ACC faculty and administrators presented updates on the array of programs the college has launched as part of its Student Success Initiative (SSI) during a recent visit by the college’s Achieving the Dream data coach.<\/p>\n
At the April 25 site visit, administrators reviewed student performance and persistence data and discussed how several new and proposed ACC programs and processes are addressing the five SSI goals<\/a>.<\/p>\n Achieving the Dream<\/a> is a national nonprofit program dedicated to helping community college students remain in college and earn a degree or certificate. ACC was invited to become a member of Achieving the Dream in 2009, and was named an Achieving the Dream Leader College \u00c2 in 2013.<\/p>\n “We know where we’re improving and for whom we are improving,” says Dr. Stephanie Hawley, ACC vice president of college access programs. “By sharing that information with each other and obtaining feedback from Achieving the Dream representatives, we can keep the momentum going.”<\/p>\n Following updates by each SSI goal team, those attending discussed the college’s ongoing efforts to improve success rates for first-time-in-college (FTIC) students. Rich Griffiths, coordinator with the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Accountability, presented recent data on the positive impact of mandatory orientation on next-term retention, and in-depth data on the success rates of men of color.<\/p>\n In recent months the college has launched or proposed several programs and initiatives to support FTIC students, including GPS<\/a> for student advising, mandatory orientation, a required first year seminar, the Degree Map<\/a> planning and tracking tool, and an innovative developmental math class to be taught in ACC Highland’s new ACCelerator lab.<\/p>\n “Clearly our data shows we’ve made progress in improving outcomes for some student groups,” says Soon Merz, vice president of effectiveness and accountability. “By acting on this information we can continue to improve retention and success rates for all groups and ensure that students are achieving their educational goals.”<\/p>\n For details about SSI goals and strategies, visit the SSI<\/a> webpage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ACC faculty and administrators presented updates on the array of programs the college has launched as part of its Student Success Initiative (SSI) during a recent visit by the college’s Achieving the Dream data coach. … Continue reading