1. Discovery Academies:
A New Approach
Dr. Jill Budde
October 9, 2019

2. First off….
Let’s talk logistics

4. Indian Hills Community College
Main campus in Ottumwa, Iowa
Serve a 10-county region
Rural communities: total population 137,121
3 of the poorest of the 99 counties in Iowa
Career & Workforce Education Division
Health Sciences
Advanced Technologies
Continuing Education & Workforce Solutions
IowaWORKS

5. Enrollment @ IHCC Fall 2019 enrollment: 3559 heads
9% decline since Fall 2018
18% decline since Fall 2014
43% of total enrollment is concurrent enrollment (1530 students)

6. Unemployment affecting IHCC
U.S. August 2019 Unemployment Rate: 3.7%
Iowa’s August 2019 Unemployment Rate: 2.5%
IHCC Region August 2019 Unemployment Rate: 3.2%
(2,200 total people)
Iowa projects 9.1% increase in new jobs by 2026
IHCC Region: Manufacturing, Health Care, Specialty Trades, Education, Truck transportation, Warehousing and Storage

7. IHCC’s High School partners
IHCC Connect2College office
19 High schools in Region 15 in Fall 2019
Area school populations are declining
Largest high school has about 4000 K-12 students (~300 students/grade)
12 schools have K-12 population below students (~75 students/grade)

9. The Issues… Capacity in CTE program foundational courses
HS students “don’t know” program possibilities
Local school districts can’t afford to implement much more CTE on their campus
Space, equipment, teachers
Employers cannot find enough skilled workers

10. One attempt at a Solution
Discovery Academies at Indian Hills

11. The idea… Our CTE campus programs have capacity
Our High School partners are struggling to offer adequate amounts of Career Exploration
Work with school districts to get blocks of time for 11th and 12th grade students for on campus opportunities.
Rearrange the College course schedule to fit the blocks available in the mornings.

12. Year 1 – the Guinea Pigs Getting the word out: marketing!!
Show students and parents why this is a great option for them
Option to change programs after a term or 2
Credits Earned/Dollars Saved home mailing
52 students attended Fall 2018
9 different discovery academy programs

13. Marketing Matters Discovery Academy concept flyer
Counselors and postcards mailed to homes
Social media push
Each Discovery Program flyer: academic year course schedule
Counselors in hard copy
IHCC website
Full program curriculum
Show % completed
$1000 scholarship just for completing a class successfully

16. Year 2 – Figuring things out
The Polar Vortex of 2019…
Impeded January recruiting and concurrent enrollment registration (11 or more days missed due to weather!)

18. Despite The Freeze…. 154 students attended Fall 2019
11 different discovery academy programs
42 of them are returning students from 2018
For Winter 2019, we expect that number to climb…..

19. The Barriers Transportation Cost for course fees
Buy-in from high school personnel
Parent awareness of opportunities

20. Solutions to the Barriers
Transportation
Oskaloosa CSD was awarded a $25,000 FRI grant to bus kids from OCSD, North Mahaska and Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont CSD starting in November. Matched by local employers = $50,000
Cost for Course Fees
Currently paid by IHCC Connect2College office
*Need to look at future based on growth

21. Solutions to the Barriers
Buy-In from School personnel
Largest district has the least % of kids YTD
School leaders have changed counselor supervision to encourage more concurrent enrollment
Superintendent verbalized goal of 300 kids for 20/FA for their school!
Parent awareness of opportunities
Invited to P/T conferences to discuss options
Improving IHCC Admissions knowledge of opportunity
Translating materials into Spanish for students/families

22. What’s next??
Continue growth and encourage matriculation in CTE programs following High School graduation
Look for more WBL and apprenticeship opportunities throughout school year for students
Make sure the CTE outreach is widespread throughout our region in opportunities for students

23. Questions??