ken gonzalez, university of san diego and mary a. millikin, tulsa community college 89th annual aacc...

Ken Gonzalez, University of San Diegoand Mary A. Millikin, Tulsa Community College

89th Annual AACC ConventionApril 5, 2009

Focus Groups: Putting the organizational intervention cart

behind the research horse

“He who does not research has nothing to teach.” Proverb

Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count

is a multiyear national initiative to help more community college students succeed. The initiative is particularly concerned about student groups that traditionally have faced significant barriers to success, including students of color and low-income students.

Achieving the Dream works on multiple fronts, including efforts at community colleges and in research, public engagement and public policy. It emphasizes the use of data to drive change.

Four ComponentsFour Components

1. What’s Wrong?1. What’s Wrong?

2. Why?2. Why?

3. Interventions3. Interventions

4. Assessment4. Assessment

Source: Dr. Ken Gonzalez (2008)

What’s Wrong?

Achieving the Dream Goals

•Goal 1: Developmental courses•Goal 2: Gatekeeper courses•Goal 3: Complete courses successfully•Goal 4: Re-enrollment (persistence)•Goal 5: Completions

Disaggregated Student Success Data

• Gender, Ethnicity, Age• Full-time vs. part-time status• Income/Pell eligibility• First generation college status• ACT scores• Placement scores• Number of developmental needs• Specific developmental needs• Campus• Degree type

Findings

•25% of students leave by Spring semester•50% of students leave by next Fall semester•Males are significantly less successful across the board•African Americans are less likely to attain a “C” or higher, especially African American males•Among non-traditional students, 20-somethings are least successful•No difference was found between full-time and part-time students

53%37%

6% 4%

0 Developmental Areas1 Developmental Area

2 Developmental Areas

3 Developmental Areas

Graduation by Number of Graduation by Number of Developmental Areas Developmental Areas

RequiredRequired

Prioritizing “What’s Wrong?” “What’s Wrong?”• All-college professional development day to

review findings• Core team met to review College feedback• Three prioritizes selected:

• Persistence• Fall to spring• Fall to fall

• Developmental reading • Developmental mathematics

Gonzalez Model: Four ComponentsFour ComponentsWhat’s Wrong?(Quantitative Data)

Goals

• Persistence (Year One)

• Developmental Reading (Year 2)

• Developmental Math (Year 3)

African American Male initiative

(Years 1-3)

Why?(Focus Group Student

Data)

Revised InterventionsNew Interventions

Policy Changes

Assess Impact


Students

No Degree

Degree, Certificate

Completion, Transfer

Slightly altered from the article, “Developing local Models of minority student success. Padilla, Trevino, Gonzalez, and Trevino (1997).

Three Assumptions of Framework:

1) Campus is a Black Box

Students

No Degree

Degree, Certificate




2) Barriers are contextually dependent: Both Institutionally and by group type.

Students

No Degree

Degree, Certificate




3) Students are viewed as the experts in terms of knowing barriers and how to overcome them.

Conduct Student Focus Groups• Three focus groups per campusThree focus groups per campus• 12 total groups 12 total groups • 101 total students101 total students• Students volunteered and were Students volunteered and were

accepted if they had completed their first accepted if they had completed their first semester in Fall 2007 and had re-semester in Fall 2007 and had re-enrolled in Spring 2008. enrolled in Spring 2008.


Goals

• Persistence (Year One)

• Developmental Reading (Year 2)

• Developmental Math (Year 3)


Data)

TCC’s TopPersistence

Barriers

Adjusting to college Balancing school and

life Textbook issues Tulsa Achieves Communication issues

with instructors Choosing courses


Policy Changes

Assess Impact


Data-informed Interventions

Steps in Developing Data-informed Intervention(s)

• Reviewed specific barriers and challenges to student Persistence

• Attended AtD Strategies Institute • Conducted literature review• Reviewed existing interventions for

applicability

TCC Persistence Interventions: Year 1

• Develop and implement a Strategies for Success class for entering freshmen

• Develop advising intervention starting with entering freshmen

• Create communication protocol for Tulsa Achieve program entering freshmen


Goals

• Persistence (Year 2 – 4 )

• Developmental Reading (Year 3 – 4 )

• Developmental Math (Year 4 )


Data)


Barriers





Policy Changes

Questions

Assess Impact

•Develop and implement a Strategies for Success class for entering freshmen

•Develop advising intervention starting with entering freshmen

•Create communication protocol for Tulsa Achieve program entering freshmen


Assessment: Measuring impact

Assessment Results• Pre- and Post-test of student self perceptions of college

readiness (LASSI)• Dependent t test resulted in significant increase in self

perceptions of college readiness (95% confidence level)

• “Course in Reflection” essay evaluated by faculty on common rubric• Single-sample t test resulted in significant increase from expected

neutral value

• Retention of students in orientation class compared to freshmen who did not take orientation class.• No significant difference in first semester


Goals

• Persistence (Year 2 – 4 )

• Developmental Reading (Year 3 – 4 )

• Developmental Math (Year 4 )


Data)


Barriers





Policy Changes

Assess Impact

•Develop and implement a Strategies for Success class for entering freshmen

•Develop advising intervention starting with entering freshmen

•Create communication protocol for Tulsa Achieve program entering freshmen

Formative:--Self perceptions of college readiness--“Course in Reflection” essay evaluated by faculty on common rubricRetention from fall to springSummative:Success rates (C or better) in college-level coursesRetention from fall to fall and fall to graduation.


ken gonzalez, university of san diego and mary a. millikin, tulsa community college 89th annual aacc...

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