Valencia Community College
College Planning Council
BIG MEETING
March 19, 2010
Plenary Session Notes
April 13, 2010 DRAFT for CPC
Participants
26
Ed Ames
Beverlee Andrews
Remy Ansiello
Shauna Anstey
Alys Arceneaux
Julie Balassa
Joe Battista
Andrea Bealler
Mary Beck
Nicholas Bekas
Joel Berman
Joe Bivins
Karen Blondeau
Melody Boeringer
Danielle Boileau
Sonja Boles-Melvin
Mark Bollenback
Karen Borglum
Michael Bosley
Lucy Boudet
Shirley Boyette
Joanna Branham
Roberta Brown
Dave Brunick
Valerie Burks
Tullio Bushrui
Jerry Cochran
Marcelle Cohen
Jacquelyn Cole
Helen Clark
Victor Collazo
Jenelle Conner
Julie Corderman
Ilia Cordero
Jeff Cornett
Karen Cowden
Scott Crosby
Jeff Danser
Daryl Davis
Akos Delneky
Wendi Dew
Carmen Diaz
Suzette Dohany
Lynn Dorn
Linda Downing
John Edwards
Kurt Ewen
Michal Ewing
Kimberly Finley
Shelby Fiorentino
Kimberly Foster
Michelle Foster
Ed Frame
Barbara Frazier
Frances Frierson
Jean Marie Fuhrman
Mary Ann Gagen
Geraldine Gallagher
Claudia Genovese-Martinez
Jill Geraghty
Robert Gessner
Jeffrey Goltz
Liz Gombash
Elisha Gonzalez-Bonnewitz
Randall B. Gordon
Carin Gordon
Tim Grogan
Cristy Hardin
Gaby Hawat
Nasser Hedayat
Jeff Hogan
Deidre Holmes Dubois
Keith Houck
Todd Hunt
Dale Husbands
CoCintheane Hutchinson
Debi Jakubcin
Anthony Jansen
Tyron Johnson
Gerald Jones
Sonya Joseph
Elizabeth Jusino
Celine Kavalec-Miller
Sam Kannamplave
Chris Kingler
Donna Kosloski
Jackie Lasch
Maryke Lee
Helene Loiselle
Kim Long
Joe Lynn Look
Patti Lopez
Tom Lopez
Suzanne Lynch
Lisa Macon
Adrian Manley
Donna Marino
Bruce Marshall
Nemir Matos-Cintron
Michele McArdle
Robert McCaffrey
James McDonald
John McFarland
Marjorie McKillop
Carolyn McMorran
Chris Moore
Jessica Morales
Kevin Mulholland
Brent Nakagama
Sonia Navarro-Milano
John Niss
Allison Noe
Joe Nunes
Ron Oliver
Della Paul
Melissa Pedone
Cathy Penfold Navarro
Christie Pickeral
Louise Pitts
Lana Powell
Ruth Prather
Sunni Prevatt
Melanie Price
Gerald Reed
Jennifer Robertson
Cheryl Robinson
David Rogers
Joyce Romano
Larry Rosen
Joseph Sarrubbo
Bobbie Sartor
Liza Schellpfeffer
Brenda Schumpert
Bob Seal
Regina Sequin
Barbara Shell
Sanford Shugart
Heidi Shugg
Michael Shugg
Renee Simpson
Patti Smith
Erin Smith
Susan Stone
Stan Stone
Katherine Suarez
David Sutton
Leesa Sward
Jill Szentmiklosi
Chanda Torres
Todd Treece
Angela Trujillo
Nicole Valentino
Linda Vance
Myrna Villanueva
Rachel Waite
Kaye Walter
Betty Wanielista
Dennis Weeks
Bill White
Jane Wiese
Falecia Williams
Martha Williams
Sally Witkamp
Lisa Yenke
26
GOALS 1 and 2 – Morning Plenary Session
One comment was offered that applies to the measures and targets generally:
We will know the data are robust when the same process that produces good data for the college can also be used by the learner to measure his or her own progress.
Goal 1
Objective 1.1: Transition to College
Partner with others to increase the college-going rate of students from every high school and the percentage of district high school graduates who apply and enroll at Valencia.
(Note that the team discussed changing the objective to read “the number of those graduates.”)
Participants agreed with the measures and targets as written by the Goal Team.
Participants agreed that current and planned activities will “move the needle.”
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- The message must get to parents regarding the support that students need.
- Develop the Valencia brand so that we are students’ first choice.
- Vet our marketing so we put forth a professional presence.
- Explore social networking; engage!
- The Enrollment plan focus should include a consideration of workforce degrees.
- Do we have capacity to meet needs?
- We did not mention access for veterans, and should consider how best to address that.
Objective 1.2: Persistence
Increase the percentage of students who persist at Valencia through key academic thresholds.
Participants agreed with the measures and targets as written by the Goal Team, and with the need to name the thresholds.
Currently, the team has named these thresholds:
- Retention from Fall to Spring, and Fall to Fall.
- Achievement of 15, 30, and 45 credit hours within one, three, and four years.
- Degree completion within four years.
Participants agreed that current and planned activities will “move the needle.”
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- We should celebrate and offer incentives as students reach thresholds, and use LifeMap tools to connect to meeting thresholds.
- Are LifeMap tools as effective as they can be? For example, might we have pop-up alerts, or live chats synchronous with counselors? Grade awareness, pilot withdrawal program in which student must work with faculty or counselor?
- We need more networking among discipline faculty, to support connecting with students.
Objective 1.3: Goal Achievement
Increase the course and program completion rate of Valencia students by decreasing the withdrawal rate.
Participants agreed with the targets as written by the Goal Team, but would add to the short-term targets the need to discover why students withdraw.
Participants agreed with the measures as written by the Goal Team, but would ask that qualitative measures be added.
Participants agreed that the current and planned activities will “move the needle.”
Objective 1.4: Economic Development
Align plans for the Associate in Arts and Associate in Science degree programs, and the resources to support them, with the economic development needs of the region.
Participants agreed with targets and measures as written by the Goal Team.
Participants agreed that the current and planned activities will “move the needle.”
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- Continue environmental scan of emerging industries.
- Establish strong affiliations between industry and Valencia, in both directions. They come to us and we go to them.
- Align economic development needs and our degree programs. Move beyond AS model alone, and look at AA degrees and transfer plans and how they connect to employment.
- Align AA transfer plans and the Baccalaureate programs into which people are transferring.
- Campus branding of AS programs. Some confusion exists among students and staff about where programs are offered and specific program sequences. Better communication and branding about campus-based programs would help.
- Workforce development outcomes. All deans should hear those at the viability meeting. Use as a stepping stone to build those programs to meet workforce needs.
Objective 1.5: Access
Increase access to associate degree and higher programs through university partnerships, scholarships, and financial support, and through the addition of Valencia campuses and locations in growing service district areas that are relatively distant from existing campuses.
The participants agreed with the targets and measures as written by the goal team.
Participants agreed that the current and planned activities will “move the needle” for this goal, but expect that capacity will be constrained to the extent that facilities funds are not made available and by the extent to which funding for new faculty and staff is available.
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- Financial literacy is missing and is critical. Build on what we are already doing in that regard.
- The costs of college must be addressed. Can we reduce costs (book costs, for example) in addition to giving students access to financial aid?
- Increase faculty development so that faculty know what they can do to help students obtain scholarships.
- Add online courses (connect to goal 2) and do it in a way that preserves quality.
- Have articulation agreements been maxed out, or can we still add to these? Can we have other Direct Connect-type agreements with other four-year colleges?
- Geographic access is a challenge. Some parts of district are removed from our campuses. Can we offer courses in non-Valencia sites in hard to reach locations?
Several issues were raised related to an expressed desire to expand on-line offerings:
- We should measure by monitoring and tracking online.
- Focus on an enrollment plan, faculty development, and tech support for faculty delivering on line.
- Address comfort level of faculty, certification, and coordination and strategic planning of on-line.
- Can we package an AA on line?
GOAL 2
Objective 2.1: Learning Outcomes
Develop, align, and review program learning outcomes to assure a cohesive curricular and co-curricular experience that enhances student learning.
Participants agreed with the proposed targets and measures as written by the Goal Team, but noted that 2013 is too late to create the list, and would expect that to be finished at an earlier date.
Participants agreed that current and planned activities will “move the needle” for this objective.
Areas of Concern/Interest:
There are several challenges in implementing this objective:
- Remaining current – this requires continuous update
- Reaching diverse students, including those with disabilities
- Involving students
- Including all faculty (including part-time)
- Encouraging more cross disciplinary collaboration and conversation.
Objective 2.2: College-level Writing
Increase the percentage of students writing at the college level.
Participants agreed with the proposed targets and measures as written by the Goal Team.
Participants agreed that current and planned activities will “move the needle” for this objective.
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- We need to establish levels for writing in various programs, but also have a need for writing across the curriculum, including defining writing levels in college level work.
- Support full-time and adjunct faculty in teaching writing skills.
- Do we need to develop discipline based writing outcomes? There is a possible need for this, in part due to the increase in certificate completers.
Objective 2.3: Completion of Mathematics
Increase the percentage of students who complete the math sequence within two years.
(Completion is defined as successfully completing the highest level math course required for a program of study. The two-year measurement period begins upon entrance to the College.”
The participants agreed with the targets and measures as written by the Goal Team, but noted that a definition is needed for “program of study.” The definition is needed for the long-term target, which is: “All students will complete at least the mathematics courses that satisfy Gordon Rule or the highest program requirement for their program of study within two years of entrance.”
Participants agreed that current and planned activities will “move the needle” for this objective.
Areas of Concern/Interest:
We need to address tactics. How can we help students maintain momentum?
- Need to define and provide appropriate academic support.
- Need related faculty development and advising.
Objective 2.4: Completion of 15 college credits
Increase the percentage of students mandated into developmental courses who complete within three years the first 15 college level hours of their programs of study. (Developmental courses are defined to include MAT1033C.)
Participants agreed with the proposed targets and measures as written by the Goal Team.
Participants agreed that current and planned activities will “move the needle” for this objective. Participants noted, however, that uniform training of advisors is needed to help students schedule courses appropriately. Goal 3 activities should reflect this.
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- Tactics are needed for the development and expansion of LINC courses. The Student Success course might be the core class for LINC. A longer-term pairing of the SL staff with faculty should create a bond. How can we expand LINC?
- We need to address how we will use new technology in pursuing this objective.
Objective 2.5: Close achievement gaps
Close achievement gaps among students from diverse backgrounds in completing six key courses, leading to increased persistence and program completion rates. (MAT 0012C, MAT0024C, MAT1033, ENC1101, POS 2041, MAC 1105)
Participants agreed with the proposed targets and measures as written by the Goal Team, noting the importance of using data to understand changes in the gap and examine trends.
Participants responded with a cautious and hopeful yes regarding whether current and planned activities will “move the needle” for this objective.
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- Expand the definition of diversity. It is important to be broad in that definition.
- Coordinated, intentional research is needed, to include affective assessment, and to go beyond the anecdotal. We should not let data sit on shelf. Share it and use it to shape strategies, and those in turn will generate more data. We need to use the information generated to evolve our culture.
- How do we best define diversity? What unique challenges does each group have?
- What are our limitations in capturing this information? We should have a plan to use what we capture, or else why capture it?
- Are we being too specific in focusing on lab courses and college level courses with labs? Reading impacts student performance in ALL courses. Should we be a bit broader?
Goal 3
Objective 3.1: Collaboration
Strengthen Valencia’s collaborative culture through learning and leadership development opportunities through the effective use of collaborative approaches, and through regular review and evolution of our shared governance system.
Participants agreed with the proposed targets and measures as written by the Goal Team, but noted that the long-term target is not fully articulated.
Participants also agreed with the goal team that current and planned activities will not “move the needle” for this objective. They agreed that current work on collaboration at the college is not centralized in any one area and therefore has no direct leadership or accountability. They agreed that there is not sufficient focus and direction related to comprehensive internal communication efforts. They agreed that an infrastructure for the ongoing development and maintenance of collaboration at Valencia should be developed as part of the above mentioned work and would “move the needle” on the goal.
Areas of Concern/Interest:
- Collaboration among committees and councils should be addressed. A breakdown of communications occurs within our shared governance system. . An infrastructure for the ongoing development and maintenance of collaboration at Valencia should be developed as part of the above mentioned work and would “move the needle” on the goal.
- We should review communications tools and converse about responsibility to collaborate. Can WeaveOnline help? How can we train collaborative leaders?
- A communications audit should be conducted, with thought to the Valencia web site for external and internal communications needs. Note that Email volume is challenging.
- Part-time staff and employees need to be developed, and mentoring should be considered.
- We have a pressing need for more thoughtful new employee orientation.