Management Coding. While the majority of CPTC students currently attend on the Waycross and Jesup campuses, the expansion of the Golden Isles campus is projected to become a key location in attracting students in the Brunswick area over the next five years. As evidenced by the growth in serving area high school students, CPTC plans to continue developing Move on When Ready (MOWR) partnerships in the service delivery area. CPTC is currently developing an array of TCCs to be offered in the high schools so that students can complete college level coursework and earn awards prior to graduating from high school. CPTC s commitment of resources, especially in the form of dedicated staffing, has been substantial. CPTC plans to continue providing these resources to serve the large service delivery area. In addition, CPTC is working at developing stronger and additional partnerships with area Board of Regents (BOR) institutions to provide additional opportunities for students including developing articulation agreements and pursing Associate of Science (A.S.) degrees. The Achieving the Dream (ATD) initiative will be promoted during AY2016. The College anticipates using the currently generated data center reports, in-house statistics, and analyses by ATD derived from National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) reporting to identify student success obstacles encountered based on ethnicity, gender, financial status, and those students in need of remedial support. The use of this information will support the College s review and revision of policies/procedures that perhaps contribute to deterring student success. Graduation Rates. CPTC will continue to develop partnerships with federal and state prisons in the service delivery area. These partnerships will enable CPTC to provide inmates with training to enhance their ability to gain employment Coastal Pines Technical College 87

88 when released. Programs offered in the prisons will be focused on CCG tracked programs such as Welding and Diesel Mechanics. CPTC is committed to not only providing this valuable service to inmates, but also considers this service to be of great assistance in reducing the recidivism rate in Georgia. The Student Affairs and Academic Affairs staff will continue to evaluate student progress to monitor student completion of available awards. Through the use of TEAMS and supported by the Student Navigator, the CPTC staff will remain focused on the identification of at-risk students who potentially may drop out prior to completing programs. In addition, efforts will continue in contacting students who withdraw, fail, or choose to non-return to classes. Currently CPTC has two foundation boards that provide support to students, Altamaha Technical College Foundation and Okefenokee Technical College Foundation. Both foundations are committed to continue providing support to students who express needs such as tuition assistance, money for books, transportation costs, uniforms/tools needed, and other instructional supplies. CPTC will continue to expand online course offerings to provide more availability options to students. The College will continue to provide Diversity Training for CPTC staff to assist in recruiting, advertising, admission, career guidance, academic advising, and program delivery. Success in Remedial Education. The College will continue evaluating the redesign of Reading and English learning support courses. CPTC plans to expand the opportunities for prospective students to participate in college entrance exam readiness. This will enable students who typically miss the cut off scores by 1 or 2 points to refresh skills learned in the past and improve their chances of attaining the cut-scores on the entrance exam. Summary of Resources Needed for Next Steps Resources needed for Increasing Degree Production are most often associated with human resources and time management in developing new program offerings, but monetary and intangible resources cannot be ignored. The expansion of the Golden Isles campus will require increased budgets to maintain and promote the new and existing programs. Support from the Brunswick community and other local education systems will be an essential resource for the ongoing growth of the site. The development of MOWR partnerships will require human resources support, advertising funding, and the backing of local school systems administrators. The same is true in collaboration with BOR institutions. All of these initiatives require the support of our legislators, competitively representing our interests. The ATD initiative will require local monetary resources to support staff development activities, as well as focused training in specialized software for more insightful data analysis. Resources needed for Increasing Graduation Rates will include monetary and human resource allocations to develop partnerships with federal and state prisons in our area. Supplies and instructional materials will be required in many cases, due to the limitations placed on prisoners. The success of the TEAMS initiative depends upon having people who are able to administer the software and counsel students. The more human resources available, the greater the results will be. CPTC will continue to rely on the monetary support of the ATC and OTC foundations for students who have exhausted all other revenue sources. CPTC will require ongoing funding and time allocation for instructors to expand online course offerings. External training resources will be necessary for diversity training in all departments of the College. Support and collaboration from sister colleges in the redesign of Reading and English support classes will be essential resources needed for Increasing Success in Remedial Education. Sharing and cooperation in the planning and development of expanded opportunities in college entrance exam readiness will also be needed. Tutoring services and materials will be needed to support tutoring activities. Coastal Pines Technical College 88

89 Chart #1: DEGREE PRODUCTION: Tracking Between AY2011 and AY Total Number of Awards Total # of Awards Cert < 1 yr Cert/Dip >= 1 and <2 yrs Cert/Dip >= 2 and <4 yrs Associate Degree Chart #2: HIGH SCHOOL ENROLLMENT: Tracking Between AY2013 and AY2015 High School Enrollment ATC OTC Combined CPTC Coastal Pines Technical College 89

90 Columbus Technical College Columbus Technical College 90

91 Overview Demographic Changes at Columbus Technical College Columbus Technical College Over the 5 year time period, 2007 to 2012, Columbus Technical College saw a decrease in full-time students from 1,407 down to 1,026. However, there was a significant increase in part-time students from 1,428 to 3,807 students. Further, the College saw an increase in full-time Hispanic students of 2.9%. However, there was a decrease of 31.6% of Black, non-hispanic full-time students and 27.7% of White, non-hispanic students. There was a decrease of 31.8% of Asian students and a decrease of 38.2% of students over the age of 25; however, there was an increase of 10.7% of students directly from high school. There was a decrease of 40.2% of male full-time students (CCA Context Metric1: Enrollment- Unduplicated Headcount.) An examination of the CCA Context Metric1: Enrollment-Unduplicated Headcount report revealed that there was a significant gain in part time students. It appears that more students were enrolled as part time students with significant increases in all nationalities. There was also a 123.6% increase in part-time students over the age of 25. A 150% increase in Black, non-hispanic and a 242% increase in female part-time students. Although the head count increased, there was a decrease in total credit hours which informs internal actions. This information informs the enrollment management plan which allows the team to intentionally target marketing efforts, level staffing for both faculty and administrative positions, and budget according to realized numbers. Analysis of the DC241 All Metrics Report Out of 830 first-time, full-time students, 183 (22%) were enrolled in remedial math and 82 (9.9%) were enrolled in remedial English. Further, 183 (22%) were enrolled in both math and English for a total of 448 (54%) enrolled in remedial courses college-wide. Ten Hispanic students were enrolled in both remedial math and remedial English. One hundred and seven Black, non-hispanic students were enrolled in both remedial math and remedial English, by comparison, there were only 56 White, non-hispanic students enrolled in both. There were 203 first time, full-time students over the age of 25. Only 34 of these students were enrolled in both remedial math and remedial English. There were 427 students enrolled directly from high school with 104 enrolled in remedial math and remedial English. Two hundred and sixty four students completed remedial courses within two academic years. Out of which 11 Hispanic students, 109 Black, non-hispanic, 128 White, non-hispanic, 2 Asian completed the remedial courses. There were also 95 males and 169 females that completed these courses. Finally, there were 140 students between the ages of 17-19, 56 between the ages of 20-24, and 68 students age 25 and older. One hundred and fifty eight of these students received Pell grant upon entry. Columbus Technical College 91

92 There were 168 students that completed a college level course in the same subject within their first two academic years. Out of which 5 Hispanic students, 70 Black, non-hispanic students, 82 White, non-hispanic students, and 1 Asian student completed the college level course. There were 60 males and 108 females. Seventy six students between the ages of years old, 39 between the ages of and 53 students age 25 and over. One hundred of the 168 students received Pell Grant upon entry. CCA Progress Metric 1: Enrollment in Remedial Education Goals 2015 Complete College Georgia (CCG) Progress Summary Goal Metric Actual Result a. To produce 758 CCG graduates in Degree Production/Graduation Rate b. To increase the graduation rate by approximately 5% in To increase the number of students successfully completing remedial education requirements and college-level courses in the same subject as remedial education after the significant decrease. Success in Remedial Education CTC produced 804 CCG graduates in The 100% graduation rate increased by 2.4%. The number of students successfully completing remedial math and English increased to 26.2%. Restructure Delivery Block Scheduling CTC increased retention in all but two of the blocked scheduled programs. Columbus Technical College continues its focus on increasing the number of graduates, increasing the retention rate, improving the success rate in remedial education, and restructure delivery, inclusive of block scheduling. Columbus Technical College 92

93 Goal 1: Increase the Number of Graduates Performance Metric: - Graduation Rate DC109 Awards by Program and DC241 Degree Production Awards Adj. Awards Adj. Awards Adj. Awards Awards PAS Group Program FY2011 AY2012 AY2013 FY2014 AY AAS-Health AAS-Technical Studies AAS-Business AAS-Personal Public Service Accounting Carpentry Welding and Joining Technology Air Conditioning Technology Business and Office Technology Appliance Servicing Auto Collision Repair Automotive Technology Machine Tool Technology Management-Supervisory Development Surgical Technology Certified Economic Development Computer Information Systems Physical Therapist Assistant Early Childhood Care and Education Cosmetology Criminal Justice Culinary Arts Dental Assisting Dental Hygiene Radiologic Technology Drafting Environmental Horticulture Banking and Finance Health Care Assistant Hotel-Restaurant-Travel Management Industrial Systems Technology Medical Assisting Practical Nursing and Related Programs Nursing Paralegal Studies Pharmacy Technology Medical Laboratory Technology Respiratory Therapy Technology TOTAL 1,347 1,279 1,311 1,377 1,189 Strategies/Interventions: Analysis reveals that the single largest category of students being dropped or withdrawing is for non-attendance, approximately 60% of the total withdrawals. Student feedback is that they had little avenue for appeal and that often they were dropped by the instructor for non-attendance without an opportunity to continue. The Technical Early Alert Management System (TEAMS) is intended to assist with this effort. Columbus Technical College 93

94 According to the Technical College System of Georgia System Scorecard, the graduation rate for Columbus Technical College increased from % to 54.5% in years 2014 to 2015, respectively. However, the retention rate decreased from 59.9% to 57.9% for the same years. This reflects an increase in the graduation rate of approximately 2.4%, and a 2% overall decrease in retention. The overall number of awards decreased from 1,377 in 2014 to 1,189 in The most significant decreases in awards were in the Automotive Technology, Auto Collision, Early Childhood Education, and Health Care Assistant programs. Small award increases for the same time period were noted in some of the Health Sciences programs including Pharmacy Technology and Medical Laboratory Technology. The number of program awards remained relatively consistent in 2014 and 2015 in Computer Information Systems, Management-Supervisory Development, and Certified Economic Development programs. This is an indication of the relevance of the programs and the demand in the service area. This information will assist in the development of new programs, marketing efforts, and class scheduling. From fiscal year 2007 to fiscal year 2012 the percentage increase of graduates in the certificate/diploma, less than one academic year, was 108.1% and from fiscal year 2008 to fiscal year 2013 the increase was 187%. The certificate/diploma, more than one academic year, but less than two years, from fiscal year 2007 to fiscal year 2012 increased by 21.4% and from fiscal year 2008 to 2013 the increase was 80%. The certificate/diploma, at least two years, but less than four years, increased from fiscal year 2007 to fiscal year 2012 by 15.6%; however, from fiscal year 2008 to fiscal year 2013 there was a degree production decrease of 61.6%. The most notable decreases during this time frame were among females, White, non-hispanics, and in the Health Science disciplines. The associate degree production from fiscal year 2007 to fiscal year 2012 was 35.1% and 33.6% from fiscal years 2008 to fiscal years One of the most critical areas where students need assistance is with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) renewal. The College identified that almost twenty percent of Pell Grant recipients do not successfully re-apply for aid, either because they do not know they have to reapply, or they forget. Thus, they do not have the required funds to return to the College. Failure to complete this basic step impedes a student s continued enrollment for a second year, thus impacting institutional retention. Withdrawal Reason # W % W Excessive Absences % Other % Academic Difficulty % Work Conflict % Illness/Medical % Financial % Moving Out Of Region % Childcare % Transportation % Student has 6 zeros and a 0-F average % Student requested I drop her, her work hours are a conflict % Difficulty Using Technology 1 0.0% TOTAL % Columbus Technical College reviewed the reasons and the timing of withdrawals. Students can self-withdraw, or they can be administratively withdrawn. The College also identified specific months when withdrawals spike and will host some of the specific activities mentioned throughout the Improvement Plan during these months to reduce the number of withdrawals. The most noted reason for administrative withdrawals is excessive absences. As a result, many of these students did not meet Satisfactory Academic Progress, and therefore, were not eligible for continued participation in federal financial aid, again impacting the overall retention rate. Columbus Technical College 94

95 Lastly, the College reviewed the withdrawal rate by program and course. By far, the learning support courses consistently have the highest withdrawal rates. The greatest reasoning was excessive absences. Early intervention strategies will be used to ensure these students are identified and appropriate action taken to ensure students are successfully completing the courses that launch them into successful completion of for credit programs. Withdrawal Concentration Factor of Selected Courses Course #W %W %CTC Conc. Factor ENGL % 1.8% 2.57 READ % 1.1% 2.33 ALHS % 1.5% 2.18 MATH % 1.2% 2.11 MATH % 5.4% 1.99 MATH % 2.2% 1.83 ALHS % 2.6% 1.67 ENGL % 1.6% 1.65 SPCH % 1.6% 1.50 EMPL % 1.7% 1.48 ALHS % 1.9% 1.34 ENGL % 2.4% 1.19 PSYC % 2.5% 1.07 COMP % 4.9% 0.95 Resources Allocated: The entire campus is dedicated to improving graduation and retention. Every department has the responsibility to monitor retention and graduation rates. It is not solely the responsibility of Student Affairs. The reports mentioned previously were compiled by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness. Although the primary source of funding for the support labs was a PBI grant, there was approximately $485,000 dedicated to support labs, thereby increasing retention and graduation rates. Obstacles: One of the most significant obstacles of this goal was inconsistent tracking of graduation and retention rates throughout the semester. In addition, the advising process was not as streamlined and communication between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs was not as consistent. These issues have been addressed. Goal 2: Transform Remediation Performance Metric: Success in Remedial Education and DC241 All Metric Summary Strategies/Interventions : The strategies implemented as part of the Computer Literacy quality enhancement plan include: implementing pre-assessment for new students on computer literacy, developing remediation modules as part of the SEMN 1000 course, establishing a tutoring and skills lab (including funding a lab coordinator to deliver tutoring services and investing in software that assist in targeted skill development), implementing Student Learning Outcomes (SLO) for computer literacy across all programs at the College (including rubrics for assessing the effectiveness of the learning experiences), and post-tests to be able to demonstrate that graduates have attained established standards. Computer Literacy across the College is the focus of the College s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). The analysis revealed that students were often unsuccessful in courses such as the Learning Support and COMP 1000 courses because the module format of the courses. The courses have been redesigned and success rates will be tracked throughout the academic year. Computer Literacy Students were tested for computer literacy using the Accuplacer Computer Skills Placement, by the College Board. After testing, summary and descriptive statistics were produced. It is the goal of the initiative, to bring all incoming students to the 60th percentile, and address any specific deficiencies that will impede their success in the coursework in their program of study. Columbus Technical College 95

96 Success in Learning support courses that translate to being able to get into College-level classes more quickly, while increasing success rates. To date some elements of the design appear to be contributing to lower success rates, including handling the technology (addressed in the technology/computer literacy initiative see above), and problems with the self-directed approach with less instruction and less individual attention. Math Breaking out lecture component so in the classroom there can be simultaneous peer tutoring by a qualified student assistant. Competencies in Order of Committee Preference (2015) Category/Competency Avg. Score Spreadsheets 44% Basic Concepts 45% Presentations 39% Word Processing 56% File Management 65% Information and Communication 69% Overall 52% These results vary from the overall 2014 average of 49%. The QEP Data Committee determined that databases could be removed as part of this basic curriculum. The average for basic concepts remained the same for 2014 and The file management average decreased by 2% and word processing decreased by 8%.The Committee was comprised of Columbus Technical College Members; however, this year the College is taking one step further to include the feedback of employers in the weighted averages to ensure the students are workforce ready. Resources Allocated: Approximately $38,500 was allocated to this initiative. This is inclusive of expenses for course materials, use of Accuplacer, training, software maintenance, registration and travel for key personnel. Other resources include the salary for Dean of Academic Support and other key Academic personnel and the time and effort of the Office of Institutional Effectiveness. Obstacles: Some of the obstacles faced were consistency in the use of data, consistency of student testing, and communication. Student Affairs facilitates the testing of students; however, there was some miscommunication in one of the terms and some students were not tested. This issue has been resolved. Goal 3: Restructure Delivery Performance metric: DC200 Retention Rate by Program and DC243 Graduation Rate by Program AY 2015 Major Level Award Cohort Transferred Graduated Enrolled Total Retained Retent. Rate Grad. Rate Accounting Diploma AC % 0% Accounting Degree AC % 0% Air Conditioning % 71% Diploma ACT2 Technology Automotive % 57% Diploma AT14 Technology Medical N/A N/A Diploma MA22 Assisting Networking % 17% Diploma NS14 Specialist Networking % 0% Degree NS13 Specialist Columbus Technical College 96

97 Major Accounting Accounting Air Conditioning Technology Automotive Technology Medical Assisting Networking Specialist Networking Specialist Level Diploma Degree Diploma Diploma Diploma Diploma Degree Award AC12 AC13 ACT2 AT14 MA22 NS14 NS13 Retention Rate Graduation Rate Retention Rate Graduation Rate Retention Rate Graduation Rate Retention Rate Graduation Rate 44% 50% 60% 100% 100% 27% 62% 19% 10% 30% 100% 100% 9% 15% 20% 17% 36% 38% 100% 19% 24% 0% 17% 32% 38% 100% 5% 5% 33% 13% 58% 52% N/A 55% 22% 0% 0% 4% 42% N/A 0% 0% 25% 100% 71% 65% N/A 33% 20% 0% 0% 71% 57% N/A 17% 0% Strategies/Interventions: Blocked scheduling are accelerated programs delivered using a cohort model in which learners will attend as a group. Courses were scheduled during times based on cohort needs for 4-8 hour blocks, depending on the program requirements. The block scheduling has had a positive impact on some programs and a negative impact on others. While the retention and graduation rates cannot solely be the contributed to block scheduling, the curriculum design and student outcomes reflect that block scheduling for the aforementioned programs are beneficial. Resources Allocated: Time and effort of the staff and faculty involved remains the greatest resource used. In addition, consistent evaluation of the courses and faculty allows the college to continue to improve upon the curriculum, delivery methods, teaching strategies, and relevant practices within the respective fields of study. Obstacles: The most challenging obstacle is evaluation of the courses because students may be enrolled in courses they have not completed. Careful attention will be made to ensure each course is evaluated. Columbus Technical College 97

98 Student Success Implementation Team Full Name Title/Position Role (Point of Contact or Member) Address Monique Baucham V.P. I.E. P.O.C. Tara Askew V.P. Student Affairs Student Affairs Dr. Melanie Thornton V.P. Academic Affairs Academic Affairs Meg Burkhardt Olive Vidal-Kendall Ken Lockhart Kermelle Hensley Will Burgan Varonika Hardman Trina Lumbard Conclusion CARE and Advisement Centers Director Director Disability and Special Director PBI Student Success Center AVP Enrollment Services/Registrar Dean of Academic Support Writing Support Lab, Coordinator Learning and Math Lab Coordinator Orientation Revamp/Career Counseling Strategies/Education Plans Services Pre-Enrollment Testing Success Center Initiatives Graduation rates Learning Support Writing Support Math Lab Most successful strategies/interventions: One of the most successful strategies was the solicitation of feedback from students regarding course instruction. An initial pilot study of course evaluations was facilitated. Four classes, one in each academic division, were selected to participate in this pilot study. The pilot achieved a response rate of 72% overall. As a result of the pilot study, the College made the adjustment to implement consistent course evaluations so that each course would be evaluated at least once a year. In addition, data dissemination and an increase in collaboration between the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Academic Affairs was also a significant adjustment. Least effective strategies/interventions: It is too early on to determine if the TEAMS initiative will achieve the desired results; however, targeted advising is working well. In addition, distribution of the retention data has strongly encouraged Deans to work actively with Program Directors to target and identify specific interventions to improve retention rates. Consistent communication between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs and usage policies will enhance the use of TEAMS to determine whether or not it is a successful initiative. Other strategies including discipline specific advising, mentorship programs, and support labs are all intervention strategies that have been used; however, the impact has not be determined. These strategies will also continue to be evaluated. Next Steps The College has increased its ability to collect and analyze data. The College created a SAS Data Warehouse of student, course, instructor, awards, and financial information. The SAS system allows for integrating variables not collected in Banner, for example, and running of correlations with categorical variables collected through the student tracking system. This improves the analytical level of reports since it provides the capacity to drill down into the data, focusing on specific courses, cohorts, delivery methods, departments, individual students etc. The primary objective of the analysis will be to be able to develop student completer profiles at the program level to identify profiles of successful students. Predictive Analytic models for metrics such as enrollment and retention are still under construction. The investment into SAS is $1, a year. Also, approximately $40,000 has been allocated for Class Climate, an additional evaluative tool. Columbus Technical College 98

99 Class Climate will assist in capturing students opinions regarding instructional effectiveness. This indirect measure will be used along with the direct measures to confirm student learning. The Institutional Effectiveness Committee representing, a cross reference of college constituents reviewing the effectiveness of the overall strategies of the College is also a resource needed for the additional steps. The College also identified specific courses and times throughout the semester when withdrawals increase. Surveys will be distributed to students enrolled in the identified courses early in the semester to determine the specific academic and student support services needed to prevent withdrawal and/or excessive absences. The targeted students will be identified by TEAMS. The pilot survey will focus on those students in the learning support and general education courses, which are the courses with the most attendance challenges. In addition, a representative from Student Affairs will visit the classes after the completion of the survey to discuss the types of support services that are available. The survey will be anonymous; however, students that feel they need assistance will have the opportunity to self-identify. The Student Navigator will contact those students. Additionally, the College will attempt to contact recently withdrawn students via telephone to facilitate the survey. Finally, Columbus Technical College recognizes that academic advisement is a vital part of student retention. Retention literature recognizes advising as one of the most effective strategies for improving student success. The implementation of programmatic group advisement sessions will create an opportunity for students to learn from one another. By conducting group advisement by program of study, students enrolled in nontraditional programs connect to a peer group. These connections are instrumental in establishing a student s sense of belonging to their program of choice and the institution as a whole. Students also have the option to seek one-on-one advising. All of these steps are expected to increase retention rates, thereby increasing graduation rates. Professional development for faculty and staff on the use of technology, including computer skills, is needed to be able to integrate technology into the curriculum and Blackboard training for integration in January Columbus Technical College 99

100 Georgia Piedmont Technical College Georgia Piedmont Technical College 100

101 Overview Georgia Piedmont Technical College In the six year time frame, from FY 2008 to AY 2013, Georgia Piedmont Technical College saw an increase in overall enrollment of 2.4%. This increase resulted from an increase in the enrollment of part-time (transfer and non-transfer) students as shown below in Table 1. The college saw declines, however, for full-time (transfer and non-transfer) students. Table One: Enrollment Total Students (KMS Report DC241) Enrollment Status Percent change: Total Students Full-time -17.1% Part-time +19.0% Full-time Transfer -18.4% Part-time Transfer +9.8% TOTAL +2.4% The declines among our full-time student populations (transfer and non-transfer) may be related to several issues. First, between FY 2008 and AY 2013, GPTC, with the rest of the TCSG system, underwent a conversion from quarters to semesters. Under quarters, the typical course load was two to three five-hour classes (10-15 credit hours). Immediately after the conversion, students continued to take a typical load of two to three classes, thus completing only six to nine credit hours of coursework. The semester conversion occurred during the 2012 Academic Year and the shift from fulltime to part-time is much more dramatic in that data set (full-time enrollment dropped by 43% during the five year period ending with AY2012 while part-time enrollment grew by 45.2 percent). Further, between 2008 and 2013, the economy first declined and then began to improve. Typically, enrollment increases during a sluggish economy and decreases in a robust economy. Our enrollment reflects that tendency. As per KMS Enrollment report DC126, we have the following annual enrollments over the six years. Note the increase through 2010 and subsequent decline. Table Two: Enrollment (KMS Report DC126) Year Enrollment The poor economy may have resulted in more students needing to work while attending school. In order to both work and take classes, students will generally attempt a smaller course load, shifting them from full-time to part-time status. This is also supported by the increase in the percentage of students receiving a Pell grant across all enrollment classifications as shown below. These increases demonstrate that our students had a stronger need for support and so may have been more likely to be attempting to balance work and school. Table Three: Income Received Pell Grant at Entry (KMS Report DC241) Enrollment Status Percent change in students receiving Pell Full-time +65.2% Part-time % Full-time Transfer +33.5% Part-time Transfer % Georgia Piedmont Technical College 101

102 The college s largest demographic populations are Black, non-hispanic and White, non-hispanic. During the time frame under consideration, the percentage of white, non-hispanic students declined for all enrollment categories, resulting in an overall decline of nearly 25 percent. This trend is worth noting and will require further study. The population of Black, non-hispanic students who enrolled on a part-time basis increased notably. These increases counterbalanced the declines in full-time enrollments for that demographics and thus giving an overall increase of nearly eight percent. Also, while our population of Hispanic students is still small (111 students in FY 2008), we saw a large percentage increase across all enrollment categories. This resulted in an overall increase in the enrollment of Hispanic students by approximately 55 percent during the six year time-frame. During this time period, the college had two recruiters who were Hispanic. This increase may have resulted from their specific efforts. Table Four: Enrollment Race (KMS Report DC241) Full-time Part-time Full-time Transfer Part-Time Transfer Black, Non-Hispanic -13.3% +30.9% -15.4% +12.5% White, Non-Hispanic -33.0% -23.2% -42.8% -8.9% Hispanic +30.8% +29.4% +46.2% % When examining the gender breakdown of our student population, we also find the same trend: enrollments among the Full-time and Full-time transfer categories in each gender declined, while enrollment of students in the part-time (transfer and non-transfer) categories increased notably as shown below. We note that the declines for full-time male students are smaller than those for female students resulting in a smaller gap between enrollment by males and enrollment by females. Table Five: Enrollment Gender (KMS Report DC241) Full-time Part-time Full-time Transfer Part-Time Transfer Male -7.7% +24.3% -0.6% +17.7% Female -25.4% +15.6% -27.4% +6.0% We grouped our students in three age categories: Age 17-19, Age 20 24, and Age 25+. We note here that the decline among the younger age groups for full-time enrollment status is larger than the overall college enrollment in that category. In 2010, the law changed to allow dependents to stay on their parents insurance until the age of 26 without being enrolled in college full-time. Prior to this change, many younger students needed to take a full-time course load for insurance purposes. This change likely impacted the percentage of full-time students for the two younger age groups, as they no longer had to take a full course load to remain on their parents insurance. Table Six: Enrollment Age (KMS Report DC241) Full-time Part-time Full-time Transfer Part-Time Transfer Age % +3.4% -14.6% +25.5% Age % +13.2% -10.7% +41.0% Age % +24.5% -21.1% +1.4% As a final look at our change in enrollment, we consider the change in students taking remedial courses on entry. We see from the data below that the percentage of students taking Learning Support increased for all enrollment categories, with the increase being more dramatic among part-time students. The larger percentage increase for parttime students may result from the recommendations of the Academic Advisors. When students place into Learning Support, especially when they place in multiple areas of Learning Support, they are encouraged to take a reduced load and focus on completion of the Learning Support requirements. Georgia Piedmont Technical College 102

103 Table Seven: Remedial Classes (KMS Report DC241) Enrollment Status Percent change in students taking remedial classes Full-time +33.1% Part-time % Full-time Transfer +38.6% Part-time Transfer % Goals Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7% annually over the previous goal. Performance Metrics: We have continued to see an increase in both the number of graduates and the number of awards. The following graph indicating the number of graduates is based on KMS report: CCG Degree Production Tracker College DC293. Graph One: Degree Production (KMS Report DC293) The bulk of the increase between 2008 and 2013, according to KMS report DC246: Degree Production is due to a 53.8 percent increase in numbers of Certificates (less than one academic year) of Economic Value. We saw a slight decline for Certificates/Diplomas of at least one year but less than two years (-3.6 percent), and a large decline (72.4 percent) in the awarding of the larger Certificates/Diplomas of at least two years but less than four years. The college had a slight increase (4.2 percent) in the number of Degrees awarded. The decline in number of Certificates/Diplomas of at least two years but less than four years is likely the result of the shortening of the Practical Nursing program. Under the quarter system, the program was classified as a larger certificate/diploma program. Under semester, the program requirements were reduced and the program became classified as a Certificate/Diploma of at least one year but less than two years program. The decrease in Certificates/Diplomas of at least one year but less than two years was likely the result of the elimination of several programs at the college, including Surgical Technology, Printing and Graphics Technology, Machine Tool Technology, and Medical Assisting. Strategies, Resources & Obstacles: Several strategies were implemented to support this effort to increase the number of graduates. These strategies, as well as resources and obstacles are listed below. Implementing intrusive advising for beginning students. GPTC started its First Year Focus (FYF) initiative for students registering for the first time in fall The expectation was that this would improve retention in the short term and graduation The FYF program is a multi-stage intrusive advising initiative. New students, after being accepted to the college, take the placement test. Immediately upon completion of the Georgia Piedmont Technical College 103

104 placement test, students are directed to the Advising, Career and Retention Services (ACRS) office. There they participate in a goals discussion with the advising staff. In this session, the student s major and career goals are discussed and preliminary information regarding the program that best suits their goals is shared. The student is then asked to register for a FYF Educational Planning Session (EPS). After attending the EPS, students are advised and assisted with registration. Implementing the FYF involved dedicating staff for this advising. The staff were trained in the implementation of an intrusive advising program. Print and electronic materials were developed in support of this initiative. A classroom was dedicated halftime (Mondays & Wednesdays) for the EPSs. Starting with the Spring 2016 term, this room will be dedicated full-time to FYF. Early attendance at the EPSs was low. This led to a reduction in the frequency of sessions, making it more difficult at times to get students to attend. Some students did not wish to fully participate in the FYF program. Generally, these were students who took a day off from work to complete the testing and registration process. In cases where students refused to return for an EPS, the staff worked to provide an individual EPS. Further challenges arose as deadlines and the start of the term approached. Trying to balance the need to return for a mandatory EPS with the need to get the students enrolled was difficult. Having the fully dedicated classroom will allow the ACRS staff to hold EPSs frequently each day leading up to the start of classes. A final challenge is that of staffing. At any given time, there are only three to four staff members in the ACRS office. Additional staffing may be needed to ensure that all students are able to participate. We are also working to create an online version of the EPS to allow additional options for those who cannot attend an on-campus session. Increasing the number of relevant credentials. GPTC continually reviews its program offerings to ensure that students can complete the credentials that are needed to work in today s economy. New programs have been added and existing programs have been expanded to additional campus locations. In 2015, four particular new programs led to additional graduates. The Contact Lens Technician TCC, Computer System Design Specialist TCC, Early Childhood Care and Education Basics TCC, and the HR Management Degree led to 109 additional credentials earned. (Source: KMS Report DC 303). Some of these programs required little in the way of additional resources. The Early Childhood Basics and the Computer System Design Specialist programs consisted of courses already being taught. Thus, no new resources were needed. The addition of the HR Management program to the Newton campus required the hiring of a new full-time instructor. Additionally, as the program has grown some adjunct instructors have been needed. Small classes were kept at the start of this program to support its growth. In the case of the Opticianry s Contact Lens program, the college hired a new full-time Opticianry instructor, as well as several adjunct instructors, and has allocated funds to support needed lab equipment. This program had been previously offered and was restarted after a short hiatus. Some of the equipment was still on hand and in working order, but much has needed to be updated. Proactively identify graduates. Prior to the semester conversion, GPTC worked to proactively identify those individuals who had completed requirements for a credential, but who had not applied for graduation and awarded those credentials. In 2012, with the semester conversion, and the implementation of DegreeWorks, this process was stopped temporarily. We started this process again in 2013, resulting in a noticeable increase in graduates and awards. Georgia Piedmont Technical College 104

105 Table Eight: Percentage change in number of graduates/awards (KMS Report DC306) Year Percent Change in Graduates Percent Change in Awards % +13.2% % +2.4% % +66.7% % -31.4% % +22.2% Electronic reports have been written to identify those students who should have graduated, and these reports are provided to the staff in the Registrar s office. We are investigating mechanisms to notify students of these awards and ensure that they receive them when appropriate. We may need additional staff to ensure that all credentials are awarded to the students who earn them. Transform Remediation: We chose this goal to work on as a support for the goal of increasing the number of graduates, as we believe that the transformation of remediation is fundamental to increasing the number of graduates. Given that, at this time, approximately twenty percent of our population begins its college work in remedial classes, we must ensure that our students can be successful in this environment so that they can transition to their chosen program of study and ultimately complete their education. Performance Metrics: As we have transformed our Learning Support courses, we have found that the enrollment in LS classes as a percentage of total enrollment continues to decline. We consider this to be a positive change as more of our students are entering the college as college-ready and so do not require Learning Support. Graph Two: Learning Support enrollment as a percentage of total enrollment (KMS Data Reports LB178 and DC185) LS Enrollment (% of college enrollment) 50.00% 40.00% 30.00% 20.00% 10.00% 0.00% 27.80% 28.90% 24.80% 19.70% In considering success in the LS classes specifically, we show a steady increase in the percentage of students who are have been successful in Math (an increase 17 percentage points over the four years) and in Reading (an increase 10 percentage points). The success of students in Learning Support English, which has had our highest success rates of the three areas, has varied slightly, but overall is flat. Georgia Piedmont Technical College 105

106 Table Nine: Successful Completion of Learning Support by year (KMS Data Report LB178) Area English 58% 62% 59% 57% Math 39% 48% 46% 56% Reading 51% 54% 56% 61% Strategies, Resources & Obstacles: In our ongoing effort to Transform Learning Support, we piloted a co-requisite remediation strategy. In this strategy, students were allowed to complete both a LS class and the partner gateway course. We enrolled a total of 45 students into 43 paired classes. We found that students were notably less likely to withdraw from the gateway class in the pilot study than overall. Further, students in the spring pilot were more successful than the spring term general population. In all, we believe this to be a promising program and so we are preparing to scale this up. Table Ten: Co-requisite Remediation Pilot results (BANNER Grade reports) Successful (A,B,C) Not-Successful (D,F) Fall Pilot 70.4% 22.2% 3.7% Withdrew (W,WF) Fall overall 72.2% 19.0% 8.8% Spring Pilot 81.3% 12.5% 6.3% Spring overall 62.5% 21.2% 16.3% Total Pilot 76.7% 18.6% 4.7% Total overall 67.8% 20.0% 12.3% This pilot was funded by a grant from the Merancas Foundation. The grant funds paid a stipend to faculty for teaching one or both of the co-requisite courses. Additionally, the grant provided scholarships to the top-performing students in the program. When this program is brought to scale, the stipends will not be provided for faculty teaching the courses. Training will be needed for faculty teaching students participating in the co-requisite remediation program. Student progress will be monitored to ensure that all proper and necessary support is provided. The primary obstacle to the success of this program was the mechanism by which students were identified as eligible. In order to facilitate the co-requisite classes, specific sections of Learning Support were identified and paired to specific sections of the gateway classes. All students in the identified sections were approached at the start of the term and offered the opportunity to participate, regardless of their placement scores. Those students who elected not to participate generally indicated that they did not wish to alter their schedule by adding a course at that late date. The approach that will be taken going forward will be to identify eligible students based on their placement scores and, through the First Year Focus advising program, encourage them to participate. They will be able to select the courses they wish to take based on their availability. We expect, as a result, to have a larger participation rate. We further expect that the successes in the pilot will continue to the scaled program. Restructuring Delivery: Restructuring delivery is vital to increasing the number of graduates as this will help to accelerate the students on their pathways. By incorporating block scheduling into our programs, we have seen an increased graduation rate. We have made the commitment to this type of scheduling so that we can increase the graduation rates for all programs. Georgia Piedmont Technical College 106

107 Performance Metrics: The results of the implementation of block scheduling at GPTC are included in the tables below. Table Eleven A indicates the percentage of students who are still attending classes this semester (201612) and Table Eleven B indicates the percentage of students who have graduated. We see a strong increase in retention in AY 2014 for the Accounting and Air Conditioning programs. We see a strong increase in graduation rates in the Air Conditioning degree program, as well as in the Automotive and Networking programs. Medical Assisting is not included here as it was not offered at Georgia Piedmont during this time frame. In comparison, the total results for all other degree and diploma programs college wide are shown. This is the results for those programs that are not currently scheduled in blocks. The results have been mixed. The Accounting (degree and diploma) and Air Conditioning Technology degree have shown greater than average retention rates for 2013 and Automotive Technology (degree and diploma), Networking Specialist (degree and diploma) and the Air Conditioning Technology degree have shown greater than average graduation rates for 2013 and Given, that the majority of programs did better than the comparison group, we believe that this can be successful for a broader range of programs. Table Eleven A: Block Scheduling Retention Impact (KMS Report DC302) Level Major Diploma Accounting 6.8% 22.0% 53.3% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology 2.5% 34.6% 50.0% Diploma Automotive Technology 15.4% 3.6% 3.4% Diploma Networking Specialist 3.8% 4.9% 30.3% Diploma Non-Blocked Diploma programs 8.2% 15.1% 32.6% Degree Accounting 10.9% 18.0% 50.0% Degree Air Conditioning Technology 0% 13.3% 36.0% Degree Automotive Technology 0% 2.9% 8.1% Degree Networking Specialist 3.0% 14.8% 21.2% Degree Non-Blocked Degree programs 9.6% 15.8% 31.8% Table Eleven B: Block Scheduling Graduation Impact (KMS Report DC302) Level Major Diploma Accounting 35.6% 27.1% 6.7% Diploma Automotive Technology 69.2% 70.6% 72.4% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology 30.9% 12.3% 15.9% Diploma Networking Specialist 44.2% 53.6% 33.3% Diploma Non-Blocked Diploma programs 22.6% 22.0% 20.9% Degree Accounting 37.0% 24.6% 20.3% Degree Air Conditioning Technology 34.6% 33.3% 32.0% Degree Automotive Technology 69.4% 58.8% 67.5% Georgia Piedmont Technical College 107

108 Level Major Degree Networking Specialist 45.5% 35.2% 31.9% Degree Non-Blocked Degree programs 35.0% 26.2% 28.5% Strategies, Resources & Obstacles: The primary strategy employed to restructure delivery has been through block scheduling. Beginning with the spring semester, we are implementing block scheduling with every program. Potential blocks will be created for morning, afternoon, evening, weekend, and online students. Each program will determine the most appropriate blocks for their student population. We expect that this will lead to increased retention and graduation across all programs. As we develop the schedule for the spring semester, specific blocks will be identified and publicized for our students. We plan to share the blocks with our academic and program advisors to ensure that all students are made aware of this initiative. We further anticipate that this will lead to an increase in FTE as we believe that students will be able to take more classes on average through the blocked schedule format. The resources required for implementation are minimal, as this is a scheduling initiative. The obstacles to this process are related to our administrative culture, and can be minimized through training administrators in the best practices of scheduling. Student Success Implementation Team To date, we have used our Achieving the Dream (ATD) leadership and data teams as the model for our Student Success Implementation (SSI) Team. As such, institutional data prepared by our Director of Research is reviewed and discussed by the data team. Concerns and recommendations from that team are shared with the leadership team at regular meetings. The leadership team then selects the ideas to implement and establishes an implementation team as needed. Updates to the college community are shared by supervisors to their respective teams. This model has not been effective to the level we expect in helping to implement student success initiatives. Further, GPTC is currently undergoing reorganization. A new Executive Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs is being hired. Once this new EVP is on board, the Student Success Implementation Team structure will be reviewed and revised. Current members of the Student Success Implementation Team and their particular roles are indicated in Table Twelve. Table Twelve: Student Success Implementation Team Name Position Role Dr. Jabari Simama President Ex-Officio Dr. Ivan Harrell Dr. Mariam Dittmann EVP Academic & Student Affairs (effective 10/21) VP Institutional Effectiveness & Technology Lead for SSI Team Lead for Data Team, Member SSI Team VACANT Director of Research Co-Lead for Data Team, Member SSI Team Mr. Mark Hicks Dean, Academic Affairs Member SSI Team Dr. Debra Gordon Dean, Academic Affairs Member SSI Team & Data Team Ms. Candice Jones Dean, Student Affairs Member SSI Team & Data Team Mr. Keith Sagers Chief Operating Officer Member SSI Team Dr. Tony Neal Heather Pence VP Institutional Advancement Member SSI Team VP Business & Financial Services Member SSI Team Georgia Piedmont Technical College 108

109 Conclusion Name Position Role Sharon Haworth PBI Project Director Member SSI Team & Data Team Keith Perry Director of IT Member SSI Team & Data Team Carl Patterson Student Navigator Member SSI Team Howard Shulman Faculty Member Data Team Amit Dave Faculty Member Data Team Kye Haymore Faculty Member Data Team Bill Lyle Faculty Member Data Team Dr. Terry Richardson ACRS Staff Member SSI Team & Data Team Mr. Corey Parker Director of Admissions Member SSI Team & Data Team Mr. Francis Nyandeh Division Chair Member Data Team Maria Johnson Faculty Member Data Team Angela Cummings Director of ACRS Member SSI Team & Data Team In support of the goal of increasing the number of CCGa graduates, the most successful strategies, in terms of least resources and largest immediate impact are Increasing the number of relevant credentials and Proactively identifying graduates. These initiatives were immediately and noticeably effective on this goal. All other strategies implemented are seen as promising and will be continued and monitored. As the new structure for the Student Success Implementation Team is put into place, these initiatives will be further analyzed and any adjustments made will be noted for future reports. The least effective of these initiatives was the pilot of the Co-requisite Remediation project. Initially, it was expected that more students would be interested in participating. However, because the students were not identified until after the start of the term, many were not able to participate. By shifting the identification of students to the advising process during FYF, we expect to be able to identify and recruit more students. The resources needed to scale up this pilot will be minimal as students will be advised into co-requisite sections at the start of the term. Going forward, students participating in this program will be provided special support through the Student Success Tutoring Center. Additional staff may be needed to handle this load, but current expectations are that the tutoring center staff will be sufficient to handle the students who elect to participate. In an effort to improve the First Year Focus results, GPTC will identify, and hire as needed, dedicated First Year Advisors. These advisors will be available to work with new students and will provide the additional needed support to help the FYF initiative to grow and improve. Georgia Piedmont Technical College 109

110 Next Steps Accountability: Complete a comprehensive program review and develop a college Academic Master Plan During the current Academic Year, GPTC will complete a thorough program review process. Faculty and staff will examine the effectiveness and relevance of each program in the college. This will be a data driven process. The Institutional Effectiveness & Technology division will provide the necessary data and will serve as consultants to each program during the review process. After the review is completed, an Academic Master Plan (AMP) will be developed. The AMP will outline programs that are no longer relevant and will identify those new programs that need to be added. The necessary resources (equipment, space, and faculty) for adding these programs will be identified as a part of the Master Planning Process. Establish the Strategic Enrollment Council The Strategic Enrollment Council (SEC) will serve as the primary implementation team for enrollment management strategies. There may be some overlap with the Student Success Implementation Team. The SEC will serve to identify issues and concerns in college enrollment, will work to propose solutions to those issues and concerns, and will be accountable for the implementation of those solutions. Necessary resources will be identified based on the proposed solutions. Communication: Expand use of the TEAMS Early Alert System The TEAMS Early Alert System has been used exclusively for Learning Support classes. The Learning Support Coaches (affiliated with our LS lab) have been primarily responsible for entering and managing alerts. Under the direction of our Student Navigator, the faculty of the Arts & Sciences division will be trained in the use of the TEAMS system beginning in the spring semester. Use of TEAMS by the remainder of the divisions will be phased in over the next year. Resources needed include training for the faculty and staff in the use of the software. We may need additional staff to provide responses to alerts as they occur. Improve College Readiness and Access: Implement a credit-based ESOL program The college is preparing to add an English for Speakers of Other Languages program to its curriculum. Many of our students are international and do not speak English as their primary language. The Learning Support curriculum is not sufficient for these students to prepare for collegiate English courses. The ESOL curriculum is specially designed for language acquisition. Resources needed include faculty (full-time and adjunct) to teach the classes. The placement test for ESOL is already in place at our testing center. We will need to provide training to staff in regards to the appropriate placement of these ESOL students. Georgia Piedmont Technical College 110

111 Transform Remediation: Implement an online tutoring support process for Learning Support Classes As an outreach of the college s grant funded Learning Support Lab, we are exploring mechanisms for adding online tutoring and coaching support for Learning Support classes. An increasing number of our students are taking their LS classes online and are unable to come to campus to visit the LS lab for tutoring and support. We are exploring options to provide this support to this growing population. As this will be grant funded, new resources by the college will not be required until the grant ends. When the grant ends, the LS Lab will be combined with the Students Success Tutoring Center. We will need additional funding to employ the LS coaches/tutors past the end of the grant. We may need ongoing financial support for the online tutoring solution. We will likely require support from the IT department for the technology that will be employed as a part of the solution. Georgia Piedmont Technical College 111

112 Georgia Northwestern Technical College Georgia Northwestern Technical College 112

113 Overview Georgia Northwestern Technical College Using the Complete College America (CCA) Metric 1: Enrollment-Unduplicated Headcount Enrollment Report (KMS Report #DC241), Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) had an increase in overall student enrollment when comparing the student cohorts of 2007 and The enrollment of part-time students increased over 80% while the full-time enrollment decreased. GNTC experienced a significant increase in the number of Hispanic students and attributes the increase to gaining two new counties within the college s service area, Murray and Whitfield counties. The category of Race: Black, non-hispanic reflects an increase in part-time students of over 100%. Another area of Race reflecting a significant change is the category of Two or More Races. In 2007, this information was not as consistently collected as compared to Students attending GNTC directly from high school has increased considerably and is a reflection of the increasing number of dual enrollment students across the northwest Georgia region. GNTC saw a significant increase in the number of students (full-time and part-time) receiving the Pell Grant, a result of the difficult economy. The final notable change in student demographic during this time period is the increased number of part-time students taking remedial courses upon entry. GNTC s enrollment dropped in AY2015 to 7,876, a decrease of 4.5%. Full-time students accounted for 33.2% of the students enrolled, while 66.8% of GNTC students attended part-time. The Hispanic population continues to increase. During AY2015, 736 Hispanic students attended GNTC. All other areas of race reflect a decrease as compared to the student enrollment for the 2012 academic year. Along with the decreasing enrollment total, students receiving the Pell Grant decreased as well. Goals Increase Number of Graduates Performance Metrics The Complete College Georgia (CCG) performance metric utilized for this goal is an outcome metric graduation rates. The college s overall graduation rate for 2015 was 59.6%, reflecting a small increase over the 2014 graduation rate of 59.2%. The college failed to reach the designated CCG goal of 1,609 graduates. Complete College Georgia data continues to highlight concerns in the area of time to completion, specifically part-time students. Table 1 reflects GNTC data for each enrollment group. Georgia Northwestern Technical College 113

114 Table 1: Graduation Rates in Time Graduate in 100% Time Graduated in 150% Time Graduated in 200% Time Enrollment Report 2013 Report 2014 Report 2015 Report 2013 Report 2014 Report 2015 Report 2013 Report 2014 Report 2015 Full-time Students Associate Degree Part-time Students Associate Degree Full-time Students Certificate/diploma (at least 1 but less than 2 years) Part-time Students Certificate/diploma (at least 1 but less than 2 years) Transfer Students Associate Degree 14.6% 5.1% 4.5% 22.0% 12.8% 18.2% 26.8% 23.1% 18.2% 5.6% 0.0% 0.0% 22.2% 0.0% 7.7% 33.3% 5.6% 7.7% 9.4% 12.1% 11.5% 13.1% 20.1% 16.6% 14.8% 22.3% 19.5% 3.2% 4.6% 4.2% 7.7% 13.8% 8.8% 10.9% 17.0% 12.3% 59.2% 60.0% 66.5% 65.9% 64.7% 68.3% 67.0% 66.3% 68.9% Transfer Students Certificate/diploma Strategies/Interventions Implemented 23.3% 19.2% 19.0% 26.7% 24.3% 22.0% 30.5% 25.3% 24.3% KMS Report DC241 (2013, 2014, 2015 Reports) Health Student Tracking System An automated report was created which lists students who did not return by major with contact information. This report shows students who did not get into their chosen field of study. The report is run to compare terms to see if students changed majors after an instructor consultation. Career Path Tutorial: In order to better assist students with researching career paths, information regarding the Georgia Career Information System (GCIS) has been placed in the online orientation. An additional career exploration tool, Virtual Job Shadow, was purchased by the Technical College System of Georgia and implemented at GNTC. Staff members in the admissions, career services, and testing departments are able to assist students with the Virtual Job Shadow program. An implementation team focused on student success has been formed to revamp the new student orientation to incorporate a face-to-face orientation. Resources Allocated: A key resource for this goal is faculty and staff time for the development of reports and the time dedicated for professional development to utilize the reports and new software. Faculty and staff are now involved in contacting students following the review of the reports and advising them of other options available through GNTC. As the orientation process is being reviewed and new options being discussed, it is involving various faculty and staff from across departments and campuses ensuring each challenge a student encounters is considered and is made a part of the new orientation. Georgia Northwestern Technical College 114

115 Obstacles Encountered: Health Student Tracking System An automated report needs to be refined for easier tracking of students. Currently, the report has to be run each time and a staff member must manually search for the students by major to see if they actually changed their major when advised to do so or did they continue to appear on the report as not returning. Plans are to work with GNTC s data analyst to develop a process to access and search the information by major, student ID, and name, when needed. Career Path Tutorials Ensuring the maximum number of students take advantage of the career exploration tools. Goal Restructure Delivery Performance Metrics The CCG performance metric utilized for this goal is a progress metric retention rates. The college s overall retention rate for 2015 was 64.1%, reflecting a small increase over the 2014 retention rate of 63.2%. Strategies/Interventions Implemented Cohort Programs - The newest cohort Health Information Technology will be graduating 19 of the original 21 at the end of fall semester 2105 barring any withdrawals/failures this semester. As Table 2 indicates, the cohort programs fared better than the non-cohort programs in terms of retention and graduation rates for AY2015. Table 2: Programs Cohort / Non-Cohort Comparison Fall Cohort Non-Cohort Programs Retention Rate Graduation Rate Air Conditioning Technology (ACT2) 54% 46% Automotive Technology (AT14) 58% 50% CNC Technology (CT12) 80% 80% Criminal Justice Technology (CJT2) 67% 8% Drafting Technology (DT13) 50% 50% Early Childhood Care and Education (ECC2) 67% 60% Electronics Technology (ET14) 100% 50% Fire Science Technology (FST2) 0% 0% Horticulture (EH12) 75% 0% Industrial Systems Technology (IST4) 81% 50% Machine Tool Technology (MTT2) 75% 2% Social Work Assistant (SW12) 0% 0% Welding and Joining Technology (WAJ2) 50% 47% Georgia Northwestern Technical College 115

116 Cohort Programs Retention Rate Graduation Rate Dental Assisting (DA12) 100% 50% Diagnostic Medical Sonography (DMS3) 100% 80% Echocardiography (EC23) 100% 100% Medical Assisting (MA23) 100% 92% Nursing (NU33) 100% 97% Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA3) 100% 100% Paramedicine (PT12) 97% 80% Practical Nursing (PN12) 81% 67% Radiologic Technology (RT23) 100% 89% Respiratory Care (RCT3) 100% 100% Vascular Technology (VT13) 100% 100% KMS Report DC200 and KMS Report LB177 Block Method: GNTC continues to offer the block schedule in Accounting (diploma and degree), Air Conditioning Technology (diploma), Auto Collision Repair (diploma), Automotive Technology (degree and diploma), Cosmetology (diploma), Medical Assisting (diploma), and Networking Specialist (diploma and degree). Table 3 indicates the retention and graduation rates for AY2015. As part of GNTC s Track It! interventions, each program is developing curriculum pathways for students to work in tandem with the DegreeWorks tool for students. Once developed, more programs may move to the block scheduling format. Georgia Northwestern Technical College 116

117 Table 3: Course Delivery Block Scheduling vs. Non-Block Scheduling AY2015 Programs Level Block Program Fall 2014 Cohort Total Retained Retention Rate Total Graduated Graduation Rate Accounting (AC12) Accounting (AC13) Air Conditioning Technology (ACT2) Auto Collision Repair (ACR2) Automotive Technology (AT14) Automotive Technology (AT23) Business Management (MD13) Business Management (MD13) Diploma Yes % 1 11% Degree Yes % 2 29% Diploma Yes % 6 46% Diploma Yes % 4 57% Diploma Yes % 6 50% Degree Yes % 3 100% Degree No % 0 0% Diploma No % 10 48% Cosmetology(CO12) Diploma Yes % 24 63% Criminal Justice (CJT3) Degree No % 1 33% Criminal Justice (CJT2) Diploma No % 1 8% Early Childhood Care & Education (EC13) Early Childhood Care & Education (EC12) Medical Assisting (MA23) Networking Specialist (NS13) Networking Specialist (NS14) Social Work Assistant (SW13) Social Work Assistant (SW12) Degree No % 1 25% Diploma No % 9 60% Diploma Yes NR NR NR NR NR Degree Yes % 3 75% Diploma Yes % 2 13% Degree No NR NR NR NR NR Diploma No 2 0 0% 0 0% KMS Report DC200 NR not reported Georgia Northwestern Technical College 117

118 Resources Allocated: An additional adjunct instructor was hired for the Health Information Technology to ensure all needed classes could be offered. In other program areas, funds for additional adjuncts were used to ensure all classes needed to accommodate student enrollment could be offered. Obstacles Encountered: Cohort programs Beginning the cohort structure can sometimes result in an enrollment decrease initially because the program only offers a set number of courses each semester and students may have to wait for future semesters to be ready to take the courses offered. Faculty can be resistant to having the program enrollment drop. Another obstacle is the process of continuing to educate faculty to emphasize the importance of retention and graduation which improves with cohorts. Block scheduling : Some classes have lower enrollment than others but are offered to ensure that morning students do not have to take evening classes or vice versa. Creating the pathways will help students stay on track. Goal: Shorten Time to Degree Performance Metrics The CCG performance metric utilized for this goal is an outcome metric time to degree. As reflected by Table 4, Time to Degree, GNTC has not seen any improvement as the data reflects a slightly longer time to degree period for each area as compared to the previous year. The analysis of the faculty, staff, and student focus group sessions led to the identification of interventions focused on improved orientation and academic advising. GNTC will continue with the implementation of selected strategies/interventions with a focus of on-time completion. Table 4: Time to Degree Full Time Part Time Transfer AY2012 Total Graduates Average Years Total Graduates Average Years Total Graduates Average Years Certificate/diploma Associate Degree Full Time Part Time Transfer AY2011 Total Graduates Average Years Total Graduates Average Years Total Graduates Average Years Certificate/diploma Associate Degree Strategies/Interventions Implemented KMS Report DC241 (2014 and 2015 Reports) Course Audit: Continuing to monitor the schedule to ensure that enough general education courses and program area courses were offered to allow student access to their needed courses in the appropriate time frame. The pathways project will make this audit easier for the program directors and administration to conduct. Countdown to Completion Campaign: Utilizing TCSG s Fast to the Finish materials to encourage students to graduate on time. Fall semester 2014, GNTC began a marketing campaign with the Fast to the Finish material. A Fast to the Finish video was posted on GNTC s social media channels (Facebook, YouTube, etc.) and a website banner ad was placed on the GNTC homepage advertising Fast to the Finish. In addition, flyers were posted on all campuses about the benefits of graduating on time. The information is scheduled to be placed in a weekly newsletter seen by faculty, staff, and students. Georgia Northwestern Technical College 118

119 Focus Groups: Students, faculty, and staff participated in focus groups to determine the hurdles preventing students from completing an award. The focus groups were held on each campus, day and evening, full-time and part-time. The initial examination of the data revealed that students, staff, and faculty identified many of the same hurdles. This data is being utilized, along with other research, in the development of GNTC s Track It! effort which focuses on increasing student success. Resources Allocated: A key resource for this goal is time. The time allocated for personnel in academic affairs to review courses in programs; personnel in the public relations office for the development of a plan to communicate with our students on multiple campuses, online, and in the day and evening; and the time involved for personnel in students affairs and institutional effectiveness to conduct the focus groups and other personnel and students at the college in participating in the focus group sessions. Another key resource associated with the collection and analysis of CCG data is the hiring of a data analyst. This position is new to GNTC and required funds to create a new full-time position. In addition to the employee, data analysis software was purchased. Obstacles Encountered: An obstacle encountered with the Countdown to Completion Campaign was the perception of information overload on behalf of the student. To address the obstacle, GNTC developed a communication schedule in order to disseminate multiple, priority messages needing to be shared with GNTC s student population. The schedule ensured the proper attention was provided to each important message. Various conflicts were identified as an obstacle when attempting to schedule the Focus Groups. In addressing the obstacle, GNTC found that expanding the timing of the focus group meetings across two semesters allowed for better participation. Over an eight month period, over 650 faculty, staff, and students participated in a focus group session. Goal: Transform Remediation Performance Metrics The CCG performance metric utilized for this goal is a progress metric success in remedial education. Although minimal, GNTC data reflects some success in the remedial education area. With the full implementation of strategies focused in this area, GNTC expects increased success for students enrolled in remedial education courses as well as their success in subsequent college level courses. Table 5 reports GNTC s data for the Success in Remedial Education metric. Table 5: Success in Remedial Education Fall 10 (201102) Cohort Both Math and English Math Only English Only Previous Current Previous Current Previous Current Remedial Courses 50.0% 57.9% 47.8% 53.9% 33.0% 42.3% College Level Course 29.9% 41.4% 28.4% 37.4% 19.2% 27.2% KMS Report DC241 (2014 and 2015 Reports) Georgia Northwestern Technical College 119

120 Strategies/Interventions Implemented MATH 0098/0099 Math Matters: The purpose of Math Matters (GNTC s Quality Enhancement Plan) is to improve the mathematical skills and the success rate of students placed in learning support math, specifically algebra. Full implementation occurred as scheduled during After initial implementation of the redesign, the college experienced a decrease in the success rates of students taking the MATH 0098 and 0099 courses. After recently completing an evaluation cycle, several changes have been made or scheduled for implementation. Completion rates are beginning to reflect a slow improvement in the course completion and success rates. English and Reading 0097/0098 Redesign - Effective fall semester 2013, the English and Reading 0097/0098 courses were redesigned and are now ENGL and READ Following the implementation of a college-created exit exam instead of utilizing the COMPASS exam, success in the ENGL and READ 0090 courses have increased. Resources Allocated: Resources for the math remediation transformation include funding for the development of Math Labs on each of the GNTC campuses. Rooms were renovated to prepare for the new furniture and computers. The Math Lab configuration process included new network cabling, network switches, furniture, and computers. The process also included installation of new lab software. Additional resources for the math, English, and reading redesign include faculty and staff time required for professional development focusing on the new courses and teaching methodology. Obstacles Encountered: MATH 0098/0099 Math Matters Obstacles include the continuous collection of data ensuring reporting requirements are met and analysis of the results occurs for the increase in student success; professional development of new faculty within the math department (full-time and adjunct); and expanding on the research and knowledge of best practices in the subject area of classroom instructional lectures. English and Reading 0097/0098 Redesign No recent obstacles have been encountered. Student Success Implementation Team Name Justin Allmon Tom Bojo Brad Cooper Michael Fennell John Gentry Denise Grant Amber Jordan Nina Lovel Selena Magnusson Mindy McCannon Frank Pharr Stuart Phillips Title Data Base Administrator Dean, Academic Affairs Data Analyst Dean, Academic Affairs Coordinator, Faculty and Staff Development Dean, Academic Affairs Director, Marketing and Public Relations Coordinator, Research and Information Registrar Vice President, Academic Affairs Dean, Academic Affairs Vice President, Student Affairs Georgia Northwestern Technical College 120

121 Name Heidi Popham (Point of Contact) Jodie Vangrov Jan Webb Barry Williams Sharon Wilson Title Vice President, Institutional Effectiveness Dean, Academic Affairs Student Navigator Dean, Academic Affairs Coordinator, Online and QEP Student Success Track It! is GNTC s commitment to our continuous focus on student success. Track It! incorporates several initiatives including Achieving the Dream, Complete College Georgia, Math Matters, as well as performance funding. All of these important elements focus on the success of GNTC students. Through the analysis of school data and conversations with faculty, staff, and students, Track It! looks at refining the services and resources provided to students to be more success-oriented. Each quarter, GNTC s Marketing and Public Relations department publishes an electronic Track It! newsletter sharing student data results and other success initiatives with the college community. Conclusion GNTC s most successful strategies/interventions include the use of cohort programs and the creation of the Health Tracking System. As evidenced through the most recent transition of the Health Information Technology program from a non-cohort program to a cohort program, the increase in student completion is evident. The Health Tracking System process is also having successful results as reflected through the increased enrollment in the Health Information Technology, Medical Assisting, and Surgical Technology health programs. Although students were not successful in being accepted into their first health program choice, the advisement process through the Health Tracking System provided additional options for these students. The enrollment in the three programs mentioned has been positively affected. In addition, students entering these programs following the one-on-one advisement are successfully completing the program. The Countdown to Completion Campaign has been one of the less effective strategies/interventions. This outcome is based on GNTC s increasing number of part-time students as compared to full-time enrollment. Through the increased, thorough review of GNTC s orientation process, an emphasis will be placed on informing students at the start of their college experience about the importance of being a full-time student. Program pathways are being developed that will focus on-time completion. This information will be available to students, both on-campus and online. Next Steps In addition to the continuation of the above mentioned strategies and interventions, the Track It! focus has identified two priorities and several proposed interventions the college is committed to researching to increase student completion. For each priority, the Track It! Core Team identified several proposed interventions. The interventions are focused on providing accurate information and resources to ensure the students greatest chance of success from their first day through the completion of their program of study. Georgia Northwestern Technical College 121

122 Priority 1 (Orientation) focuses on the need for providing students with greater information related to college enrollment. Data indicates that student academic success is hampered by the lack of understanding of GNTC s processes, procedures, and advisement. The proposed interventions associated with Orientation include: Creating a staffed student center on each campus. Developing a publication of a clear pathway from entry to employment highlighting the hurdle areas. Implementing a mandatory, face-to-face orientation each semester for each campus and ensuring we provide a similar service to our online students Priority 2 focuses on academic advisement as being essential to improving student success. The proposed interventions associated with Academic Advisement include: BannerWeb (MyGNTC) personalization. Creation of advisement centers. Dedicating (non-instruction) advisement days on schedule. Implementing Degree Works for student utilization. Developing and publicizing an academic pathway for each program with a focus of on-time program completion. The Core Team envisions that GNTC students will be better prepared, at the very beginning of their academic career, to meet the challenges of succeeding academically and graduating in a timely manner through the selected priorities of a more robust orientation and focused advisement. With the implementation of the proposed priorities and interventions, GNTC envisions transforming the enrollment process, potentially reorganizing departments to facilitate the changes, implementing a more robust advisement process, increasing awareness of multicultural perspectives, and making a cultural shift towards data-informed decision making across the campus community. Fall semester 2015, members of the Track It! Core Team met with the selected intervention team members to share the supporting data for each priority/intervention. The intervention teams have been asked to develop a detailed plan (due November 2015) for implementing each intervention which will address the following questions: What resources are necessary for the intervention? What activities will the intervention undertake? What will be produced through the activities? What are the changes or benefits resulting from the intervention? Georgia Northwestern Technical College 122

123 Gwinnett Technical College Gwinnett Technical College 123

124 Overview Gwinnett Technical College For Gwinnett Technical College s (GTC) 2015 Complete College Georgia (CCG) progress report, the college s Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness (OIRE) analyzed 2011 and 2014 Cohort data to identify notable changes in the college s student demographics. Among all students, part-time enrollment tracked for CCG has increased by 7% from 2011 to Increases among ethnicity groups included Hispanics (55%) and African Americans (11%). The percentage of Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islanders also increased by 100% (from four to eight students), while American Indian/Alaska Natives decreased by 27%. Males increased by 2% and females by 10%. Students in the 17 to 19-year-old range increased by 31%; the 20 to 24-year-old age group increased by 4%; and those 25 and over increased 6%. Students receiving the Pell Grant increased by 41%, while the number of students taking remedial courses upon entry increased 151%. Part-time transfer student enrollment data are also very impressive. There was an overall 52% increase in enrollment in this group, including a 115% increase in Hispanics, 63% in African Americans, 28% in Whites, and 30% for Asians. Males increased by 58% and females by 50%. The 17 to 19 age group increased 102%; the 20 to 24-year-olds increased 72%; and ages 25 and over increased 41%. Students receiving Pell Grants increased by 105%, and those taking remedial courses upon entry increased 162%. These numbers suggest that part-time transfer students offered the greatest pools of growth. In contrast, full-time enrollment has declined since 2011 by 39%. Each ethnicity, age, and gender group also experienced declines. Whites (-48%), African Americans (-42%), and Asians (-40%) highlight the most significant decreases, while Hispanics declined only 5%. Among gender groups, male enrollment decreased by 36% and females by 41% between 2011 and Likewise, the 17 to19 age group decreased by 31%, the 20 to 24 age group by 38%, and the 25 and over age group by 41%. Pell grant recipient enrollees decreased by 32%, while students taking remedial courses upon entry grew by 22%. By all indicators, full-time transfer student enrollment is also on the decline. There was an overall 40% decrease in enrollment among this group. All ethnicity, age and gender groups also realized a decline. There was a 30% decline for Hispanics, 37% for African Americans, 50% for Whites and 23% for Asians. Students receiving the Pell Grant declined by 35%, and those taking remedial courses upon entry increased by 5%. Goals Since publication of TCSG s 2012 CCG Plan, GTC has made tremendous efforts to improve workforce readiness in the college s service area by increasing the number of adults with a viable college credential. In support of the goals identified in TCSG s plan, GTC s student success initiatives have focused on: Increasing the number of graduates Transforming remediation Restructuring delivery (including block scheduling) Since joining the Achieving the Dream Network in 2014, Gwinnett Tech has aligned the college s student success initiatives and established priorities to utilize existing resources most effectively while improving the college s capacity to impact student retention and completion rates. The following priorities are also designed to support TCSG s college completion plan: 1. Increasing the culture of student success 2. Improving the students experience 3. Improving students success in gateway courses 4. Improving student support services Gwinnett Technical College 124

125 To support each priority, GTC developed specific student-focused interventions with a timeline for their implementation and evaluation. Over the past year, the college advanced the interventions identified for implementation in FY15, with both positive results and challenges. In the coming year, we will monitor the effectiveness of these interventions while advancing those slated for FY16. Increasing the number of graduates By increasing the culture of student success Gwinnett Tech intends to improve student retention and completion rates. To accomplish this goal, we are targeting employee professional development and training. In 2015, we assembled an interdepartmental team of faculty and staff to identify training topics for our professional development tracks, including the soft-skills needed to promote student success. The results were increased faculty-staff engagement, additional professional development hours for in-house presenters, a greater variety of topics, increased focus on student success, and improvements in campus culture. FY15 participant surveys provided the following qualitative data from sessions specifically related to student success: Great information session as I [learned] about the various initiatives and progress to achieve the goals of the college and improve the learning experience of students at GTC. Faculty and staff were willing to ask honest questions, even if they were tough. In this session, I learned a lot about the student population at Gwinnett Tech and the barriers that a number of our students face when trying to complete an educational program. I think this is something we should do annually for our faculty and staff. Hearing feedback directly from our students in the way they choose to explain is priceless. While the college s professional development program is achieving its goal of promoting employee and student success, we are challenged to identify presenters for training sessions and make professional development a priority to which time is allocated for all employees to participate. To overcome these obstacles, the college has dedicated budget to professional development, and we are offering more training opportunities throughout the year to meet varied scheduling needs. Improving the student experience is also intended to increase student retention and completion rates. In 2015, GTC s primary focus was FYES 1000, the first-year experience seminar piloted in FY14. The college scaled this course to 1268 students in fall 2014, and by spring 2015, 2547 students had enrolled. In course surveys, 81% of students reported satisfaction. We will now begin measuring the long-term impact of FYES on student retention and completion rates, as well as examining data related to year-to-year retention, subsequent course pass rates, and graduation rates. Despite the early successes seen with FYES, we also faced challenges including identifying which students should be required to take this course, especially with regard to returning and transfer students, and managing the course technology. Since the pilot phase, students enrolling with fewer than 30 credit hours have been required to take FYES, and we will monitor course data to determine whether this policy should be adjusted. To address problems with course technology, we are no longer utilizing a publisher product to teach the computer skills component of FYES. Instead, we are using open source video tutorials for instruction along with assignments that assess computer skills. This modification is intended to improve students experience with technology while also reducing their costs for course materials. In 2015, GTC also increased efforts to improve students success in gateway courses, which should directly impact retention and graduation rates. Gateway program directors, division deans, and the tutoring center director collaborated to discuss issues and brainstorm interventions. The need for more effective tutoring services was a common theme; therefore, the team identified a core set of tutoring skills, and the college is now providing training to address them. The team also compiled a list of tutoring services offered across campus to disseminate to faculty and staff in order to increase awareness and student referrals, while the Dean of Academic Affairs met with the college s new communications team to discuss marketing these services more broadly and effectively. In addition, OIRE established baseline data for students who utilize tutoring services, which will allow us to measure and communicate their impact on student success. Gwinnett Technical College 125

126 The college is already addressing major challenges in this area, which include developing awareness of existing resources, dedicating space for the STEM tutoring center, and scaling the use of tracking software to measure resource usage and effectiveness. To improve student support services, the college s primary focus has been redesigning the One-Stop Center including admissions, records, financial aid, and advisement to offer students a streamlined experience with comprehensive information provided by an enrollment advisor. During September 2014, One-Stop staff not only transitioned to a temporary physical area, but also transitioned to the new enrollment advisement model, gradually phasing in financial aid as the last piece in the support model. Staff were challenged to transition to the new service model during the center s re-construction, learn the intricacies of financial aid, and communicate with academic program assistants to become more involved in the program side of advisement. The new facility opened in April 2015, and the renovated physical features now reflect the new student-centered model of providing service. Students surveyed via AY2015 course evaluations already indicate increasing satisfaction with services received in the One-Stop. In 2014, under the former model, students might be sent around campus making multiple stops to have their questions answered. Now, the center is a true One-Stop where students are able to see one enrollment advisor for any questions from any of the four student services areas, as well as program advisement. For the period of May-August in AY2014, the One-Stop queue recorded 25,287 student visits (duplicated if a student had more than one question from various departments). For that same period in AY2015, the new One-Stop enrollment support center queue recorded 23,319 student visits which indicates 3,000 (or 7.5%) fewer student stops. In the heaviest months of each year (June, July & August), the new One-Stop saw 4,676 fewer visits, a 21% decrease, suggesting that students needs are now being met more efficiently as the college intended. Survey results indicate that even through the transition in service approaches, construction, and temporary locations, satisfaction with departments and services has changed dramatically (see table below of course evaluation results for the past three terms during and after the change). Every service department has experienced a double-digit increase in customer service from the first term of the year to the last. Course Evaluation Survey Results % of responses indicating "Good" or "Excellent" for service area evaluation Financial Assessment Registrar Admissions Aid Center Program Advisement Business Office Fall % 71% 75% 71% 74% 68% Spring % 82% 85% 92% 86% 85% Summer % 85% 89% 92% 87% 87% Overall change AY % 14% 14% 21% 13% 19% Another recent initiative in student support services is the implementation of a new early alert process. In partnership with TCSG, the college hired a Student Navigator to the TEAMS system which improves the college s ability to identify atrisk students and connect them with appropriate resources. However, because this system is connected to the college s Learning Management System, we are challenged to fully implement the new early alert process until the transition to Blackboard is complete. Therefore, we are piloting TEAMS with five general education programs with plans to scale the new system to all programs by fall To measure the potential impact of these activities on degree production and graduation rates, OIRE conducted the data analyses that follow. The greatest increase in degree production was in the certificate of less than one year area, which realized a 175% increase between 2008 and In addition, GTC s awarding of certificates/diplomas between one year and less than two years increased by 66%, and associate degrees increased by 86%. Certificates/diplomas between two and four years declined by 41%. With regard to graduation rates, GTC continues to outpace CCG goals each year. In Gwinnett Technical College 126

127 2015, 41% more students graduated (N=1690) than the CCG goal (1195), compared to a 16% increase in 2014 and 8% in Graduation rates have been on the rise since 2012 (60%), with increases in 2013 (64%) and 2014 (66%). Gwinnett Technical College 127

128 Transforming Remediation: In 2011, Gwinnett Tech piloted redesigned Learning Support options to increase the number of students successfully completing developmental courses and progressing to college-level coursework; the college scaled the redesign in In 2015, the college introduced co-requisite developmental and college-level English classes, reintroduced some traditional lecture math classes to provide more options for students with different learning styles, and continued offering an accelerated learning program to improve students college readiness and placement in appropriate courses. To address achievement gaps specifically among African American male students, the college will be developing and piloting a peer mentoring program in FY16. Overall, the college has seen success rates drop in remedial education from 64% to 48%. However, this trend is similar to that of the entire TCSG system where the success rate has dropped from 46% to 44%. Despite the downward results, GTC continues to perform above the system average. According to CCG s Progress Metric 2A: Success in Remedial Education report (DC251) for the 2009, 2010 and 2011 Cohorts, remedial education s overall impact is positive. This report examines the success rates for first-time students who enroll in (1) math only, (2) English only, or (3) math and English. For example, all ethnicity groups in the 2011 Cohort completed remedial courses within their first two academic years with a grade of C when taking only math or only English. Among those taking both math and English, none of the minority student groups reached the 50% range (Hispanic 33%, Black, non-hispanic 22%, White, non-hispanic and 41%, Asian 33.3%). Asians outperformed other 2011 Cohort members in math, and Hispanics outperformed other groups in English for both the 2011 and 2010 Cohorts. Seventeen to 19 year olds outperformed other age groups in English in both the 2011 and 2010 Cohorts. To determine the impact of remedial education on students capacity to successfully complete college-level courses (i.e., earning a C or above) in math and English, OIRE reviewed the Progress Metric 2B: Success in Remedial Education report (DC253). This report reviews students who completed remedial education and then enrolled in (1) math only, (2) English only, or (3) math and English. Generally speaking, students success in college-level courses (after completing remedial education) was 24% for the 2009 Cohort, 29% for the 2010 Cohort and 29% for the 2011 Cohort. Percentages of success in math, across all ethnicity groups, improved significantly between the 2009 and 2010 Cohorts, while declines occurred between the 2010 and 2011 Cohorts for African Americans, Whites and Asians. African Americans and Asians taking only English experienced increased success between the 2009 and 2010 Cohorts, but saw a decline between the 2010 and 2011 Cohorts, along with Whites. Regarding students who enrolled in math and English, Hispanics were the only group to realize an increase in success between the 2009 and 2010 Cohorts. The 2011 Cohort, however, experienced increased success across all ethnicity groups, with the exception of Hispanics. Females significantly outperformed males in college-level math and English in the 2009, 2010 and 2011 Cohorts. However, the females were outperformed by males when looking at data on students enrolled for both math and English courses. In the 2010 and 2011 Cohorts, the 25 and older age groups outperformed the other groups when taking only math, only English, or both math and English. Gwinnett Technical College 128

129 Restructuring Delivery: To expand enrollment opportunities for incoming students and increase retention rates, the college continues to implement block scheduling for Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Networking Specialist, Medical Assisting, and Automotive Technology. Since this is a system-wide student success priority, we are continuing to track student cohort data for these programs to measure their effectiveness. OIRE generated 2014 Cohort data analysis for retention [i.e., students who initially enrolled in fall 2014 (AY15) and then re-enrolled in fall 2015 (AY16)] and graduation rates (i.e., students who enrolled in fall 2014 and graduated by summer 2015) for programs in which block scheduling was implemented. Retention rates were calculated by collecting the student IDs in each program s cohort data and cross-checking them to determine whether students appeared in the subsequent fall semester enrollment report (DC126, ). This process essentially used student IDs to determine which students, from the 2014 Cohort, re-enrolled for courses in fall OIRE utilized the CCG cohort data report (DC302, ) which provides a list of all first-year students who entered GTC in the fall semester of a chosen academic year. Next, OIRE sorted the 2014 Cohort data by program to isolate the program cohorts that are participating in the block scheduling implementation. After identifying each program s cohort, OIRE examined which students from each program cohort enrolled in the subsequent fall semester in Graduation rates were calculated by using the same program cohort data generated from the fall 2014 Cohort data report (DC302, ), and cross-referencing it against the Awards Conferred by Student during academic year 2015 report (DC110, AY2015) via student IDs. This process also utilized student IDs to determine which students, from the 2014 Cohort, graduated by the end of the summer 2015 semester. Using the same process as outlined above, trend data were provided for the 2013, 2012 and 2011 Cohorts as well. The fall 2014 Cohort results are positive for both degree and diploma programs (N=8) in which block scheduling was implemented. Fall 2014 fall 2015 retention rates range from 48% (there were no students in Medical Assisting) to 75%. The top three of five retention rates are represented among the degree programs (A/C Technology 75%, Networking Specialist 67% and Automotive Technology 60%) Cohort Overall Retention Rates for Block Scheduling Majors MAJOR LEVEL 2014 Cohort TOTAL RETAINED IN FALL 2015 RETENTION RATE A/C Technology Degree % Networking Specialist Degree % Automotive Technology Degree % A/C Technology Diploma % Networking Specialist Diploma % Accounting Diploma % Accounting Degree % Medical Assisting Diploma 0 0 0% Gwinnett Technical College 129

130 NON-BLOCKED BLOCKED To determine whether this initiative is having its intended impact on retention, OIRE compared the block scheduling programs against a random group of non-block scheduling programs. Twelve of the eighteen (67%) block and non-block scheduling programs have 50% and higher retention rates. Among the 12 (highlighted in blue), half are block scheduling programs and the other half are not. Diploma programs (N=7) slightly out-performed degree programs (N=6). In addition, we noticed again that smaller-sized cohorts such as Information Security Specialist (N=9, Diploma and N=16, Degree), HRTM (N=5) and A/C Technology (N=12) typically yielded higher retention rates Cohort Retention Rates for Block Scheduling Majors vs Non-Block Scheduling Majors MAJOR LEVEL 2014 Cohort TOTAL RETAINED IN FALL 2015 RETENTION RATE A/C Technology Degree % Automotive Technology Degree % Networking Specialist Degree % A/C Technology Diploma % Accounting Diploma % Accounting Degree % Medical Assisting Diploma 0 0 0% Information Security Specialist Diploma % Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management (HRTM) Diploma % Information Security Specialist Degree % Early Childhood Care and Education Diploma % Toyota T-TEN Program Degree % Networking Specialist Diploma % Toyota T-Ten Program Diploma % Criminal Justice Technology Degree % Early Childhood Care and Education Degree % Hotel, Restaurant, and Tourism Management (HRTM) Degree % Criminal Justice technology Diploma % Trend data were collected to delve deeper into the data and identify strengths as well as areas for improvement. Using the 2011 Cohort as a baseline, improvement (shaded in green) can be seen. Block scheduling was initially implemented during the fall 2012 semester. Looking closely at the cohort of that year s block scheduling courses (N=8), half (N=4) of the programs realized a retention increase. Three of the 2013 Cohort programs and five of the 2014 Cohort programs also realized an increase in retention. While there was a very small decline among the 2013 Cohort programs, GTC realized overall increases in both 2012 and 2014 Cohorts. The Automotive Technology degree program realized retention gains (32% in 2011, 40% in 2012, 51% in 2013 and 60% in 2014) every year. From the 2011 Cohort baseline, the A/C Technology degree program experienced a drop in retention after the baseline year (2011 Cohort), but saw increases between the 2012 Cohort (64%), the 2013 Cohort (67%) and 2014 Cohort (75%). The Networking Specialist degree program also realized a retention increase from 54% (2012 Cohort) to 64% (2013 Cohort) and 67% (2014 Cohort). Gwinnett Technical College 130

131 NON-BLOCKED BLOCKED BLOCKED INFO ON MAJOR 2014 COHORT 2013 COHORT 2012 COHORT 2014 Total Retention 2013 Total Retention Fall 2012 Total Retention MAJOR Mjr Code LEVEL Cohort Retained Rate Cohort Retained Rate Cohort Retained Rate 2014 Cohort - Yearly Cohort Status Trend data for block scheduling programs versus non-block scheduling courses also looks promising. 63% (five of eight) block scheduling programs had retention rate increases, while 67% (six of the nine) of non-block scheduling programs realized retention increases. Although the block scheduling programs performed slightly below the non-block scheduling group over two fall semesters, we still see smaller cohorts in the non-block scheduling programs which seem to yield higher retention rates. Fall 2011 Cohort 2011 COHORT Total Retained Retention Rate ACCT AC12 DIP % % % % ACCT AC13 DEG % % % % A/C TECH ACT2 DIP % % % % A/C TECH ACT3 DEG % % % % AUTO TECHAT23 DEG % % % % MED ASSTMA22 DIP 0 0 0% 0 0 0% 0 0 0% 0 0 0% NTWKG SPEC NS14 DIP % % % % NTWKG SPEC NS13 DEG % % % % 2014 Cohort - Yearly Cohort Status Blocked Scheduling vs Non-Block Scheduling MAJOR LEVEL 2014 Cohort TOTAL RETAINED FALL 2015 RETENTION RATE 2013 CO- HORT TOTAL RETAINED 2014 RETENTION RATE ACCT Diploma % % ACCT Degree % % A/C TECH Diploma % % A/C TECH Degree % % AUTO TECH Degree % % MED ASST Diploma 0 0 0% 0 0 0% NTWKG SPEC Diploma % % NTWKG SPEC Degree % % TOY TTEN Degree % % TOY TTEN Diploma % % INFO SEC SPEC Degree % % INFO SEC SPEC Diploma % % HRTM Degree % % HRTM Diploma % % ECHILD CARE&EDUC Degree % % ECHILD Diploma % % Gwinnett Technical College 131

132 MAJOR CARE&EDUC CRIM JUST TECH CRIM JUST TECH LEVEL 2014 Cohort TOTAL RETAINED FALL 2015 RETENTION RATE 2013 CO- HORT TOTAL RETAINED 2014 RETENTION RATE Degree % % Diploma % % Graduation rates for degree and diploma programs typically occur within two and one years, respectively. Therefore, OIRE decided to review graduation rates a year after the baseline year of fall The results show that graduation rates increased for four of the eight programs that participated in the first year of the block scheduling initiative. For example, the graduation rate for the Accounting degree program s 2012 Cohort was 27%, while the 2011 Cohort graduation rate was 10%. Likewise, A/C Technology realized graduation increases for its degree (37% for the 2012 Cohort versus 29% for the 2011 Cohort) and diploma (37% for the 2012 Cohort and 19% 2011 Cohort) programs. Networking Specialist also earned a slight increase in its diploma program (38% for the 2012 Cohort versus 35% for the 2011 Cohort) graduation rates. Overall Graduation Rates for 2011 Cohort and 2012 Cohort MAJOR LEVEL 2012 Cohort TOTAL GRADUATED IN AY14 GRADUATION RATE (2YRS) Accounting Diploma % Accounting Degree % A/C Technology Diploma % A/C Technology Degree % Automotive Technology Degree % Medical Assisting Diploma 0 0 0% Networking Specialist Diploma % Networking Specialist Degree % MAJOR LEVEL 2011 Cohort TOTAL GRADUATED IN AY13 GRADUATION RATE (2YRS) Accounting Diploma % Accounting Degree % A/C Technology Diploma % A/C Technology Degree % Automotive Technology Degree % Medical Assisting Diploma 0 0 0% Networking Specialist Diploma % Networking Specialist Degree % Gwinnett Technical College 132

133 Student Success Implementation Team The college has assembled the following student success implementation team to lead these efforts. Team members collaborate with the Office of Institutional Research & Effectiveness to identify appropriate measures to assess the college s student success interventions and analyze data to determine whether they are effective and achieving the desired results. Results are used to inform future decisions and are frequently shared during board meetings, Achieving the Dream progress meetings, faculty and staff meetings, and bi-annual training day general assemblies. Name Title Dr. Victoria Seals Rebecca Alexander Dr. Julie Post Dr. Carla Morelon William Crissman Jessica Diedrich Sylvia Gautier Umber Hanief Dr. Jermaine Whirl Vice President, Academic Affairs Dean, Academic Affairs Vice President, Student Affairs Director, Institutional Research & Effectiveness Coordinator, Institutional Research & Effectiveness Retention Specialist, Student Affairs Supervisor, Customer Information Services Program Director, Learning Support English & Reading Dean, Art & Design and Business Conclusion Gwinnett Tech continues to make gains with its efforts to improve student success and college completion rates. In FY15, the college s leadership team successfully communicated the student success agenda to faculty and staff through key professional development events and will increase efforts to reach all stakeholders. As early data suggests, the One Stop redesign and FYES 1000 are proving to be the most promising strategies. Based on student survey feedback, we adjusted FYES 1000 where needed, and we will monitor data for trends that support further adjustments. Block scheduling also showed positive results in FY15, and given budget constraints, we will continue with this initiative as it is being implemented. We will encourage students use of the Learning Success Center and will continue to look for ways to reduce class sizes as smaller cohorts tend to be more successful. While results in remedial courses have not been as strong, we are closely monitoring student data and adjusting course offerings to improve student outcomes. This year s introduction of additional English/reading co-requisite courses should result in more students completing remediation requirements in conjunction with a paired college-level course. In addition, the re-introduction of traditional math courses should improve outcomes for students whose learning styles are not suited to the redesign format. The college will continue to monitor these changes and make data-informed decisions as the next set of action steps progresses forward. Gwinnett Technical College 133

134 Next Steps Gwinnett Tech will continue to implement and assess the strategies identified in the college s 2014 Achieving the Dream plan. In addition, GTC will focus on the following student efforts for FY16: Goal Action Steps Resources Needed Improve communication through use of technology Pilot the mentoring program, with emphasis on engaging African American male students Implement and staff online chat system Centralize student technology support for learning management system, , Banner, online chat, etc., and develop standard FAQs Provide technology orientation for students and professional development and training for faculty and staff Develop program components Identify participants and pilot with a limited number of students from programs, courses, and/or demographics with the lowest success rates Assess participant satisfaction and program effectiveness for continuation and scaling Funding to staff chat system and help desk Funding to develop and pilot program African American male students to serve as mentors and mentees Faculty and staff volunteers to serve as program advisors Gwinnett Technical College 134

135 Lanier Technical College Lanier Technical College 135

136 Overview Lanier Technical College Lanier Technical College s demographic statistics, unsurprisingly, remain largely consistent between 2014 and 2015, portraying a student body that is predominantly white, majority female, and mostly under 25 years of age. A year-toyear comparison shows two shifts of possible significance: 1) the overall age of the student body decreased slightly, with 3% fewer students over age 25, and 2) the percentage of students receiving the Pell Grant, increased by 6%. In other words, our student body is slightly younger and somewhat less affluent. Enrollment decreased by 2%, from 5,240 to 5,157. FTE for AY 2014 was 2,600 and 2,479 for AY This was a 4.6% decrease in FTE. The College s percentage of full-time students dropped from 29.1% in AY 2014 to 25.6% in AY 2015, a drop of 3.5%. At the same time, we saw a drop in students receiving HOPE grants or scholarships, from 67.2% for AY 2014 to 59.9% for AY 2105, a 7.3% drop. Racially, the make-up of LTC s student body changed relatively little: the population of American Indian, Asian, Black, and Multi-racial students changed by less than 0.2%. The percentage of Hispanic student increased by 1.6% (from 10.9% to 12.5%), while the percentage of White Non-Hispanic decreased by 1.7% (from 74.9% to 73.2%). (Source: KMS Report DC185 College Snapshot) Goals For 2015, Lanier Technical College focused the bulk of its improvement efforts on the goals of increasing the number of graduates, transforming remediation, and restructuring delivery. Increasing the Number of Graduates Lanier Technical College s number of CCG graduates increased by 3% in AY 2015, from 843 to 872. Looking at overall number of unduplicated graduates, not limited to the CCG cohorts, the College saw an increase of 2%, from 1,088 to 1,111 (KMS Report DC108) The College also saw a 1% increase in overall graduation rate for the cohorts of students shown in CCG report years 2014 and 2015 (DC241). While positive, these results are lower than hoped for and insufficient to reach LTC s final 2020 goal. We were, however, quite pleased to see a significant increase in Context Metric 2, Completion Ratio: the College s results increased from 27.5% awards per FTE in 2014 to 35.4% in One interesting pattern was noted: for metrics affecting number of graduates, such as retention and graduation rates, we saw modest increases for full- and part-time students, but significant decreases for transfer students. Lanier Technical College 136

137 Table 1: Graduation Rates 2014 Cohort 2015 Cohort Size 100% 150% 200% %Succ Size 100%* 150%* 200% %Succ TCC Full-time % % TCC Part-time % % TCC Transfer % % Degree Full-time % % Degree Part-time % % Degree Transfer % % Total % % Chart 1: Graduation Rates 2014 vs 2015 (DC241) 2014 Total 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0.0% 29.4% TCC Fulltime 34.6% 23.3% TCC Parttime 17.8% 32.0% TCC Transfer 31.2% 35.3% 37.5% Degree Full-time 11.1% Degree Part-time 33.3% 38.2% Degree Transfer 35.3% 28.7% Total 29.7% TCC Full-time TCC Parttimtimtime Transfer Degree Full- Degree Part- Degree TCC Transfer Total 2014 Total 29.4% 23.3% 32.0% 37.5% 11.1% 38.2% 28.7% 2015 Total 34.6% 17.8% 31.2% 35.3% 33.3% 35.3% 29.7% The LTC CCG Graduation & Retention Task Force was charged with primary responsibility for increasing the number of graduates. An early focus of this group was to use available tools and reports to ensure College personnel are proactively reaching out to students at greatest risk for attrition. LTC s Banner Reports section of the intranet includes a report for Students Enrolled for One Semester but not another. In years past, before the CCG initiative, College staff from at least some campuses had made regular use of this report as a normal part of the student registration work flow. However, this practice lapsed during the quarter-to-semester conversion. The Graduation & Retention Task Force identified this report as a valuable resource for identifying students most in need of individual attention. For each semester in AY 2015, members of the task force ran this report, discussed the data, and disseminated the report, along with instructions on how to work the list, to LTC Faculty Advisors. Lanier Technical College 137

138 The task force ran the report immediately following Returning Student Registration and Open Student Registration. The resulting list of students was distributed to Faculty Advisors with instructions to contact any of their currently enrolled students who had not enrolled for the upcoming semester. The Advisors were directed to find out what was prompting the students not to enroll and explore ways the students could make arrangements to stay in school. Advisors and task force members were able to work with over 200 students and enroll them for the upcoming semester. This intervention occurred in AY 2015, and we will not see the true impact on graduation until at least AY 2016, but we believe that continuing this practice and making it a regular, formal part of LTC s registration work flow will have a significant impact on increasing the number of LTC graduates. Another report, Students with 88% or more of their program completed, also proved valuable. It has, unfortunately, been the case that some students come close to completing their graduation requirements but are not adequately informed of any remaining graduation requirements and may not have been awarded all embedded TCCs or diplomas they have completed. The task force provided this report to all Faculty Advisors and the Registrar s Office. The President then sent these faculty and staff an and a memo stressing the importance of working with each student on the report to ensure they are well served in their efforts to graduate in a timely way. Because of these efforts, the number of awards processed increased dramatically from the beginning of the reporting period to the end of the summer 2015 term. A side benefit of this process has been that Faculty Advisors are now much more aware of the September 15 th deadline for processing graduations and their role in ensuring that the Registrar s Office has all needed materials by this date. The CCG Graduation & Retention Task Force also devoted two meetings to analyzing KMS/CCG Report DC243, Graduation Rate by Major. The data provided by this report proved to be unhelpful however, because it reported on cohorts of students who for the most part are no longer in the programs and therefore will not be helped by the Task Forces current intervention efforts. The Task Force is no longer using this report to guide its efforts, and is instead relying on KMS college-level reports that provide a more current view of performance and retention in LTC s academic programs. One obstacle both students and advisors have faced is using available materials to select the courses a student needs in order to graduate. The program information sheets being used for this were difficult to interpret and did not provide all needed information. In collaboration with faculty and the CCG task forces, LTC s Curriculum Coordinator and Web Master did a comprehensive redesign of all program flyers. The information sheets were significantly improved with a new format that clearly explains each student s requirements for graduation. The revised information sheets were published on the College s website in late AY Recognizing that time is the enemy, LTC also instituted changes in processes for students to change programs. Changing majors can often increase a student s time to graduation, and some students move from program to program, seeming to lack clear academic and career goals. Changes of program can also have an impact on students financial aid, which can negatively impact progress to graduation. To address this, the College revised its Change of Program form to require a signature showing that a student seeking to change program has spoken with an admissions advisor or the College s Student Navigator as well as the Financial Aid coordinator. We believe this will have a positive impact on retention of students who by the very act of changing programs have shown they are not on a clear path to graduation. This process is fully in place at the College s two larger campuses. Mirroring this process on the two smaller campuses has proven to be an obstacle to date; in AY 2016, the CCG task forces will open discussions with the Student Affairs division for possible solutions. Both CCG task forces (Graduation & Retention as well as Success in Remedial Education) also identified improvement in LTC s advisement processes as an important area to address. A committee with faculty from multiple academic divisions has been appointed and is currently at work developing a comprehensive Advisement Manual. To improve awareness of and buy-in on Complete College Georgia among LTC faculty and staff, the President made CCG a major topic of the AY 2015 Institutional Day meeting, explaining its importance and his personal commitment to its values. Lanier Technical College 138

139 Over the course of Lanier Tech s efforts toward the CCG initiative, the College s Institutional Effectiveness staff has frequently been frustrated by the limits of their ability to thoroughly and rigorously analyze the wealth of data available through KMS, Banner, and DegreeWorks. A resource needed to improve the College s performance in this area is hiring a consultant to provide training for I.E. staff in statistical analysis and use of SPSS software. Transforming Remediation Progress Metric 2A, Success in Remedial Education, Completing Remedial, results were largely the same for 2014 and On Progress Metric 2B, Success in Remedial Education, Completing College Level Courses, we did see significant improvement from 33.7% in report year 2014 to 38.0% in report year In AY 2014, LTC began using KMS reports DC252, Progress 2A Success in Remedial, and DC254, Progress 2B Success in Remedial, to identify students who need to enroll in developmental or gateway courses and communicate this information to faculty advisors. Faculty advisors use the information to contact students and encourage them to complete developmental or gateway courses as early as possible. In AY 2015, the College improved this process: LTC s Curriculum Coordinator took responsibility for running this report each semester and then formatting the results in a much more user-friendly form for the faculty: completers are culled from the report and students entering Learning Support requirements are shown alongside the students names and contact information so that faculty can easily go into DegreeWorks to see what Learning Support requirements remain and appropriately advise their students. LTC s results on metrics 2A and 2B have shown significant improvement and we believe this is largely due to this systematic process using the reports to proactively advise students needing Learning Support and gateway courses. Table 2: Progress Metrics 2A and 2B Improvement Cohort - Began Fall 2013 (335 Students) Report Date Learning Support Enroll/Comp Learning Support Not Completed Gateway Courses Completed Gateway Courses Not Completed 3-Dec Jan Apr Jun Aug Change since Dec Jan - 5% Increase Since Dec April - 5.7% Increase Since Dec June - 5.7% Increase Since Dec Aug - 5.7% Increase Since Dec Jan - 6% Increase Since Dec April - 6% Increase Since Dec June % Increase Since Dec Aug % Increase Since Dec Total % Complete: 57.31% Total % Complete: 26.26% Cohort - Began Fall 2014 (364 Students)* 3-Dec Jan Apr Lanier Technical College 139

140 Report Date Learning Support Enroll/Comp Learning Support Not Completed Gateway Courses Completed Gateway Courses Not Completed 2-Jun Aug Change since Dec Total % Complete: 37.75% Total % Complete: 16.06% Jan - 15% Increase Since Dec* April - 22% Increase Since Dec* June - 25% Increase Since Dec* Aug - 25% Increase Since Dec* Jan - 3.6% Increase Since Dec* April - 3.6% Increase Since Dec* June % Increase Since Dec* Aug % Increase Since Dec* Total % Complete: 37.75% Total % Complete: 16.06% *Number of students in cohort increased from 340 to 361 to 364 (201612) These efforts to proactively contact and work with students who need to complete their Learning Support requirement are complemented by a new resource for Learning Support students: during 2015, the Learning Support Success task force developed and deployed a dedicated Learning Support page on the College s website. This page explains the nature and purpose of LTC s Learning Support program in a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) format, and also provides links to procedures, forms, and flowcharts students can use as they work through and complete their Learning Support requirement. The task force also developed a One til Done procedure, which directs provisional admit students to enroll in at least one Learning Support course each term until they have satisfied their Learning Support requirement. The procedure was presented to and approved by the College s Leadership Team in 2015, and full implementation of the procedure will begin in spring LTC piloted a small number of sections of Accelerated Learning Support math and English classes in which students whose placement scores were within a few points of the cut scores were mainstreamed into classes with college-level students. The pilot had mixed results. For both math and English, faculty had logistical difficulties identifying candidate students in time to work with them and their advisors to enroll them in the accelerated sections. The students in English performed very well, completing the course at rates as well as or better than their peers in standard classes, but the math students struggled and did no better than their peers. We do not plan to continue offering this model, but lessons learned from the pilot were useful in developing the College s Quality Enhancement Plan, Math Multiplies Opportunities, which is a comprehensive redesign of LTC s math Learning Support program. The atypical course structure of Learning Support courses, with their self-paced computer module format, may also be a barrier to students. Simply put, they may not have a good understanding of expectations for the course and the degree to which they need to be self-directed and self-motivating. In 2015, LTC developed a course-specific orientation session for math, English, and reading Learning Support courses. These orientation sessions are presented to students on the first day of each course. An initial round of DegreeWorks training was provided to faculty. Additional training is planned for AY 2016 (see Next Steps). A working committee under direction by Academic Affairs and the Registrar s Office has begun work on a revised LTC Advising Manual. In AY 2016, the CCG task forces will coordinate with these two offices to ensure the CCG task forces are represented on the committee and the manual is completed, approved, and deployed as scheduled (see Next Steps). Lanier Technical College 140

141 Finally, LTC formalized the procedure for using DegreeWorks to identify students at or near degree completion. Using the Graduates Completed and Students with 88% or More of Their Program Completed DegreeWorks reports, task force members can identify students who are nearing completion and deserve pro-active advisement to ensure they are efficiently scheduled for their remaining term or terms. This procedure is also being used to review all graduating students coursework and ensure they are issued each award they have completed. The relationship of LTC s Quality Enhancement Plan and its CCG efforts should also be discussed here. From the beginning of their efforts in AY 2013, LTC s Complete College Georgia task forces have systematically worked to identify obstacles faced by LTC students and faculty. Repeatedly, the groups found that completing a Learning Support requirement particularly a math Learning Support requirement is one of the most powerful barriers to students completing their programs. Data gathered by the CCG task forces was instrumental in selecting a QEP topic. The final topic selected in AY 2015 was Math Multiplies Opportunities, a comprehensive redesign of LTC s math Learning Support program which will have a profound effect on transforming remediation at Lanier Technical College. The process of compiling data for the CCG initiatives as well as development of LTC s Quality Enhancement Plan has frequently proved quite burdensome and labor intensive: data which could easily be collected by automated reports must be manually printed and transcribed into a spreadsheet for analysis. An important resource needed to improve LTC s progress on the CCG initiative is to hire an IT staff member capable of developing Banner and DegreeWorks scripts and reports that provide the data LTC s CCG Task Forces need. Restructuring Delivery The primary instrument LTC uses to track student success in programs which have been identified as having block scheduling is KMS report DC200, Retention by Program. Table 3: DC200: Program Retention AY 2014 Cohort Retained Retained Grads Grads Diploma Accounting % 7 41% Degree Accounting % 3 38% Diploma Air Conditioning Tech % 5 50% Diploma Automotive Tech % 3 30% Degree Automotive Tech % 2 50% Diploma Medical Assisting % 30 55% Degree Networking Specialist % 6 75% Diploma Networking Specialist % 3 10% Block Scheduled Programs % 59 41% LTC Overall Rates 69% 26% AY 2015 Cohort Retained Retained Grads Grads Diploma Accounting % 9 47% Degree Accounting % 5 45% Diploma Air Conditioning Tech % 12 86% Diploma Automotive Tech % 5 36% Degree Automotive Tech % 0 0% Lanier Technical College 141

142 Diploma Medical Assisting % 26 46% Degree Networking Specialist % 3 43% Diploma Networking Specialist % 6 21% Block Scheduled Programs % 66 43% LTC Overall Rates 66% 26% As shown, retention and graduation rates for the block scheduled programs consistently outperformed the College as a whole: retention rate was 3% higher for the block scheduled programs in AY2014, and 10% higher in AY2015; graduation rate was 15% higher in AY2014, and 17% higher in Ay2015. Furthermore, retention and graduation rates for block scheduled programs both increased in AY2015: retention increased by 4% and graduation increased by 2%. Based on these data, the CCG Graduation & Retention Task Force has determined a next step for AY2016 will be to analyze program delivery to determine which additional LTC academic programs can be migrated to a block scheduling model. Analyzing LTC s performance on Progress Metric 2B and developing a plan for improvement revealed that scheduling inefficiencies often created obstacles for students. We want and encourage students to enroll in college-level general education courses as soon as possible after completing their Learning Support requirement, but many students who were willing to do so were unable to because the classes were not available or conflicted with other required classes, including other general education classes. Upon recommendation from LTC s CCG Graduation & Retention task force, the College convened a working committee to develop scheduling standards to promote scheduling efficiencies and minimize such conflicts. One obstacle students have faced in the past is being able to enroll in the specific courses they need to graduate: frequently, a student nearing graduation would need two or three specific classes, but they would not be offered in the coming term or two terms, which could delay the student s graduation by as much as a year. In AY 2015, the College developed Program Pathways for each program. These sample graduation plans serve two purposes: 1) they provide students with a clear picture of what courses they need to enroll in at various points in their academic career, and 2) they give faculty a blueprint to work from as they plan course offerings for a year-out schedule. The Program Pathways will be made available to students and faculty in AY Lanier Tech will also be making DegreeWorks available students in AY LTC s Curriculum Coordinator is currently working with Academic Affairs and Student Affairs staff to embed the Program Pathways in DegreeWorks, making them interactive: based on a students past progress and choice of program specialization, the Pathways students and faculty see will be modified to show that students specific requirements for graduation. The combination of Program Pathways and student-accessible DegreeWorks will put much more information in students and faculty hands and should have a significant impact on reducing time to graduation. No additional resources are needed for this goal. Student Success Implementation Team Data Analysis and Sharing of Results Lanier Technical College utilizes multiple sources of data collection and analysis to determine the level of success and tracking of progress for the Complete College Georgia goals and college initiatives. To date, the most useful sources of data have been KMS reports All Metrics Summary DC241, Degree Production Goal Tracker DC293, Progress 2A Success in Remedial by Major DC252, Progress 2A Success in Remedial by Major DC252, Retention Rate by Program DC200, College Snapshot DC185. The CCG Task Forces regularly analyze these reports in monthly meetings and summarize the results into lists of students by program for faculty to contact and work with to encourage retention. Lanier Technical College 142

143 In addition, the two LTC CCG Task Forces make extensive use of two reports drawing directly from the College s Banner database: Students with 88% or more of their Program Completed (DegreeWorks) and Enrolled for One Semester but not another Semester. These data are used to ensure students receive all awards for which they are eligible and to identify individual students who may be at risk for attrition. In 2013, LTC staff developed a Killer Course Report, which shows the number and percentage of stops (i.e. grades of D, F, W, or I) generated by course and delivery mode. For each year of the CCG initiative, the CCG Task Forces have analyzed this reports and made recommendations to Academic Administration. For example, in the first year of the CCG initiative, based on what the Killer Course Report showed, the Task Forces recommended that LTC no longer offer Learning Support courses in an online format since the success rate for these distance education sections were critically low. LTC Academic Administration then accepted and acted upon this recommendation. The Task Forces have also shared the Killer Course Report data with LTC s QEP Topic Selection Team and QEP Design Team had a great impact on the teams ability to select a QEP topic that truly meets an important learning need for LTC s students ( Math Multiplies Opportunities ). The Killer Course Report data also showed significant need for greater attention to the College s Math Learning Support program. LTC staff printed the Banner Student Advisement Report for all students in Math Learning Support classes for two semesters. These reports were used to determine the number of semesters needed for diploma students and degree students to complete their Learning Support requirements. These data too had a significant impact on the College s final QEP design. Lanier Tech has appointed two CCG task forces to develop CCG strategies and oversee their implementation: the Graduation & Retention Task Force (over Degree Production) and the Learning Support Success Task Force (over Remedial Education). The current rosters of Task Force members are shown below. Full Name Degree Production: Christian Tetzlaff Kari Register Beth Hefner Donna Brinson Nancy Beaver Theresa Lindsey Troy Lindsey Howard Ledford Brad Gadberry Sandi Baker Sue Cronic Kenneth Orr Liza Charlton Joanne Tolleson Tavarez Holston Mallory Safley Melissa Chapman Malissa Lawrence Megan Whitworth Chip Reynolds Title/Position Instructor Special Pops Coordinator Instructor Academic Affairs Dean VPSA Instructor Academic Affairs Dean Academic Affairs Dean Director of IE Registrar Dir. Admissions Recruiter Instructor VPIE VPAA Disability Srvs. Coord. Curriculum Coordinator Career Srvs. Coord. Student Navigator Role (Point of Contact or Member) Point of Contact Member Member Member Member Member Member Member Member (EO) Member Member Member Member Member (EO) Member Member Member Member Member Address ctetzlaff@laniertech.edu kregister@laniertech.edu bhefner@laniertech.edu dbrinson@laniertech.edu nbeaver@laniertech.edu tlindsey@laniertech.edu tlindsey1@laniertech.edu hledford@laniertech.edu bgadberry@laniertech.edu sbaker@laniertech.edu scronic@laniertech.edu korr@laniertech.edu lcharlto@laniertech.edu jtolleson@laniertech.edu tholston@laniertech.edu msafley@laniertech.edu mchapman@laniertech.edu mlawrence@laniertech.edu mwhitworth@laniertech@edu Lanier Technical College 143

144 Full Name Remedial Education: Kennon Below Susan Baker David Byers Harry Chapman Brad Gadberry Tavarez Holston Troy Lindsey Lisa Maloof Deanne Collins Sherry Moseley Ray Perren Joanne Tolleson Howard Ledford Nancy Beaver Chip Reynolds Sandy Gable Melissa Chapman Megan Whitworth Title/Position Instructor Instructor Instructor Instructor Director of IE VPAA Academic Affairs Dean Academic Affairs Dean Academic Affairs Dean Instructor President VPIE Academic Affairs Dean VPSA Evening Coordinator Instructor Curriculum Coordinator Student Navigator Role (Point of Contact or Member) Point of Contact Member Member Member Member (EO) Member Member Member Member Member Member (EO) Member (EO) Member Member Member Member Member Member Address Conclusion While AY 2015 saw only modest increases in degree production and graduation rates at Lanier Tech, we are optimistic about the College s capacity to meet its 2020 goal: at the outset of the CCG initiative, staff and faculty on the CCG task forces realized that the cohorts being reported were well along in their program of study and that any impact on these students from LTC s CCG initiatives would be minimal. Improvements to degree production and graduation rates would only be realized as students who began study at Lanier Tech during the CCG initiatives approached the end of their program of study. We do see encouraging indicators in the progress metrics that lead us to believe the College s degree production and graduations will trend significantly upward beginning in AY 2016 and Perhaps the most significant change wrought to Lanier Tech by Complete College Georgia is the degree to which taking responsibility for our students success has grown through the College s culture. Because of excellent leadership by the faculty chairs and broad participation in the CCG task forces, more and more faculty and staff at LTC are coming to see doing everything they can to ensure our student success as an expected part of their job. As discussed on p. 3, LTC has determined that in some cases, the College can develop better, more current strategies for improvement by making greater use of KMS college-level reports and relying less exclusively on the data provided in reports developed specifically for Complete College Georgia. Next Steps For AY 2016, LTC s CCG Task Forces plan to continue implementing and improving the initiatives currently in place, but also to shift focus to two main areas: advising and communications. In implementing CCG improvement efforts to date, getting information to advisors and ensuring that the advisors are following consistent practices has repeatedly proved to be an obstacle. This, we believe, is one specific instance of a larger issue: communication between the CCG task forces and other Lanier Tech stakeholders. Lanier Technical College 144

145 In AY 2016, Lanier Tech s CCG Task Forces will: Coordinate with Academic Affairs, the Admissions Office, and the Registrar s Office to ensure a member of each CCG task force is represented on the committee currently charged with developing and deploying LTC s Advising Manual; these representatives will provide an Advising Manual report at each CCG Task Force meeting Review all on-going CCG initiatives to identify how each affects student advising, and present these findings to the Advising Manual Committee for inclusion in the manual Support the Advising Manual Committee as needed to ensure the revised manual is completed and approved in spring 2016 and in use by summer 2016 Coordinate with the IT department to put in place an LTC Advising Outlook/Exchange mailbox in order to provide a clear and unambiguous communication channel to inform advisors of changes to advising practices and requirements Provide a Need to Know memo to the Vice President of Academic Affairs after each task force meeting, concisely detailing the task forces activities and how they impact or potentially impact operations in Academic Affairs Develop, deploy, and publicize a Complete College Georgia page on LTC s website Additional planned improvements and initiatives include: Analyze program schedules and curricula to determine which programs can be migrated to a block scheduling model Review and revise LTC s work ethics program to ensure: o The program is of sufficient rigor and consistency to truly fulfill the intentions of the Technical College System of Georgia s policy on incorporating work ethics in curricula o Completion of the work ethics program does not delay students progress toward graduation Redesign math Learning Support, separating numerical and algebra skills (MATH 0090A and MATH 0090B respectively), delivered in a co-requisite model with MATH 1012A and MATH 0090Q, in a fast-track format designed to teach pre-algebra and basic algebra in one semester Pilot co-requisite sections of READ 0090 and ENGL 0090 with ENGL 1010 Release detailed Program Pathways (Sample Graduation Plans) on the website Develop, deploy, and publicize procedures to ensure closer coordination between LTC staff and service-area high schools to ensure LTC receives all Move on When Ready student s transcripts upon graduation, so that LTC may issue these students any awards to which they are entitled Support LTC s Student Navigator as needed to ensure effective training on the TCSG Early Alert Management System (TEAMS) Develop procedures to ensure faculty and staff are fully utilizing the Students with 88% or More of Their Program Completed DegreeWorks report each term Provide oversight of LTC s implementation of the One til Done procedure Coordinate with Student Affairs division to develop processes for ensuring Change of Program forms submitted by students at the smaller campuses are processed by an Admissions Advisor and Financial Aid staff member Develop procedures and/or advising practices to increase the average number of credit hours LTC students enroll in for each semester. Lanier Technical College 145

146 Resources Needed to Implement Next Steps The primary resources needed for LTC to better advance its CCG goals involve College staff s ability to collect and analyze data. While existing KMS and BANNER reports provide a great deal of data, LTC s CCG Task Forces have frequently requested more specific, detailed, or current data. Hiring a staff member or consultant able to generate scripts and reports to answer specific questions will greatly enhance the Task Forces effectiveness. In addition, the Institutional Effectiveness staff needs greater ability to analyze the raw data generated by both existing reports and those developed by a script writing. Training for on techniques in statistical analysis and use of SPSS software will be a valuable resource. Lanier Technical College 146

147 North Georgia Technical College North Georgia Technical College 147

148 Overview North Georgia Technical College North Georgia Technical College (NGTC) continues to work diligently towards implementing additional student completion strategies that align with the three metrics of performance in degree production, graduation rates, and success in remedial education. NGTC s goal is to produce 8,182 total Complete College America graduates from For this goal to be met, the College would need to produce 3,667 graduates from NGTC reviewed the KMS #DC241 CCA 2014 enrollment data report. This report revealed changes as indicated below in student demographics with indicators of gender, race, students directly from high school, full-time vs. part-time enrollment, students enrolled in remedial courses at entry, and Pell recipients. FY 2007 FY 2012 Percent change Full Time Part Time Full Time Part Time Full Time Part Time Total Students 1, , % 153.3% Gender: Male % 127.8% Gender: Female % 173.0% Race: Hispanic % 384.6% Race: Black, non-hispanic % 206.9% Age: Directly from High School (17-19 years old) % 196.1% Pell % 505.5% Remedial: Took remedial courses (at entry) % 466.7% The College s demographics is one in which 84.9% of our students are white; therefore, there has not been any significant change in race in which to report. Strategic efforts to promote student success indicate a positive impact towards time to completion efforts. NGTC continues to monitor the three CCG Metrics, (1) Degree Production, (2) Graduation Rates, and (3) Success in Remedial Education is summarized below. Goals Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7% annually over the previous year Performance Measures: Degree production and graduation rate metrics were used to measure this goal. NGTC s goal was to experience an increase of 136 awards over the previous year (AY2014). Although this goal was not met, results did indicate an annual enrollment of 3,585 students with 667 unduplicated graduates and 1,022 awards for AY2015. The percentage of unduplicated graduates increased by seven percent (624/667) from AY2014 to AY2015. Based upon the KMS #DC241 CCG AY2014 report, degree production by discipline indicated that NGTC experienced an overall 171.7% increase in the number graduates from 2007 to Although the College did not meet the expected 4.7% increase in graduates over the prior year, NGTC did experience an increase of 3.4% (570/583) in graduates from (KMS Data Report #DC241) North Georgia Technical College 148

149 Additionally, the graduation rate for the years is 56%. While this rate is slightly lower than the TCSG average (57.83%), the College has experienced a 5.7% increase in the graduation rate over the last three years ( ). Table 1 below reflects NGTC s graduation rates for both full and part-time students for KMS #DC241 CCG report year Table 1: Graduation Rates in Time Source: KMS Report #DC241 Table 2 reflects tracking student success in the TCSG identified programs using the block scheduling format since AY2014. Additionally, NGTC has implemented the block scheduling format for Commercial Truck Driving and Electrical Lineworker TCC s to begin tracking in AY2015. Table 2: Block Scheduling Tracking Student Success in Block Scheduled Programs Level Program AY14 Cohort AY15 Cohort Total Retained Retention Rate Total Graduated Graduation Rate AY14 AY15 AY14 AY15 AY14 AY15 AY14 AY15 AC12 Diploma Accounting % 40% % 40% AC13 Degree Accounting % 100% 1 0 8% 0% ACT2 Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % 77% % 8% ACT3 Degree Air Conditioning Technology % 100% % 0% AT14 Diploma Automotive Technology % 88% % 0% CT61 TCC Commercial Truck Driving % 100% 0 6 0% 100% EL11 TCC Electrical Line Worker % 95% % 95% MA22 Diploma Medical Assisting % 74% % 4% MA33 Degree Medical Assisting % 0% 0 0 0% 0% NS14 Diploma Networking Specialist % 87% % 0% NS13 Degree Networking Specialist % 68% 1 0 9% 0% Table 2: Block Scheduling Tracking North Georgia Technical College 149

150 Strategies/Interventions: Data indicates that NGTC has experienced an increase in the number of degree seeking students versus diploma/certificates students. In order to meet the student demands for additional degree offerings versus diploma/certificate, NGTC identified workforce demands that resulted in increased opportunities for student enrollment and completion. During AY , NGTC developed Nursing (AAS), Medical Assisting (AAS), Early Childhood Care & Education degree, diploma, and TCC, and Networking degree, diploma, and TCC programs. Additional strategies include: Increase number of degree and diploma offerings that lead directly to workforce Provide additional apprenticeship opportunities with local industries Curricular changes in admission to higher degree program offerings Increase credentialed faculty to accommodate the increased number of expanded program offerings Provide additional online courses that will accommodate students real-life schedules for work and family Revise the College Success and Skills courses to provide a better understanding of first time college student experience and success Increase faculty/student focus groups and surveys to provide an insight to students educational needs and barriers that hinder success Prior Learning assessment (PLA) that will shorten the time to completion for students that meet eligibility criteria Improved veteran friendly services Continuous improvement of student organizations lead by the Student Government body Implementation of Starfish and TCSG Early Alert Management System that tracking alerts made by faculty (AY ,760 average per semester) Improved face-to-face new student orientation beginning AY2014 Resource fairs to provide students with awareness of Community and College resource availability Lending Library for low income students Provide more apprenticeship opportunities that will lead students directly to the workforce Resources: The primary resources needed in order to implement the new programs included hiring new faculty which required salaries and fringe benefits, expanded Library resources, equipment and supplies to expand new and current program offerings, and facilities. Financial funding has been allocated annually since 2013 towards Starfish in order to provide early intervention strategies toward retaining our students. Additional resources has included faculty and staff training to better advise students on time to completion, improved student life sponsored events that enhance student engagement, and expand Student Success Centers for additional educational support. Obstacles: Industry has been affected by the economic downturn but has slowly begun to improve in the NGTC eight county service area; however, state funding remains as an ongoing obstacle when developing and opening new program areas. When reviewing areas of industry and training needs, NGTC will focus on areas of industry to build additional programs when the funding is available. Additionally, program facilities and equipment. Additional obstacles are Qualified faculty Student/faculty ratio Dual enrollment within service area high schools Specific job needs Program sustainability Adequate facilities North Georgia Technical College 150

151 PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS PERCENTAGE OFSTUDENTS Transform Remediation Performance Measures: The College chose to focus on the success in remedial education progress metric to align with the TCSG-CCG goal to transform remediation. In the 2014 academic year, second year of implementation, 875 students, including diploma, degree and certificate students, were enrolled in Math 0090 redesigned math learning support course. The total number students who successfully reached their set benchmark was 647 of 875 or 74% as shown in Table 3 below. The benchmarks have been created to mirror the learning objectives which were previously addressed in the courses prior to redesign. The gain made in AY2014 for student success in remedial math when compared to the baseline data is 18%. Student Success: Math Learning Support Redesign 80% 60% 56% 44% 74% 26% 40% 20% 0% Fall 2011(Baseline) Academic Year 2014 SEMESTERS Met Benchmark Not Meeting Benchmark Table 3: Student Success after Implementation of Math Learning Support Redesign Of the students successfully completing their assigned benchmark in Math 0090, 332 out of 875 or 38% were able to accelerate as shown in Table 4. Acceleration is defined by a students ability to successfully demonstrate master of more than one semesters worth of learning outcomes in a single semester. Sixty one of the 875 students or 7% were able to master three semesters of learning outcomes in a single semester. Math Learning Support Acceleration Rate 38% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 20% 7% 1.1% Fall 2012 (Baseline) Academic Year 2014 Student Exceeding Benchmark SEMESTERS Student Completeing All Modules in 1 Semester Table 4: Acceleration Rate: Students Who Completed More Than One Semester s Worth of In Content The 2014 academic year 212 diploma, degree and certificate level students were enrolled in the redesigned course, ENG The total number of students who successfully reached their set benchmark was 155 of 212 or 73% as shown in Table 5. North Georgia Technical College 151

152 PERCENTAGE OF STUDENTS Student Success: English Learning Support Redesign 80% 64% 73% 60% 40% 20% 36% 27% 0% Fall 2012 (Baseline) Academic Year 2014 SEMESTERS Met Benchmark Not Meeting Benchmark Table 5: English Learning Support Student Success after Implementation of English Learning Support Redesign The gain made for student success in remedial English when compared to the baseline data from fall 2012 is 9%. In the same academic year 154 diploma, degree and certificate students were enrolled in the redesigned READ 0090 course. The total number of students who successfully reached their set benchmark was 134 out of 154 or 87% as shown in Table 6. Student success results remained unchanged when compared to the fall 2012 baseline data. Student Success: Reading Learning Support Redesign 87% 87% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 13% 13% Fall 2012 (Baseline) Academic Year 2014 Met Benchmark No Meeting Benchmark Table 6: Reading Learning Support Student Success after Implementation of Reading Learning Support Redesign Sources for Tables 3-6: Internal Tracking; Pearson MyLabs Plus reports North Georgia Technical College 152

153 Of the students who successfully completed their assigned benchmark in English 118 of 221 or 56% of completed all English learning support requirements in one semester compared to two prior to redesign. Reading students were able to accelerate as well with 74 out of 154 students or 48% completing all reading learning support requirements in one semester. Strategies/Interventions: Beginning fall 2012, NGTC redesigned the remedial math courses as a result of the college s Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) as required by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). The College combined the learning objectives and outcomes from three lecture based courses (Math 0097, 0098, 0099) into one course, Math The new redesigned course, taught following the emporium model, allows students to receive an individualized prescriptive learning plan. The course also allows students to accelerate through the course. Students have the opportunity to complete in one semester the course work that may have taken three semesters. The success rates for each learning support (remedial) math course was only 56% prior to the redesign in fall NGTC was also prompted to redesign the existing English and reading learning support course which was implemented in spring The learning outcomes and objectives from ENG 0097 and 0098 were combined into the ENGL 0090 course. Similarly the outcomes and objectives from READ 0097 and 0098 were combined into READ Comparable to the math course, new redesigned courses, taught following the emporium model, allows students to receive an individualized prescriptive learning plan. The success rates for students enrolled in programs offering block scheduling for AY2014 is as follows: Automotive Technology Diploma: 5 out of 8 students or 63% met their benchmark and completed their math learning support requirement; 4 out of 14 or 29% met their benchmark and completed their reading learning support requirement. No English students were enrolled Medical Assisting Degree: 2 out of the 2 students enrolled or 100% met their benchmark for learning support math. These students are still progressing through the learning support math requirements. No reading or English students were enrolled. Medical Assisting Diploma: 1 out of 2 students or 50% met their benchmark and completed their math learning support requirements; 1 out of 3 or 33% met their reading benchmark and completed their learning support requirements. No English students were enrolled. Networking Specialist Degree: 16 out of 16 or 100% met their benchmark for learning support math, with 38% completing math learning support requirements. No students were enrolled for reading or English Networking Specialist Diploma: 2 out of 2 students or 100% met their benchmark and completed their math learning support requirement. No students were enrolled for reading or English. Air Conditioning Technology Degree: No students were enrolled in math, reading or English learning support. Air Conditioning Technology Diploma: 1 out of 1 student or 100% met their benchmark and completed their math learning support requirement. 3 out of 3 students or 100% met their benchmark and completed their math learning support requirement. No English students were enrolled. Accounting Degree: 19 out of 24 students or 79% meth their benchmark for learning support math with 33% completing their math learning support requirement. 3 of 6 or 50 % of students met their reading learning support benchmark with 33% completing their learning support reading requirement. No students were enrolled for English. Accounting Diploma: 1 out of 2 or 50% of students met their benchmark for learning support math with 50% completing their learning support math requirement. No students were enrolled for reading or English. Resources: Resources have been allocated to provide smaller teacher student ratios, often times providing an adjunct or teaching assistant in learning support classrooms in all disciplines. Resources have also been allocated for an attendance tracking software to facilitate in the implementation of required lab time for all learning support math students. North Georgia Technical College 153

154 Obstacles: The need for computer lab trouble shooting, securing enough qualified faculty to meet student demand for classes, and revamping of course content to continue to target student needs remains an obstacle. The QEP and learning support coordinator, general education department chair, and tutoring coordinator continue to evaluate and overcome obstacles faced. Student Success Implementation Team Full Name Title/Position Role (Point of Contact or Member) Address Dr. Mark Ivester Acting President Member Kathie Ivester VP for Academic Affairs Member Carol Carson VP for Administrative Services Member Dr. Michael King VP for Student Affairs Member Mindy Glander Dean for Academic Affairs Member Janet Henderson Institutional Effectiveness Director Point of Contact Laura Jenkins General Studies Department Chair, Instructor, QEP Coordinator Member Leslie McFarlin Dean for Academic Affairs Member Dan Pressley Dean for Academic Affairs Member Kallan Williams Director of Retention & Student Navigations Member Student data analysis is primarily conducted by both the ATD Core and Data Teams. Various subgroups across the College have begun requesting and accessing data pertinent to their specific area regarding the student success agenda. A newsletter is sent out once a month in order to keep all students, faculty, and staff informed of student data analyses in correlation with NGTC s student success initiatives. Conclusion In conclusion, NGTC has worked diligently towards implementing additional student success strategies and interventions in order to increase student completion rates. One strategy that has proved to be successful includes the expansion in program offerings that included various degrees, diplomas, and technical certificates of credit that resulted in a 93.2% increase in degree production. Due to the increase in program offerings, faculty has been increased by 17% in order to provide more course offerings to our students leading to improved time to completion rates. Additionally, the College has made a collaborative effort towards improving the services to our students by providing additional support systems through the Student Success Centers as well as retentions services providing resources to students in order to encourage retention and graduation. The improved success rates for students requiring the redesigned learning support English, math or reading has proved to be a successful intervention. The redesign particularly in the area of math has resulted in an 18% increase in students completing all modules within one semester; thus students are able to move on into the gateway math in a timelier manner. Of the strategies and interventions the College has implemented, additional work is needed in the areas of persistence from term-to-term and year-to-year. North Georgia Technical College 154

155 Next Steps North Georgia Technical College will continue to align its CCG activities with the college s Achieving the Dream initiatives. Various strategies/interventions will be implemented to increase completion towards meeting the College s CCG goal of 866 graduates for Next steps include, but are not limited to the following: Implement the College & Career Success Skills (COLL 1010) course beginning Fall 2015 and track student persistence till graduation Continue to develop new program offerings in order to provide more opportunities for completion Academic advising will continue to direct students to follow a defined Graduation Plan presented upon program entry in order to encourage a shorter time to completion Expand the Student Success Centers across all three campuses Provide credentialed faculty within the NGTC service area high schools Create more apprenticeship opportunities Seek additional funding to provide adequate and credentialed faculty New strategies to improve online success to the student that continues to work and support families Continue to increase programs that offer block scheduling Continue to expand the early intervention processes Provide students access to degree works in order to track time to completion Decrease the time of students time in learning support courses with Co-requisite models and ENGL 0988 (combining ENGL 0090 and READ 0090) Continue to track and identify courses with high failure/withdrawal rates Promote programs to offer open lab time that will enhance and improve student skill levels Create additional professional development opportunities to staff and faculty with best practices in advisement and course delivery Build student literacy skills and awareness of reading-writing relationship For the College to continue towards the goal of 866 graduates by 2020, additional resources would be necessary. Resources include, but are not limited to: additional faculty to support new programs, additional faculty to support dual enrollment growth within the NGTC service area high schools, additional space and staff to support the Student Success Centers on all three campuses, and funding for professional development. North Georgia Technical College 155

156 Oconee Fall Line Technical College Oconee Fall Line Technical College 156

157 Oconee Fall Line Technical College Overview By 2020, it is projected that over 60 percent of jobs in Georgia will require some form of college education, whether a certificate, associate s degree, or bachelor s degree. As a college in the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), Oconee Fall Line Technical College (OFTC) is committed to helping the State of Georgia meet the demands for a skilled workforce through the Complete College Georgia initiative. OFTC uses the Complete College Georgia (CCG) annual data report produced by the Technical College System of Georgia for most data tracking purposes related to CCG (TCSG KMS Report DC241). This report contains many indicators of student success. While all are reviewed, three measures are given the most attention: Degree Production, Graduation Rates, and Success in Remedial Education. Charts have been constructed in this document to provide an overview of OFTC's performance on these three key measures. Several internal measures are also used including Math pass rates by term for learning support, diploma, and degree level courses. OFTC also monitors the number of students entering and exiting learning support taught by the college's Adult Education Division. Data is incorporated into the OFTC institutional effectiveness process and monitored annually. Using the data as a part of the IE process insures an annual review by the deans and directors of the college. Annual improvement plans are developed based on input from a broad college team. Overall college demographic data can help explain and predict OFTC s success on achieving the goals established for the Complete College Georgia initiative. OFTC has experienced many changes in the demographics of the student body. As shown in KMS Report DC241, in Fiscal Year 2007 there were 1,364 full-time students. In Academic Year 2012 nearly half the number of full-time students enrolled (697). This downward trend was not seen in part-time students, as the number increased by 11.8%. The part-time and full-time transfer students followed a similar trend with the full-time students decreasing and the part-time student increasing. The CCG research indicates that time is the enemy. In other words, the longer a student says enrolled past on-time graduation, the less likely they are to reach graduation. The decline in full-time students and increase in part-time students indicates that more students will be enrolled past ontime graduation, thus reducing their chances of reaching graduation. OFTC is devising strategies to help this group of students persist to graduation. Also seen in this data is the overall enrollment decline. The total number of students was reduced by 14.8%. This decline also produces challenges for OFTC in meeting the CCG established goals, specifically the goal to increase the overall number of graduates. With fewer students in the pipeline toward graduation, it will be essential to retain as many as possible to meet the established graduation thresholds. CCA Context Metric 1: Enrollment-Unduplicated Headcount Fiscal Year 2007 Academic Year 2012 Percent Change Full-time Students 1, % Part-time Students 1,568 1, % Full-time Transfer Students % Part-time Transfer Students % Total number of Students 3,143 2, *Data from TCSG KMS Report DC241 Oconee Fall Line Technical College 157

158 In addition to the enrollment demographics seen in CCA Context Metric 1: Enrollment- Unduplicated Headcount, other demographic data can also help inform the retention and completion efforts. The College Snapshot Report provided by TCSG through KMS indicates that the college enrollment in Academic Year 2015 was 2,341, down 15.1% from 3,758 in AY This data also indicates that most of our students are part-time (71.8%), most (57.9%) of students took at least one course online, and most (61.0%) receive PELL through financial aid. Each of these demographics provides a unique set of challenges when attempting to meet the CCG goals. OFTC continues to seek strategies to support our student population though the educational process to graduation. To better understand the data trends, it is helpful to look at factors that impacted the college during the reporting period. During this time, the college underwent many significant changes which impacted enrollment. The data from 2007 is from prior to the merger of Sandersville Technical College and Heart of Georgia Technical College. The data from prior to July 1, 2011 is data from the two individual colleges merged together to form Oconee Fall Line Technical College. The Academic Year 2012 data is from the first merged year of OFTC. In the 2012 Academic Year, the college also converted from a quarter calendar system to semester calendar system and helped students adjust to the changes/reductions to the HOPE Scholarship/Grant funding. Combined, these changes shifted many of our students from full-time status to part-time status, and resulted in an overall enrollment decline. Goals Increase the number of graduates by an additional 2,863 or 4.7% annually over the previous year (mandatory goal): Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: Degree Production Goal Tracker, DPR Report #DC293, Complete College Georgia Metric- Outcome Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production Certificate/diploma (less than 1 academic year) Certificate/diploma (at least 1 but less then 2 years) Certificate/diploma (at least 2 but less then 4 years) Associate Degree Oconee Fall Line Technical College 158

159 CCG Goal OFTC Actual As the charts indicate, OFTC was meeting or exceeding the CCG degree production goals until from 2009 through In 2013, there was a steep decline in the number of students and the overall number of graduates. Since that time, the CCG goal continues to increase and the college performance has not rebounded to meet the goal. The college has seen a slight increase in the number of graduates each year, but has not yet approached the 2012 graduate numbers or the CCG benchmark. At the end of 2015, OFTC was 803 graduates below the established CCG goal. Strategies/Interventions implemented to impact the performance metrics: Fall Semester 2014, OFTC launched the Commit to Complete Campaign. This event was kicked-off with a campus-wide student assembly. Students were given information on Degree Works, a degree audit tool that can help students track the courses needed for graduation. Students at the assembly were also asked to sign a commitment statement for graduation. Those participating received a lanyard with the Commit to Complete logo. This campaign has been carried forward throughout the college at student club meetings and during new student orientation. A second Commit to Complete assembly was held in Fall OFTC has hired a Student Navigator. This position is designed to provide assistance to students with barriers to graduation. The Student Navigator will continue working on the Enrollment Management Plan and with the Enrollment Management Team. The Student Navigator will also work with the early alert system, TEAMS, to identify at risk students. This system is currently rolled out to some divisions of the college on a trial basis. By spring 2016, all programs at the college will utilize the TEAMS system. The early alert system will be successful through the efforts of the faculty, Student Navigator, and participating students. OFTC began offering a Veterans Support Group. This group meets once a month and averages between participants. Speakers at the meetings have included representatives from the Carl Vinson VA Medical Center and the Macon Vet Center. Support group members have participated in a luncheon on November 11th and served as volunteers for the Moving Wall Vietnam Memorial. Resources allocated to accomplish strategies/interventions: OFTC has hired a Student Navigator to work one-on-one with students identified through the TEAMs Early Alert System. The college has also committed time and resources to training faculty and staff on the use of the new software. OFTC has committed resources to two student assemblies focused on the completion agenda during student events and meetings. OFTC has implemented Degree Works, a degree audit tool to assist students and advisors. OFTC has committed resources into training faculty and staff on the use of the TEAM early alert system. Oconee Fall Line Technical College 159

160 Obstacles encountered in the implementation of the intervention and steps taken by the college to address challenges: The overall enrollment decline has had the greatest impact on degree production and the failure to meet the established goal. OFTC received the PBI grant and included in the grant budget are salaries for two additional Student Navigator positions and an OFTC Retention Specialist. Transform Remediation Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: TCGS KMS Report #DC241, Complete College Georgia 2015 Report, Progress Metric 2: Success in Remedial Education Progress Metric 2: Success in Remedial Education 70.00% 60.00% 50.00% 40.00% 30.00% 20.00% 10.00% 0.00% Fall 2007 Cohort Fall 2008 Cohort Fall 2009 Cohort Fall 2010 Cohort Students Completing Remedial Courses within their First two Academic Years Students Completing College Level Course in the Same Subject within Their First Two Academic Years As the chart indicates, from 2007 through 2009, the number of students completing the remedial course within their first two academic years remained above 60%. While the number of students completing the college level course in the same subject within the first two academic years was fewer than 40% (there was unexplained dip in the 2008 cohort). The 2010 cohort was number of student completing remedial courses within their first two academic years declined from above 60% to 48%. It is difficult to analyze the data trend because it is a compilation of two separate colleges operating with different procedures and practices. The data was merged to form an OFTC data set. However, there is clear evidence that increasing the number of students successfully completing general education course work, including those starting in remedial education, will increase the overall number of OFTC graduates. Strategies/Interventions implemented to impact the performance metrics: Beginning Fall Semester 2013, the learning support courses were redesigned to include a lab component. The ENGL 0098 and the READ 0098 have been combined into ENGL MATH 0098 and MATH 0099 were also renumbered (MATH 0090A and MATH 0090B) to allow for supplemental lab instruction. Faculty and staff have been informed of these changes so that they can provide correct information and advisement to students. The additional lab components in the learning support classes proved beneficial for students. Students and instructors felt that the extra time allowed for greater success. To build on the learning support redesign in AY 15, the ENGL 0988 instructors will be evaluating a new computerized component of classroom instruction that is produced by McGraw-Hill. After evaluation, the new web-based component will be considered for inclusion in additional classes. Oconee Fall Line Technical College 160

161 In MATH 0090, the two classes (A &B) will be combined into one classroom utilizing Pearson My Labs Plus in an emporium-based delivery format. Students will be self-paced and will be able to possibly reduce the time that is required for the MATH learning support courses. OFTC is piloting an ENGL 0988 and ENGL 1101 co-requisite course on North Campus during fall semester. Depending on the success of that course, it may be run again during spring semester and expanded to more than one section. Resources allocated to accomplish strategies/interventions: OFTC received a USDA Rural Development Grant focused on the development of a Math Lab on the North Campus. This new lab will facilitate student movement through the learning support courses. Obstacles encountered in the implementation of the intervention and steps taken by the college to address challenges: Additional space and computer resources were needed on North Campus to facilitate the lab components of learning support math. This was accomplished with the help of outside grant funding to establish a math lab on that campus. This lab will give student access to state-of-the-art technology to assist them through the process. Restructure Delivery, including block scheduling Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: TCGS KMS Report #DC302, Complete College Georgia Metric Progress 5: Retention Rate- Student List Level Major AY14 Cohort Total Retained Retention Rate AY13 Cohort Total Retained Retention Rate Degree Accounting 0 0 0% % Diploma Accounting % % Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % % Diploma Automotive Technology % % Diploma Medical Assisting % % Degree Networking Specialist % % Diploma Networking Specialist 0 0 0% % Level Major (Other Block Scheduled Programs) AY14 Cohort Total Retained Retention Rate AY13 Cohort Total Retained Diploma Cosmetology % % Diploma Diesel Equipment Technology % % Retention Rate Diploma % % Degree Respiratory Care % % Degree Welding and Joining Technology % % Oconee Fall Line Technical College 161

162 OFTC began offering block scheduling for the following programs: Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Networking Specialist, Medical Assisting, and Automotive Technology. Block scheduling is now done for programs on campus, to facilitate student access to the courses needed for graduation. As the data suggest, the retention rates in these programs tend to be above the college-wide average of 74% in AY 13 and 76% in AY 14. Because the cohorts are small, the retention rates fluctuate widely with a change in one student s status. Building enrollment in these programs will help stabilize the retention/graduation rates and will help with meeting the overall CCG goal. Half of the programs included in the original group had a100% retention rate and that indicates that the block scheduling process has been beneficial to at least some of the students. Strategies/Interventions implemented to impact the performance metrics: OFTC will continue to offer block scheduling in the AY 16 year for the following programs: Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Networking Specialist, Medical Assisting, and Automotive Technology programs. The newly hired Student Navigator will work with the Enrollment Management Team to track student success in the programs that offer courses in a block scheduling format. Resources allocated to accomplish strategies/interventions OFTC has hired a Student Navigator. This position is designed to provide assistance to students with barriers to graduation. The Student Navigator will continue working on the Enrollment Management Plan and with the Enrollment Management Team. Students in the programs with block scheduling will benefit from the efforts of the Student Navigator. The Student Navigator will also work with the early alert system, TEAMS, to identify at risk students. This system is currently rolled out to some divisions of the college on a trial basis. By spring 2016, all programs at the college will utilize the TEAMS system. The early alert system will be successful through the efforts of the faculty, Student Navigator, and participating students. Obstacles encountered in the implementation of the intervention and steps taken by the college to address challenges: The block scheduling effort has gone very well. Once established, the scheduling model has been followed annually to insure that students have access to the courses that they need to graduate in a timely manner. Shorten Time to Degree Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: TCGS KMS Report #DC241, Complete College Georgia 2015 Report, Outcome Metric 2: Graduation Rates in 200% Time Oconee Fall Line Technical College 162

163 Outcome Metric 2: Graduation Rates in 200% Time 60.00% 50.00% 40.00% 30.00% 20.00% 10.00% 0.00% Fall 2006 Cohort Fall 2007 Cohort Fall 2008 Cohort Fall 2009 Cohort Full-time Students- Certificate/ diploma ( at least 1 but less than 2 years) Part-time Students- Certificate/diploma (at least 1 but less than 2 Transfer Students- Certificate/diploma (at least 1 but less than 2) Full-time Students- Associate Degree Part-time Students- Associate Degree Transfer Students- Assocatie Degree The graduation rate data suggest that full-time students are more consistently reaching graduation in 200% time than part-time students. This is not surprising when you consider the research that suggests that the longer student remain enrolled, the less likely they are to reach graduation. Transfer students have done particularly well in reaching graduation in 200% time. Strategies/Interventions implemented to impact the performance metrics: OFTC is piloting an ENGL 0988 and ENGL 1101 co-requisite course on North Campus during fall semester. Depending on the success of that course, it may be run again during spring semester and expanded to more than one section. This will shorten the time that students spend in developmental coursework and the overall all time to graduation. OFTC made Degree Works available to all students in AY 15. This tool allows students and advisors to closely track their progress toward completion and help insure that students are only taking courses needed to complete their course of study. Training is done with students and faculty annually to insure that the tool is being utilized to its full potential. Resources allocated to accomplish strategies/interventions: OFTC has made the Degree Works degree audit tool available to faculty and students. Training on the software program has been done annually to insure that students and advisors understand how to utilize the program. The general education faculty members have worked in partnership to look for strategies to help students through the learning support and general core coursework. Many changes have been made that are improving outcomes. In addition to revising curriculum, the faculty members are tracking internal measures of success including Math pass rates by term for learning support, diploma, and degree level courses. Oconee Fall Line Technical College 163

164 Obstacles encountered in the implementation of the intervention and steps taken by the college to address challenges: Students continue to leave campus prior to earning a credential. An attempt to shorten the time it takes to graduate continues to be a challenge. As seen in the overview, there has been a shift away from full-time status and more students are now enrolling as part-time students. This trend is difficult to overcome. However, OFTC has continued to look for strategies to help students. In AY16, a college success course will be developed. This course will emphasize the need to stay focused on a single program of study and to move swiftly through the curriculum. Student Success Implementation Team Name Title/Position Role on Team Address Erica Harden Michele Strickland Katie Davis Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs Dean, Arts and Sciences & SBusiness SErvices Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness Overall Implementation and Plan Coordination Learning Support Redesign Point of Contact- Data Plan and Monitoring Geri Clements Student Navigator Early Alert and Enrollment Management Janet Smith Director, Student Life Veterans Support Group and Commit to Graduate Campaign eharden@oftc.edu mstrickland@oftc.edu kdavis@oftc.edu gclements@oftc.edu jrsmith@oftc.edu This team is responsible for implementing the activities and monitoring success. Information about CCG is shared widely on campus through these team members. Data is incorporated into the OFTC institutional effectiveness process and monitored annually. Using the data as a part of the IE process insures an annual review by the deans and directors of the college. Annual improvement plans are developed based on input from a broad college team. The data is also incorporated into the strategic planning process, which reaches a wider college audience. Conclusion The overall enrollment decline at OFTC has had the most impact on the Complete College Georgia Degree Production Goal. As the shown in Table 1, full-time student enrollment is down by 50% during the reporting period. Encouraging more students to enroll and more students to take a full-time course load is a major hurdle that must be addressed for the degree production goal to be achieved. As the CCG data sets mature, a clearer picture will be available regarding the impact of the interventions that have been implemented. The full impact of the shift from a quarter system calendar to a semester system calendar are just beginning to emerge in this data and will be clearer in the next data cycle. Overall, participation in the CCG initiative has focused the college s efforts on retention and graduation. This is a message that the students hear regularly at orientation, advisement, student assemblies and club meetings. The focus on student retention and graduation also can be seen in the grant writing efforts. The PBI Grant, which was awarded in September 2015, is focused on student support personnel who will work one-on-one with students through their educational pathway. Also the Math lab on North Campus has been made possible through additional grant funding. OFTC continues to make adjustments to the learning support curriculum and course delivery methods. This is an ongoing effort to find the right combination of contact hours, while reducing the overall time students spend in learning support. The co-requisite strategy has just been implemented, and results will indicate if this is a method that can be scaled up to other learning support courses. Oconee Fall Line Technical College 164

165 Next Steps OFTC has had many successes during the Complete College Georgia campaign. However, not all goals have been attained. In looking to build on these successes, OFTC has focused a few new activities that will move the needle toward success. First, the college is has begun to develop a College Success Course using existing faculty and deans to develop the curriculum. This course will be available to first time college students and give them the tools that are needed to be successful in college. The course will be in development during the 2016 Academic Year. The message students will receive in this course is that the most successful students move quickly through the curriculum and stay focused on the courses needed to graduate. Students will also be introduced to Degree Works, which is a degree audit programs that outlines the exact courses needed for graduation. This tool is instrumental in helping students understand the requirements for graduation and to stay on track. Second, OFTC will fully implement the TEAMs Early Alert system college-wide, which is provided to the college by TCSG. A Student Navigator has been hired and has implemented a pilot program with the TEAMs system in a few programs. By Spring Semester 2016, all programs will be using TEAMs. Faculty and staff training sessions will be scheduled, so everyone is informed on how to utilize the program and how the process works. In addition to the current Student Navigator, OFTC will use funding through the PBI grant to strengthen retention efforts. This grant was awarded in September 2015 and provides funding for five years. Included in the grant is funding for 2 Retention Specialists and 1 student additional Student Navigator. These additional positions will allow OFTC to have more one-on-one contact with students. These new personnel will also work with the TEAMs program and students identified through the early alert system who are at risk for dropping out. Finally, OFTC will continue to work to get the Math lab on North Campus fully operational. This lab, also the result of grant funding, will give learning support and gateway-course students access to state-of-the-art technology to assist them through the general education process. Because OFTC is aware this is a drop-out point for many students, additional resources have been provided in an attempt to strengthen outcomes. Oconee Fall Line Technical College 165

166 Ogeechee Technical College Ogeechee Technical College 166

167 Overview Ogeechee Technical College Based on data from KMS Report #DC241 (CCG All Metrics Summary), Ogeechee Technical College (OTC) has seen a reversal in enrollment of full-time students and part-time students since 2011 (see Table A). Specifically, the 2012 fulltime enrollment decreased by -54% from the previous year, while part-time enrollment increased 70% from the previous year. This trend has continued and its effects can be seen on other populations like gender and those who take remedial courses. From Fall 2014 to Fall 2015, overall enrollment dropped 12%. The percentage of full-time and parttime enrollment from 2014 to 2015 has remained about the same. There has been a small increase in full-time enrollment with 34.7% in 2014 to 37.2% in 2015 and a small decrease in part-time enrollment with 65.3% in 2014 to 62.8% in Females continue to represent the majority of our students with 67.9% of total enrollment. And our race/ethnicity populations have remained steady since 2011 with white (non-hispanic) students representing 56.5% of the population and black (non-hispanic) students representing 36.7%. An interesting characteristic has been the small, yet steady increase in our Hispanic population. Specifically, part-time Hispanic students have increased from 35 in 2014 to 54 in This is a percentage change of 54% and may indicate a population we should follow more closely. The age demographics for the total population remains the same since last year. Small decreases in all age groups are due to overall enrollment decline. In 2014, there was a small increase in year olds (2.04%) and those 25 and over (2.96%). The number of students receiving the Pell grant has also decreased in direct relation to enrollment decreasing. However, Pell and HOPE continue to be the most common form of financial aid for our students. Additional data was pulled from KMS Report #DC115 (Enrollment Demographics) and KMS Report #DC131 (Demographics by HC) in order to identify trends in current term data. Table A CCA Context Metric 1: Enrollment Year FT % change FT previous year PT % change PT previous year FY Full Year % % 2790 AY % % 2294 AY % % 2193 Goals Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7 % annually over the previous year (mandatory goal) Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: Student Affairs monitors KMS Report #DC293 (Degree Production Goal Tracker) to track the progress being made toward the College s Complete College Georgia degree production goal. The College is currently 1,463 CCA graduates above the goal to date. Ogeechee Tech is one of six technical colleges who have met and exceeded the annual benchmark goal for CCG degree production. Using KMS Report #DC293 (Degree Production Goal Tracker) as a reference point, the College monitors KMS Report #DC246 (Outcome 1 Degree Production) to determine which level (if any) degree production has declined (see Table B). Once a level has been identified, Reports #DC248 (Outcome 1 Degree Production by Discipline) and #DC247 (Outcome 1 Degree Production by Major) are used to drill down to program areas. The College IE Division maintains separate reports on enrollment, retention, graduates, placement, and licensure. Each fall term, these reports are shared with the Academic Deans. These reports compliment the CCG reports as they are timely and provide insight into current trends in student success. Total Ogeechee Technical College 167

168 Strategies Implemented: All Complete College Georgia strategies listed herein have allowed the College to progress toward our CCG degree production goal. The College has surpassed each goal since tracking began in Currently the College has surpassed its cumulative 2015 goal by 1,463 graduates. The QEP implementation is ongoing as part of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) reaffirmation process. While the QEP is in progress, the focus thus far has centered on enhancing student learning/success in the orientation process. This strategy will continue to positively impact our CCG goals. In July 2015, the completed renovation of the Enrollment Services Center included a new Success Lab and Academic Enrichment Center. The College developed an internal 15 to Finish marketing campaign targeting faculty, staff, and students. The campaign was comprised of postcard mailers, yard signs, 15 to finish awareness events, and campaign videos on all digital signs throughout campus. In addition, an campaign was created to educate the campus community of the benefits. This campaign is rolled out every fall semester. The Move on When Ready (MOWR) initiative has impacted program development and enrollment already and will continue to impact the high school enrollment numbers which can eventually effect college-level enrollment numbers. Resources Allocated: Part of a $2.9 M investment in renovating the Enrollment Services Center, allowed for improvements in process and functionality of space, including a brand new Success Lab and Academic Enrichment Center. The new Enrollment Services Center was allocated two new positions, a Student Navigator and an Academic Advisor. Obstacles: For financial reasons, the College stopped offering Federal Student Loans at the start of Fall Semester While this will help stabilize the College s receivables and financial situation, it also creates a financial gap for students. This ultimately led to an enrollment decline and will likely continue for at least two more semesters. This impacts the numbers of students enrolled and progressing toward graduation. To counter this effect the enrollment management team has set the following priorities: Host an Open House Event (scheduled for November 2015). Create student type pages on admissions website (High School Student, Transfer, Adult, etc.). Conduct research to find more effective ways to recruit students to specific programs. As the MOWR initiative grows, acclimating to those changes will be an added challenge. Communication and awareness between the K-12 and post-secondary systems is vital. Ogeechee Technical College 168

169 Table B CCA Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production Graduates Certificate/ Diploma (< 1 year) Certificate/ Diploma (at least 1 but < 2 years) Certificate/ Diploma (at least 2 but < 4 years) Associate Degree FY FY % % % % % FY % % % % % Full Year % % % % % AY AY AY % 15.0% 20.0% Improve College Readiness and Access % 21.4% -2.4% % -37.5% 4.4% % 17.7% 34.9% Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: Research data from the implementation of the College s in-progress QEP on student success and orientation will be used to evaluate the impact of the College Success class. The QEP is still in the design and research phase. The College s Academic Advisor has maintained re-test data since March 2015 (see below) Total -19.2% Strategies Implemented: Learning support students, academic suspension and probation students, and anyone who has withdrawn are required to take COLL 1010 (College and Career Success Skills). The ultimate goal is for this course to be an extension of orientation in order to improve student success. As an ongoing strategy, students who have been out of school for ten or more years will be encouraged to take COLL 1010 in their first semester. 13.3% 10.9% Student Affairs has implemented a re-test procedure, which states that any student that becomes a provisional admission student after completing the placement exam (COMPASS), must see the Academic Advisor. Meeting with the Academic Advisor consist of a basic consult and a success plan that is creative by the student and the Academic Advisor. The success plan would be one of the following options: (1) Retest in the specific section of the placement exam (this is typically given to those students that have not had any prep material and their scores are 5-7 points below the regular admission scores). Every student who chooses to retest will be given prep material as well as enough time to successfully prep for the retest session. A student can only attempt the exam up to 3 times before they are required to register for the appropriate learning support course. (2) Registered for the appropriate learning support course (this is typically given to students whose scores are too low to be considered for retest and/or who strongly are against the retest opportunity. Resources Allocated: The number and availability of instructors to teach the COLL 1010 course. Obstacles: One unexpected obstacle we ve encountered are those students who drop the COLL 1010 course and never re-enroll. In order to identify these situations, registration error reports are being sent to the Academic Advisor. Ogeechee Technical College 169

170 Transform Remediation Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: The College developed an in-house report to track Learning Support success from Fall to Fall (see Tables C-H). This report identifies the number of students placed in all remediation classes by area, how long it has taken them to exit, how many withdrew, how many were taking occupational classes along with the remedial class(es), how many are still enrolled, and how many have completed their program of study. In addition, this report reviews the effectiveness of the additional modifications to the original redesign process. For example, this year s analysis (2015) included the modifications to the original learning support redesign, which were applied in fall of Students were given the option of enrolling in a designated college level general education course, while at the same time taking the required learning support course. This variation of the original learning support format was offered in English and Math. Reading was not affected by the modifications. In order to accurately compare the fall 2013 exit data with the fall 2014 exit data, it was necessary to display the data based on each student s award level (see Table D-2). Strategies Implemented: The College hired an Academic Advisor in January 2015 to work in conjunction with the Student Navigator and focus on provisionally admitted students. Originally the strategy was to seek grant and training opportunities on academic advising. Due to feedback on employee surveys and Staff Development Day, local funding was identified to allow for the hiring of a professional academic advisor. In conjunction with the system-wide redesign of learning support, embed remediation into the Academic Enrichment Center (tutoring) was an applied strategy to reduce the amount of time students spend in learning support. The goal has been to see fewer students who have withdrawn from remedial classes and to see more students who are moving into programs (quickly) and completing programs. All learning support students are advised by the new Academic Advisor. Resources Allocated: Allocated a full-time position to advise provisional admit students. The new Academic Advisor started in January Obstacles: The College will continue to allocate available resources to tracking tutoring and the effectiveness of the services. In addition, the College will need to identify a software to track tutor progress and provide outcome reports. Table C Number of Students Placed In Remediation Spring 2013 Summer 2013 Fall 2013 Spring 2014 Summer 2014 English (17%) Math (64%) Reading (18%) Total 257 (17%) 179 (12%) 289 (20%) 309 (21%) 188 (13%) 255 (17%) 1477 Table D-1 How Long Has It Taken Each Of Them To Exit Fall 2014 Enrolled Degrees Diplomas Certificates English (46%) 17 (37%) 8 (17%) Math (68%) 19 (12%) 31 (20%) Reading 26 7 (27%) 10 (38%) 9 (35%) Total (58.4%) 46 (20.4%) 48 (21.2%) Total Ogeechee Technical College 170

171 Table D-2 How Long Has It Taken Each Of Them To Exit (Based on Award Level) English Number Enrolled Exited in 1 Term In LS Longer Than 1 Term Certificates 8 8 (100%) 0 (0%) Diplomas (88%) 2 (12%) Degrees (76%) 5 (24%) Total (85%) 7 (15%) Math Reading Number Enrolled Exited in 1 Term In LS Longer Than 1 Term Certificates (81%) 6 (19%) Diplomas (53%) 9 (47%) Degrees (62%) 40 (38%) Total (64%) 55 (36%) Number Enrolled Exited in 1 Term In LS Longer Than 1 Term Certificates 9 8 (89%) 1 (11%) Diplomas 10 8 (80%) 2 (20%) Degrees 7 6 (86%) 1 (14%) Total (85%) 4 (15%) Table E How Many Withdrew From Remedial Classes (represents one section from each area) Fall 2014 Number of Students Enrolled Withdrew from Remedial Did Not Withdraw From Remedial Withdrew From All Classes ENGL (2%) 43 (94%) 2 (4%) MATH (20%) 114 (74%) 9 (6%) READ (0%) 26(100%) 0 (0%) Total (14%) 183 (81%) 8 (5%) Ogeechee Technical College 171

172 Table F How Many Were Taking Occupational Classes With Remedial Classes (represents one section from each area) Fall 2014 Number of Students Enrolled Occupational Courses with Remedial? No Occupational Courses with Remedial? ENGL (35%) 30 (65%) MATH (40%) 93 (60%) READ (15%) 22 (85%) Total (36%) 145 (64%) Table G How Many Are Still Enrolled In Their Program of Study (represents one section from each area) Fall 2014 Number of Students Enrolled Still Enrolled in Original Major Not Enrolled in Original Major (Dropped Out) Changed to Another Major ENGL (61%) 8 (17%) 10 (22%) Math (59%) 32 (21%) 31 (20%) Reading (62%) 4 (15%) 6 (23%) Total (60%) 44 (19%) 47 (21%) Table H How Many Have Completed The Program of Study (represents one section from each area) Fall 2014 Number of Students Enrolled Enrolled in Original & Completed or In - Progress Enrolled in Original & Dropped Out Changed to Another Major & Completed or In - Progress Changed to Another Major & Dropped Out ENGL (58.7%) 9 (19.6%) 10 (21.7%) 0 (0%) MATH (57%) 24 (16%) 33 (21%) 9 (6%) READ (61.5%) 3 (11.5%) 6 (23%) 1 (4%) Total (58%) 36 (16%) 49 (22%) 10 (4%) Ogeechee Technical College 172

173 Restructure Delivery (includes block scheduling) Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: The College follows KMS Report #DC302 (Progress 5 Retention Cohort) specifically for the five TCSG identified programs using block scheduling (see Tables I-1 and I-2). When comparing the Fall 2013 cohort to the Fall 2014 cohort, changes in retention and graduation in each of the 7 program levels (diploma and degree) are evident. Although the CCG cohort is a representative sample of the students enrolled in each program, the dean or the instructor can use the data to identify patterns. Also, Tables I-1a and I-2a are included to compare block scheduling programs with a sample of non-block scheduled programs. In Fall 2013, retention was higher in the block scheduled programs. However, the Fall 2014 cohort of non-block scheduled programs has a slightly higher retention. The College IE Division maintains separate reports on enrollment, retention, graduates, placement, and licensure. Each fall term, these reports are shared with the Academic Deans. These reports compliment the CCG reports as they are timely and provide insight into current trends in student success. Academic Dean s use KMS Report #DC180 (End of Term Enrollment by Major) to compare term-to-term enrollment for programs. The College utilizes an in-house Enrollment Management Report which is a comprehensive enrollment report. Beginning 6 weeks from the start of each semester, this report is submitted every Monday through the first week of the following semester. It is distributed to all employees every week. Strategies Implemented: Academic Affairs implemented alternative course scheduling to allow more courses within the same time period in order to produce degrees faster. Programs, such as Business Management and Marketing Management, implemented tracks with combined face-to-face classes and online courses which allow students to progress at a faster rate. The Medical Assisting program schedules each course in the curriculum each semester. Students are offered the flexibility of having all courses available each semester, and diplomas are awarded in a shorter time period. Programs with competitive admissions only accept one group of new students in a cohort. This allows for better scheduling of classes so that students are awarded in a shorter time. Practical Nursing is looking to develop an evening program to allow current medical workers a more flexible schedule. Student success in the five TCSG-identified programs (Accounting, Air Conditioning, Automotive, Medical Assisting, and Networking Specialist) using the block scheduling format is measured using retention and graduation data provided by the IE Division (see performance metrics above). Resources Allocated: Resources have been allocated for some programs. However, additional resources may be needed to increase the number of credentialed faculty (to replace those that retire) and additional faculty in order to offer more flexible scheduling options to the students. Obstacles: The definition of retention cohorts can cause confusion when comparing reports (i.e., TCSG reports, CCG reports, individual faculty reports). The IE division is looking for better ways to manage retention. Table I-1 CCA Progress Metric 5: Retention Rate Level Major Fall 2013 Cohort Retained % Retained Not Retained % Not Retained Graduated % Graduated Diploma Accounting % % % Degree Accounting % % % Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % % % Ogeechee Technical College 173

174 CCA Progress Metric 5: Retention Rate Level Diploma Major Automotive Technology Fall 2013 Cohort Retained % Retained Not Retained % Not Retained Graduated % Graduated % % % Diploma Medical Assisting % % % Degree Diploma Networking Specialist Networking Specialist % % % % % % Grand Total % % % Table I-1a CCA Progress Metric 5: Retention Rate Level Major Fall 2013 Cohort Retained % Retained Not Retained % Not Retained Graduated % Graduated Diploma Agribusiness % % % Degree Agribusiness 8 0 0% 4 50% 4 50% Diploma Cosmetology % % % Grand Total % % % Table I-2 CCA Progress Metric 5: Retention Rate Level Major Fall 2014 Retained Cohort % Retained Not Retained % Not Retained Graduated % Graduated Diploma Accounting % % % Degree Accounting % % % Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % % % Diploma Automotive Technology % % % Diploma Medical Assisting % % % Degree Networking Specialist % % % Diploma Networking Specialist % % % Grand Total % % % Ogeechee Technical College 174

175 Table I-2a CCA Progress Metric 5: Retention Rate Level Major Fall 2014 Cohort Retained % Retained Not Retained % Not Retained Graduated Diploma Agribusiness % 1 50% 0 0% % Graduated Degree Agribusiness % % % Diploma Cosmetology % % % Shorten Time to Degree Grand Total % % % Performance Metrics Used to Measure Success: The Financial Aid team and Registrar s office work collaboratively to identify students through KMS Report #LW001 (Degree Works Fall-through). They notify the students they are not allowed to take courses outside their major. This notification happens a week prior to registration which allows the student s time to visit their advisor and adjust their schedule. Our Student Navigator uses KMS Report #LW011 (Degree Works Apply for Graduation) to identify students who have completed at least 80% of their program of study. The Student Navigator contacts the student to make them aware of how close they are to graduating, what they can do to graduate faster, and offer advice on what to do if they have completed any embedded certificates. Our Retention Committee uses KMS Report #LW002 (Degree Works Retention Percent of Program Completed) to look for trends within each program. Committee members will set-up appointments with program advisors to let them know they have students approaching graduation or already meet the requirements for the program. They help coach the faculty members on how to utilize the report and track their students throughout the year. This helps to increase the number of awards and eliminate students from taking any unnecessary courses. Strategies Implemented: Last year the strategy to identify exit courses for embedded certificate and diplomas where possible was implemented by the Registrar s Office. This office identified exit courses for all embedded certificates and reviewed all student records to determine if an embedded certificate could be awarded. Staff members in the Registrar s Office complete the paperwork and forward to the student and faculty member for approval. This simplified the process and ensured all embedded certificates were awarded. In addition, program faculty are encouraged to submit graduation paperwork for embedded certificates at the time of completion rather than waiting until all degree program requirements are met. Faculty are also encouraged to offer all certificate requirements within two semesters for timely completion of embedded certificates. The College will continue to focus on the scheduling of embedded certificates and inform students of their opportunity to complete a certificate as required courses are offered. The College implemented the strategy to use the automated reporting of degree completion in KMS. The Financial Aid office, Registrar s office and the Student Navigator now use Degree Works reports on KMS to identify students who have completed most of their graduation requirements or have inadvertently signed up for a course outside of their major. Resources Allocated: All strategies have been implemented by existing faculty and staff using existing resources. Obstacles: The only obstacle for these strategies will be as enrollment increases, staff may find the management of these processes and reports to be a challenge. Additional staff will minimize this obstacle however. Ogeechee Technical College 175

176 Student Success Implementation Team The point of contact for Ogeechee Tech s Student Success Implementation Team is Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness, Brandy Taylor. The following list include all members of the implementation team: Ms. Brandy Taylor - Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness, POC and Member Dr. Ryan Foley - Vice President for Student Affairs, Member Dr. Charlene Lamar - Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Member Mr. John Groover - Dean for Academic Affairs, Member Ms. Y'Lonne Hodges Director for Institutional Research & Planning, Member Ms. Ty White - Counseling & Retention Coordinator, Member Ms. Jennifer Witherington - Dean for Distance and General Education, Member Brandy Taylor serves as the Point of Contact for the Student Success Implementation Team at Ogeechee Tech and coordinates the team s efforts. As mentioned, the program and student data is shared by the IE Division annually and when needed (specifically for program accreditation). However, the most comprehensive enrollment analysis is the Enrollment Management Report. Beginning 6 weeks from the start of each semester, this report is submitted every Monday through the first week of the following semester. It is distributed to all employees every week. It includes application, enrollment, and matriculation data for each program on campus. Additionally, our multiple QEP teams are a driving force of student and program data analysis. While the College is still in the process of developing the QEP topic, the QEP teams have overwhelmingly engaged and involved the campus community in the data research efforts that have happened so far. Also, while we are no longer participating in the Achieving the Dream (ATD) network, we are still involved the collection of the ATD data with TCSG. This effort has already proven valuable as we ve already started sharing data with the campus community. Conclusion Overall, Ogeechee Technical College is consistently meeting the mark for Complete College Georgia. The College is currently 1,463 CCA graduates above the goal to date. And Ogeechee Tech is one of six technical colleges who have met and exceeded the annual benchmark goal for CCG degree production. The hiring of an Academic Advisor and the subsequent changes to placement testing procedures has been successful. Likewise, the development of the QEP has opened lines of communication and will ultimately have far-reaching effects on student success once it s fully implemented. The following adjustments were made to increase student completion: The College developed an internal 15 to Finish marketing campaign targeting faculty, staff, and students. The campaign was comprised of postcard mailers, yard signs, 15 to finish awareness events, and campaign videos on all digital signs throughout campus. In addition, an campaign was created to educate the campus community on the benefits of the 15 to Finish campaign. Student Affairs implemented a re-test procedure, which states that any student that becomes a provisional admission student after completing the placement exam (COMPASS), must see the Academic Advisor. Embedded remediation into the Academic Enrichment Center (tutoring) was an applied strategy to reduce the amount of time students spend in learning support. The goal has been to see fewer students who have withdrawn from remedial Ogeechee Technical College 176

177 classes and to see more students who are moving into programs (quickly) and completing programs. All learning support students are advised by the new Academic Advisor. One strategy not completed during the previous academic year was conducting focus groups consisting of part-time and full-time students to explore the most effective and efficient course scheduling models. Focus groups will be convened to respond to the results of the CCSSE survey completed in the Spring of 2015 in conjunction with the development of the QEP. The outcomes for many strategies are yet to be fully realized. Therefore, current strategies must be assessed frequently to determine their adequacy and effectiveness. To continue to be successful, the College must continue to look ahead and determine what steps need to be taken utilizing all available resources. Next Steps No longer offering Federal Student Loans has created a financial gap for our students and ultimately led to an enrollment decline that will likely continue for at least two more semesters. The immediate reversal of these numbers is a leading goal of leadership as it impacts the numbers of students enrolled and progressing toward graduation. Student Affairs is looking to improve the process for provisional admissions students and their placement exam preparation. The following describes the process changes and resources needed to implement these improvements: Every student who is accepted will be required to take a placement exam (COMPASS currently) if they do not have the appropriate coursework or test scores to exempt them. After the placement exam, every student who is admitted as a provisional student will be required to enter the Academic Enrichment Center. In the Academic Enrichment Center, there will need to be a full-time tutoring staff (3-4 tutors) that will meet with each student and evaluate their scores. Each student will be required to work with a tutor and properly complete a placement exam prep session. The length of time for each session will depend on the student s initial score. The ultimate goal of this process is to have as many students test with 5 points of regular admission to avoid a required learning support course. Based on changes to the COLL 1010 (College and Career Success Skills) course, an ongoing strategy will be to encourage students who have been out of school for ten or more years to take COLL 1010 in their first semester. However, this will ultimately be determined by the number of instructors available to teach this course. A plan is in place to implement a new procedure to limit the change of programs to emphasize the importance of educating oneself on the requirements of a career path. The Retention Committee has been assigned the task of identifying the parameters of this change and the resources needed to make it happen. Ogeechee Technical College 177

178 Savannah Technical College Savannah Technical College 178

179 Overview Savannah Technical College Georgia s goal is to produce 239,250 graduates by TCSG s portion of this goal is to produce 26% of Georgia s goal this is an additional 79,531 graduates by Savannah Technical College s 2015 goal is 5,826 and 2015 actual is 8,813 resulting in + 2,987 graduates ahead of its 2020 goal of 11,291. CCA Context Metric 1: Enrollment Unduplicated Headcount for 2015 Report CCA Report Year 2014 highlights changes in the college student demographics. Full time students show a 15% decrease while part time students shows a 56% increase. This change impacts changes in categories of student race, gender, age, income, and remedial courses. One significant change is an 18% increase in full time and a 159% increase of part time Hispanic students. This is largely due to a local program originally titled College Access, Mentoring, Information, and Outreach (CAMINO), emphasizing recruiting of Hispanic students. Demographics will be assessed each semester in conjunction with Achieving the Dream (ATD) analysis which focuses on student success initiatives for two-year colleges. Data analysis is initiated by the ATD Data Team working closely with the ATD Leadership Team. Demographics will be assessed as part of the ATD Implementation Plan and presented to the college s ATD Coaches on December 15, 2015 focusing on initial data from Fall 2015 semester (201612). Goals Increase the Number of Graduates Performance Metrics for Success: Based on the first year of data (2009), Savannah Technical College has successfully increased the number of Complete College Georgia Graduates by 74% and has exceeded the established goals each academic year. Table 1 provides the disaggregated data for college graduates by award type. Table 1: Complete College Georgia College Graduates Year Certificate <1 YR of Econ Value Certificate/Diploma 1 and < 2 YRS Certificate/ Diploma 2 and < 4 YRS Associate Degree Total Actual CCG Graduate Total Goal Difference , , , , , Certificates <1year have had a 29% increase since 2009; however, the data for academic year 2014 to 2015 revealed a slight decrease of 5% for Certificates <1 year. Certificates >1 year but <2 years have increased 267% since 2009, but had a negligible decrease from 2014 to With the exception of the 2013 data, the Associate Degree graduates have had a steady increase each academic year. The data from 2009 to 2015 reflects a 66% increase and from 2014 to 2015, there was an 18% increase for the Associate Degree Graduates. Savannah Technical College 179

180 As shown in Table 2, the performance metric for graduation rates indicates a steady minimal increase of 5% each year. Retention has increased by 7%, which correlates with the consistency in the increase of attainment of awards. Table 2: College Benchmark Indicators AY Awards Conferred Retention Rate (%) Graduation Rate (%) Strategies/Interventions: The PBI grant strategies continue to provide successful interventions for the students in the Industrial Technology Learning Communities. Students are provided with tutors specifically assigned to the learning community. In addition, the students have access to a computer lab that was designed for the Industrial Technology PAS groups. Table 3 illustrates the continued success of this initiative. Table 3: Title III Learning Community Project Learning Community Enrollment - Math 1012 Retention - Math 1012 Success - Math % 83% (those who were retained) Fall 2014 (201512) Spring 2015 (201514) Summer 2015 (201516) Fall 2015 (201612) Determined that summer is too short for successful completion of this course 100% 92% N/A In progress N/A In progress Enrollment - Comp 21 Switched to COLL1010 Switched to Switched to COL COL1010 Retention - Comp 91% Switched to COLL1010 Switched to Switched to COL COL1010 Success - Comp % Switched to COLL1010 Switched to Switched to COL1010 COL1010 Enrollment N/A COLL1010 Retention N/A 77% 75% In progress COLL1010 Success COLL1010 N/A 85% 100% In progress Learning Community Programs Graduation Rates AY 2013 AY 2014 AY 2015 Savannah Technical College 180

181 Learning Fall 2014 Spring 2015 Summer 2015 Fall 2015 Community (201512) (201514) (201516) (201612) African-American 54% 51% 34% Low-Income 62% 54% 64% First-Generation 40% 37% 53% The Pell Grant experiments continued through AY 2015, adding 1 additional graduate in Experiment 1 (selected) and an additional 37 graduates (selected) in Experiment 2. Experiment 1 extended Pell eligibility to students who have already earned a bachelor degree and enrolled in a short-term vocational or career training program. Experiment 2 expanded eligibility to students enrolled in a short-term vocational or career program that would otherwise not be Pell eligible. Table 4: Complete College Georgia - PELL Experiments AY2015 Graduates by: Experiment/Selection Row Labels Grand Total Experiment Not Selected Did not graduate Selected Graduated Experiment Not Selected Did not graduate Graduated Not enrolled Selected Did not graduate Graduated Grand Total AY2016 Selection Experiment #1 Experiment #2 1 Selected/Enrolled Health Care Assistant 7 Selected/Enrolled CDL The number of high school enrollees and program graduates of High School Dual Enrollment students increased in AY These high school students were categorized as dual and joint enrolled, ACCEL courses, and Move On When Ready (MOWR) status. High school student enrollment in academic programs is an opportunity that will continue to receive promotion and support to students, their parents, and high school administrators. Increased enrollment will result in increased graduates. Savannah Technical College 181

182 Table 5: Complete College Georgia - Dual Enrollment Strategy AY Dual Enrollment ACCEL MOWR Joint Program Completers/HS Graduates (22 HS Graduates) (20 HS Graduates) Resources Allocated for Strategies/Interventions: PBI Grant is a federally funded program and funds are allocated throughout AY 2016; there are no funding challenges with this grant and the funds are sufficient to achieve all goals. Pell Experiments 1 & 2 attracts students with expanded availability of Pell funds. All selected students receive 100% of eligible amounts of Pell funds. Resources for Dual Enrollment students were provided by a combination of HOPE funds, local secondary school district monies, and College Access Grant funds for only (Fall 2014). Implementation Obstacles: Creating a culture of awareness for the holistic approach of the PBI Grant learning community strategy has been the greatest obstacle to implementation. Communication and professional development sessions are improving this awareness. College financial aid administrators continue to work with federal and state administrators for Pell Experiments to ensure selection of students is implemented these experiments are not available to all applicants. Dual Enrollment has changed significantly for AY 2016 and organized under one title of Move On When Ready and composed of two distinct elements; high school students registered for courses and receiving high school and college credit for those courses; and high school students enrolled in and studying complete college programs as a 100% college student. Upon college graduation, they will also receive their high school diploma. Transform Remediation. Performance Metrics for Success: The Learning Support Math 0098 and 0099 courses initially had limited success in the combined course configuration with a 5% increase in the pass rate; however, since Spring 2014, there has been a steady decline with a 10% decrease from Fall 2013 to Spring Fall 2013 Combined Courses Fall 2013 Stand Alone Courses Spring 2014 Combined Courses Spring 2014 Stand Alone Courses Fall 2014 Stand Alone Courses Fall 2014 Combined Courses Spring 2015 Combined Courses Spring 2015 Stand Alone Courses MATH ACE 0098 & % Pass Rate Not offered separately 43.4% Pass Rate 30.1% Pass Rate 54% Pass rate 55% Pass rate 38.7% pass rate 29% pass rate 56% pass rate 70.2% pass rate The stand-alone configuration for Math 0098 and 0099 has shown the most significant success with a 2% increase from Fall 2015 to Spring 2015 for 0098 and 15% increase for 0099 during that same time period. The results of co-requisite courses continue to be inconsistent, either with Math 0097/1012 (Diploma) or Math 0099/1111 (Degree). It appears that the combined learning support (0099) and degree gateway class (1111) produced an increase in success rate from Fall 2014 to Spring However, each course as a stand-alone also produced an increased success rate. Both stand alone and combined 0097/1012 did not have increased success rates from Fall 2014 to Spring Savannah Technical College 182

183 LS Initiative MATH 0097/ MATH 1012 MATH 0099/ MATH 1111 Fall 2013 Combined Courses 91.3% Pass Rate 90.3% Pass Rate 53.4% Pass Rate 66.4% Pass Rate Fall 2013 Stand Alone Courses 52.9% Pass Rate 72.9% Pass Rate 60.0% Pass Rate 67.5% Pass Rate Spring 2014 Combined Courses 55.5% Pass Rate 70.2% Pass Rate 25.0% Pass Rate 52.0% Pass Rate Spring 2014 Stand Alone Courses 60.2% Pass Rate 63.4% Pass Rate 47.0% Pass Rate 63.0% Pass Rate Fall 2014 Stand Alone Courses 58% pass rate 63% pass rate 55.0% pass rate 61.0% pass rate Fall 2014 Combined Courses 80% pass rate 70% pass rate 54.0% pass rate 55.0% pass rate Spring 2015 Combined Courses 67% pass rate 67% pass rate 68.5% pass rate 70.1% pass rate Spring 2015 Stand Alone Courses 40.5% pass rate 59.2% pass rate 70.2% pass rate 66.5% pass rate Remedial English courses exhibited the same fluctuations as the above discussed remedial Math courses. The standalone ENGL 0097 courses had two semesters with a 97% success rate followed by a 14% decrease in Fall 2014 and a further decrease that brought the success rate down to 76%. ENGL 0098 had minimal fluctuations as a stand-alone with success ranging from 82% to 98%. In the ENGL 0097/1010 configuration, students had minimal fluctuation in pass rates in ENGL 0097, ranging from 76% to 83%. ENGL 1010 had a larger range between semester pass rates and showed a slight decline from 77% in Fall 2013 to 61% in Spring These two courses were combined in Spring 2015, which resulted in a 100% pass rate for ENGL 0097 and 80% pass rate for ENGL The ENGL 0098/1101 combination has had mixed success with ENGL 0098 showing a steady increase in pass rates beginning with 76% in Fall 2013 and increasing by 16% in Spring 2015 with a 93% pass rate (stand-alone). The pass rate for ENGL 1101 has remained somewhat steady, irrespective of the configuration with success rates ranging from 64% to 75%. Savannah Technical College 183

184 LS Initiative Fall 2013 Combined Courses Fall 2013 Stand Alone Courses Spring 2014 Combined Courses Spring 2014 Stand Alone Courses Fall 2014 Stand Alone Courses Fall 2014 Combined Courses Spring 2015 Combined Courses Spring 2015 Stand Alone Courses ENGL ACE 0097 & % Pass Rate 97: 76% Pass 98: 77% Pass 60% Pass Rate 97: 76% Pass Rate 98: 76% Pass Rate 83% pass rate 82% pass rate Not offered combined Not offered combined 76% pass rate 93% pass rate ENGL 0097/ ENGL % Pass 56% Pass 76% Pass 77% Pass Not Offered Combined 76.0% Pass Rate 76.7% Pass Rate 83% pass rate 74% pass rate Only class offered did not make 100% pass rate 80% pass rate 76% pass rate 61% pass rate ENGL 0098/ ENGL % Pass 72.2% Pass 75.7% Pass 75.3% Pass 82.6% Pass 76.4% Pass 76.1% Pass Rate 68.8% Pass Rate 82% pass rate 64% pass rate 79% pass rate 71% pass rate 75% pass rate 66.2% pass rate 93% pass rate 64.2% pass rate Strategies/Interventions. Strategies and interventions will continue with the current model of blended/combined courses. Technology has been added and complimented with extensive innovations to the tracking process for tutor interventions. Assessment strategies have been established, outcomes will be assessed, and changes will be made throughout the academic year to ensure an increase in the success/pass rates for students in the remedial math courses. The strategy to combine a remedial course with a college level course is also proving successful in the English ACE initiative as well as in the English 0097/1010 and English 0098/1101 combinations. As with the Math strategies, the blended/combined course model will be retained and the assessment strategies will include establishing student learning outcomes, assessing those outcomes, and modifying the strategies to ensure the successful attainment of the student learning outcomes. Resources Allocated for Strategies/Interventions. A department head has been hired for the General Education, Area III, Math. The department head, in conjunction with the Dean of General Education, will track, assess, and modify the course strategies to ensure an increase in the pass rates. Tutor Trak has been updated to integrate with the Banner system, which will allow for additional data that can provide insight into the correlation with specific course sessions and the use of the tutors in the Learning Enrichment Center. Through the Achieving the Dream initiative, data gathering has been redefined and refined to drill down to specific segments of data. This data diving provides a more clearly defined picture for implementing strategies. Resources for this initiative have included guest speakers, coaching sessions, and professional development for all faculty and staff. Implementation Obstacles. The only obstacle for the success in remedial courses is finding the right combination of remedial courses combined with college-level courses that are complimented by an instructor who understands the complexities of the combination of remedial and college-level courses. The addition of new instructors will diminish this obstacle. Savannah Technical College 184

185 Restructure Delivery Performance Metrics for Success. The overall metric for success is an increased numbers of graduates. It is understood that the college must retain (retention rate) the student from start to finish of the entire program of study. The college s focus has been developing and implementing methods of program delivery to achieve increased retention and graduation. Strategies/Interventions. Accelerated Opportunities continued through AY 2015 with Adult Education students focused on achieving a General Educational Development (GED) diploma, assessing program ready for an academic program, and achieving a for-credit academic program. Selected academic programs represent local workforce needs, thus linking the academic credential to a viable career field. Table 6: Complete College Georgia - Accelerating Opportunities Initiative Program/Entry Date/(Student#) Welding Entered with GED/HS Diploma Achieved GED Completed Academics and GED/HS Diploma Completed Academics but not GED or Program Ready Did not complete Academics (13) (10) (16) Aviation (17) (15) (13) Patient Care Technician (17) Certified Nurse Assistant (23) (15) 1 4 TCC not completed until end of Construction Management (13) HVAC (4) Medical Front Office (1) 1 1 TCC not completed until end of Totals (157) Savannah Technical College 185

186 Guided Pathways to Success (GPS) and the subsequent implementation titled Block Scheduling has continued. GPS has been created for three possible student scenarios, full-time student (daytime), part-time student (daytime), or part-time student (night). Although gains have been made in AY 2015, the organizing of classes, including accompanying General Education classes, into blocks of time has been a challenge so that large gaps of time do not result in a student waiting for a class start time; in other words, the goal is to synchronize all classes in a grouping with minimal wait time among classes. Savannah Technical College tracks the TCSG prescribed programs (Table 7, top part) as well as programs selected during initial stages of GPS (Table 7, bottom part). Furthermore, all college programs will have a pathway for the three identified student scenarios and each block of courses for the specific semester (Fall, Spring, and Summer) will be coded and entered in Banner as a block. Each student will then be registered for all future semesters for as many semesters remaining for program of study completion. Students will be advised in a holistic manner showing them their chosen program of study from start to finish and exactly each semester s course load/schedule. Exceptions (e.g., medical absence, course failure, learning support class) will be handled separately and a modification to the student s schedule will be made without interruption to the overall program pathway. Table 7: Complete College Georgia Block Scheduling Level Major Total Retained Retention Rate Total Graduated Graduation Rate Diploma Accounting 6 0 0% 1 17% Degree Accounting % 2 11% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology % 4 18% Diploma Auto Tech % 16 62% Diploma Medical Assisting KMS Report DC 302 shows 1 student and 1 graduate. Our MA students first graduate from Health Care Assistant (HA21), before entering MA. Therefore, the report will not duplicate a student in two different programs. Diploma Degree Networking Specialist Networking Specialist Our AY 2015 Medical Assisting group started and graduated ; 15 entered the program and 12 graduated for an 80% graduation rate % 1 20% % 4 25% College selected GPS programs Diploma Welding % 35 47% Degree Surgical Tech 2 0 0% 2 100% Diploma Surgical Tech 1 0 0% 0 0% TCC Commercial Driving % 43 86% Diploma Practical Nursing 2 0 0% 2 100% TCC Health Care Assistant % 89 30% KMS Report DC 302 shows 0 students retained irrespective of program although students are registered for the current semester (201612); this report will be analyzed with TCSG Data Center to better understand the data. Savannah Technical College 186

187 Resources Allocated for Strategies/Interventions. Accelerating Opportunities (AO) is supported with funds from the local United Way as well as funds from Jobs for the Future (JFF) and Woodruff Grant, although these two have restrictions on how monies can be allocated. Without funds outside of the standard Federal and State Adult Education grant allocations, the sustainment of AO at the current registration rate will prove challenging. GPS and Block Scheduling are working well with current programs previously organized into cohorts with scheduled blocks of courses. For example: Practical Nursing, Dental Hygiene, Medical Assisting, Dental Assisting, Surgical Technology, and Basic Law Enforcement. What remains to be accomplished for Spring 2016 is for these blocks of courses to be coded and entered into Banner. Implementation Obstacles. Guided Pathways for academic programs, irrespective of credential level, have been completed. Each semester s courses for each program will be blocked, coded, and entered into Banner as a complete block Fall 2015 (201612). The concept of GPA and block scheduling is readily accepted by all stakeholders; however, the actual implementation of this strategy in the Banner system has been a challenge in terms of training of academic affairs personnel and coordinating appropriate General Education courses for each appropriate program of study. It is difficult to assess if Block Scheduling is the single most contributing factor to student retention and graduation. However, studies attributed to Complete College America and Achieving the Dream indicate that the notion of a prescriptive block of courses per day and per week across a semester creates a known schedule that a student can follow and adjust personal aspects around that schedule; constantly adjusting a college schedule to a personal schedule (e.g., family, work, child care) is challenging and that the college schedule us usually the one that gets eliminated. Savannah Technical College has developed block schedules for all programs where appropriate, have coded these blocks in Banner, and will register students for Fall, Spring, and Summer Semesters for AY The AY 2017 calendar has been developed and blocks for that academic year will be established in Banner. Consequently, students will be registered in those blocks for Fall, Spring, and Summer Semesters for AY 17, or for however many semesters the program exists. Student Success Implementation Team Name Title Role Address Dr. Kathy S. Love President Leader klove@savannahtech.edu Dr. Ken Boyd VPAA Point of Contact kboyd@savannahtech.edu Dr. Kathleen Merrigan Dean, IE Member kmerrigan@savannahtech.edu Dr. Vic Burke VP, Facilities & IT Member vburke@savannahtech.edu Ms. Terrie Sellers VPSA Member tsellers@savannahtech.edu Ms. Sue Turner VPA Member sturner@savannahtech.edu Mr. Brent Stubbs Dean, General Studies Member bstubbs@savannahtech.edu Savannah Technical College developed its Achieving the Dream (ATD) Implementation Plan and supporting Priorities and Interventions to parallel the Complete College Georgia goals. Fall 2015 Semester (201612) is the first semester for implementation of the ATD Plan; an initial assessment of data will occur at the end of semester in December 2015 with a presentation of preliminary results to the college s ATD coaches. These preliminary results, and all future semester results will be disseminated college-wide through the ATD Leadership Team meetings and college-wide Professional Development Days (twice/year) and scheduled College Assemblies, a gathering of all college leaders, faculty, and staff. Savannah Technical College 187

188 Conclusion The overall goal of Complete College Georgia is being met total number of graduates is increasing and it appears that Savannah Technical College will meet its 2020 goal of 11,291 graduates. However, the development, implementation, and calculated results of each goal and supporting strategies requires a specific assessment to ensure results are directly correlated to an increase of graduates. Additionally, adaptations to current goals and strategies must be reviewed and accepted if success is not occurring so that progress and improvement is continuous and long-term. Application of this conclusion will be incorporated into the college s initiatives found in this paper s section, Next Steps. Next Steps General Savannah Technical College intends to combine major initiatives and supporting strategies to achieve the overall goal of increasing the number of college graduates. The College recently submitted its Achieving the Dream (ATD) Implementation Plan containing strategies that start Fall 2015 Semester (201612). The ATD Implementation Plan mirrors this Complete College Georgia Improvement Plan so that additional specific strategies/actions are not developed independently under the name of a different initiative. Irrespective of initiative, college resources will be focused on the same long-term goals of student success. Complete College Georgia (CCG), Achieving the Dream (ATD), Guided Pathways to Success (GPS), Block Scheduling, Accelerating Opportunities (AO), Move On When Ready (MOWR), Learning Support Design, Pell Experiments, and Title III PBI Grant Learning Community Project are all meaningful initiatives aimed at student success. Although implementation differences exist among each initiative, college leadership will plan, implement, assess, and change within one planning model. Two resources that were implemented in previous academic years, Student Navigator and Military Outreach Coordinator, are essential to the college s overall goal of student success. These two areas will continue to affect the methods surrounding the goals of this plan. Student Navigator and Military Outreach Coordinator work with all divisions of the college with respect to student recruiting, retention, and graduation using TEAMS early alert system, various military financial aid opportunities, and multiple job placement venues. Specific Increase the Number of Graduates Savannah Technical College is in the last year of its Title III Predominantly Black Institution (PBI) grant and will work with federal agencies reviewing renewal. Goals have been met and actions will continue to advance the success of three groups of students African American, Low Income, and First Generation. This grant provides for tutors who work with individual students and groups of student to successfully complete first semester, basic skills courses, and preparing students for occupational courses within a chosen program of study. This concentrated focus on specific groups of students is successful. However, the challenge is scaling-up the initiative to affect more students. Savannah Technical College will continue to work with appropriate agencies to promote and offer Pell Experiments 1 and 2. Althugh not every student is chosen to participate, this program offers an opportunity to students engaged in short-term vocational programs. This initiative increases the number of graduates and the number of eligible job seekers. Transform Remediation. Learning Support initiatives, and corresponding results, will continue to be assessed with the goal of continuous improvement. Learning Support courses will be offered as co-requisite courses with additional Math and English courses for both degree and diploma programs of study. Better coordination and linkage of materials between classroom and computer lab will occur to ensure a more seamless curriculum of the learning support and college courses. Better identification and selection of instructors will occur who have not only the required academic qualifications, but elated teaching experiences as well. Savannah Technical College 188

189 Restructure Delivery. Accelerated Opportunities (AO) has produced General Educational Development (GED) diploma graduates as well as academic, credit programs of study graduates. It is a successful program which requires, and deserves appropriate funding. The main challenge of the AO program is scaling up this initiative to affect many more students. A student who achieves a GED and an academic credential simultaneously is a talented, motivated graduate who is ready and eager to enter the workforce. Guided Pathways to Success (GPS) and its accompanying Block Schedules will be finalized during Fall 2015 (201612). All groups of program courses will be blocked for the required number of semesters for each program aiming for the highest offered credential. In other words, a student will be registered for a block of courses each semester and subsequently earn all certificates and diplomas enroute to earning an associate degree. The student will be registered for all required semesters for as many semesters and academic years loaded into Banner. The main goal is offering a developed program schedule each semester so a student can plan their personal and college schedule, engage in a prescriptive program of study so time and money is not wasted on non-program courses, complete a program of study on time thus saving time and money, and graduate and enter the workforce as quickly as possible. Savannah Technical College 189

190 Southeastern Technical College Southeastern Technical College 190

191 Overview Southeastern Technical College Southeastern Technical College had a dramatic change in enrollment for this reporting period. Reviewing the Context Metric 1-Enrollment from the KMS #DC241 shows that our enrollment declined from 944 full time students in 2007 to 461 full time students in We recorded an increase in part time students from 897 in 2007 to 1724 in Our full time transfer students decreased from 156 in 2007 to 83 in The part time transfer student number increased from 120 in 2007 to 182 in We experienced a 333.3% increase in the number of part time Hispanic students attending our school. We had an increase in the number of students attending who were part time and part time transfer students in the black and white demographics. In 2012, we saw the highest decrease in our full time female students and the highest increase in our part time male students. The highest increase for age was in the years of age category while the lowest increase was in the years old category. A high percentage of our students continue to receive Pell. Reviewing the most current data available, we see a continued trend in enrollment with part time students outnumbering full time students. We showed a decrease in the number of Hispanic students. The largest decrease was in the number of black students. Female gender continues to be greater than male. The age group 25 and over continues to have the largest number in enrollment. Several major factors may have played a part in our numbers shifting to more part time students than full time in We converted from a quarter to semester system and a large number of students were no longer able to take a full load. The structure of classes in some programs made it impossible to get 12 hours a semester to be considered full time. Also, some classes were combined and students finishing their programs had fewer hours to take to complete. Major changes were made to HOPE and Pell. In the HOPE area, a GPA of 3.0 was now required to receive the HOPE grant and the hours were capped so a student could no longer receive an unlimited amount of aid. The Pell grant also instituted a lifetime eligibility cap on the maximum number of hours of aid a student could receive. These grants have a major effect on our students being able to afford to attend. Unfortunately due to the state of the economy during this time, it was difficult for our students to afford gas, transportation and day care. Many of our students had to work full time to provide for their families and to help pay a larger percentage of their educational expenses. This made it harder for them to attend school full time. Our goals and strategies have helped our students progress even if the greatest enrollment is part time. The Learning Support redesign and co-requisites have helped our students complete that area in a shorter amount of time. The College Foundations class has helped to better equip and prepare the students for navigating the college world. We have helped to decrease the time to degree by changing our learning support classes, prior learning assessments, and by helping high school students to enrolling in college classes while still in high school. Goals: a. Increase the number of graduates by 4.7% annually Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production The committee reviewed data of the CCA Report for Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production. In comparison with all graduates, Associate Degree students had the greatest percent increase of any category. The next highest average increase was for the Certificate/Diploma level (at least 1 but less than 2 year) at 22.7%. However at the Certificate/Diploma level (at least 2 but less than 4 years) was significantly lower with a 52.9% decrease in degrees earned. Further review of the data revealed that the discipline with the lowest percentage of increase in Graduates was the Education area. The committee confirmed the root causes of the decrease of graduates in this area is based on issues discussed on Student Withdrawal surveys. They suggest that some of the primary causes of student withdrawal from school is due to personal and family reasons. Many of the students in the education discipline are female. Further analysis of information gathered from students who were referred through the Early Alert System, confirmed that the root causes for failure to retain students could be attributed to lack of family support, limited knowledge of community resources such as childcare, healthcare services; lack of community resources such as public transportation; and limited financial resources and lack of adequate transportation. Most of our students must work to provide for their families and may find it difficult to juggle the pursuit of an education along with working a full time job. Southeastern Technical College 191

192 These barriers play a huge role in a student s ability to remain in school through completion of their program. Our Southeastern Technical College Foundation annually gives out over $20,000 in local scholarships and has provided over $6000 in emergency assistance to help keep our students from dropping out of school. We also have a lending library that allows students to borrow some books instead of having to purchase them. Using KMS Report #DC293, Degree Production Goal Tracker, the College monitors progress toward our annual goal while also reviewing graduates in each award area that is tracked by also monitoring #DC246, CCA Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production. If one of the award levels is determined to have a decrease, then KMS Reports #DC247 and #DC248 are used to research the decrease by discipline and majors. In addition, the Student Affairs Division also compiles separate reports on enrollment, retention, graduates, placement and licensure. These reports are distributed throughout the College on a regular basis. These reports are used to supplement the CCG reports as they provide more up-to-date and current data. Southeastern Technical College has exceeded its Complete College Georgia degree production goal for every year except 2012 and Even though we did not meet the goal in those years we are still 31 awards above our goal to date. b. Transfer and articulation Outcome Metric 3: Transfer Out Southeastern Technical College encourages all students, who wish to do so, to continue their education at a four year college or university. STC has created partnerships that allow for the transfer of associate degree level courses between institutions with 33 other schools. We also have a Core Agreement with the University System of Georgia- Board of Regents schools to accept 27 of our core classes. We have held Lunch and Learns on the GA TRACS system to orientate students so they can learn what classes completed at STC will be accepted at a school they plan to transfer and attend. We have pamphlets for all of the schools that we have transfer agreements with so our students can gather information and explore schools. The main obstacle for a student is finding a school to attend that they can afford. The resources needed were funds to cover the cost of printing materials and to cover lunch. c. Improve College Readiness and Access Progress Metric 5: Retention Our school requires all degree, diploma and select certificate programs to take COLL 1040-College Foundations during their first semester. This course is designed to provide tools to assist students to acquire skills necessary to achieve academic and professional success in their chosen occupational/technical program of study. Topics include: Computer Applications/Technology Skills, Getting off to a Good Start, Learning and Personality Styles, Time and Money Management, Study and Test Taking Skills, Stress Management and Wellness, Communication Skills, and Career Exploration. The desired outcome is to better prepare the student to be success at the post-secondary level. We administer the entrance exam to the 10 th graders in our service delivery area so they will know if there is an area that they need to remediate before leaving high school. While still attending high schools students can also attend our school and receive college and high school credits for the same class. This will help ease them into the college world and give them a head start on completing their credential. One of the obstacles the school faces is finding the resources to cover the portion of the books that the high school students financial aid does not cover. Our Southeastern Technical College Foundation has helped to cover the cost so far. d. Transform Remediation Progress Metric 1 & 2: Enrollment & Success in Remedial Education Metric 2a. Success in Remedial Education (see Table below). One of the college s main priorities is to increase student success in developmental classes in order to move students into gateway and program classes more quickly. In order to accomplish this, faculty have used diagnostics, modularization, and integration of technology resources. Southeastern Technical College 192

193 MathXL is a major resource used specifically in developmental math classes, and though there has not been a huge increase in the number of exits in one semester, instructors perceive that students seem to be less stressed about math in general and Developmental Algebra in particular. During Spring Semester 2015, the College piloted a co-requisite math model which allows students who meet the eligibility requirements to enroll in both Developmental Math 0090 and MATH College Algebra or Math 1012 Foundations of Mathematics, the diploma level math course. Even though it is too early to make sweeping generalizations concerning the effectiveness of this pilot, the instructors feel the initiative was very successful. The semester began with 14 students in the co-requisite classes (12 in College Algebra and 2 in diploma Math 1012). Three of the 14 students withdrew during the semester. Of the 11 remaining, eight students successfully completed College Algebra, and two students successfully completed diploma Math One student was unsuccessful in College Algebra. Students involved in Developmental Reading 0090 have been very successful with exit rates fluctuating from 66% to 90.7% during the last seven semesters. However, Developmental English still presents some challenges; exit rates have ranged from a low of 42% to a high of 73%. Faculty continue to evaluate the program at the end of each semester and report to the CCG committee and the administration. One challenge facing the English class involves a gap in the transfer of information from the developmental class to the gateway class. Faculty members are currently revisiting the requirements for this class in order to address this issue. All developmental instructors not only interact with students during each class period but also tutor when needed. During this past semester, instructors held individual counseling sessions with students at midterm to discuss their progress. The exact impact of these sessions is still to be determined, but instructors feel that the students responded well to the sessions and that the sessions provided a way to make the students aware of their progress as well as hold them accountable. Some of the obstacles are students not working on their modules outside of class, and not having computer access while off campus. Our School recently completed the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE). It showed that 49.6% of test takers did nothing to prepare for the colleges placement test. Some of the resources provided are tutors, computer labs and our school library is now opening on Saturdays. We also have added study sessions on campus and online videos to our website to better prepare the testers. Learning Support Reading Totals for Fall Semester (Semester before Redesign) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) READ READ TOTALS Learning Support Reading Totals for Spring Semester (1 st Semester of Redesign) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) READ 0090 TOTALS Southeastern Technical College 193

194 Learning Support Reading Totals for Summer Semester (Most Current Numbers) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) READ 0090 TOTALS Learning Support English Totals for Spring Semester (Semester Before Redesign) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) ENGL ENGL TOTALS Learning Support English Totals for Summer Semester (1 st Semester of Redesign) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) ENGL 0090 TOTALS Learning Support English Totals for Summer Semester (Most Current Numbers) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) ENGL 0090 TOTALS Learning Support Math Totals for Summer Semester (Semester Before Redesign) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) MATH MATH TOTALS Southeastern Technical College 194

195 Learning Support Math Totals For Fall Semester (1 st Semester of Redesign) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) MATH 0090 TOTALS Learning Support Math Totals For Fall Semester (Most Current Numbers) Course Enrolled A B C D F W WP WF Dropped %Attrition %Completion (A s, B s, C s) MATH 0090 TOTALS e. Restructure Delivery (includes block scheduling) Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production Each student in a cohort is tracked to determine if the student received an award in the same award level in which the student first enrolled. While the CCG reports are helpful, the Student Affairs Division monitors the graduation rate of each program level on an annual basis. We continue to monitor and track our student success in the five areas that have been identified as offering courses in a block scheduling format. The five programs are Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Networking Specialist, Medical Assisting and Automotive Technology. Our school as a whole has had a decline in enrollment. Block Scheduling Retention Impact (KMS Report DC302) Level Major Diploma Accounting 100% 100% 0% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology 80% 100% 86% Diploma Automotive Technology 0% 57% 85% Diploma Networking Specialist 50% 67% 50% Diploma Non-Block Diploma programs 72% 65% 66% Degree Accounting 0% 0% 33% Degree Air Conditioning Technology N/A N/A N/A Degree Automotive Technology N/A N/A N/A Degree Networking Specialist 100% 100% 0% Degree Non-Block Degree programs 0% 60% 71% Southeastern Technical College 195

196 Block Scheduling Graduation Impact (KMS Report DC302) Level Major Diploma Accounting 50% 29% 0% Diploma Air Conditioning Technology 11% 0% 0% Diploma Automotive Technology 78% 63% 69% Diploma Networking Specialist 67% 50% 25% Diploma Non-Block Diploma programs 36% 34% 22% Degree Accounting 0% 0% 0% Degree Air Conditioning Technology N/A N/A N/A Degree Automotive Technology N/A N/A N/A Degree Networking Specialist 50% 0% 0% Degree Non-Block Degree programs 40% 37% 0% f. Shorten Time to Degree-Outcome Metric 2: Graduation rate Southeastern Technical College (STC) has made a concerted effort to reduce the time a student can successfully complete a credential. One of the changes implemented is the redesign of the Learning Support curriculum. Previously, a student who tested below the appropriate entry level score on the COMPASS exam would be enrolled in Learning Support classes that could take a few terms to complete. The new redesign encourages students to complete the entire Learning Support curriculum in one semester. College data reveals many more STC students have successfully completed English 0090 and Reading 0090 Learning Support classes and have moved on to the next step in their education. Students enrolled in Learning Support math classes are completing faster than before, but the percentage of students being retained is about the same. The College is making additional efforts to assist students enrolled in the Learning Support math courses. Additionally, this past spring the College began combining diploma and degree level math with the accompanying Learning Support class and allowing interested students to complete co- requisite classes. Students who score within a certain range on the COMPASS or who have completed through Module 12 in MATH 0090 the previous semester are now allowed to take the general education gateway course during the same semester as the matching Learning Support course. Many students have been able to succeed because the Learning Support course helps to reinforce the concepts taught in the diploma/degree level general education course. This co-requisite pairing has reduced the time to graduation by one semester for many students. Beginning Spring Semester 2016, all diploma level English and math students will be enrolled in co-requisite Learning Support and gateway classes. Another change STC made was to implement a mini semester format for numerous courses. The length of time for a mini semester is 7.5 weeks compared to a traditional 15 week semester. Faculty and students have embraced this change, and students are now able to complete their program curriculum quicker than in the past. Lastly, the hours for many diploma and degree programs have been reduced. National and state program accrediting bodies have continued to recommend a shorter curriculum for students. Students enrolled in many STC programs are now able to graduate sooner due to the reduced program requirement. Southeastern Technical College 196

197 Student Success Implementation Team: Name Title/Position Role Address Teresa Coleman V.P. for Academic Affairs Team Member Cheryl West Dean Gen Ed & LS Team Member Barry Dotson V.P. for Student Affairs Cindy Phillips Student Navigator Point of Contact Team Member Amanda Lively Assistant Registrar Team Member Jan Brantley Helen Thomas Ashley Harmon Gina Robison Special Needs Specialist Special Needs Specialist Instructor/Online Coord. Dean Bus/Human Services Team Member Team Member Team Member Team Member Southeastern Technical College s Complete College Georgia (CCG) committee reviews the data found in the CCG Metric Reports, Achieving the Dream Reports, QEP, KMS data reports and local college data reports to get a meaningful understanding of the college s performance. The information is shared with our President who shares it with our Foundation Board of Trustees and Board of Directors during their monthly meetings. All faculty and staff are presented with the information at Staff Development Days. Students are kept abreast of the latest information through student focus groups and Student Government meetings. Conclusion: After reviewing our Perkins Data we instituted some changes to help improve our retention rates. Student Withdrawal surveys conducted during FY 2014, suggest that some of the primary causes of student withdrawal from school is due to personal and family reasons. Further analysis of information gathered from students who were referred through the Early Alert System, confirmed that the root causes for failure to retain students could be attributed to lack of family support, limited knowledge of community resources such as childcare, healthcare services; lack of community resources such as public transportation; and limited financial resources and lack of adequate transportation. Unfortunately due to the current state of the economy it is difficult for our students to afford gas, transportation, and day care. Four of the eight counties in our service delivery area have a 10% or higher unemployment rate. Most of our students must work to provide for their families and may find it difficult to juggle the pursuit of an education along with working a full time job. These barriers play a huge role in a student s ability to remain in school through completion of their program. Transitioning from our in house developed Early Alert system to the more comprehensive system wide TCSG Early Alert Management System (TEAMS). TEAMS will use data such as grades, attendance and course failures to spot students who are at risk of withdrawing. The new TEAMS will be implemented in three phases. Phase one was implemented spring semester 2015 for Learning Support courses, General Education courses were added summer semester and all other courses will be added fall semester. This system will be used by instructors to notify the Special Needs Specialist or Student Navigator when a student is having problems such as attendance, academic or personal hardships. Services will be coordinated to help students resolve any issues. Instructors will be offered training on identifying students that may be having an issue and may need assistance. Southeastern Technical College 197

198 Since implementation we have seen an increase of Instructors using the Early Alert system to get students needed help. Of the students served through TEAMS, we have seen an increase in the number of students who were helped and remained in their classes. Assessing our policies and procedures through Complete College Georgia and Achieving the Dream Initiatives, we identified two areas of concern: Attendance Policy and the Learning Support Curriculum. It was determined that our strict attendance policy could potentially cause a barrier to students who are at risk of dropping out due to root causes previously mentioned. We are reviewing our current attendance policy and piloting a revised attendance policy with more flexibility to examine the effect on overall retention. We also saw potential barriers in the completions of Learning Support curriculum. We have adopted the statewide redesign of Learning Support Curriculum in an effort to move students into program course more quickly. See Goals section letter D in this report for our results. A few years ago it was felt that one of the root causes of the low number of graduates in the certificate/diploma levels is the College s admission policy concerning health care students. Many of these students entered into the Health Care Assisting certificates while they were completing their general education core classes. After completing the required 7 classes and passing an aptitude test, they were accepted into the diploma level program. A change was made to require the Health Care Assisting students complete the certificate before they could be accepted into the Practical Nursing program in hopes that it would better prepare the students. After looking at the length of time it now took the students to complete the certificate and diploma programs and the number of students who ended up dropping out, a policy change was made for Fall semester 2015 to no longer require the completion of the certificate. In an attempt to help keep students in class, the Student Navigator was contacting all students who were not attending or dropped the College Survival Skills class or a Learning Support class. The hope was to get them back in class so they could persist toward their credential. It took a tremendous amount of time and most students were unable to be reached. After evaluating the effort after a semester, it was determined that the yield did not support the time required. Our QEP is in full implementation with the ALMA 1000 (Allied Health Math Applications) course being taught on both campuses. Our QEP is a class to prepare students in understanding the application of mathematics in their health science program courses. The topics included are basic mathematics, medical terminology, mathematical conversions, weight and measurement applications used in health science programs. Additionally, problem solving strategies, basic principles of medication administration, and research in health science will be incorporated into the course competencies. The ALMA 1000 course assessment demonstrated an increase between pre and post-test for Spring, Summer, and Fall semesters during For Spring semester 2014 the pre-test average was 74.07% and the post-test was 88.48%, Summer semester 2014 pre-test was 65.95% and the post-test was 86.45%, and Fall 2014 pre-test was 68.88% and post-test was 87.70%. The raw ALMA Capstone data demonstrated an average of 90% for Spring and Fall Semesters, 89.17% for Summer semester. The ALMA Capstone test is given once the student has completed all program requirements and are in their program capstone course. Based on the positive data, we will continue requiring our Medical students take the ALMA class. The first Health Science programs to graduate students that have had the ALMA 1000 course were EMS Professions, Paramedicine, Medical Assisting (Swainsboro), and Practical Nursing (Vidalia). The data from these groups is currently being extrapolated from the Institutional Effectiveness Data Base for further analysis. This analysis will provide information for ALMA 1000 course and Health Science program improvements. Additionally, the available QEP Curriculum Map data that has been gathered from each Health Science program and will be analyzed by the QEP Assessment team at the beginning of Spring 2015 for QEP and Health Science program improvement. Southeastern Technical College 198

199 Next Steps: When students are in a program of study that fits their interest and abilities they will be more likely to be successful in school and graduate. In an attempt to get students into a suitable program from the start, we are working to improve career counseling by providing training for Career Counselors and especially provide an in depth look at essential functions of non-traditional programs and careers. Training will be conducted by faculty. This should help improve career counseling and help underrepresented gender students make more informed decisions regarding program selection. The resource needed for this to be successful is faculty. Another goal is to focus on non-traditional careers. We will implement marketing and recruitment strategies that adhere to equitable standards and promote non-traditional programs among underrepresented gender students by highlighting successful graduates in high wage and high skilled jobs in non-traditional programs on our website, social media and publications. We will ensure our established media includes students of the underrepresented gender. A video will be created focusing on non-traditional careers to be used during recruitment activities. We will use promotional items geared toward non-traditional programs when recruiting; and include fliers highlighting nontraditional programs in career counseling folders. Resources needed for this step is funding to make a video. We will develop formal focus groups of students in non-traditional programs that are single parents and survey them to help determine what barriers are keeping them from persisting and graduating. Also, to help determine what support services can be offered to help them persist and graduate. This step requires no resources. HEROES (Having Equity Resources and Opportunities Equals Success) will serve as a support/focus group for students enrolled in non-traditional programs, Displaced Homemakers and Single Parents. Students will be referred to support services and are eligible to receive financial assistance if there is a need and other resources are not available. Support services include the Lending Library targeted toward Single Parents/Displaced Homemakers and students enrolled in non-traditional programs will loan books to students who have used the maximum amount from Financial Aid and are unable to purchase their own books; Lunch and Learns to address personal issues such as budgeting, time management and overcoming barriers and speakers who are employed in non-traditional career fields; career assessment using Virtual Job Shadow and personal advisement-to assure they are pursing the appropriate credential based on their interests and personal strengths; and community resources and referrals are as needed. Resources needed for this step are funding to purchase books and pay for Lunch and Learns. An area that continues to cause a concern is the successful completion rate in online courses. A committee will be formed to determine what electronic competencies a student needs to possess prior to taking a course in an online format. This committee will research orientation processes for online students. They will look at key competencies students learn in the online environment to determine any needed curriculum changes and/or redesign. After changes are made, the students taking courses in an online environment who have met the new requirements will be monitored to determine successful completion rates, grades and persistence. A focus group of students who have met the new requirements and persisted will be formed to determine key success indicators. Recommended changes from the focus group of students and instructors will be reviewed. No resources required to complete this step. Students who score program ready persist at higher rates than students who have to complete Learning Support classes. In an attempt to better prepare our students before they take the Compass for admission to our school, we have set up study sessions to refresh the students in the areas of Reading, Writing and Numerical/Algebra skills. We also added preparation videos and sample questions in each Compass subject area to our school website. It is our hope that better preparing students for the Compass will prevent them from scoring into Learning Support and getting bogged down in those classes. The resource required for this step is Instructors to teach the study sessions. The 2015 Georgia General Assembly partnered to pass two bills to enact dual enrollment changes. Under the Move On When Ready Dual Enrollment Program, a high school student has the opportunity to get a head start on a career path at the technical school. It also gives high school students a new option to earning their high school diploma. Southeastern Technical College 199

200 They complete their first two years of high school at the secondary level and then attend the technical college and complete an associate degree, diploma or two technical certificate programs in a career pathway and they will be awarded a high school diploma. It does not cost a student anything to attend. Books are provided to the student. We are developing a plan to get more of our service delivery area high school students tested for admission and to generate interest to get students started early on earning credits toward a credential. Our High School Coordinator is speaking to high schools, civic clubs and any gathering of people to get the word out. Historical data shows that high school students who have participate in Dual Enrollment have a 95% rate of graduating from high school. Resources needed are funds to pay for admissions exams, financial aid for our students, and funds to purchase books. Southeastern Technical College 200

201 Southern Crescent Technical College Southern Crescent Technical College 201

202 Overview Southern Crescent Technical College As reported in the Report Year (RY) 2014 report, the College ended 2012 with a 30% full-time enrollment, a demonstrated upward trend. This trend continued into AY 2013, as the College s full-time enrollment rose to 39%. However, the rate at which full-time enrollment changed did decrease from 47% between 2007 and 2012 to 30% between 2008 and 2013, which demonstrates that the shift from part- to full-time student enrollment slowed. Between 2007 and 2012, both full and part-time transfer student enrollment rose 160% and 349%, respectively; however, that trend had also slowed during the period as the full-time transfer student rate had decreased to 69% and the part-time transfer student rate to 131%. Changes by Racial Group According to data analysis, the last two report years have demonstrated an increase in full-time Hispanic student enrollment. In RY 2012, Black, non-hispanic (26.9%) and White, non-hispanic (22.3%) student enrollment saw the only positive percent change. In RY 2013, White, non-hispanic (40.3%) student enrollment continued to have the second highest percent change; however, the highest percent change was in the Hispanic (118.8%) ethnic category. In RY 2014 and 2015, this upward trend in the percent change of Hispanic student enrollment continued, and this ethnic/racial group was the only one to see a positive percent change. This trend in Hispanic student enrollment continued in part-time enrollment as well. In RY 2012, there was no negative percent change in any category. The racial groups with the largest percent change in part-time enrollment were Black, non-hispanic (25.1%) and Asian (16.7%). In RY 2013, all enrollment was positive, also. Hispanic enrollment increased 304.0%, while Asian enrollment increased 88.0%. In RY 2014, Black, non-hispanic part-time enrollment (52.3%) returned as a category with one of the highest percent changes; however, Hispanic part-time enrollment (188.4%) continued to have the highest percent change. As in the prior two years, there was no negative growth in FY In RY 2015, Hispanic student part-time enrollment changed 142.5%, while Black, non-hispanic student enrollment changed 13.5%. The Asian category was the only one with negative growth that year. In RY 2012, there was no negative change in full-time transfer enrollment. Asian full-time transfer enrollment changed 400%, while Black, non-hispanic enrollment changed 11.4%. For RY , the largest percent change in full-time transfer enrollment was consistently in Hispanic and Black, non-hispanic full-time transfer enrollment. However, the largest change in part-time transfer enrollment in RY was in the Black, non-hispanic and White, non-hispanic categories. This shifted in RY 2014 as Hispanic part-time transfer enrollment increased 3,300% and Asian part-time transfer enrollment increased 433.3%. In RY 2015, Hispanic part-time transfer enrollment (480%) continued to have the largest percent change, although less pronounced, and Black, non-hispanic part-time transfer enrollment returned as the second highest percent change. Changes by Gender Changes in enrollment by gender varied by enrollment status and transfer status. In RY , female full-time enrollment saw the largest percent change (38.5%); although, it should be noted that during this time period both male and female full-time enrollment increased. Beginning in RY 2014, full-time enrollment began to decrease. In RY 2014, both male and female full-time enrollment declined at approximately the same rate. In RY 2015, female full-time enrollment (-33.0%) decreased faster than male full-time enrollment declined faster than that of males (-24.5%). Whereas full-time enrollment was on the increase in RY 2012 for both males and females; part-time enrollment declined for males. Female part-time enrollment saw a 21.3% percent change. In RY 2013, both male and female part-time enrollment increased at approximately the same rate. The upward trend in part-time enrollment trend for both males and females continued into RY Southern Crescent Technical College 202

203 For RY , there was a positive increase in full-time transfer enrollment for the whole period. While female fulltime transfer enrollment had a higher percent change for RY , the trend reversed in as male fulltime transfer enrollment saw a higher percent change. The part-time transfer enrollment showed an identical shift for the same time period, as well. In RY , female part-time transfer student saw the greatest percent change in enrollment, but the trend, once again, reversed in RY 2014 to a larger percent change in male part-time transfer enrollment. Changes by Age Group The most notable change by age group has been the consistent change in part-time enrollment. For RY , Directly from High School (17-19 years) has been the category with the greatest percent change in part-time enrollment. While the percent change has increased and then decreased, it was still the fastest growing group. Also, it is notable that while full-time enrollment has decreased for all age groups during RY , part-time enrollment did not decrease at any point for any age group. The largest change in full-time enrollment in RY 2012 was in the Directly from High School (17-19 years) group (52%). In FY 2013, full-time enrollment continued to increase; however, the largest percent increase was in the Other (20-24 years old) group (43.4%). In 2014, the Directly from High School (17-19 years) group had the smallest negative percent change (-13.2%), and in RY 2015, the Other (20-24 years old) group saw the slightest negative percent change (-18.3%). It appears that the full-time enrollment numbers demonstrate that full-time enrollment experiences a two-year cycle of growth. From RY 2012 to RY 2015, the age of full-time transfer students has increased. In RY 2012, the greatest change in fulltime transfer enrollment was in the Directly from High School (17-19 years) group (209.5%). This shifted in RY 2013 to the Age 25 and older group (373%). Then, in RY , the age group with the greatest percent change was Other (20-24 years old). Part-time enrollment also shifted to older students. In RY 201, Directly from High School (17-19 years) students had the highest percent change; however, after that year, the category Other (20-24 years old) consistently saw the greatest percent change of any age group. Goals During AY 2015, the College continuously worked to support the Complete College Georgia (CCG) goals of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) by focusing its efforts on improving college completion rates and increasing accountability. In order to accomplish this, the College implemented new strategies in addition to the continuation of past successful strategies. Careful analysis of these strategies through the use of prescribed metrics allowed the College to identify areas of both strength and weakness that it will need to address in AY The College ensured the appropriate allotment of resources in order to adequately support these strategies and diligently worked to address problems that arose during the implementation phase. Goal 1: Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7 % annually over the previous year (mandatory goal) Performance Metric: In order to measure the success of the strategies designed to increase degree production and graduation rates, the College used data from Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production. The College completed AY ,272 below their projected 2015 goal of 11,904. In order to evaluate the success of Center for Networking, Engaging, & Training (NET), the College plans to use Progress Metric 6: Course Completion. Per tracking station data, the total number of logged usage (duplicated) of the NET was 8,637. The total number of individuals who participated in study groups at the NET (unduplicated) was 107. Surprisingly, learning support student usage of the NET was not as high as expected. Southern Crescent Technical College 203

204 The College also implemented strategies to identify and address barriers to completion. In order to measure the success of these strategies, the College used data from Progress Metric 5: Retention Rates. During the next phase of the implementation of the NET, the College plans to use tracking station data to determine correlations between student use of the DREAM program and retention rates. Strategies: In order to meet the first TCSG CCG goal, the College implemented strategies to increase degree production and graduation rates. In order to accomplish this goal, the Registrar held multiple Senior Seminars and Graduation Workshops, which totaled 386 students in attendance. In spite of these efforts, there was a slight decrease the number of Awards Conferred (duplicated) from 2,284 in AY 2014 to 2,273 in AY 2015, which represents a.5% decrease; however, in AY 2015, the College did see a 1.4 % increase in unduplicated awards from AY The Graduation Coach continued to provide support services for special population students (109 students served in 2014 to 107 students in 2015) and has coordinated with the NET to implement a student peer mentoring program, Developing Responsibility, Empowerment and Achievement through Mentoring (DREAM). For AY 2015, the DREAM Peer Mentoring Program served 339 unduplicated and 2,267 duplicated students through the use of 39 mentors. At the Career Fair, the College increased the number of students attending from 178 in 2014 to 251 in 2015, and the number of employers participating increased from 31 in 2014 to 62 in In addition, there were 38 College alumni and walk-ins that attended the Career Fair in In Summer 2015, advisors began a new project designed to evaluate a list of cohort students that were admitted but not registered for classes. By identifying potential issues faced by these students such as lack of financial aid, academic holds, program changes, advisors were able to advise students on how to return to and succeed at the College in upcoming semesters. Members of the QEP Faculty Peer Mentoring Program participated in a mentoring cycle that spanned one academic year. Each member redesigned a course in which they incorporated active learning strategies and an introduction to the Study Cycle, which is a strategic method of preparing one s coursework. In order to, in part, increase course completion rates, the College created the NET. Serving the professional and academic development needs of faculty, staff, and students, the NET provides a supportive environment for personal, professional, and academic growth through participation in peer mentoring programs. The College s Financial Aid department also implemented financial aid check-in stations during orientation, enabling the department to identify students who may have not completed all the documents and/or applications necessary for financial aid. By assisting those students completing the required documents, the students are ensured they have the funds needed to pay for enrollment, which increases enrollment as these students would otherwise be dropped from the classes. Resources: Student Government Association (SGA) provided the funds used to promote the NET, recruit students, and fund activities and events. While the DREAM program primarily relies on volunteer mentees, the NET was able to hire three students through the Federal Work Study Program. The tracking stations used to record the number of mentoring sessions were designed in-house to track the usage of various student services and events. For the Career Fair, instructors and deans were used to solicit employer contacts, and SGA funds were used to provide for Employer refreshments and participation gifts. Each Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) pre- and post-test test cost $3 per student, and will be implemented by the QEP Director to better ensure the effective use of allocated resources. Obstacles: One challenge the College faced was the completion of graduation applications by advisors in a timely manner. The primary obstacle that the College faced in providing the Career Fair was ensuring student participation; however, the event was promoted through the College s Marketing department, as they provided signage and internal event marketing. Southern Crescent Technical College 204

205 One of the significant problems faced during the implementation of the project designed to evaluate a list of cohort students that were admitted but not registered for classes was the significant amount of incorrect contact information for students. Initially, advisors were only able to register 9 of the 243 students listed in the report; however, the College plans to continue to refine this process and study the barriers faced by these students. In order to evaluate the QEP Faculty Peer Mentoring Program s success, faculty members were asked to implement the LASSI as a pre- and post-test; however, due to implementation inconsistencies, collected data was not complete. In order to address this problem in AY 2016, the QEP director will implement the surveys. The QEP Director, also over the NET, will focus on determining how to better market to and support at-risk populations, like learning support students, as a goal for AY During the next phase of the implementation, the College plans to use tracking station data to determine correlations between student use of the NET and individual course completion rates. Goal 2: Transfer and Articulation (Collaboration) Performance Metric: In order to measure this strategy, the College utilized Outcome Metric 3: Transfer Out. According to the metric data, students who were transfer students at time of entry transfer out to a four year institution at the highest rate, 24%. Fifty-four percent of students that reported their race as Two or More Races transferred out, with 100% transferring out before completing 12 or fewer credit hours. In fact, 605 of all students who were transfer students at the time of entry to the College, transfer out before earing 12 or fewer credit hours. For students who were enrolled part-time at time of entry to the College, 11% transfer to a four year institution. Twenty percent of Black, Non- Hispanic students transferred out, and 55% of those students had completed 12 or fewer credit hours. Male part-time students transfer out with fewer accumulated credits than female, and no part-time students first completed an associate degree before transferring out. Of full-time students, 14% transferred out, and this group was more evenly distributed across the range of credit hours earned at time of transfer. Strategies: In support of TCSG s second CCG goal, the College provides and promote articulation and transfer options to incoming and current students. In order to accomplish this goal, the College provides an annual College Fair to promote transfer and articulation agreements with four-year universities throughout the United States. At the College Fair, the College increased the number of students attending from 76 in 2014 to 110 in 2014, and the number of 4-year college representatives went from 9 in 2014 to 27 in Resources: Other than the use of permanent part- and full-time Career Services staff, the College utilized SGA funds were used to provide college/university recruiter refreshments and participation gifts. Obstacles: The data suggests that the College should focus on encouraging transfer to a four-year institution to the age group 25 and older, as they have the lowest transfer rate of all age groups. Also, priority should be given to encouraging students to complete associates degrees, if not more credit hours, before time of transfer. Goal 3: Improve College Readiness and Access Performance Metric: In order to improve college readiness and access, the College implemented several strategies, which were measured by Progress Metric 3: Success in Gateway College Courses. Strategies: In 2015, the College revised new and returning student orientation to include, among other sessions, mandatory Financial Aid workshops. During the orientation sessions that occurred in 2015, Financial Aid presented to 2,742 students. In addition to the mandatory sessions held during orientation, Financial Aid Workshops were still offered during the term. In 2015, participation increased 198% from the previous year, and the number of workshops offered increased from 19 in 2014 to 49 in The Advisement Center also played an active role during all new and returning student Required Orientation, Advisement, and Registration (ROAR) sessions primarily leading required sessions on how to access and use DegreeWorks, BannerWeb and ANGEL. Southern Crescent Technical College 205

206 During 2015, the College redesigned the course COLL 1500-College Success and Career Exploration and plan to implement it in A committee, chaired by the lead instructor, convened to propose a revised curriculum that will help new students learn valuable strategies and skills for success in college and in life. Technology competencies from COMP 1000-Introduction to Microcomputers were integrated into the redesigned course, and beginning in Fall 2015, 50 programs will offer students the choice of COLL1500 or COMP 1000 to fulfil a general core requirement. Resources: Due to the change from only offering COMP 1000-Introduction to Microcomputers to fulfil a general core requirement, more sections COLL 1500-College Success and Career Exploration are needed. The course may also need a designated coordinator with a reduction in course load and a reallocation of resources, such as faculty teaching assignments. In order to implement the redesign of ROAR, the College utilized existing resources including the Griffin Campus facilities, all full-time Student and Academic Affairs staff, campus police officers, custodial staff and full-time faculty. Obstacles: Once obstacle faced during the revised new and returning student orientation was the large number of new students attending, which led to computer lab space and staffing limitations. Goal 4: Transform Remediation Performance Metric: The College worked to increase the pass rates of remediation students in order to support Goal 4: Transform Remediation. In order to measure the strategies implemented, the College used data found in Progress Metric 2: Success in Remedial Instruction. According to the data reported in this metric, students were more successful in completing a remediation course when they took one course within their first two years. For those students who took both math and English remediation courses, the average completion was 31%. This rate was 21% lower than those who completed only an English remediation course and 20% lower than the Math remediation course only rate. These rates show a decrease in completion rates from the period. Female students were also more successful than male in all three areas, especially in English only where they completed remedial courses at a 16% higher rate than males. Adult student over the age of 25 completed English only remedial courses at 58%, which a 25% decrease from the last reporting period. Whereas adult students were markedly more successful in English only remediation courses than their younger counterparts, they did not complete college level math or English courses at a significantly different rate than other age groups. The success rates of female and males students also significantly declined in college level English and math courses, although females did complete college level English only courses at an 18% higher rate than males. This represents a 10% increase from the previous period. Strategies: At the completion of the Fall 2014 semester, 47% of MATH 0099 students taking the exit exam passed, and at the completion of the Spring 2015 semester (201514), 45% of MATH 0099 students taking the exit exam passed. In an effort to increase the exit exam pass rate and meet the benchmark of 70%, instructors increased their presence in the Tutoring Center; continued to offer a study guide and mock exam indicative of the actual exit exam; and lent their time conducting exit exam review workshops at the end of each semester. According to internal data, ENGL 0098 had an 82% pass rate for and a 72% pass rate for The pass rate exceeded the benchmark; however, instructors could not determine the exact cause for the 10% drop from fall to spring semester. Exit exam study guides were shared with English instructors which helped them better prepare students and ensure that all sections covered the state standards for the course. Struggling students were also referred to the Tutoring Center for extra help preparing for the exam and to the Student Navigator. In addition, exit exam study sessions are planned in the coming year. At the completion of the Fall 2014 semester, READ 0098 had a pass rate of 82% for and a pass rate of 86% for Spring Analysis of the assessment results indicated that existing strategies worked, but instructors will focus even more on reading comprehension with additional assignments for extra practice. Instructors referred struggling students to the Student Navigator and to the Tutoring Center for extra help to prepare them well for the exit exam. Instructors also revised the exit exam to focus more on reading comprehension. Southern Crescent Technical College 206

207 The Tutoring Center served 359 students served in the tutoring center through a total of 1,506 tutoring sessions in English, reading, and math. Surpassing their original goal of increasing the pass rate of learning support students by 15% from 2014, the Tutoring Center exceeded this number by increasing the pass rate by over 30%. Resources: In order to fulfil an increase in usage, additional part-time staff may need to be added (totaling approximately 40 hours per subject), as well as additional funds to support an increase in NetTutor usage. This online tutoring software is billed by the hour to the College, and as usage increases so does the cost. Obstacles: While the pass rates of students who used the Tutoring Center increased, the number of students using the Tutoring Center did not increase as predicted. The Tutoring Center has developed new initiatives address the decline in usage, especially for learning support students, for the 2016 academic year. Goal 5: Restructure Delivery (Includes Block Scheduling) Performance Metric: As for the five programs within the block scheduling format, we have tracked student success via the KMS Complete College Georgia reports. The overall 100% graduation rate in RY 2015 for full-time certificate/diploma (at least 1 but less than 2 years) was 20.7%; however, the average rate for blocked programs was 12.5%. It initially appears that block scheduled programs are less successful than non-blocked scheduled; however, once the outliers in the non-block scheduled program graduation rate data are removed, the 100% graduation rate for full-time students in non-blocked programs is reduced to 10.9%. The following table shows a breakdown of full-time student success as measured by Graduation rates for FY 2015 from the blocked scheduled programs. According to the data, there is a correlation between block scheduling and graduation rates, and the use of block scheduling may help increase graduation rates for the programs with higher graduation rates than the College average. In order to approximate the effect of a block schedule for other program areas, the College implemented two strategies. Program Credential 100% Time 150% Time 200% Time Accounting (Griffin) Diploma 23.5% 23.5% 23.5% Accounting (Flint River) Diploma 0% 0% 0% Accounting (Griffin) Degree 25.0% 25.0% 25.0% Air Conditioning Technology (Griffin) Diploma 29.6% 29.6% 29.6% Air Conditioning Technology (Flint River) Diploma 22.2% 22.2% 22.2% Networking Specialist Diploma n/a n/a n/a Networking Specialist Degree 0% 0% 0% Medical Assisting (Griffin) Diploma 16.1% 19.4% 19.4% Medical Assisting (Flint River) Diploma 0% 10.0% 10.0% Automotive Technology (Griffin) Diploma 9.1% 9.1% 9.1% Automotive Technology (Flint River) Diploma 0% 0% 0% Non-Blocked Programs* Diploma 10.9% 14.3% 14.4% *Excludes outliers Strategies: In order to accomplish this goal, the College has implemented degree pathways in the College catalog. During intrusive advising sessions, the College will help ensure that all students are guided into highly structured degree plans that simulate the type of structure found in the established TCSG cohorts. Also, the College will publish its course schedule two terms in advance in order to help working students plan their future schedules. Through the use of degree pathways and advance publishing of the course schedule, the College will guarantee that milestone courses will be available when needed. Southern Crescent Technical College 207

208 Resources: It will be vital that the College has adequate numbers of faculty, particularly in the high demand areas of general education and remediation courses, to meet the varied and increasing needs of adult and dual-enrollment students. Obstacles: The obstacle primarily faced in the implementation of this strategies was the change in organizational culture. It had not been the habit of all program coordinators to plan course offerings and estimate anticipated course demand so far in advance. Also, the concept of program pathways was a difficult concept for some faculty advisors, mainly those outside existing block-scheduled programs, and there was a lack in understanding how program pathways in the catalog would be useful to students rather than confusing. This was solved by the emphasis on intrusive advising in order to ensure that there is no opportunity for students to be confused. Goal 6: Shorten Time to Degree Performance Metric: In order to shorten the time to degree, Goal 6 of CCG, the College implemented two strategies. Measured by Outcome Metric 4: Credits and Time to Degree, the College has successfully shortened the time to degree for both certificate and associate degree level students. The chart below provides specific data. Full-time Part-Time Transfer Total Graduates Total Months Average Years Total Graduates Total Months Average Years Total Graduates Total Months Average Years FY , , , FY , AY , , Strategies: Through the addition of two Allied Health Advisors, the College worked to shorten the time to degree for those program ready Health Care Assistant and Health Care Science students who were not accepted into their first choice of program, but it still seeks to improve Exemption Exam success rates. The College has continued its efforts with Exemption Exams by giving 10 exams and having 4 passing grades (40% pass rate) in This is an 8.5% decrease from the pass rate (48.5) in During FY 2014, the College had increased the number of full-time academic advisors from three to five with the two new advisors focusing primarily on Allied Health students. During AY 2015, the new Allied Health advisors visited 55 classes; saw 3,311 students in office visits; and corresponded with 2,416 students via and phone. In total, the Allied Health advisors worked with 6,838 students. Resources: Exemption Exams are created and graded by faculty in the subject area, which meant that full-time faculty are utilized as a resource. As the rate of exemption exam usage increases, the College will need to determine if additional part-time staff are required to implement and grade exams. The implementation of two new Allied Health advisors required the College to hire additional two full-time advisors at the end of FY14. Obstacles: The main barrier to success with Exemption Exams is marketing the service to students. While it is advertised at orientation, the usage still remained low. One problem identified by the College that hinders Allied Health students from completing a degree is the competitive nature of the programs combined with program waiting lists and the limited entry times for the cohorts. In order to combat this problem, the Allied Health advisors contacted 226 Allied Health Students enrolled for Spring 2015, but not yet enrolled for Summer 2015 or Fall 2015 in order to determine why they had not registered. The advisors also helped increased the Spring 2015 Pharmacy Tech enrollment by 68% by targeting students not accepted into the Spring 2015 Practical Nursing program. Also, their efforts resulted in 71% increase in the Orthopaedic Technology cohort enrollment. By assisting the Dental Assisting Program Coordinator, the Fall 2015 enrollment rose 41%. Southern Crescent Technical College 208

209 Student Success Implementation Team Southern Crescent Technical College operates as a data-driven institution that regularly tracks and evaluates data metrics. Each of the strategies listed under the Progress section are tracked throughout the year by the respective members of the Implementation Team that lead each effort. Each of these items are then compared to the previous year s data to ascertain the difference in progress from year to year. As deficiencies are identified, the Implementation Team s members use the results to make changes throughout the year. Each month, the VP of Technology and Institutional Research briefed the College s Senior Leadership Team on the Momentum Report, which a detailed of analysis of metrics that includes CCG-related metrics including. Each quarter, College Teams met to discuss specific issues of the College, which includes the CCG-related metrics. Discussions were held concerning progress, and when needed, proposals for modifications or additions of strategies were made to the College s Senior Leadership by the College Team s advisor. During the winter months, the College held a series of retreats and meetings to revise the annual Strategic Plan. During this process, numerous data metrics, including CCGrelated metrics, were presented, discussed, and woven into the goals and objectives of the Strategic Plan. The data for the monthly Momentum Report and for the CCG annual comparisons are collected from the following sources: KMS CCG College Reports: All Reports KMS College Level Reports: Analytical - Performance Benchmarks New DC 198 KMS System Scorecard: Benchmark Performance: All Reports Local Banner Data Reports Full Name Title Role Address Kate Williams Dawn Hodges Interim Director of Institutional Research Point of Contact kewilliams@sctech.edu Vice President: Academic Affairs Member dhodges@sctech.edu Xenia Johns Vice President: Student Affairs Member xjohns@sctech.edu Leila Wells Rogers QEP Director/NET Director Member lwells@sctech.edu AJ Thomas Graduation Coach Member athomas@sctech.edu Jasper Foust Becky Johnson Director of Enrollment Management Member jfoust@sctech.edu Lemuel Mercado Dean of Academic Affairs Member rajohnson@sctech.edu Dean of Academic Affairs Member lmercado@sctech.edu Susan Murray Director of Career Services Member smurray@sctech.edu Kathlyn Burden Registrar Member kburden@sctech.edu Kimberly Morris Director of Financial Aid Member kmorris@sctech.edu Southern Crescent Technical College 209

210 Conclusion The College was able to implement a number of successful measure in AY2015 and identify those strategies that proved to be least successful. Based on the information gathered, the College has been able to make adjustments for AY2016 to increase student retention rates. Most Successful: While the College did have areas that needed improvement, it was also successful in a number of its strategies. In AY 2015, the College did see a 1.4 % increase in unduplicated awards from AY Additionally, the College did increase the number of students attending the Career Fair from 178 in 2014 to 251 in Also, the number of employers participating increased from 31 in 2014 to 62 in The Tutoring Center also exceeded its internal goal of increasing the pass rate of learning support students who visited the Tutoring Center by over 30%. The College has implemented a number of new initiatives to better track students and their usage of vital services. For example, the College s Financial Aid department implemented financial aid check-in stations during orientation, enabling the department to identify students who may have not completed all the documents and/or applications necessary for financial aid. Also, the College began to better track and advise Allied Health students who were not admitted to their first choice of program. Through the Allied Health Advisors efforts, enrollment in programs with low enrollments were able to significantly increase their numbers. Least Successful: As there was slight decrease the number of Awards Conferred (duplicated) from 2,284 in AY 2014 to 2,273 in AY 2015, the College has made adjustments to increase this number. One challenge the College faced was the completion of graduation applications by advisors in a timely manner. Some advisors had waited to complete graduation applications for all of a student s earned credentials at the completion of their last semester rather than completing them in the term that each credential was earned. In order to address this challenge, the College has adjusted their graduation application procedures. The Registrar and Academic Affairs have implemented new faculty communication strategies to improve reporting procedures for AY Another strategy that the College plans to improve in the coming year is the new project designed to evaluate the list of cohort students who are admitted but not registered for classes. While the potential issues faced by these students that cause them to not reenroll have begun to be identified, the College plans to improve how those barriers are addressed by the institution. In order to address this challenge, this College plans to do an in-depth analysis of admitted but not registered students in order to determine the barriers (i.e. holds, missing documentation) that regularly inhibits registration. As these students are identified, relevant departments will develop strategies to eliminate or mitigate these barriers. For students with no obvious barriers, the College plans to determine the shared characteristics of these student in order to better target them for strategic interventions. In order to improve transfer rates, the College plans to target market programs that have established articulation agreements, as well as actively partner with new institutions. The College will actively promote the general education core transfer agreement between TCSG and the University System of Georgia during advising and orientation in order to emphasize the ease of transfer and encourage the pursuit of subsequent degrees. In addition, the College will continue to grow the annual College fair to provide relevant and useful information regarding transfer options to its students. Southern Crescent Technical College 210

211 Next Steps Within this upcoming year and in reference to several of the Complete College America Game Changers initiatives, the College plans to continue existing strategies, as well as implement new ones. In regards to the goal of producing of graduates in high-demand fields, the College will continue to promote the Strategic Industries Workforce Initiatives Grant (SIWIG) through the use of target marketing and intrusive advising. In order to accomplish this strategy, the College will need either additional advising staff or additional adjunct faculty to off-set the additional advisement responsibilities that will be placed on full-time faculty. To increase the retention and graduation rate of one program identified as a strategic industry, Practical Nursing, the NET will implement the Nursing Gap Program to serve at-risk students who have failed to succeed and who must await re-entry into the Nursing Program. This program will afford students the opportunity to review content, be instructed in new learning strategies, participate in the DREAM Peer Mentoring program, and obtain volunteer experience in nursing classrooms. In order to implement these strategies, the College plans to expand the NET to a larger space that can accommodate the growing need for its services. In addition to the expenses associated with remodel of a larger space, the College may need to hire additional part-time staff members to facilitate an increase in the programs and services offered there. In order to ensure that college credits can be transferred, the College will continue to promote transfer and articulation agreements through the use of annual College Fairs and the creation and dissemination of a transfer and articulation guide at the new and returning student orientation sessions. The College will also actively work to develop new articulation agreements with both in- and out-of-state public and private four year institutions that will ensure the seamless transfer of credits and the on-time attainment of a four-year degree. The Advisement Center will continue to target market students in specific programs with established articulation agreements through classroom visits and intrusive advising. Once again, intrusive advising strategies will require additional full- or part-time staff or adjunct instructors. Through the use of program pathways in the College catalog and intrusive advising sessions, the College will help ensure that all students are guided into highly-structured degree plans. Also, the College will publish the course schedule two terms in advance in order to help working students balance their academic and personal responsibilities. By mapping out and publishing every semester of study for all of the programs of study and publishing the course schedule two semesters in advance, the College will guarantee that milestone courses will be available when needed and will a measure of predictability to students college experience. In the new COLL 1500 course, students will learn how to best utilize DegreeWorks to track their academic progress and stay on track for graduation. In order to accomplish this, the College plans to transition existing COMP 1000 instructors into COLL 1500 sections, which will lessen the need to hire additional adjunct faculty to meet an increased demand. Also, in order to effectively accomplish this strategy, the College will need to ensure that the physical spaces (i.e. classrooms and labs) assigned in the schedule meet the technological and material requirements needed to teach the courses planned there. In addition, it will be vital that the College has adequate numbers of faculty, particularly in the high demand areas of general education and remediation courses, to meet the varied and increasing needs of adult and dual-enrollment students. The expansion of the TEAMS System in the coming year will help ensure that all students receive early, efficient intervention. The integration of faculty and staff into the TEAMS system will allow the Student Navigator to contact students in a timely manner so that s/he can help plan and implement a corrective course of action that will ensure the academic success of at-risk students. In order to effectively implement this strategy, the College will need to create a personnel support plan for the Student Navigator. As usage of the software increases, there will be an increased need to hire additional personnel to support the Navigator in order to ensure that both internal and external customer services remains effective. Southern Crescent Technical College 211

212 In order for students to remain on track for graduation, the College will continue to expand and improve the ROAR process and Graduation Workshops. While intrusive advising will help address the needs of students as they work through their programs, the College will continue to promote a strong beginning and finish of academic careers through targeted, mandatory workshops and sessions. To ensure that students fully understand the time and money consequences of making a change from the beginning of their College experience, the College will continue to provide a comprehensive new and returning student orientation. This is in support of the goal to exceed the TCSG retention benchmark for Southern Crescent Technical College (SCTC) from 65% to 70%. The College has also created a separate orientation for Dual Enrollment students in order to provide a more intimate setting where parents and student questions can be addressed. This strategy can be accomplished with existing resources. Southern Crescent Technical College 212

213 South Georgia Technical College South Georgia Technical College 213

214 Overview South Georgia Technical College Based on the statistics provided in TCSG Report DC241 for 2015 (CCA Report Year 2014), between 2007 and 2012, South Georgia Technical College (SGTC) has shown an increase of unduplicated headcount with enrollment going from 2,486 in 2007 to 3,194 in Since that time, however, unduplicated enrollment has returned to 2,520 for AY 15. There has been a good deal of decline in the amount of full-time students with full-time enrollment going from 1,403 in 2007 to 992 in This decline seems to be fairly equal among the racial subgroups with the Black, non-hispanic race dropping 35.9% and the white race dropping 20.4%. Though the actual number is small (13 full-time and 30 part-time), the percentage of Hispanic students is increasing (+ 44.4% for full-time and % for part-time) to come closer to matching the census demographics for our service area. Genders have declined at approximately the same rate with males decreasing by 27% and females 31.1%. There is, however, a considerable increase in the percentage of students requiring remedial coursework: an increase of 42.6% for full-time students and a 194.7% increase for students registering part-time. Overall, 15% of the cohort students required one of more remedial courses. This increase fits with our analysis that the greatest factor in the shift from full-time to part-time from 2007 to 2012 would be the changes in the economy with the increase of available employment. Those who are better prepared for the workforce are more likely to be employed minimally part-time and those who were less prepared are returning to school to enhance their skill set. To support these statistics our greatest headcount for 2007 and 2012 comes from student age 25 and over. Student enrollment of those 25 and over was 1,207 in 2007 and 1,568 in The full-time students decreased by 35.8% from 2007 to 2012 and the part-time increased by 94.9% from 2007 to The number of students receiving the Pell Grant at entry greatly increased from 1,079 in 2007 to 2,453 in Goals South Georgia Technical College continues to surpass the required 4.7% increase each year over the previous year. Cumulative through 2015 SGTC is 986 graduates above goal to date. SGTC plans to continue exceeding the CCG goals through ongoing utilization and implementation of 4 of the 5 CCA Game Changers (we are not considering the Performance Funding to be a local implementation). SGTC has implemented a system of co-requisite remediation, a guided pathway cohort model, expanding the expectation for structured schedules, and working to expand full-time enrollment (Full-Time is 15). These activities form the foundation for the fundamental plan to increase degree production for our students and community. Based on the KMS Annual Reports on enrollment, graduation, and placement, SGTC continues to lead the system in the ratio of unduplicated enrollment to total graduates; SGTC has made an award for every 2.46 students in AY 2015 against the system ratio of 4.24:1. SGTC also achieved a duplicate enrollment/award ratio of 1.47:1 against the system average of 2.58:1. This continued efficiency is due to the activities in place on our campuses. Implementations of activities under Degree Production have been very successful through AY2015. The continuation of the icommit campaign helped market the notion to students that they have a conscious role to play in making a commitment to their education. South Georgia Technical College formed a committee to evaluate the free book program. Through student and faculty surveys, it was determined that the program is beneficial to enrollment and retention and was continued throughout AY2015. South Georgia Tech has been able to retain the PBI Grant for another year which has allowed the continuation of employment of the full-time counselor/tester on Americus Campus and the Cordele Campus. Factors that continue to impact the increase of diploma and degree production at SGTC include the required advising/counseling before processing change of majors, improvement of counseling at-risk students that are on the verge of withdrawing or being withdrawn due to non-attendance of classes, financial issues, and economic environment. South Georgia Technical College 214

215 Implementation of activities under Graduation Improvement involved the entire campus with our second annual Community Day. Faculty and staff set-up recruitment tables at local businesses throughout our six county service area. Approximately 150 applications were collected and approximately 70 of the applicants enrolled for Fall Term Student retention improved for the college from 67.9% in 2014 and 71.9% in Tutoring services for core and program areas was implemented throughout Fall The Student Navigator has developed a system of tracking and calling students who are not doing well in classes. The students are introduced to the tutor in the LIFE Lab and are encouraged to take advantage of the additional help provided by the tutor and software in the LIFE Lab. Increase the number of graduates Performance Metric(s). Increasing the number of graduates requires ongoing evaluation and review of the CCG reports. Also, the KMS reports produced by TCSG continue to help us track the number of graduates and the programs they are completing on an annual basis. Graduate/Awards Academic Year Awards Conferred Growth from Previous Year AY ,509 2% AY ,555 3% AY , % AY , % Strategies/Interventions. In addition to the benefits for increasing graduation through the implementation of corequisite remediation and GPS scheduling (discussed below), South Georgia Technical College is continually evaluating admissions and career counseling procedures of new and returning students. The admissions and testing office counsels students on the front end about their program choice, encouraging students to take Career Scope to make sure they are putting their efforts in the right program. This effort will continue to decrease the number of change of programs and will increase the graduation rates. South Georgia Technical College is not currently allowing web registration. All students are required to be advised and registered each semester by their program advisor. This helps student s stay on track to complete embedded technical certificates of credit within their diploma or degree program. The Program Deans along with the instructors continue to evaluate the program curriculum to establish additional embedded certificates that are considered to have economic value. Resources Allocated. The Admissions Office along with the Testing Lab and the Testing Counselors interview and counsel all new and returning students. The Registrar s Office works with advisors to make sure they are tracking their students progress and turning in graduation applications on a timely basis. Deans and advisors regularly evaluate current program curriculum to ensure that the most current certificates are being offered to our students to meet their needs and the needs of employers. Obstacles. South Georgia Technical College s biggest obstacle is helping students find enough financial support to complete their college certificate, diploma, or degree. With the changes in HOPE that limit the amount each student receives each semester along with the HOPE cap many students do not have enough financial aid to complete their education. This enforces the need to make sure students enroll in the right program from entry in the school to make sure they maximize the financial aid available to them. Additional counseling related to program selection is in place, but not all students are taking advantage of that offering; steps will be taken in this academic year to expand participation (increasing access to online career choice tools, expanding hours of available direct counseling, and staff development for program instructors/advisors on helping students match interests with their program). South Georgia Technical College 215

216 Transform Remediation Performance Metric(s). As noted above, DC241 analysis indicates a considerable increase in the percentage of students requiring remedial coursework: an increase of 42.6% for full-time students and a 194.7% increase for students registering part-time. Overall, 15% of the cohort students required one of more remedial courses and the composite completion rate is 68.9%. However, for students taking both remedial English and math, the completion rate is only 54.2%. For AY 14, co-requisite remediation was implemented and the initial results show an increase to a 66.4% completion rate for students taking remedial classes in both disciplines. More importantly, the 66.4% of students who successfully completed their remedial coursework were concurrently successfully completing the gateway courses in those disciplines. In fact, students taking remedial math in conjunction with the diploma/degree level math showed an 80% successful completion rate which exceeds the 71.3% successful completion rate for students who were not required to take a remedial course. Strategies/Interventions. All learning support students are identified by the counselor/tester on both campuses. The identified students grades and attendance is tracked through each semester. In addition to tracking the counselor makes periodic appointments with the identified learning support students to see if they are having any additional problems with classes. Co-requisite remediation programs continue and a more concentrated effort to inform students of the benefits during registration is underway through the efforts of the Learning Support faculty taking the lead role in advising all students requiring remediation. Locally generated reports tracking the success of co-requisite remediation are showing improved completion and retention rates for all courses attempted; the first cohort of co-requisite students will be in the 100% to 150% of program length and after this current academic year we will be able to show the impact on program completion. The LIFE Lab continues to be developed on both campuses. The LIFE Lab not only offers tutoring for students but also offer workshops in study habits, time management, finances, etc. The list of workshop topics will continue to expand to meet student needs. Resources Allocated. South Georgia Technical College was awarded two Predominately Black Institution Grants over the past five years. We have recently been awarded an additional grant that will span over the next five years. These grants have allowed us to hire a full-time counselor/tester for the Americus Campus as well as the Cordele Campus. The Technical College System to Georgia also allowed funding for an additional position of a Student Navigator. All three of these positions have allowed us to closely track the learning support students as well as our regular admit students. Obstacles. South Georgia Technical College has the highest percentage of students under age 21 of any school in the TCSG system (48.8% in 2015 and 53.1% for the current term) and we also have the highest percentage of males students (51.7% in 2015). Both groups are considered high-risk in both state and national educational statistics, so SGTC will continue to monitor results for these demographics. Targeted programs attempt to meet additional student needs for these high-risk groups, but additional strategies will need to be developed after additional assessment can take place. Encouraging students to take advantage of the LIFE Lab for extra help is challenging. Many of our students work as well as attend school so their extra time is limited. South Georgia Technical College 216

217 Restructure Delivery Performance Metric(s). In 2014 SGTC began tracking students success in the five TCSG identified programs using the block scheduling format. Below are the results for the second year drawn from Report #DC200. Level Major AY15 Cohort Total Retained Retention Rate Change from AY 14 Total Graduated Graduation Rate Change from AY 14 Diploma Accounting % +23% 3 50% +10% Degree Accounting Diploma Diploma Diploma Diploma Degree Diploma and Degree Air Conditioning Technology % +17% 5 100% +17% Automotive Technology % -18% (6/6) 9 82% -18% (6/6) Medical Assisting % -8% 12 21% -2% Networking Specialist % +23% 3 60% +46% Networking Specialist % % 0 Non-blocked programs % +2.14% % +1.7% Strategies/Interventions. South Georgia Technical College implemented the Guided Pathways Scheduling for Agricultural Technology Program for Fall Semester 2014 and Welding and Criminal Justice in the fall of Currently, all students in the Agricultural Technology are enrolled using GPS scheduling; 19 of the 23 new enrollees in CRJ and 16 of the 17 new welding students are scheduled in GPS blocks and will be tracked through graduation. All programs offered have structured schedules in place to help students reduce taking additional credit hours and to anticipate course loads in future term; those structured schedules will be transitioned to GPS blocks in stages with 5-7 additional programs adopting GPS scheduling each year. This transition will also promote a 15 to Finish model for encouraging full-time enrollment. SGTC currently has a 56.9% rate of FTEs as a percentage of total enrollment compared t the system average of 51.3% for SGTC has also increased the percentage of students taking a full-time course load (12 or more hours) from 46.9% for 2013 up to 52.2% in These gains have been accomplished despite the reduction in the number of students qualifying for Pell and/or HOPE only 71.1% of students received HOPE funding last year (down from 73% in 2014 and 90% in 2010) and only 55.3% of students qualified for Pell (down from 67% in 2014). The chart above shows that the block scheduled programs are significantly outperforming the average for the non-blocked programs and we expect to see similar results with the other program areas utilizing GPS schedules. SGTC will continue to track and advise the students in the cohort. Complete College America reports indicate a correlation between full-time enrollment and increased completion rates and that expected increase will be tracked as the cohort students in the GPS programs matriculate. Contact will be made to those students who have withdrawn to collect information on why they withdrew and attempt to attract them back. Additionally, the benefits of full-time enrollment will be shared broadly with advisors and students. Resources Allocated. Deans, Instructors and the Vice President of Academic Affairs continue to monitor the success of students and the credit accumulation of those students enrolled in the programs that have been set up for block scheduling. Additional programs will be evaluated and setup for block scheduling over the next few years. South Georgia Technical College 217

218 Obstacles. South Georgia Technical College is located in an economically disadvantaged area and most of the student body must work in addition to attending college, therefore it is difficult for the majority of our students to enroll as fulltime students. The College continues to seek grant funding and support from our Foundation to mitigate student need to the greatest extent possible, but need continues to significantly outpace resources. Student Success Implementation Team Full Name Karen J. Werling Dr. John Watford David Kuipers Dr. Deborah Jones Deo Cochran Sharice Mills Title/Position Vice President for Student Affairs, Institutional Support, & Technology Vice President for Academic Affairs Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs Assistant Vice President for Student Navigation Retention & Coaching Specialist Retention & Coaching Specialist Role (Point of Contact or Member) Address Point of Contact Member Member Member Member Member edu edu edu du u The Student Success Implementation Team members begin their data analysis individually as soon as data from KMS, Banner, DegreeWorks, etc., becomes available. Findings and concerns are discussed informally as needed and then composite findings are discussed at regularly scheduled group meetings. Data discrepancies are discussed and addressed and a plan of action is decided on as a group. The committee also receives data input and analysis from the standing Achieving the Dream Data Team and the Academic Planning Team. All pertinent observations and plans are disseminated to the appropriate stakeholders by the two vice-presidents, Dr. Watford and Ms. Werling. Conclusion South Georgia Technical College has had great success with our Community Day and the introduction of Ask me about LIFE at SGTC. Setting up information tables in all of our service areas and offering a free application day greatly increased our visibility in the communities that we serve and helped increase our enrollment. We have been able to expand the LIFE campaign to many areas of the college and our communities. The block scheduling is helping keep our students on track and has made advisement and registration much easier for our students. This also helps our students stay on track to complete the value added embedded technical certificates of credit within each diploma and/or degree. The tracking and guiding of all Learning Support students has shown great improvement in our retention. Our enrollment records show that we were losing most of our students within the first year and even after the first semester if they were required to take learning support classes as a pre-requisite for core classes. With the introduction of corequisite learning support and core courses retention has steadily increase and will continue to be monitored. South Georgia Technical College 218

219 While the impact of CCG/CCA Game Changers that have been implemented is promising overall, the impact of SGTC s most aggressive initiative has been muted. Though it was designed for a broader reach beyond our CCG/CCA cohort, SGTC anticipated that the AY 13 introduction of the program to provide free textbooks for all students would demonstrate dramatic benefits for retention and completion. When implemented in AY 13, SGTC only experienced an 8% drop in enrollment (compared to a 14.2% drop for the system that year); that same year the system saw an 8% drop in the overall retention rate while SGTC increased our overall retention by 6.3%. SGTC also increased the percentage of students taking 12 or more credit hours from 46.9% in 2012 to 48.4% in 2013 and then 53.4% in However, the perceived value of receiving free books has diminished and in many regards has become an expectation rather than a benefit. To reverse that perception and improve the impact of the program, SGTC will adjust the marketing focus of the free book initiative to provide qualitative evidence of the impact. To that end, we are working to identify students who consciously chose to add credit hours in a given term because of the availability of books, students who transferred to SGTC because of the availability of books, and students who previously dropped out due to the high cost of books who were able to resume their education. The intent of that new direction in marketing will be to promote retention and completion by demonstrating the inherent value of the program for students. The quantitative data for this program is somewhat elusive because of the myriad factors that impact retention and completion, but the qualitative data should tell a compelling success story if students can be identified. Next Steps For Fall 2015, SGTC will continue with the marketing campaign with Ask Me About SGTC. This slogan was incorporated with our Community Day before Fall Term began. The LIFE slogan not only reflected the complete college experience that SGTC has to offer, but also places a focus on the LIFE Lab, with LIFE meaning Learning is for Everyone. All students that registered for Fall 2015 received an Experience SGTC upon visiting the LIFE Lab. This was an effort to let students know of the services available to them through the lab. Continued effort will be put in to the LIFE slogan and marketing efforts for the remainder of AY2015. Free books are still being offered to students for Fall 2015 and the assigned committee will meet and evaluate the need versus the cost to continue offering free books to our students. With the addition of the full-time counselor/testing coordinators efforts, as well as, a Student Navigator procedures will be assessed to track students closer and the Early Alert System to identify students that need additional help earlier in the semester will be continued. We have not been currently using TEAMS, but will begin using TEAMS by Spring 2016 with the introduction of Blackboard and attendance in BANNER. All classes will have a web-enhanced element to assist with tracking. The continuation of gathering and analyzing results of student retention and completion of new offerings will ensure that we meet the Complete College Georgia goals for SGTC. SGTC will continue to evaluate admissions and career counseling procedures of new and returning students. The admissions and testing office will continue to counsel students on the front end about their program choice by encouraging students to take Career Scope to make sure they are putting their efforts in the right program. This effort will continue to decrease the number of change of programs and will increase the graduation rates. Finally, all current initiatives will be buttressed and new opportunities will be available with the announcement that SGTC was awarded a 5-year/ $3 million grant from the Department of Education to support our work towards completion and retention. South Georgia Technical College 219

220 Southern Regional Technical College Southern Regional Technical College 220

221 Overview Southern Regional Technical College Includes Final Progress Report of Moultrie Technical College and Southwest Georgia Technical College- The State Board of the Technical College System of Georgia approved the administrative merger of Moultrie Technical College (MTC) and Southwest Georgia Technical College (SWGTC) on June 5, 2014, to be effective July 1, This Complete College Georgia Progress Report is prepared based upon the 2015 Complete College Georgia Plans in place for the separate merging colleges, plans carried out by the separate colleges, and the plans put in place for 2016 for the merged college, Southern Regional Technical College. Current Statewide Target Graduates: 239,250 Technical College System of Georgia s Allocation (26%): 79,531 Timeline: Southern Regional Technical College (SRTC) merged data from MTC and SWGTC reflects an enrollment of 3,886 Total Students in Complete College Georgia (CCG) programs in Academic Year 2014 (CCG Report Year 2016), which is a decrease of 333 students (7.9%) from Academic Year 2013 (CCG Report Year 2015). The CCG reports include programs to include: Certificates of less than one academic year, Certificates/Diplomas of at least one year but less than two, Certificates/Diplomas of at least two years but less than four, and Associate Degree programs. Of the 3,886 students enrolled in AY 2014, 1,656 (43%) were full-time and 2,230 (57%) were part-time. Approximately 8% (314 of 3,886) of the student population took remedial courses in Academic Year Female students represent the majority of the student body at 66% for both years. Of the 3,886 students, 75% received Pell Grant at entry. Changes in SRTC Student Demographics A comparison of SRTC merged CCG enrollment demographic data for MTC and SWGTC for AY 2014 and AY 2013 was completed and is presented in Table 1 (Source: KMS Report #DC241; CCG All Metrics Summary - College). The most significant changes in the student population follow. The largest decline in enrollment in 2014 from 2013 was attributed to students aged 25 and over. This enrollment sector declined 12.3% (272), largely due to an improving job market. An overall increase of 20% in the Hispanic student population was observed. This increase is attributed to the higher Hispanic population within Colquitt County, Tift County, and Grady County. Although the change in the total percent of students taking remedial courses at entry only increased by 1.3%, the percent of full-time students who took remedial courses at entry increased by 18.4%, while part-time decreased by 6.6%. Goals SRTC implemented the overall CCG goal of increasing the number of graduates to 1,319 in 2015, which represents a 4.7% (59) over the prior year. In addition, CCG goals to transform remediation, restructure delivery (includes block scheduling), and shorten time to degree were also included in SRTC s Improvement Plan. SRTC established baseline 2015 benchmarks for the merged college outlined in the College s Progress Report for each metric, which included degree production, graduation rates, retention rates, course completion, success in Gateway (first-year) College Courses, success in remedial education, success in block scheduling, and time to degree. Strategies and interventions to address each goal and performance metrics are discussed. SRTC utilized various data sources to assess the effectiveness of the strategies and interventions in achieving the goals as stated. The Complete College Georgia Committee reviewed the following reports: Complete College Georgia All Metrics Summary report; Knowledge Management System (KMS) reports; Local Program Performance Reports for 2015; and Local Course Withdrawal, Completion, and Success Reports for Southern Regional Technical College 221

222 A summary follows that reports the 2015 Complete College Georgia Goals that SRTC adopted, the corresponding CCG Performance Metrics that supported the specific CCG Goals, and the Actual Results for the year. For reporting purposes and comparisons, baseline benchmarks were established for this reporting document for the merged college, SRTC Complete College Georgia Progress Summary CCG Goal Metric Actual Result/Data Reference A. Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7% annually over the previous year (mandatory goal). CCG Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production SRTC produced 1,086 CCG graduates in 2015 a difference of 233 between actual CCA Grads and Goal. College Goal To produce 1,319 CCG graduates in Breakout of CCG graduates for 2015 by Award Levels. -Certificate (less than 1 academic year) of Economic Value with Industry Certification or Licensure 405 Awards; -Certificate/Diploma at least 1 but less than 2 years 447 Awards; -Certificate/Diploma at Least 2 but less than 4 years 29 Awards; -Associate Degree 205 Awards. CCG Outcome Metric 2: Graduation Rates College Goal To increase the Graduation Rate overall for all award levels by 2% from CCA Report Year 2014 to CCA Report Year 2015: -To increase the Graduation Rate overall by 2% for all award levels for 100% of time from 26.8% in 2014 to 28.8% in 2015; -To increase the Graduation Rate overall by 2% for all award levels for 150% of time from 30.0% in 2014 to 32.0% in 2015; -To increase the Graduation Rate overall by 2% for all award levels for 200% of time from 31.0% in 2014 to 33.0% in CCG Progress Metric 5: Retention Rates College Goal To improve Retention Rates by 2% from 57.7% in CCA Report Year 2014 to 59.7% in CCA Report Year CCG Progress Metric 6: Course Completion College Goal To improve Course Completion Rates by 2% from Currently SRTC s cumulative CCG graduates through 2015 is 138 below goal. SRTC changes in Graduation Rates for the CCA Report Year 2015 follow: -100% increased by 2.2% to 29.0%; -150% increased by 3.3% to 33.3%; -200% increased by 3.5% to 34.5%. Reference: Chart 1 SRTC changes in Retention Rate for the CCA Report Year 2015 decreased by 6.0% to 44.7%. SRTC changes in Course Completion Rate for CCA Report Year 2015 increased overall by 10.9% to 90.3%. Southern Regional Technical College 222

223 CCG Goal Metric Actual Result/Data Reference 79.4% in CCA Report Year 2014 to 81.4%% in CCA Report Year CCA Progress Metric 3: Success in Gateway (firstyear) College Courses College Goal To improve Success in Gateway First Year College Courses by 2% from CCA Report Year 2014 to CCA Report Year 2015: -To increase the Math Only Completion Rate by 2% from 11.2% in 2014 to 13.2% in 2015; -To increase the English Only Completion Rate by 2% from 13.0% in 2014 to 15.0% in 2015; -To increase the Math and English Completion Rate by 2% from 25.0% in 2014 to 27.0% in SRTC changes in Success in Gateway First Year College Courses for the CCA Report Year 2015 follow: -Math Only increased by 1.5% to 12.7%; -English Only decreased by 4.6% to 8.4%; -Math and English increased by 5.2% to 30.2%. B. Transform Remediation C. Restructure Delivery (includes block scheduling) CCA Progress Metric 2a: Success in Remedial Education -Completing Remedial (Learning Support) Courses College Goal To increase the number of students who completed their required Learning Support Courses during their first two academic years by 11 students from 111 in CCA Report Year 2014 to 122 students in CCA Report Year 2015; and increase the completion rate by 10% from 61.7% to 71.7%. CCA Progress Metric 2b: Success in Remedial Education -Completing College Level Courses College Goal To increase the number of students successfully completing remedial education requirements and college-level courses in the same subject as remedial education by 2% from 38.3% in CCA Report Year 2014 to 40.3% in CCA Report Year CCG Progress Metric 5: Retention Rates College Goal To improve Retention Rates within TCSG Block Scheduling Programs by 2% from 52.2% in AY 2014 to 54.2% in AY The number of students successfully completing remedial education decreased by 30 to 81 and the completion rate decreased by 12.9% to 48.8% for CCA Report Year Reference: Table 2 Students completing remedial education successfully complete college-level courses in the same subject decreased by 10.6% to 27.7% for CCA Report Year Reference: Table 3 Program Retention Rates within TCSG Block Scheduling decreased in AY 2015 Overall by 2.2% to 50.0%. SRTC changes within TCSG Block Scheduling Program Groups in AY 2015 follow: -Accounting decreased by 23.7% to 45.5%; -Air Conditioning Technology increased by 28.2% to 66.7%; -Automotive Technology increased by 13.3% to 57.1%. Southern Regional Technical College 223

224 CCG Goal Metric Actual Result/Data Reference D. Shorten Time to Degree -Medical Assisting decreased by 10.0% to 33.3%. -Networking Specialist increased by 9.6% to 66.7%. Program Retention Rates within Non-Block Scheduling increased in AY 2015 Overall by 10.1% to 62.3% compared to AY 2014 rate of 52.2%. Reference: Table 4 CCG Outcome Metric 4: Time and Credit to Degree Time to Degree remained the same in CCA College Goal Report Year 2015 Overall for AY 2013 To improve Time to Degree by shortening the graduates at 2.4 average years. average years Overall to graduation by 0.2 years SRTC results for award levels for Time to from 2.4 average years in CCA Report Year 2014 (AY Degree follow: 2012 graduates) to 2.2% in CCA Report Year Certificate/Diploma (at least one but less (AY 2013 graduates). than 2 years) average years to graduation increased by 0.1 average years to 2.4; -Associate Degree average years to graduation decreased by 0.5 average years to 2.3. Southern Regional Technical College 224

225 Goals/Metrics/Strategies and Interventions/Resources Allocated/Obstacles Encountered The following section of the SRTC 2015 Progress Report reports out separately for Moultrie Technical College and Southwest Georgia Technical College on specific TCSG CCG Goals and Metrics and relevant data sources are identified. Additionally, this section reports the Strategies and Interventions planned and the Progress of the colleges in completing plans including specific resulting data as relevant. Resources allocated, obstacles encountered, steps taken by the merging colleges to address challenges in implementing each strategy and intervention, and next steps for each strategy/intervention is reported. CCG Goal A. Outcome Metric: Progress Metric: Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7% annually over the previous year (mandatory goal) CCG Outcome Metric 1: Degree Production CCG Progress Metric 5: Retention Rates Data Source: KMS Report #DC315, Go Back Move Ahead (GBMA) Enrollment by Initial Education Level: AY 2015; KMS Report #DC290, Military Enrollment: Academic Year 2015 (Term AY 2015): AY 2015 and AY 2014; Local Grade Distribution Reports Strategies/Interventions/Progress Plan Origination: Moultrie Technical College Utilize Degree Works to track student s progression to completion. Progress Staff web reports and Degree Works analysis reports were used to track students on Academic probation to either Good Standing. Degree Works Plan tracked on-time progress for students. Utilize the Signing Days advisement campaign to have students commit to completion. Progress Signs were made to advertise the upcoming day and pledge cards were made for the students to sign pledging to complete the program that they start. Use Early Alert Referral process to aid in improving student retention. Progress The instructors sent the early alert referral form to the student navigator letting referring students experiencing difficulties. The navigator met with the student and devised a plan to help alleviate the problems the students Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: Registrar s office staff and faculty and advisors Obstacles: Accurate and updated Degree Works plans. The need for faculty and staff training. Steps Taken: Updated and maintained accurate Plans in Degree Works. Scheduled ongoing training for faculty and staff. Next Steps: This will be a continued strategy for the College to track student s progression to Degree Completion. Resources: Student Services, Student Navigator, and Marketing Obstacles: Once the students realized that signing the pledge card was really just giving their word to complete, they disregarded the pledge. Steps Taken: The pledge cards gave us access to many different ways to stay in touch with the students. The cards also provided us with current numbers and s address to use to contact the student when they were not following thru on the pledge. College staff realized that the pledge cards were not making a difference in completion. Next Steps: This activity will be discontinued. Resources: Student Navigator, Faculty, Lending Library, Foundation Funds Obstacles: The problems that our students face or that creates obstacles for them to complete school are life issues that cannot be addressed by the College. We have limited resources in the help that we can give them with the challenges they are facing. Southern Regional Technical College 225

226 Strategies/Interventions/Progress were encountering. Plan Origination: Southwest Georgia Technical College Recruitment Recruit students who have withdrawn with some college but no award (certificate, diploma, degree) through Go Back, Move Ahead initiative. Progress KMS Report DC315 shows that there were zero students enrolled in the TCSG Go Back Move Ahead (GBMA) initiative for SWGTC (nor for MTC) for AY Recruit returning military and develop means to track military student population. Progress Provided contact information on those who are receiving veterans education benefits and those who self-reported that they were military, military dependents, or veterans. KMS Report DC290 shows there were Unduplicated Total in All Military Armed Forces for Military Armed Forces Service Members for AY 2015 for MTC 23 and SWGTC 31. AY 2014 MTC 33 and SWGTC 18. Advisement Require all advisors (current and newly employed) to complete staff development on Degree Works. Progress Degree Works training for Advisors was recorded and made available through the Faculty Portal as part of New faculty orientation. Create the ability to develop a completion plan for students using Degree Works and the Program Advisement Guide. Progress Student Plans were created in Degree Works by Program Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Steps Taken: We networked with resources from the community so we could have more resources available to the students. Next Steps: This activity will be continued Resources: Student Navigator Obstacles: Phone numbers were changed, disconnected, or no longer in service for some students. Some letters were returned because of incorrect mailing addresses. Steps Taken: Phone calls and/or s were made to potential students who were referred to the Student Navigator through the Go Back, Move Ahead initiative. Admissions packets were mailed to the students who were interested in attending the College. Additionally, letters were mailed and phone calls were made to students included in the KMS DC 200 Retention Cohort Report for report year 2015 in an effort to get students back into college. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued. Resources: Registrar's time Obstacles: Self-reporting process has only been in place since Fall of 2013 (TCSG Data Policy #CR1501), therefore many veterans who are not receiving education benefits are not known or counted. Steps Taken: As more veterans self-report, tracking them will become more effective. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued. Resources: Registrar's time, Program Specialist s time. Obstacles: None Steps Taken: None needed-no challenges. Next Steps: Train new faculty and provide update sessions for current faculty as needed. Resources: Program Specialist s time. Obstacles: For unknown reasons, Degree Works kept crashing when we tried to implement Student Plans. Steps Taken: It was decided to wait until the Merger was complete as Moultrie had been successful in implementing Southern Regional Technical College 226

227 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Specialist. Investigate the six phases of appreciative advising for potential use in advisor training. Progress Faculty representing the following programs attended the webinar: Criminal Justice and Social Work. Administrators and staff members included: VP SA, Director of Career Services and Placement, VP AA, Dean for General Education and Health Sciences, Student Navigator, and Special Populations-Non-Traditional. Develop & Implement intrusive, on-time advising protocol for Student Navigator use to help students persist in their program of study. Progress All full-time instructors called current students that did not preregister. Instructors created data information sheets to update students information. Implement Intrusive Student Intervention (ISI) in additional courses/programs and measure its impact on student success. Progress All full-time instructors called current students that did not preregister. Instructors created data information sheets to update students information. The following is the ISI Fall 2014 (Term ) completion rate analysis summary with comparison to ISI Summer 2014 ( ). ALHS Web-Enhanced Course, Enrolled 18; Completers 14, Completion Rate 77.8% -7.9% from Summer 85.7% COMP Hybrid Courses, Enrolled 95, Completers 82, Completion Rate 86.3% -1.2% from Summer 87.5% MATH Hybrid and 2 Web-Enhanced Courses, Enrolled 62, Completers 59; Completion Rate 95.2% +6.9% from Summer 88.3% Results of student impact for this strategy was inconclusive since it was beta tested in a limited number of courses. Overall, the strategy improved results for MATH 1111, while results declined for ALHS 1011 and COMP Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Student Plans without the system crashing. Next Steps: Continue the process after the merger. Resources: Webinar registration fee $ Faculty and Staff Obstacles: Some of the faculty members were on annual leave when the webinar was available Steps Taken: Access, to The Six Phases of Appreciative Advising webinar, was purchased in July of 2014; faculty and selected staff were invited to attend the webinar. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued. Resources: Personnel Time Obstacles: A major obstacle was incorrect phone numbers. Steps Taken: Students are encouraged to update their contact information. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued. Resources: Personnel Time Obstacles: A major obstacle was incorrect phone numbers. Steps Taken: Students are encouraged to update their contact information. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued and results assessed to determine the effectiveness of implementation and scaling. Southern Regional Technical College 227

228 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Retention Seek discounted services with partnered life issue providers (day care, transportation, etc.) to provide needed services for active students at discounted price. Progress No discounts were available from the providers that were contacted. Disseminate newly created videos that are specific to programs or program groups for use in recruitment prior to College application. Progress The Marketing Department completed the video clip recordings of each Program Director for use on SWGTC Web-site Program Curriculum web pages and other social media pages. Due to the upcoming merger consolidation of SWGTC and MTC the linking of Program Curriculum videos to College web-site and social media pages were placed on hold. Develop and coordinate retention efforts for new and continuing students Progress The Lending Library served a total of 235 students during AY Six Lunch and Learn Workshops were held during AY 2015 with a total of 113 students attending. A peer mentoring program was implemented and during AY15 the program grew from zero mentors to two (2). There are 4 mentees in the program. Foundation Funds were secured ($2,500) for gas scholarships to be utilized by students in extreme need. A new student orientation was developed and offered to all learning support students, approximately 15 students participated in the orientations that were held. Implement a new institution-wide retention committee, Collaboration of Retention Excellence (CORE), with the primary goal of discovering which factors and/or behaviors are associated with persistence and timely graduation. Progress Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: Student Navigator Retention Coordinator Retention/Special Populations Coordinator Obstacles: Policies and procedures of the individual providers did not allow for discounts to be made. Steps Taken: College personnel met with or made phone calls to local apartment complexes, day care centers and transportation entities to inquire about possible student discounts and partnerships. Next Steps: Discontinue this strategy. Resources: Personnel Time Obstacles: Time and personnel to make videos as well as time for faculty to script and present. Steps Taken: TCSG purchased and made available to all TCSG Colleges Virtual Job Shadow, and online career exploration program that includes videos of actual employees performing jobs that relate to technical education. Job Shadow is included on the College website. Next Steps: Monitor resources to ensure all programs have needed recruiting resources. Resources: Student Navigator, Retention Coordinator Retention/Special Populations Coordinator, CORE Committee Members, Perkins Funds Obstacles: Foundation Funding is not available to provide books for all programs. Some students do not take advantage of the resources provided for them. Steps Taken: Several retention efforts are being used at the College; among these include providing a Lending Library for students, who qualify, to borrow books to utilize for their classes during the semester at no cost to the student. Also, student success lunch-and-learn workshops are held each semester on topics such as study skills, time management, learning styles, and budgeting and financial literacy. A peer mentoring program was developed to link mentors with mentees who are in need of additional academic and personal support. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued. Resources: CORE Committee Members Obstacles: Some scheduling conflicts Steps Taken: The Collaboration of Retention Excellence (CORE) Committee was implemented in July of Meetings were held monthly to examine barriers to student success and implement strategies to increase student Southern Regional Technical College 228

229 Strategies/Interventions/Progress 1. A peer mentoring program was implemented and during AY15 the program grew from zero mentors to two (2). There are 14 mentees in the program. Funds were secured ($2,500) for gas scholarships to be utilized by students in extreme need. 2. A new student orientation was developed and offered to all learning support students, approximately 15 students participated in the orientations that were held. Develop and implement a retention intervention plan Progress A number of retention strategies implemented by the CORE Committee include: Mentoring program Gas Scholarship Fund Intrusive Advising (See Activity 10) Lending Library expansion Student Success Workshop Monitor SWGTC Foundation funding availability that assists students to bridge the gap between financial needs and College costs. Progress The Foundation Executive Director has continued the commitment of additional funding for the GAP Scholarship to assist students with bridging the gap between the financial needs of the student and the College. The Board of Trustees has voted to continue offering this scholarship to assist students in need. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps retention. Next Steps: Continue this strategy. Resources: Student Navigator CORE Committee Members Obstacles: Merger Steps Taken: Southwest Georgia Technical College was in the process of merging with Moultrie Technical College to become Southern Regional Technical College. The CORE Committee wanted to have input from all stakeholders before creating a retention intervention plan. At each CORE meeting, new ideas and strategies were discussed and implemented throughout the year. Next Steps: Continue this strategy. Resources: Additional funds were allocated to the GAP Scholarship and the Foundation continues to award this scholarship based on the policies and procedures voted on by the Foundation Board of Trustees to continue through the 2016 academic year. Obstacles: There will be a need for additional funding to continue offering the GAP scholarship at the current level but at this time there have not been any obstacles in offering this assistance. Steps Taken: Work diligently to continue funding this effort. We have seen a large number of students benefit from this assistance and most importantly have their College financial obligations met and therefore enables them to complete their program of study. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued. Southern Regional Technical College 229

230 CCG Goal B. Progress Metric: Increase the number of graduates by an additional 79,531 or 4.7% annually over the previous year (mandatory goal) CCG Progress Metric 6: Course Completion Data Source: Local data: Killer Course List-Completion and Pass Rates: COLL 1500 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Plan Origination: Moultrie Technical College Enhance and track the impact of COLL 1500 Student Success Course Progress MTC representatives from various departments delivered face-to-face presentations to the on-campus COLL 1500 students and recorded presentations delivered via PowerPoint to the online COLL 1500 students. Students experiencing difficulties (low grades, poor attendance, etc.) in the course were referred to the Student Navigator using the early alert referral form. The overall completion rate percentage, completer pass rate percentage, and enrollee pass rate percentage each increased from fall semester to spring semester (81.76% to 85.10%; 93.85% to 96.50%; and 76.73% to 82.12%). From spring semester to summer semester , there was a slight increase in the completion rate percentage (85.10% to 85.64%). However, there was a decrease in the complete pass rate percentage (96.50% to 90.32%) and in the enrollee pass rate percentage (82.12% to 77.35%). The comparison of AY 2014 (two semesters spring and summer) with AY 2015 (three semesters fall, spring, and summer) shows an increase in the completion rate percentage (81.23% to 83.90%) and in the enrollee pass rate (77.71% to 78.90%) and a decrease in the complete pass rate percentage (95.67% to The COLL 1500 retention rate percentage increased from AY 2014 to AY2015 as follows: 64.91% to 78.32%. The College retention rate increased from AY 2014 to AY2015 as follows: 61.90% to 66%. Plan Origination: Southwest Georgia Technical College Investigate feasibility of offering a college success course for all students. Progress Consulted other TCSG colleges offering the college success course and received positive feedback on the benefits of the course. COLL 1500 offering were expanded to Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: MTC employees serving as Guest Speakers, Faculty, Student Navigator Obstacles: Merger (change in faculty credentialing guidelines) led to the two on-campus adjunct instructors who had helped develop and had taught the COLL 1500 course since it was implemented spring semester being reassigned to other areas and two full-time program instructors (not credentialed appropriately under the new guidelines to teach their respective programs) being assigned the COLL 1500 courses. Additionally, one of the fulltime instructors resigned in the middle of summer semester Steps Taken: As a result of the merger, the COLL 1500 course has been redesigned, and the on-campus sections are assigned to full-time program instructors. Continue this strategy. Next Steps: Expand COLL 1500 for the merged College. Resources: VPAA Time in consultation with other colleges. Obstacles: None Steps Taken: COLL 1500 offerings were expanded as part of the consolidation process. Program Chairs and/or advisors will complete tracking of student success and retention in Southern Regional Technical College (SRTC). Southern Regional Technical College 230

231 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Thomasville, Cairo sites as part of the consolidation process with MTC. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Next Steps: COLL 1500 will be implemented for the merged College and monitored. CCG Goal D. Transform Remediation Progress Metric: CCG Progress Metric 2a: Success in Remedial Education (Completing Learning Support Courses) CCG Progress Metric 2b: Success in Remedial Education (Completing College Courses) Data Source: Local Grade Distribution Reports; KMS Report #DC110 Awards Conferred by Student: AY 2015 and AY 2014 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Plan Origination: Moultrie Technical College Track student performance in learning support courses Progress Since the implementation of module based learning support courses in AY 2013, the number of remedial course completers has improved. Completion rates have risen from 59% (201312) to 73 % (201512) of students in the cohort completing their required Learning Support courses during the first two academic years of enrollment. The number of students in the cohort who completed a College Level course in the same subject as remediation during the first two years from initial enrollment has increased slightly. In the completion rate was 35.7% and in , it had risen to 35.8%. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: In February 2015, Math Instructors Hamilton Scott and Tamara Gray attended the GADE Conference at Georgia Southern University in Statesboro. Registration cost was $120 per person. In July 2015, Dean for Arts and Sciences Kathryn Kent and Math Instructor Tamara Gray attended the Annual Learning Support Meeting at Central Georgia Technical College in Macon. Registration cost was $20 per person. Both meeting were part of communication across the state on what redesign strategies seemed to be effective. Obstacles: The major obstacle encountered was the cost of the textbook and access code needed to complete the learning support modules. Instructors have been satisfied with the materials, however the cost is excessive and the use of access codes prohibits the college Foundation and other sources from being able to defer the costs. Steps Taken: In Spring of 2015, SRTC will attempt to simplify the process and isolate which strategies have been effective. Next Steps: We will focus on 2 specific strategies: Continue the use of the MyMathLabPlus learning modules. Narrow the number of modules to be completed by matching modules with specific objectives. Reinstate the use of separate courses in mathematics for diploma seeking and degree seeking students which was lost during the merger. Southern Regional Technical College 231

232 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Provide separate Math learning support CRNs for diploma and degree seeking students. Progress In AY 2014 MTC began to offer separate Learning Support courses in Math for students who were diploma and those who were degree seeking. We determined this was not needed for English and Reading. Students in the cohort completing the Learning Support class within the first two academic years cannot be assessed since 2 years have not passed since implementation. We did see a rise in Math completion rates from 68.55% (201412) to 79.4% (201612). Plan Origination: Southwest Georgia Technical College Continue implementation of the college-level gateway course/learning support course co-requisite and monitor its impact Progress In AY 2014 SWGTC continued to offer college-level gateway course/learning support course co-requisites to students who had completed all but the three learning support modules. This included 38 students. 39% (15/38) passed the college-level course. 21% (8/38) did not pass the college-level course. 29% (11/38) did not complete the LS module or college-level course. 11% (4/38) completed the LS modules but did not enroll in college-level course. Provide ongoing orientation and training for new faculty members teaching redesigned Learning Support Classes Progress The College did not hire any new Learning Support faculty, fulltime or adjunct, during AY Evaluate success of redesigned learning support courses and modify as needed. Progress While both Learning Support Math and English achieved a completion rate of 66.7% which meets the College benchmark; overall, the total remedial rate was a 64.7% completion rate which was beneath the College goal. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: None Obstacles: In order to communicate this separation, we were able to just send an to all advisors and admissions. However, with the increase in the college s size, we must find a more effective method. The Registrar is working to find a way to code this in banner so that only degree seeking students could be registered for the math degree level learning support. Steps Taken: In Spring of 2015, SRTC will implement this for all Math Learning Support students. Students will be coded based on the program level sought. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Resources: Learning Support Faculty, Math Faculty, My Labs Plus online modules Obstacles: Student enrolled in LS course with an IP and the co-requisite college-level course focused their time and effort on the college-level course and did not attend open LS labs or complete LS modules. Steps Taken: Students earning a C or higher in the collegelevel course were not required to complete the LS modules since they showed mastery of the concepts at the higher level. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Resources: Learning Support Faculty Obstacles: Since the College did not hire any new LS faculty, fulltime or adjunct, there were no obstacles with providing orientation and training. Steps Taken: Current LS faculty continue to make improvements on supplemental delivery of LS material to enhance the self-paced, module format. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Resources: VPAA/Deans/Faculty Time Obstacles: Students needing assistance and open lab time available with tutoring, students failed to attend. Steps Taken: Re-evaluating the modules, gateway courses, and hiring of peer tutors or lab assistants. Exploring incentive of free pin code with textbook for next gateway course if funding can be provided by Foundation. Initiated student success workshop and online orientation each term. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Southern Regional Technical College 232

233 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Track and analyze the Spring 2013 (201314) learning support cohort each semester for two academic years to determine contributing factors to student success or failure. Progress Of the 176 students in the Spring 2013 cohort, 30 (17%) have earned a TCC, diploma, and/or degree during the 8 semesters since the implementation. Of the 176 students in the Spring 2013 cohort, 27 (15%) were still attending classes Summer Overall, 32.48% (57/176) of the cohort have earned an award or were still attending classes as of Summer Research strategies to support underperforming student populations Progress A peer mentoring program was implemented and during AY15 the program grew from zero mentors to two (2). There are 4 mentees in the program. Investigate and implement the new system-wide Early Alert System, TEAMS, to provide early intervention to atrisk students. Progress During AY2015 TEAMS was piloted by two (2) Full-time Learning Support Faculty. Success of this activity cannot be assessed. It was a pilot project and was discontinued when TEAMS became available to all colleges and all instructors. Track the success of students that enroll in remedial classes late (on or after the first day of class). Progress During AY 2015, learning support faculty tracked students who enrolled late in remedial classes and their progress. MATH 0090: 33 enrolled late 39% (13/33) passed; 22% (7/33) failed; 39% (13/33) withdrew. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: Dean Institutional Research Coordinator Obstacles: We continue to lose learning support students, whether they have been successful or unsuccessful with the redesigned, self-paced modules. Steps Taken: Continued research on other methods for the provision of remedial education to increase student success. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Resources: Marketing flyers to promote the peer mentoring program Obstacles: The students who have taken part in the mentoring program have benefitted from it as evidenced by staying in school and improving their grades. The main obstacle is that many students are working and raising children in addition to attending college and do not have extra time to serve as mentors. Steps Taken: Continued working to recruit mentors. Next Steps: We will continue to offer the peer mentoring program. We expect that it will grow as current mentees will hopefully become mentors in the future. Resources: Student Navigator, Retention Coordinator Retention/Special Populations Specialist, Learning Support Faculty, Deans Obstacles: Getting everyone acclimated to learning a new system which was different from the early alert system that the College already had in place. Steps Taken: The TEAMS system was implemented during the spring semester, and continued during the summer semester, Full-time Learning Support faculty utilized the TEAMS system to refer students who were at risk of attrition. Next Steps: Continue this strategy with all instructors. Resources: Learning Support Faculty Obstacles: In addition to enrolling late, many of the students were purged and re-enrolled. This delayed the start time even more. Steps Taken: Learning support faculty assisted students with beginning modules as early in the semester as possible. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Southern Regional Technical College 233

234 Strategies/Interventions/Progress READ 0090: 14 enrolled late 100% (14/14) passed. ENGL 0090: 6 enrolled late 83% (5/6) passed; 17% (1/6) failed. Investigate usefulness of Intrusive Student Intervention for Learning Support. Progress All learning support instructors called current students that were absent from class. Instructors created data information sheets to update students information. All learning support instructors promoted and encouraged open lab availability for student work outside of class time. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: Personnel Time Obstacles: A major obstacle was incorrect phone numbers. Additionally, student participation in open labs remained low. Steps Taken: Students are encouraged to update their contact information. Students who are encouraged to attend open labs to progress through LS modules more timely. Next Steps: This strategy will be continued. CCG Goal E. Restructure Delivery (includes block scheduling) Progress Metric: CCG Progress Metric 5: Retention Rates Data Source: KMS Report #302; Retention Rate Student List Strategies/Interventions/Progress Plan Origination: Moultrie Technical College Track progress of students enrolled in block scheduled programs as specified by TCSG*. Progress All classes required for a day or evening student are offered during that time period. Five selected programs from MTC (Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Automotive Technology, and Medical Assisting) currently has a graduation rate of 41.7% and a retention rate of 50.0% for the Fall Semester 2013 ( ) cohort. The Fall Semester 2014 ( ) cohort currently has a graduation rate of 9.5% and a retention rate of 45.2%. Therefore, these five programs, in spite of block scheduling, currently fall below the College goals of 66% for retention and 72.4% for graduation. Plan Origination: Southwest Georgia Technical College Track progress of students enrolled in block scheduled programs as specified by TCSG*. Progress All classes required for a day or evening student are Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: Faculty Instructional and Planning Time. Obstacles: Continue to lose half of enrollment. Steps Taken: Continue to track initiative. Next Steps: This strategy will be evaluated to determine benefit of block scheduling. Resources: Faculty Instructional and Planning Time. Obstacles: Continue to lose half of enrollment. Steps Taken: Continue to track initiative. Next Steps: This strategy will be evaluated to determine Southern Regional Technical College 234

235 Strategies/Interventions/Progress offered during that time period. Five selected programs from SWGTC (Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Automotive Technology, and Medical Assisting) currently has a graduation rate of 45.3% and a retention rate of 54.7% for the Fall Semester 2013 ( ) cohort. The Fall Semester 2014 ( ) cohort currently has a graduation rate of 15.9% and a retention rate of 54.5%. Therefore, these five programs, in spite of block scheduling, currently fall below the College goals of 66% for retention and 72.4% for graduation. Implement block scheduling and/or cohort curriculum in Surgical Technology and Social Work programs to improve incentive to graduate Progress There are 39 total students enrolled in block schedules for social work and surgical technology for the Fall Semester 2013 ( ) and Fall Semester 2014 ( ) cohorts. Of the 39, 24 are currently retained yielding a retention rate of 61.5% and 13 of these students have graduated yielding a current graduation rate of 33.3%. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps benefit of block scheduling. Resources: Faculty planning block schedules/ advisement guides for students. Obstacles: Loss of program chair and postponement of starting surgical technology. Steps Taken: Employed new program chair for surgical technology and admitted new cohort. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. *Note: Required to report out on five programs the system agreed would be implemented in block schedule format. TCSG s definition of block scheduling is scheduling of all classes (program and general education) required for completion and graduation within a similar time frame with the days of the week. This enables students, as an example, who can only attend during the morning hours to enroll in all necessary classes for their particular program of study without having to enroll in classes during the afternoon of evening. TCSG requires block scheduling, tracking, and reporting on the following programs: Accounting (Diploma and Degree), Air Conditioning Technology (Diploma), Networking Specialist (Diploma and Degree), Medical Assisting (Diploma), and Automotive Technology (Diploma). SWGTC added Social Work and Surgical Technology in 2015 Plan. CCG Goal F. Shorten Time to Degree Outcome Metric: CCG Outcome Metric 4: Time and Credits to Degree Data Source: KMS Report #DC139-O, Students Enrolled in Online Courses by Home Campus: AY2015, AY2014, and AY 2013; Local Grade Distribution Reports Strategies/Interventions/Progress Plan Origination: Southwest Georgia Technical College Evaluate courses and programs to determine those that could be delivered online. Provide faculty training and support to increase course offerings in the online environment. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Resources: Personnel Time, Faculty Instructional Time, Hire Adjunct Instructors Obstacles: No obstacles encountered. Steps Taken: NA Southern Regional Technical College 235

236 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Progress Worked with Accounting, Business Admin Technology, and Business Management, Medical Assisting, Clinical Laboratory Technology, and Health Information Management Technology to develop more classes online. The following 15 additional Online course offerings were offered in AY 2015: ACCT1100, ACCT 1105, ACCT 1125; CIST2411; CIST2414; CLBT1050; CLBT1070; CRJU1052; ECCE2115; ECCE2116; HIMT1200; HIMT2500; MAST1120; MGMT2215; PARA1115 serving a total of 141 students. Form an ad-hoc committee to help identify and implement strategies to improve student success in online classes. Progress The Ad-hoc Committee to improve student success in online classes was not formed due to the ongoing consolidation activities of SWGTC and MTC. Plan Origination: Moultrie Technical College Expand half-term/mini-mester course offerings and monitor student performance during the pilot period. Progress The overall completer pass rate is 95% and the overall pass rate is 88% for this strategy; therefore, the offering half-term/mini-mester course offerings will continue. The half-term/ mini-mester courses offered online will also continue to be offered and promoted through program advisors. Use Degree Works plans to develop annual course schedules. Progress Due to the announcement of the merger of our college, we were unable to continue in the development of annual course schedules. Development of annual course schedules will be a major goal for the merged college. Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps Next Steps: The strategy of offering more classes online will be continued. Resources: None Obstacles: Work and resources being committed to our on-going consolidation with MTC have prevented any work towards this plan. Steps Taken: No progress. Next Steps: Undertake this strategy during AY 2016 now that the consolidation is complete. Resources: Instructors and courses were allocated for the halfterm/mini-mester course offerings. Obstacles: The amount of student work required to be completed in the shorter length of time appeared to be an obstacle in achieving strong enrollment in the half-term/minimester course offered online. Steps Taken: Advisors can continue to let students know of the available half-term/mini-mester course offerings. However, If students are not willing to enroll due to the increased workload, there are no other steps the College can take to promote this strategy. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Resources: Degree Works training provided by Student Services staff at no cost other than investment of time. Obstacles: Due to having multiple campuses and mode of instructional delivery, plans have to be created for programs, campuses and mode of delivery. This was highly time consuming. Steps Taken: SRTC intends to continue and expand the use of Degree Works. Following the merger on July 1, 2015, we began the update/create Degree Works plan for all programs. (cont d) Southern Regional Technical College 236

237 Strategies/Interventions/Progress Resources Allocated Obstacles Encountered Steps taken by College to Address Challenges Next Steps All advisers will use the Degree Works audits to process program graduates. Future plans include the expansion of Degree Works to allow Academic Affairs to project the number of seats needed for each course based on plans created. This should be in place by June This application would allow Academic Affairs to plan schedules on an annual basis based on these projections. Next Steps: Actions taken will be monitored. Student Success Implementation Team Name Dr. Craig Wentworth Dr. Debbie Goodman Dr. Annie McElroy Leigh Wallace Joyce Halstead Tina Strickland Carla Barrow Abby Carter Kathryn Kent Dr. Jeanine Long Peggy Wilson Deborah Gray Wendi Tostenson Darbie Avera Gloria Lowe Chileshe Wilson Don Kurtz Title President VP for Institutional Effectiveness (POC) VP for Academic Affairs VP for Student Affairs VP for High School Initiatives and Enrollment Management Assistant VP and Dean for Academic Affairs Dean for Academic Affairs Dean for Academic Affairs Dean for Academic Affairs Director of Career Services and Counseling Director of Distance Education Director of Knowledge Management Registrar Student Navigator - Moultrie Student Navigator - Thomasville Research Analyst Institutional Research Coordinator Data Analysis and Dissemination Student data is disseminated to campus stakeholders at all levels through the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, Registrar s Office, and Staff Web Reports. Specifically, student cohort, enrollment, course completion, retention, graduation, and placement rate data is analyzed for various trends and provided to faculty, staff, and administrators at all levels of the organization as needed. Southern Regional Technical College 237

238 Conclusion Degree Production. The CCG Goal for the College for 2015 degree production goal was to increase degree production by 362 awards for a total of 1,319 awards. The AY 2015 degree production was 1,086. While this is 233 below the annual goal, the cumulative 2020 goal through 2015 is only deficit by 138 awards. Degree production has been impacted by various factors such as a decrease in enrollment (See Table 1). However, gains are being made towards attaining this goal. The College has identified strategies to continue from prior year plans and a short list of the new strategies and will focus on these during the next academic year. Graduation Rate. The College Goal was to increase graduation rate by 2%. The Complete College Georgia cohort data for CCA Report Year 2015 reflects an increase of 2.2% to 29.0% overall for 100% graduation rate; an increase of 3.3% to 33.3% overall for 150% graduation rate; and an increase of 3.5% to 34.5% overall for 200% graduation rate. (See Chart 1) The SRTC Graduation Rate for 2015 on the TCSG Scorecard reflects an increase of 2.4% from 70% in 2014 to 72.4% in The College has identified strategies to continue from prior year plans and a short list of the new strategies and will focus on these during the next academic year. Success in Remedial Education. The College Goal was to increase success in remedial education by 11 students and increase the completion rate by 10%. The College results reflect that 111 learning support students completed remedial courses in CCA Report Year 2014 with an overall completion rate of 61.7%. In CCA Report Year 2015, 81 learning support students completed remedial courses with an overall completion rate of 48.8%, a decline of 12.9%. With the redesign of remedial education in AY 2013, the College has experienced an increase in the completers and the resulting completion rate to 89 completers and an overall completion rate of 60.5%, which is an increase over prior year of 11.7%. Improvements were noted for Math Only, English Only, and Both Math and English categories. The College has identified strategies to continue from prior year plans and a short list of the new strategies and will focus on these during the next academic year. (See Tables 2 and 3) Success in Restructuring Delivery-Block Scheduling. The College Goal was to improve by 2% the retention rates within TCSG Block Scheduling Programs to include: Accounting, Air Conditioning Technology, Automotive Technology, Medical Assisting, and Network Specialist. The College results reflect a decrease overall of 2.2% to 50% in AY 2015 from 52.2% in AY Three program groups reflected increases in retention rates in 2015 including: Air Conditioning Technology (28.2% to 66.7%), Automotive Technology (13.3% to 57.1%), and Network Specialist (9.6% to 66.7%). Decreases in 2015 retention rates were reflected in Accounting (23.7% to 45.5%) and Medical Assisting (10.0% to 33.3%). Program retention rates within Non-Block Scheduling Programs increased in AY 2015 Overall by 10.1% to 62.3% compared to AY 2014 rate of 52.2%. The College has identified strategies to continue from prior year plans and a short list of the new strategies and will focus on these during the next academic year. (See Table 4) Most Effective and Least Effective Strategies The 2015 Progress Report includes activities planned, executed, and evaluated by staff and faculty on behalf of Moultrie Technical College and Southwest Georgia Technical College. Several activities planned were not implemented for a long enough duration or with a large enough sample size to have definitive results to determine if the activities should be discontinued, continued, or scaled. Some activities were included in both College s plans. Most Effective Strategies. Utilize Degree Works to track student progression to completion. This strategy provides a good tool to help students stay on track and graduate on time. Implement TEAMS. Although this strategy has only been in place for a short time and is just now being scaled to multiple SRTC sites, it provides a good mechanism to provide early alert services. Southern Regional Technical College 238

239 Implement Intrusive Student Intervention. This strategy was beta tested with mixed results, but it has been determined to continue implementing in additional courses and assessing results to determine whether or not to scale the strategy college-wide. Establishment of the retention committee, CORE (Collaboration of Retention Excellence) has resulted in the identification of root causes for students not persisting and in the establishment and implementation of new retention strategies. Implement COLL 1500 (college success course) at sites where degree, diploma, and stand-alone technical certificate of credit programs are offered. Implement college-level gateway course/learning support course co-requisite option for students who had completed all but three learning support modules. The Least Effective Strategies. Utilize the Signing Days advisement campaign to have students commit to completion, resulted in students signing pledge cards, but students disregarded the pledges; thus the pledge cards did not make a difference in completion. Seek discounted services with partnered life issue providers (day care, transportation, etc.) to provide needed services for active students at discounted prices did not result in any discounts being provided. Adjustments Made to Increase Student Completion The College provided staff development for faculty to enhance their skills in utilizing Degree Works so that advisees have a clear path to graduation. Additionally, TEAMS was expanded college-wide after piloting with full-time learning support faculty. The CORE Committee secured Foundation funds to assist students with transportation costs thus enabling students to remain in school. Additionally, the CORE Committee facilitated the expansion of student volunteers participating in the Peer Mentoring Program, resulting in more mentees receiving academic support/help. As the colleges merged, the curriculum for the COLL 1500 (college success course) was strengthened and scaled, providing new tools toassist students in acquiring skills necessary to achieve academic success. Next Steps Summary of Activities Expand the Student Success Course (COLL 1500) at the merged College for all new degree, diploma, and standalone certificate students. Utilize Degree Works to: Track students progress towards completion; Develop Degree Works student plans for SRTC programs that were unique to Southwest Georgia Technical College. Expand the use of TEAMS as an Early Alert system. Continue the block scheduling initiative in the TCSG identified programs as well as Surgical Technology and Social work. Continue tracking the progression of students enrolled in programs identified for block scheduling and evaluate the effectiveness of block scheduling. Evaluate success of redesigned learning support courses and modify as needed. Increase the opportunities available to students to earn college credit through the Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) process. Expand the retention committee, Collaboration of Retention Excellence (CORE), for Resources Faculty to teach course sections. Time and staff development on Degree Works for faculty and staff. Time and staff development on TEAMS. Time and faculty to teach courses/programs. Time and personnel. Time and personnel. Time and staff development for faculty and staff. Time and personnel. Southern Regional Technical College 239

240 Summary of Activities the merged College, with the primary goal of discovering which factors and/or behaviors are associated with persistence and timely graduation. Increase the number of Move on when Ready (MOWR) High School students transitioning to SRTC post-secondary programs. Resources Time to develop and implement a strategy for transitioning and implement. Southern Regional Technical College 240

241 Table 1 Southern Regional Technical College Enrollment Demographics Summary AY AY 2014 Student Demographics Source: TCSG Data, Planning, & Research Report #DC241; CCG All Metrics Summary College (2016 & 2017); 9/15/2015 Chart 1 AY 2013 Full-Time Students AY 2013 Part-Time Students AY 2013 Total Students AY 2014 Full-Time Students AY 2014 Part-Time Students AY 2014 Total Students % Change Full-Time Students % Change Part-Time Students % Change Total Students Total Students 1,764 2,455 4,219 1,656 2,230 3, % -9.2% -7.9% Race: Hispanic % 18.6% 20.0% Race: Black, non-hispanic , , % -11.2% -11.0% Race: White, non-hispanic 1,044 1,454 2, ,320 2, % -9.2% -7.5% Race: Asian % 8.3% -6.3% Race: Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander N/A -66.7% -66.7% Race: American Indian/Alaska Native % -46.7% -39.1% Race: Two or More Races % 50.0% 15.8% Race: Unknown % 0.0% 18.5% Race: Non-resident Alien N/A N/A N/A Gender: Male , , % -3.5% -7.1% Gender: Female 1,111 1,705 2,816 1,077 1,506 2, % -11.7% -8.3% Age: Directly from High School (17-19 years old) % -2.4% -1.0% Age: Age 25 and over 894 1,326 2, ,164 1, % -12.2% -12.3% Age: Other (20-24 years old) , , % -7.2% -4.2% Age: Unknown N/A N/A N/A Income: Received Pell Grant (at entry) 1,482 1,688 3,170 1,411 1,512 2, % -10.4% -7.8% Remedial: Took Remedial Courses (at entry) % -6.6% 1.3% Source: TCSG Data, Planning, & Research Report #DC242; CCG Graduation Rate by Home Campus Outcome Metric 2; 9/17/2015 Southern Regional Technical College 241