Marketing for Enrollment as Performance Based Funding Accelerates Amanda Fenwick Director of Marketing and Public Relations San Jacinto College Jim Hartnett President Academic Marketing Services Monday, June 8, 2015
Our aims today Summarize PBF in Texas and elsewhere What does the research say about the effectiveness of PBF? What steps can colleges take to improve their PBF ratings? Where does marketing fit in all of this can marketers make a difference? 2
Amanda Fenwick Director of Marketing and Public Relations at San Jacinto College in Pasadena, TX (2007- present) Also serves since 2012 as Councilwoman - City of Clear Lake Shores, Texas M. Ed., Sports Administration, University of Houston B.S., Kinesiology, Indiana University Bloomington About the presenters Jim Hartnett President of Academic Marketing Services in Plymouth, MI Publishers of CareerFocus magazine and marketing product suite M.B.A., B.S.E. ChemEngr, B.A. English, University of Michigan Ann Arbor 3
What is PBF & what does it intend to remedy? As the name implies, the stated goal of PBF is to improve outcomes by tying funding to performance. Why? If Texas does not improve its postsecondary degree and certificate completion rate, the state will be unable to meet future labor market demands. While 56 percent of all jobs in Texas will require postsecondary education by 2018, the state is on track to produce far fewer degree holders. By 2025, only 38 percent of Texans are projected to hold a two-year degree or higher, leaving the state with a significant skills gap. [Demos, Georgetown University, Lumina] 4
What is PBF & what does it intend to remedy? We can and should discuss how accurately these measures reflect successes and failures but it is undeniable that improvement is possible and that such a change would have far-reaching impacts on students lives, their families, their communities and our society as a whole. 5 www.completecollege.org/docs/texas.pdf
What is PBF & what does it intend to remedy? Rising college costs and nearly stagnant median earnings have triggered a steep rise in student borrowing and greater debt loads over the past decade. Over half (55 percent) of students graduating from public four-year colleges in Texas in 2010 left with debt, which averaged $19,376. In 2001, 43 percent of public four-year Texas graduates left with student loans, which averaged $14,230. Since 1990, tuition and fees at public four-year institutions in Texas have increased by 286 percent, while costs at Texas public two-year institutions have increased by 89 percent. [Demos, Project on Student Debt, US Dept of Ed] 6
Across the nation Source: National Conf of State Legislatures - http://www.ncsl.org/research/education/ performance-funding.aspx 7
States with large commitments to PBF TN: Adults (over 25) and low-income students completing any of the metrics are more heavily weighted. Additional weights are applied to each outcome depending on the priority and institutional mission. Points are awarded based on outcomes metrics, which are then multiplied by the SREB average salary to monetize the formula. Fixed costs and the Quality Assurance program funds (accreditation, student satisfaction, and licensure exam pass rate) are added on. TN: After a base amount is set aside for operational support, 100% of state funding is allocated based on institutional outcomes. TN:Community College Metrics Student accumulating: 12, 24, and 36 hours Dual enrolled students Associated degrees Graduates placed in jobs Remedial and development success Transfers out with 12 credit hours Workforce training (contact hours) Award per 100 FTEs Source: NCSL (same as previous slide) 8
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Texas Community College Appropriations FY14&FY15 in $million Core Operations, $50, 3% Student Success Points, $172, 10% Total: $1762m ($1.76b) Source: TACC Contact Hour Funding, $1540, 87% At 10% of appropriations, the impact is modest at this point. But there are plans for 25% PBF. TN is 100% 11
How are funds awarded by PBF in Texas? Total possible/student: 10.25 Student completes developmental math: 1 point Complete developmental reading: 0.5 points Complete developmental writing 0.5 points Pass ( C or better) 1 st college level math: 1 point Pass 1 st college level reading: 0.5 point Pass 1 st college level writing: 0.5 point Complete 15semester credit hours: 1 point Complete 30 semester credit hours: 1 point Degree or certificate awarded: 2 points (2.25 if critical field)* Transfer to university after 15 SCH: 2 points $185 allocated per point. Based on 3yr average. Example: Lone Star College System: 78,843 points x $185 = $14.59m for next two years 12 *Critical fields are engineering, computer science, mathematics, physical science, allied health, nursing, and teaching certification in the field of science or mathematics
Image courtesy of TACC -http://www.tacc.org/pages/data-and-info/student-success-points 13
Changing the rules? Recent legislative action in Texas: $185 to $165 per success point for FY 15-16 (which begins on 1 Sep 2015) According to the Texas Association of Community Colleges, per-student funding dropped from $2,134 in the 2010-11 budget to $1,669 in 2012-13. Under the Senate s current budget, funding would go up to $1,795 per student far below the 2010-11 levels. [http://goo.gl/dwjq0z] 14
Changing the rules a bit of déjà vu (all over again) 15
PBF - Does it work? Although one should be cautious about drawing overly strong conclusions from this display alone, particularly given the lack of controls for confounding variables, connections between student outcomes there does not seem to be a very strong pattern in terms of performance-funding states having markedly closer (at least in terms of graduation rates) and appropriations. Furthermore, in many cases where states had a policy for some of the years but not all of them, there appears to be almost no difference in the strength of the relationship between performance and institutional funding. [Thomas Rabovsky, Accountability in Higher Education, 2011, emphasis added for this presentation] 16
Does it work? Finally, the interaction terms for graduation rates, retention, and degree production and performance funding are all either insignificant or significant and negative, which suggests that, contrary to what proponents argue, states with performance funding actually have a somewhat weaker link between student outcomes and institutional funding. [Thomas Rabovsky, Accountability in Higher Education, 2011, emphasis added for this presentation] The author argues that in many cases PBF systems encounter political biases, for example, when legislators give a break to their alma maters, then adds: Regardless of the reasons for their ineffectiveness, it appears that performance-funding policies have not been successful in transforming state budgets when it comes to higher education. Our interpretation: at a minimum, the jury is out on how well this works. Nonetheless, it shapes the world we marketers live in. And. 17
Does it work? Nevertheless, given that current performance-funding efforts have largely been ineffective at reshaping state budgets, the fact that these policies have had even minimal impacts on institutional spending is a notable and somewhat surprising finding. These results leave open the potential for these policies to have considerable effects on administrative behavior if policymakers could more effectively tie larger incentives to institutional performance [Thomas Rabovsky, Accountability in Higher Education, 2011, emphasis added for this presentation] 18
Risks of PBF In our study, we were interested to understand the extent to which Texas new PBF model could potentially lead some community colleges to begin limiting the admission of disadvantaged students to boost the college s graduation rate, a strategy that has been referred to as creaming (Dougherty & Reddy, 2011; Shulock, 2011). [McKinney and Hagedorn, Performance-Based Funding for Community Colleges in Texas: Are Colleges Disadvantaged by Serving the Most Disadvantaged Students? ] McKinney and Hagedorn looked at Six years of student data from one of the largest community college districts in Texas. 5,800+ students from the pre-pbf period How many points was each worth during that period & how much do demographic variables influence the answer? 19
Risks of PBF We were struck by the fact that only 2.3% of the sample earned a credential in a critical field and only 15.6% earned any type of credential. Of high concern to the authors [McKinney and Hagedorn, Performance-Based Funding for Community Colleges in Texas: Are Colleges Disadvantaged by Serving the Most Disadvantaged Students? ] When applying the funding metrics from Texas new PBF model to a large cohort of community college students, our findings revealed stark differences in success point attainment, and PBF procurement, as a function of the type of students being served by the college. The most valuable students for UCC to recruit and serve, strictly in terms of the PBF they garnered for the institution during their entire time of enrollment, were Asian, 19 or younger, have completed a high school diploma, attend fulltime, receive Pell Grants, and were assigned to developmental coursework just below college-level. Conversely, African American, older adults, GED holders, parttime students, and students assigned to the lowest levels of remedial coursework procured significantly less PBF for the college; these groups were also overrepresented among the 28% of students in our sample that procured no PBF for the institution 20
The idea Start with why Marketing can play a key role in helping the institution obtain additional funding in PBF situations Does so both by attracting motivated students who have a clear idea of the reasons for attending the college as well by providing some of the motivation and the key information in the first place We maintain that students with a clear idea as to why they are coming to the school will be more likely perform well, to persevere through difficult circumstances, and to complete programs. 21
Evidence for Starting with Why Students are twice as likely to graduate if they complete at least three courses in their chosen programs of study in their first year on campus. Source: Complete College America For this reason, CCA recommends: Get students to commit to programs of study ASAP. Using placement scores,high school transcripts, and predictive tools to determine student aptitude, guide all students to choose among a limited number of first-year pathways for example, health, business, liberal arts, or STEM as soon as possible. Students should make the big choices of programs of study informed with an understanding of program requirements and available supports to achieve their career goals. Once they do, place them into structured program pathways constructed of relevant, sequenced courses chosen for them. Source to follow in presentation. 22
Marketing A Perspective https://goo.gl/j6hwe5 from Citrus College (CA) Message: don t exclude occupations from your consideration just because they do not require a 4-yr degree See especially beginning at 4-minute mark in video 23
Marketing A Perspective https://goo.gl/j6hwe5 from Citrus College (CA) So, before enrolling in classes or deciding what you re going to do next in your life, step one is self-exploration. In addition to your interests, really analyze your talents and strengths. Step two is career-exploration; understand the jobs available, the income ranges they pay, and evaluate the skills they require. Identifying an area that appeals to your interests, skills, and the labor market may be your first career. And then you can develop a tentative career plan complete with multiple training and education options. The key is to align your interests and abilities with your first career choice and the education & training you ll need to receive. This alignment will help bring your future into focus, and ensure your position at the top of the pay scale in your chosen career. 24
Marketing A Perspective Subhead: Next generation industrial careers need high-tech skills http://tcc.mycareerfocus.org/2 015/05/11/not-yourgrandfathers-factory/ or http://goo.gl/sjtjq2 25
Marketing Programs: the end in sight 26
More Evidence for Starting with Why Specifically, we tested the following research questions: 1. What are the direct relationships between student motivation, conceptualized in terms of basic needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, and the student academic outcomes of GPA and intent to persist? 2. Are these relationships moderated by variables such as student SES, gender, or race/ethnicity, or by the type of educational institution the student is attending? [Do Reasons for Attending College Affect Academic Outcomes? A Test of a Motivational Model From a Self-Determination Theory Perspective by Guiffrida, Lynch, Wall, Abel 2013 who looked at records of 2,520 students at 2- and 4-yr colleges] 27
Still More Evidence for Starting with Why The results of this study suggest that important relationships exist between college student motivational orientation and academic success. Consistent with the tenets of SDT, results of the structural equation modeling indicated that students who attended college motivated by intrinsic needs for autonomy and competence were more likely to have higher GPAs and greater intentions to persist than students who were not motivated to attend college to fulfill these intrinsic needs. In this respect, SDT contributes to our understanding of college student academic achievement and persistence and, as noted by Guiffrida (2006), provides potential for advancing Tinto s (1993) theory. The results, however, also indicate that SES moderated the relationships between autonomy and competence and the outcome variables. Autonomy was more important to the success of higher SES students than to that of lower SES students. This was somewhat surprising given that research has demonstrated that autonomy is a necessary component to intrinsic motivation (see Reeve et al., 2004). While all students appear to benefit from studying subjects that are intrinsically interesting to them, higher SES students may have the luxury of benefiting from this intrinsic form of motivation more than lower SES students, whose motivations may also be influenced by financial needs. [Guiffrida, Lynch, Wall, Abel 2013 emphasis added for this presentation] 28
Even More Evidence for Starting with Why Thanks for your interest in our study. To answer your question, yes, students who know for sure what they want to do when they finish college often are more intrinsically motivated toward their education, which is positively associated with academic achievement and persistence. The problem though is that many students, particularly younger, traditional-aged students, are often confused about their career aspirations. Many of our students at the University of Rochester, for example, begin college thinking they want to be medical doctors; but, it's not until their first advanced biology class that they realize the field, and the training to enter the field, is different than what they thought. The more career education and counseling students receive, the more likely they are to pick fields of study that match their intrinsic interests. But career goals are just one part of intrinsic motivation, as we point out in the article. [Guiffrida, email to the presenters, 2015. Again, the emphasis was added for this presentation] 29
How is San Jacinto College responding? Innovation. Men of Honor Women of Integrity Acceleration in Mathematics Service Learning Credit for Prior Learning Intentional Connections Veteran Student Initiatives 30 Read about each at http://www.sanjac.edu/san-jac-innovations
Acceleration in Mathematics (AIM) Students complete developmental education courses and college algebra in one semester, expediting their time to degree completion. Co-taught by a developmental education instructor and a college algebra instructor. Both faculty members in the classroom at all times Meets four days each week, for 1.5 hours per day, supported by one hour of collaborative learning time on Friday. Feedback through testing and graded homework, required additional tutoring, and a supportive learning community Promoted via counselors / advisors, faculty, some social media, college website, various publications, public relations efforts 31
Acceleration in Mathematics (AIM) Math professors, Matt Lewis and Kristen Foxley, serve as [San Jac student Kevin] Rhinehart's professors. Each day, they return his graded homework to him and work out the problems to ensure no questions go unanswered. While one teaches a concept, the other circles the room to help students with questions as they go along with the instruction. The support component of AIM is what makes this specific initiative so successful that in recent semesters, student success rate has reached near 90 percent, allowing students to move into college-level math. We do live in a math phobic society, where other cultures do not have this fear of math, said [manager of community college services Amy] Getz. People think there are math people and non-math people, but there is no data to support this. If people start to believe that they can get better, then they will be able to learn the material. Source: http://www.sanjac.edu/article/offering-multiple-solutions-solvemath-problem-community-college or http://goo.gl/pq9lcl 32
Acceleration in Mathematics (AIM) Corresponds to points made by Complete College America Recommendation: End traditional remediation; use corequisite models instead. For students with few academic deficiencies, place them into redesigned first-year, full-credit courses For students needing more help, lengthen redesigned full-credit courses and consider providing built-in, co-requisite support for two semesters instead of one. For students with the most significant academic needs, provide alternate pathways to high-quality career certificates by embedding remediation and adult basic skills development into their instruction. Cites TSU-San Marcos for concurrent remedial and collegelevel algebra and statistics. Boasts 74% pass (C or better) rate during students first semester. Source: https://goo.gl/ues5su 33
Credit for Prior Learning at SJC Credit for prior learning allows students, who have mastered academic or technical competencies, to demonstrate their knowledge for credit in a multitude of content areas. This arrangement offers students an opportunity to lower costs, save time, and prevent repetition of mastered competencies Promoted via College catalog, advisors / counselors, college website, public relations efforts 34
Intentional Connections at SJC In the program, trained faculty members serve as Intentional Connections mentors (case managers), who work closely with identified developmental education students, learning what career fields they may be interested in, and evaluating their educational strengths and weaknesses. After an assessment process, mentors help students to get connected with key administrators and faculty members. Students then test drive different programs prior to enrolling in a full semester course to find out if that area of study is a good fit Promoted via counselors / advisors, faculty, college website, various publications, public relations efforts 35
National Press Attention for San Jac 36
Total SJC Associate Degrees and Certificates Awarded Total Associates Degrees Total Certificates Total Degrees and Certificates 4738 5076 5222 4176 3712 2682 2805 2849 1742 1836 1852 2256 1456 2489 1687 2786 1952 2903 3042 2173 2180 940 969 997 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14 37
Worth nearly a million bucks each year 5,222 certificates & degrees (Now) vs. 2,682 certificates & degrees (Then) means a gain of 2,540 graduates/year 2,540 * 2 points each * $185 per point = $939,800 38
Thank You & Further Reading Innovations at San Jacinto College - http://www.sanjac.edu/san-jac-innovations Texas Investment in Higher Education Lags Behind Student Needs and Workforce Demands (Demos): http://goo.gl/r11e3w Accountability in Higher Education: Exploring Impacts on State Budgets and Institutional Spending (Rabovsky): https://goo.gl/fnfrfh Texas 2011 CCA Data www.completecollege.org/docs/texas.pdf Tennessee 2011 CCA Data www.completecollege.org/docs/tennessee.pdf Time is the enemy CCA - www.completecollege.org/docs/time_is_the_enemy_summary.pdf Remediation: Higher Education s Bridge to Nowhere by CCA - https://goo.gl/qaqbta National Conference of State Legislatures on PBF - http://www.ncsl.org/research/education/performancefunding.aspx 39
Thank You & Further Reading 2010 Outcomes Based Funding Formula Model Presentation - http://goo.gl/isgbq9 Texas success points explained by TACC - http://www.tacc.org/pages/data-and-info/student-success-points McKinney and Hagedorn, Performance-Based Funding for Community Colleges in Texas: Are Colleges Disadvantaged by Serving the Most Disadvantaged Students? ] - http://goo.gl/5cgxc8 Success in the new economy (video) from Citrus College - https://goo.gl/j6hwe5 Not your grandfather s factory: Next generation industrial careers need high-tech skills (Sheehan) - http://goo.gl/sjtjq2 Do Reasons for Attending College Affect Academic Outcomes? A Test of a Motivational Model From a Self- Determination Theory Perspective by Guiffrida et al - https://goo.gl/i1ymk8 As Demand for Welders Resurges, Community Colleges Offer Classes (Cohen, New York Times) - http://goo.gl/bxvbji 40
Continuing our conversation Amanda Fenwick, Director of Marketing and Public Relations at San Jacinto College, Amanda.Fenwick@sjcd.edu, (281) 998-6160 Jim Hartnett, President, Academic Marketing Services, jhartnett@academicmarketing.org, (248) 763-5034 41