Updates from the SOURCE on Community College  
Issues, Trends & Strategies     

 

Published by
The Roueche Graduate Center, National American University  
in partnership with Lorenzo Associates, Inc.
 VOLUME 5, ISSUE 9 - May 3, 2015
 
     "I know a lot of people think I'm dumb.
Well, at least I ain't no educated fool." - Leon Spinks   
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Miscellaneous

Reports & Articles 

 

04/27/2015: The Coaching Transformation, by Christine Seifert and Richard Chapman, Inside Higher Ed - Coaching is a personalized and continuous process that facilitates student learning and development to improve performance in solving discipline-related problems. Faculty coaches question the learner until the learner acquires facts and builds ideas for creative problem solving.

04/24/2015: Politicians Turn Florida Into For-Profit College Paradise, by Michael Vasquez, Miami Herald - In their zeal to fill classrooms, some schools do whatever it takes. That can mean deploying strippers as recruiters - according to a federal government complaint against Miami-based FastTrain - lying about job placement rates and using high-pressure, boiler-room sales tactics, including a psychological technique called the "pain funnel," that can reduce a recruit to tears.

04/22/2015: Community Colleges Becoming Harder to Lead, by Tara Garc�a Mathewson, EducationDive - Community college presidents have retired en masse since 2011, according to the article, and their replacements are not staying long enough to affect ambitious change.

04/21/2015: Maybe Kids Aren't Over College After All, by Lydia DePillis, Concord Monitor - According to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics last week, the percentage of high school graduates who went right into college ticked up to 68.4 percent of 2.9 million kids total in 2014, from 65.9 percent the year before. The number had already been rising for young men and bounced back strongly for young women, boosting the overall average.

04/21/2015: When a Two-Year College Degree Pays Off, by Liz Weston, Money Magazine -  An associate's degree has long been considered an inferior alternative to a bachelor's degree. Now that more states are tracking their graduates' incomes, however, it is becoming apparent that some two-year degrees offer much higher earnings than the typical four-year degree - at a fraction of the cost. Making more students and parents aware of these better-paying options could help ease the college affordability crisis, which has so far led to more than $1 trillion in student loan debt.

04/20/2015: AACC, Part Two: Innovating While Broke, by Matt Reed, Inside Higher Ed - The unintentional theme for Monday at the AACC was "what we can do with no money." The day ended with an optimistic and practical panel on OER. We're on the right track at Holyoke with the OER working group, and that on any campus, the library will have to play a key role in any large-scale OER rollout. Open resources are what libraries have always been about; OER fits the culture.

 

04/20/2015: AACC, Part 1, by Matt Reed, Inside Higher Ed - Keynote speaker, Malcolm Gladwell argued that as a society, America has a far lower capitalization rate than it could, largely because too many people believe, falsely, that talent is naturally scarce. Instead, he suggested, talent is naturally abundant, but we're terrible at cultivating it and allowing it to flourish. Rather than allocating resources where they might allow the most new talent to flourish, we tend to use it to reward talent that is already manifest. He flattered the audience, noting that community colleges are built to improve a society's capitalization rate, but only if they're decently funded.   

  

04/20/2015: Advice From 2 Streetwise College Presidents, by E. Gordon Gee and Ann Weaver Hart, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Commentary - The single most important lesson that we can pass on to new university presidents is the indisputable importance of building and fostering relationships. Above all, never underestimate the importance of building a relationship with your student body. Consider yourself a student of your students. They not only keep you in business, but also keep you in touch with the present. It will require you to recalibrate how you communicate.

04/16/2015: Ask the Experts: 7 Ways to Improve K-12 Public Education, by Erin Skarda, NationSwell - Yes, public education in America is more expensive and less effective than in other countries (according to 2012 PISA results). So how can we turn it around? A panel of educators weighs in.

 

04/2015: Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002): A First Look at the Postsecondary Transcripts of 2002 High School Sophomores, by Erich Lauff and Steven J. Ingels, IES, National Center for Education - The Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002) tracks the educational and developmental experiences of a nationally representative sample of United States high school students who were sophomores in the spring of 2002.This First Look report provides a descriptive portrait of their postsecondary education experiences through the end of the 2012-13 academic year by using information obtained during the postsecondary transcript data collection conducted in 2013-14.  

 

04/2015: New Pathways to Careers and College: Examples, Evidence, and Prospects, by Mary G. Visher and David Stern, MDRC� - Programs that merge CTE, rigorous academic coursework, and career exploration opportunities, while creating clear pathways through high school, college, and beyond, are gaining momentum. This report describes some of the most prominent of these "pathway" models, identifies localities where the approach has gained the most traction, discusses the underlying principles that characterize the most promising programs, and briefly presents the evidence of their potential to make a difference.

  

To view our entire Miscellaneous Resources sectionclick here.

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Statistics

03/25/2015: Overall Persistence and Retention Rates Improve, National Student Clearinghouse - The overall persistence rate for students who entered college in fall 2013 was 1.0 percentage points higher than that of students who entered college in fall 2012, while the retention rate increased by 1.1 percentage points.

 

To view our entire Statistics-Oriented Resources section, click here.

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Online Education

Reports & Articles

 

04/24/2015: Change, But How Substantive?, by Carl Straumsheim, Inside Higher Ed - The new partnership between the flagship public university and EdX, a MOOC provider, flips the typical process of getting into college on its head. Students interested in the MOOCs won't have to apply and be admitted to Arizona State, but can simply register for the courses. Instead of paying up front for tuition and working to make sure the money was well spent, the MOOC students decide whether or not to pay to earn credit only after they have received their final grades.

04/23/2015: Arizona State University, EdX To Offer Full Freshman Year Curriculum Online, by Aditya Tejas, International Business Times - Arizona State University (ASU) announced on Wednesday that it would begin offering a full freshman year curriculum online to the public in partnership with EdX, a nonprofit which hosts massive open online courses (MOOCs).The university's new program called the Global Freshman Academy will charge $200 per credit, or about $4,800 for a year, which is significantly cheaper than average costs for four-year colleges. Students will not have to pay until they complete the courses, which will be available worldwide without any admission process. After successful completion of the course, students can apply for admission to the university as sophomores.

04/21/2015: A Piece of the Online Pie, by Carl Straumsheim, Inside Higher Ed - The model proposed by Academic Partnerships, an online "enabler" company, throws another party - faculty members - into the mix. Since the introduction of synchronous content means faculty members will likely spend more time on the courses they teach online, the company is giving them a cut of the tuition revenue.

04/13/2015: The Texas Affordable Baccalaureate Program, by Rebecca Klein-Collins and Kathleen M. Glancey, EducauseReview - A targeted collaboration among higher education entities in Texas addressed a key problem for would-be students and their families: affordability. In January 2014 the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), South Texas College (STC), and Texas A&M University - Commerce (A&M - Commerce) launched the Texas Affordable Baccalaureate (TAB) Program, the state's first competency-based bachelor degree.

04/2015: ITC 2014 Distance Education Survey Results, by Fred Lokken and Christine Mullins, Instructional Technology Council - Throughout the past ten years, the ITC survey has confirmed that student enrollment in online courses continues to grow at a higher rate than overall student enrollment at colleges and universities. Although, most online programs no longer see the double-digit growth they experienced only five years ago, the survey data continues to confirm the popularity of online learning.

 

To view our entire Online Education section, click here.

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College Readiness

Reports & Articles

 

04/28/2015: Common Core Gets a Footing, by Ashley A. Smith, Inside Higher Ed - Two colleges in Colorado and the members of the Illinois Council of Community College Presidents are using the Common Core-based PARCC exam, also known as the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers, to evaluate college readiness. "This is a game changer," Tony Alpert, executive director of Smarter Balanced, said in an email. "In the past, most state tests had no linkage to higher education.
 

04/23/2015: Colleges are Starting to Make "College Ready" Meaningful, by Lindsey Tepe, New America Ed Central - Nearly 200 colleges and universities throughout the country announced they will place students who are designated "college ready" on Smarter Balanced - one of the new Common Core consortia assessments - directly into credit-bearing coursework. Earlier this spring several colleges, including Illinois' community college system, announced they will use the PARCC assessments for course placement purposes as well.

04/22/2015: State Audit: High School Grads Not Prepared for College, by Dennis Romboy, KSL.com - The Utah State Auditor's Office found too many of those students either fail to take the necessary classes to prepare them for the rigors of college or take the recommended courses and are still unprepared. Only 25 percent of recent high school graduates were considered ready to succeed in entry-level college courses.

04/21/2015: A High School Diploma Doesn't Guarantee College Success, by Joseph Sanacore & Anthony T. Palumbo, Education Week - According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the U.S. high school graduation rate has risen to more than 80 percent, the highest in the nation's history. The next step for these students is a serious one. Its possibilities for failure are reflected in the concern voiced by many educators that a large number of these students are not ready for college.

 

To view our entire College Readiness section, click here.

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Remedial Education

Reports & Articles

 

04/2015: Laying the Foundations: Early Findings from the New Mathways Project, by Elizabeth Zachry Rutschow and John Diamond, MDRC - Taking up the challenge in all three areas is the New Mathways Project (NMP), developed by the Charles A. Dana Center at the University of Texas at Austin in partnership with the Texas Association of Community Colleges. This new initiative aims to change the standard pathways to and through colleges' traditional math sequences.

 

To view our entire Remedial Education section, click here.

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College Completion

Reports & Articles

 

04/23/2015: To Get More Students Through College, Give Them Fewer Choices, by Anya Kamenetz, NPR Ed - College is no different from jam, according to a surprising new book, Redesigning America's Community Colleges. The authors, three Columbia University education researchers, argue that the best way to help the largest number of students get through college is to give them fewer pathways than they have now.

To view our entire College Completion section, click here. 

Workforce Development

Reports & Articles

 

04/24/2015: Can Apprenticeships Transform Higher Education?, by Ronald Bethke, eCampus News - "Our current system of education and training is not sufficient to meet the demands for skilled labor," Steinberg said. "We have to do something different. We have to make it easier for young people to get the postsecondary education and training that they need. And I think what that means is not focusing as much as we have on 'everyone needs a bachelor's degree,' but on open access to alternatives forms of education and training after high school."   

04/23/2015: The Bloomberg Recruiter Report: Job Skills Companies Want But Can't Get, Bloomberg Business - As part of our ranking of 122 top business programs, Bloomberg surveyed 1,320 job recruiters at more than 600 companies to find out which skills employers want but can't find-and which B-schools are best at meeting the needs of the market.

04/22/2015: A National Imperative: The Role of Business in Promoting Educational Attainment, Committee for Economic Development - This report examines how employers in select metropolitan areas are supporting their employees in advancing postsecondary education and identifies barriers to those efforts.

04/20/2015: One Way To Better Prepare Millennials For The Workforce, by Katie Keith, Young Invincibles - Millennials are pursuing higher education degrees in greater droves than any previous generation, yet college graduates face significant gaps in job readiness. There are steps we must take to better set our generation up for the workforce. An easy one? Investing in national service programs, which have a proven track record of providing training and marketable skills.

04/15/2015: VIDEO: Revisiting Apprenticeships, Higher Education Today, Short Takes - This video accompanies ACE's newly released paper, "Revisiting Apprenticeships," which explores how an ancient concept is becoming a hot topic in American higher education. The paper and video are the first in a series of eight "Quick Hit" briefs on current and emerging topics in higher education attainment and innovation. Future briefs and videos will look at topics such as expanding student international experiences, open textbooks and predictive analytics. The Quick Hit series is funded by Lumina Foundation.

03/31/2015: To Boost U.S. Competitiveness, Leaders Endorse Rigorous Academic Standards in New Videos, Committee for Economic Development - The CED unveiled a video series that features business and education leaders discussing why college- and career-ready standards benefit students and employers. The series consists of three videos and is part of the nonpartisan, business-led public policy organization's work to support the implementation of high-quality K-12 standards and education systems across the country.

02/04/2015: Revisiting the STEM Workforce: A Companion to Science and Engineering Indicators 2014, by National Science Board, National Science Foundation - The National Science Board (NSB, Board) examined recent STEM workforce studies and debates, consulted numerous experts, and explored data in our 2014 Science and Engineering Indicators (Indicators) report to develop insights that could facilitate more constructive discussions about the STEM workforce and inform decision makers.

  

To view our entire Workforce Development section, click here.

Technology Adoption

Reports & Articles

 

04/21/2015: The Best Community Colleges for Tech-Driven Success, by Colin Wood, eCampus News - Community college is designed to be one of society's great equalizers, a shot at joining the middle class for those who didn't get a chance to attend a four-year university. And technology has expanded the reach of these institutions and enhanced the quality of education for those it reaches.

03/25/2015: Classroom Technology: Effective Instructional Tools for an Evolving Learning Landscape, Center for Digital Education - The long list of classroom technologies available to support K-20 educations is impressive, especially considering most of these didn't exist just 10 years ago. It's becoming increasingly important for education leaders to determine "purpose before purchase" - evaluating what goals they wish to achieve, then identifying which technologies will help them meet those goals - to ensure technology is successful.

 

To view our entire Technology Adoption section, click here.

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Data Analysis & Assessment

Reports & Articles  

 

04/2015: Examining the Earnings Trajectories of Community College Students Using a Piecewise Growth Curve Modeling Approach, by Shanna Smith Jaggars and Di Xu, Community College Research Center - Policymakers have become increasingly concerned with measuring-and holding colleges accountable for-students' labor market outcomes. In this paper we introduce a piecewise growth curve approach to analyzing community college students' labor market outcomes, and we discuss how this approach differs from Mincerian and fixed-effects approaches. 

To view our entire Data Analysis & Assessment section, click here.

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Funding & Economics

Reports & Articles

 

04/2015: High Costs, Uncertain Benefits: What Do Americans Without a College Degree Think About Postsecondary Education?, by Andrew P. Kelly, AEI, Center on Higher Education Reform - Though the costs of attending public college have increased more than 40 percent since the early 2000s (after adjusting for inflation) and wages for recent college graduates have declined over the past decade, the wage premium attached to a college degree remains robust.

 

To view our entire Funding & Economics section, click here.

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Transfer & Articulation

Reports & Articles

 

04/24/2015: The 2015 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence: Santa Fe College, The Aspen Institute - Prize winner Santa Fe College, in Florida, shows how a community college can help students transfer to a four-year school and receive a bachelor's degree at a rate more than double the national average.

04/18/2015: Minnesota College System Seeks to Ease Transfer Process to Save Students Money, Time, by Kia Farhang, StarTribune - Minnesota's largest state college system is working to make it cheaper and easier for community college students to transfer into four-year programs and to earn bachelor's degrees. Transferring between higher education institutions is becoming more common nationwide, and about one-third of the more than 430,000 MnSCU students are transfers.

 

To view our entire Transfer & Articulation section, click here.

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