Browse Ideas with tag 'student support services':

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  Increasing Graduation Rates »

  Establish a focus on high-quality student supports

  Student supports are a critical component of increasing persistence and completions among under-represented, non-traditional, low-income and minority populations. Research by MDRC, Lumina Foundation, and others clearly demonstrates that support services are critical to retention and credential attainment, especially for low-income, minority, and working adult students. Drawing on this research, Women Employed, through ...more »

  Student supports are a critical component of increasing persistence and completions among under-represented, non-traditional, low-income and minority populations. Research by MDRC, Lumina Foundation, and others clearly demonstrates that support services are critical to retention and credential attainment, especially for low-income, minority, and working adult students. Drawing on this research, Women Employed, through our Clear Connections Project, has created a consortium of Illinois community colleges and community-based organizations to develop innovations and spread best practices for improving student supports. We partner with colleges to determine how students learn about available supports, assess the level of customer service, and improve the quality of student services. In Building Illinois’ Workforce of the Future, we identify barriers to college completion that can be addressed with student supports and recommend changes colleges, state agencies, and policymakers can implement to increase course completion and degree attainment.

  We hope the forum will highlight the importance of effective student supports and how innovations can lead to better services and greater efficiencies. The scope of this discussion could include innovations in areas such as academic advising, financial aid administration, tutoring, child care, career development, and job placement, as well as “customer services” such as effective and efficient registration processes, the quality of course catalogs, etc. Poor practices in these areas can cause particular problems for working adult students. We would like to urge a strong focus on career development services, which can be offered in a variety of forms. Our research for the development of an on-line career development program for adults (Career Coach), and the research of others in the field, indicates that many low-income adults have very limited knowledge of the labor market. Without guidance based on knowledge of their interests and goals in the context of employment demand—and good information linking career goals to course choices—too many students start down the wrong path, wasting financial aid and time, and lessening their chances of obtaining credentials.

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  Submitted by cwarden 2 years ago

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  Innovation: Community Colleges of the Future »

  Streamlined education and training programs that smooth the path to degrees and credentials

  Today’s education and training systems – including community colleges, adult basic education and English language programs, and workforce training programs – too often are disconnected and inadequate due to the rules that govern them. The journey to a postsecondary credential requires lower-skilled students to navigate several different public systems and various organizations, yet oftentimes these public systems are ...more »

  Today’s education and training systems – including community colleges, adult basic education and English language programs, and workforce training programs – too often are disconnected and inadequate due to the rules that govern them. The journey to a postsecondary credential requires lower-skilled students to navigate several different public systems and various organizations, yet oftentimes these public systems are disconnected and siloed, making it difficult or impossible for a student to quickly move to successively higher levels of education. For example, a student who completes a GED program will not necessarily meet the basic education standards for or receive guidance on entrance into postsecondary education. Similarly, short-term training programs are often dead-ends and don’t lead to further education or high-wage jobs.

  The career pathways framework is an effective way of connecting education, training, and support services to prepare students and workers for the next level of education and training and to meet employer demand for skilled workers. Each step on a career pathway is designed explicitly to prepare students to progress to the next level of employment and education. They include multiple entry points (not just high school) and innovative program delivery such as flexible scheduling and integration of basic skills education and occupational training. They also include a strong role for employers and student supportive services.

  The federal government can support career pathways by investing in Career Pathways State Policy Leadership Grants to strengthen and align adult basic education/ESL, postsecondary education, career and technical education, and workforce development systems in a career pathways framework. In addition, several states have adopted career pathway-inspired programming to help lower-skilled adults earn credentials including Arkansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Ohio, Oregon, Washington, and Wisconsin.

  For more information on this idea and others, visit www.clasp.org/postsecondary.

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  1 comment for Idea: Streamlined education and training programs that smooth the path to degrees and credentials

  Submitted by CLASP 2 years ago

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  Increasing Graduation Rates »

  Increased student support services

  Low-income adult students and youth struggle to access and persist in community college programs because they lack adequate life, work, and academic supports. There is no systemic public funding for these services at either the federal or state level. Institutions often cobble together these services–typically in partnership with community-based organizations–however the need vastly outstrips available resources. We ...more »

  Low-income adult students and youth struggle to access and persist in community college programs because they lack adequate life, work, and academic supports. There is no systemic public funding for these services at either the federal or state level. Institutions often cobble together these services–typically in partnership with community-based organizations–however the need vastly outstrips available resources.

  We need more resources and more creative partnerships to provide significantly more student support services that enable vulnerable students to persevere in education and training programs. Specifically, students need more and better academic student support services, including tutoring, study skills seminars, and learning communities; personal student support services such as child care, transportation, access to personal counseling, and emergency funds to assist students with minor crises before they become major derailments to their education and training; and college and career exploration and advising opportunities, including college orientation and success courses, that help students navigate college and explore career options.

  On the federal level, Student Success Grants that help at-risk students stay in college and complete courses, were included in the last reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, and should be fully funded. Promising examples from the states include the Washington Opportunity Grant program, and the California Educational Opportunity Program and Cooperative Agencies Resources for Education. Community colleges providing these services include Northern Virginia Community College, Portland Community College (OR), Southeast Arkansas College, Community College of Denver (CO), LaGuardia Community College (NY), and Central New Mexico Community College, among others.

  For more information on this idea and others, visit www.clasp.org/postsecondary.

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  2 comments for Idea: Increased student support services

  Submitted by CLASP 2 years ago

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  Increasing Graduation Rates »

  Keep Students in School During Personal Financial Emergencies

  Community colleges have long been challenged with students who are just one financial emergency away from putting their education goals on hold or abandoning them altogether. The current economic environment has exacerbated the financial challenges community college students now face to achieve their education goals. Tuition has increased, loans are more difficult to get and many students are cash-strapped. Couple these ...more »

  Community colleges have long been challenged with students who are just one financial emergency away from putting their education goals on hold or abandoning them altogether. The current economic environment has exacerbated the financial challenges community college students now face to achieve their education goals. Tuition has increased, loans are more difficult to get and many students are cash-strapped. Couple these facts with the current reality at community colleges—increased enrollment and deep budget cuts—and we now have a perfect storm of variables that make it even more challenging for community colleges to help students navigate academic and financial hurdles. The need for programs and services that support students’ needs across the spectrum has never been greater.

  Scholarship America’s Dreamkeepers program is helping 31 colleges meet some of those student needs. Dreamkeepers enables community colleges to provide eligible students the opportunity to apply for and receive grants to recover from unexpected life costs such as car repairs, child care and medical expenses. The average student grant is just $523. Through the Dreamkeepers program, Scholarship America also provides participating community colleges with support service platforms for their students that promote self-sufficiency, such as financial literacy training.

  Dreamkeepers results are encouraging: 84% of students who received this form of assistance in 2008-2009 either re-enrolled in school the following semester or reached their education goal.

  The 31 current Dreamkeepers colleges have received funding from Scholarship America through generous grants from Lumina Foundation for Education, the Kresge Foundation and the Walmart Foundation, to set up their programs and disburse emergency funds. The program includes additional mentoring and support from Scholarship America to develop fundraising capacity to sustain the program. To expand the program to other colleges, additional foundation or public funding will be required.

  As policymakers, educators and business leaders meet to discuss ideas for improving student success at the community college level, Scholarship America recommends they consider the role of student support programs that address the critical, unmet need of emergency financial assistance.

  Lauren Segal

  President & CEO

  Scholarship America

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  3 comments for Idea: Keep Students in School During Personal Financial Emergencies

  Submitted by lsegal 2 years ago

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  Increasing Graduation Rates »

  Support Services for Students are Crucial

  We can increase Pell grants all we want, but if we don't provide students with support services (such as counseling and tutoring) to help them succeed, then that money is significantly less effective. TRIO programs (federally funded grants), such as Student Support Services, are vital to helping first-generation, low-income and disabled students succeed in college, and, thus, boosting our national graduation rate and ...more »

  We can increase Pell grants all we want, but if we don't provide students with support services (such as counseling and tutoring) to help them succeed, then that money is significantly less effective. TRIO programs (federally funded grants), such as Student Support Services, are vital to helping first-generation, low-income and disabled students succeed in college, and, thus, boosting our national graduation rate and competitiveness. President Johnson understood this, which is why the TRIO/Student Support Services program was created at the same time as Pell grants -so that they could work hand-in-hand to help our least advantaged students excel. TRIO programs work! They have a proven track record. Our first-generation, low-income and disabled students deserve the right to be part of meeting this challenge. We need to increase funding for TRIO programs.

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  7 comments for Idea: Support Services for Students are Crucial

  Submitted by rburns 2 years ago

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