Building Bridges for Student Transfer Success One community college, three universities, three online degree pathways, a unique program model, and one common goal – seamless and affordable, online degree success.

Today’s Panel Nancy Jones Dean, Instructor, Career and Technical Education Coastline Community College Lauren Yeh Academic Counselor Coastline Community College Jason Ward Learning 1 ST Program Coordinator Coastline Community College Damon Harris Learning 1 st Program Student Joycelyn Groot Dean, Contract and Military Education Coastline Community College

Presentation Objectives Provide information about the Learning 1 st project Discuss lessons learned in planning and piloting a collaborative Associate to Baccalaureate degree program Describe future plans for program growth

Project History In June of 2012 the League for Innovation in the Community College was awarded a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to support and pilot a national consortium of leading community colleges and online universities to support underserved and low-income adults in attaining a postsecondary credential – in less time and at a lower cost – without leaving their home community. The League is an international organization dedicated to catalyzing the community college movement. We host conferences and institutes, develop Web resources, conduct research, produce publications, provide services, and lead projects and initiatives with our member colleges, corporate partners, and other agencies in our continuing efforts to make a positive difference for students and communities. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, guided by the belief that every life has equal value, working to help all people lead healthy productive lives and seeking to ensure that all people, especially those with the fewest resources, have access to the opportunities needed to succeed.

The Learning 1 st program is a collaboration among: Pennsylvania State University, the University of Illinois-Springfield, the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Coastline Community College Pennsylvania State University Penn State World Campus University of Illinois Springfield University of Massachusetts Amherst UMassOnline Coastline Community College

Six-Year Completion Rates: United States Completion and transfer rates within six years of first enrolling in a CC: Some 46% of U.S. community college students attained a credential (certificate or degree) or transferred to a four-year college within 6 years Of them, 34% earned a credential, while the other 11% transferred to a four-year institution but had not yet attained a credential Of those who attained a credential, 12% earned a bachelor's degree, 14% earned an associate degree, and 8% earned a certificate Of the students who did not attain a credential, 20% were still enrolled after six years, and 46% left community college with no credential. Source: year-completion-rates-us

Initial Grant Goals, Challenges and Successes Decreasing the Coastline waitlist by 50%, thus serving approximately 10,000 additional students. Following a Contract Education model, as a sustainable, online, model for working students to increase bachelor’s degree completion rates by 20% in 18 months. Providing degree completion through concurrent enrollment and consistently reducing the cost of baccalaureate degree attainment to 30 to 40% below for-profit university costs. Due to improving economic factors, the waitlist issue in California has returned to pre-fiscal crisis levels. A California Chancellor's office advisory opinion advocated the program be operated within the standard state-subsidized framework. This may impact future scalability. CA assembly bill 955 may open the door to lessoning the reliance on state funding. The average cost to students in the Learning 1 st program is approximately 50% of a for-profit university baccalaureate degree program.

Today’s Program Goals Primary areas of focus for L1st: Increase online community college students’ capacity to complete an affordable, prescribed 4-year degree online Create unique higher education partnership models Decrease time to degree completion from a prominent four-year university using a unique 2+2 online model Flexibility and Affordability – to meet the needs of all students: low-income, working adults, re-entry, and traditional

Three Unique Program Pathways Pennsylvania State University Penn State World Campus University of Illinois Springfield University of Massachusetts Amherst Coastline Community College AA Degree – Psychology BS or BA Degree – Psychology AS Degree – Computer Networking BS Degree – Computer Science AA Degree – Business Administration BBA Degree – Business Administration

What Makes L1st Unique? Program partners sign a partnership agreement detailing the expectations that make each transfer partnership unique. L1st student receives access to both institution’s online resources, student services and virtual libraries. Each student will be assigned a counselor or advisor from both Coastline and transfer university. No application fees are assessed upon L1st program admission. Students maintaining continuous enrollment are guaranteed a tuition rate freeze. – Partner universities do not charge out-of-state tuition rates. Students who meet all university-partner transfer requirements are assured seamless enrollment into their upper division program. Each student receives regular academic progress reports.

2013 Average Annual Tuition and Fee Rate Comparison (Grant’s goal was to reduce cost by 30-40% of avg. for-profit rates) Private Nonprofit Four-Year University* $29,056 Public Four-Year University Out-of-State*$21,706 For-Profit University*$15,172 University of California system**$13,200 Public California Four-Year University In-State *** $9,368 Learning 1 st Program $7,367 Computer Science, BS - $6,500 Psychology, BA - $7,700 Business Administration, BBA- $7,900 * ** ***

L1st Admission Prospective students will apply to the program by completing the L1st online common application. Partners agree to waive applicable student application fees. Students will identify their major at the time of L1st program admission & submit official transcripts. Transcripts reviewed for degree evaluation by 2 & 4 year counselors Admitted students will receive a jointly prepared program ‘roadmap’ detailing the specific coursework needed to complete both an Associate and Baccalaureate degree Baseline L1st Program Admission Criteria U.S. High School Graduate or Equivalent Student must be degree seeking (2yr and 4yr) College-level Math and English skills Fewer than 30 degree applicable units completed at an institution other than Coastline College (degree seeking with Coastline)

Academic Roadmap Close collaboration between the academic advisory staffs at the community college and the university greatly benefits participants Students receive one jointly-prepared comprehensive education plan that clearly articulates the specific coursework required to meet both the associate and baccalaureate degree requirements. By utilizing this format students are able to organize their schedules with the confidence that all prerequisites are being met, and also are better able to plan and balance their semesterly course loads to meet their personal graduation target dates. The program is also designed to maximize similar coordination among student support and financial aid services among the partner schools.

Our Pilot Success: UIS/Coastline Computer Science Pathway The UIS/Coastline Computer Science bachelors degree pathway incorporates a unique concurrent enrollment model. Coastline is offering the first-year general education and lower division prep. courses based on the agreed upon articulation. Students also enroll in their first university major course during the first semester of program participation. No additional UIS admissions application or application fee is required. Students having completed all prescripted Coastline coursework by the end of the third year will have earned an Associates degree and begin their capstone year (30 units), entirely as a UIS student.

Online Partner Portal Provides means of facilitating the programs administrative needs among the partner institutions Allows for the sharing of student information such as the common application, course progress/completion & degree completion data, and advisement materials Manages automated student communications, notifications and alerts Compiles data for batch reporting and student success tracking

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Phase Two Pilot Launch Psychology BS & BA Fall 2014 Business Administration BBA Fall 2014

Future Goals Current partners will begin expanding degree offerings Expansion of the consortium to include other institutions able to meet the partnership standards