Melinda Mechur Karp

An Exploration of Tinto's Integration Framework for Community College Students

Tintos integration framework is often assumed to be inapplicable to the study of student persistence at community colleges because one of the linchpins of the framework—social integration—is considered unlikely to occur for students at these institutions. Community college students are thought to lack the time to participate in activities, such as clubs, that would facilitate social integration. Using in-depth interviews with students at two urban community colleges in the Northeast, we examine the ways that first-year community college students engage with their institutions. We find that the majority of them do develop attachments to their institutions. Moreover, this sense of attachment is related to their persistence in the second year of college. We also find that this integration is both academic and social. Contrary to findings from other studies that apply Tintos framework, we find that these two forms of integration develop in concert for community college students. The same activities lead to both academic and social relatedness. This is particularly true for information networks that students develop in the classroom.

Student Success Courses in the Community College: An Exploratory Study of Student Perspectives

This study examines student success courses in two urban community colleges. Through analysis of student interview data, we find that such courses are an essential resource for students, in large part because the various benefits reinforce one another and magnify their influence. These benefits include learning about the college, classes, and study skills. In addition, students build important relationships with professors and peers.

Toward a New Understanding of Non-Academic Student Support: Four Mechanisms Encouraging Positive Student Outcomes in the Community College

This paper examines the ways in which academically vulnerable students benefit from non-academic support. By reviewing theories of student persistence as well as program evaluation literature, the author identifies four mechanisms by which nonacademic supports can improve student outcomes, including persistence and degree attainment. Programs associated with positive student outcomes seem to involve one or more of the following mechanisms: (1) creating social relationships, (2) clarifying aspirations and enhancing commitment, (3) developing college know-how, and (4) making college life feasible. Identifying these mechanisms allows for a deeper understanding of both the functioning of promising interventions and the conditions that may lead students to become integrated into college life. Notably, each of these mechanisms can occur within a variety of programs, structures, or even informal interactions. The paper concludes by discussing avenues for further research and immediate implications for colleges.

What Role Can Dual Enrollment Programs Play in Easing the Transition between High School and Postsecondary Education

Dual enrolment programs which link high schools and colleges have increased in recent years in America. They are seen as a way of offering high school students access to coursework not available at high school as well as a way to expose them to the academic demands of college. In addition, dual enrolment programs promote partnerships between the two education sectors. This paper describes dual enrolment programs, the benefits of these programs, two models of dual enrolments, concerns that exist about dual enrolments and outcomes and research findings regarding the academic and postsecondary transition outcomes of participants in dual enrolment programs. The paper concludes with a consideration of whether the federal government, through its legislative and funding tools, promotes the spread of the dual enrolment strategy.

School-Based Career Development: A Synthesis of the Literature

The Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Amendments of 1998 extended support for “career guidance and academic counseling.” A wide variety of such interventions are in existence. Since the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 emphasizes evidence-based education, it is important to examine the research to determine the value of these programs. This synthesis of the research literature, covering meta-analyses and individual studies on comprehensive guidance programs, career courses, counseling interventions and computer-assisted career guidance, finds many benefits to students of career guidance and academic counseling interventions. On a variety of career-related and academic measures, student subjects did have increased outcomes. However, there are also limitations to the interventions and to the research methods studying them. Many of the interventions are short-term, low-dosage activities, with lasting benefits unclear. In addition, much of the research relies on self-reported responses to psychological inventories. Based on the findings of the research review, recommendations are to focus practice and research on middle-school students, and target resources towards ensuring that all middleand high-school students have regular conferences with counselors to discuss their current and future academic programs. Finally, research should focus on exploring the relationships between guidance interventions and positive student behaviors, rather than attitudes.

State Dual Enrollment Policies: Addressing Access and Quality

Policymakers and educators continue to seek options for helping high school students transition successfully into postsecondary education. This interest stems, in part, from evidence that American students are unprepared for college—nearly half of all postsecondary students need at least one remedial course upon entering college (NCES, 2002). A body of research demonstrates that postsecondary success is predicated on a clear understanding of the expectations in college as well as rigorous academic course work in high school (Venezia, Kirst, and Antonio, 2003; Adelman, 1999). This suggests that high schools and colleges should work together to ensure students’ high school experiences are related to college expectations. Dual enrollment programs can do just that: blur the distinction between high school and college by allowing high school students to enroll in college courses and earn college credit. In dual credit programs, the college course yields high school credit as well. Traditionally, dual enrollment has been targeted toward the most academically proficient high school students. Some educators and policymakers now suggest that a broader range of students could benefit from these programs; many more students could achieve at the college level earlier if only they are challenged to do so. And, by exposing high school students to the academic and social demands of college, it is hoped that the need for remediation in college will be reduced (AASCU, 2002; Martinez and Bray, 2002; National Commission on the High School Senior Year, 2001). This Brief, based on a longer report of the same title, examines how – and whether – access to dual enrollment programs is influenced by state policies. The regulatory landscape of dual enrollment is unclear. In many states, these programs have only recently become the subject of legislation. Thus, we summarize dual enrollment legislation in all 50 states, as of the end of 2003. We analyze the implications of state policies for programs and students, in particular the ways that policies can promote or inhibit broad student participation in dual enrollment. It is important to note that local interpretations of state-level legislation may result in programs operating differently than state policy intends. However, we focus on policies as written, rather than program practices.

Student Success Courses in the Community College: Early Enrollment and Educational Outcomes

Using data from the Virginia Community College System and building upon prior Florida-based research, this study examines whether student success course enrollment, as well as student and institutional characteristics, has positive associations with shorter-term student outcomes, including earning any college credits within the first year and persistence into the second year. The present study finds that students who enrolled in a student success course in the first semester were more likely to earn any college-level credits within the first year and were more likely to persist to the second year. The study also finds that students who were referred to developmental education were more likely to earn any college-level credits within the first year if they enrolled in a student success course in their first term.

Dual Enrollment Programs: Easing Transitions from High School to College

Research demonstrates clear economic benefits for students who continue education beyond high school (NCES, 2001). Yet the transition from high school to college is an unsuccessful one for many. Of those high school graduates who entered postsecondary education for the first time in the 1995-1996 school year, 37 percent had left two years later without having earned a degree or certificate. This slippage results from a variety of causes. Some students are unsure how to apply for college or how to pay for it; some are academically unprepared for higher education; some face a frustrating task of balancing school and work. As postsecondary education becomes increasingly necessary to gain access to most reasonably well-paid jobs, the sharp division between high schools and colleges becomes more problematic. The American Youth Policy Forum (2000) and the National Commission on the High School Senior Year (2001) have called for a re-thinking of how students move from secondary to postsecondary education. We briefly review two approaches that attempt to link high schools and colleges—the coordination of high school exit and college entry standards, and Tech Prep. The remainder of this Brief is devoted to a discussion of one rapidly growing and promising initiative, dual enrollment. The strongest predictor of bachelor’s degree completion is the intensity and quality of students’ high school curriculum (Adelman, 1999). The efforts of the last few years towards raising academic standards have achieved some progress in this regard. In 1982, only 14 percent of high school students took the minimum coursework recommended by the 1983 Nation At Risk report (four years of English and three each of science, math, and social studies). In 1994, 51 percent of students did so (Jennings & Rentner, 1998). Enrollments in advanced math, science, and AP classes are higher than they were a decade ago (Jennings & Rentner, 1998). However, school district requirements for graduation still often fall short of those for college entry and success (The Education Trust, 1999). The National Commission on the High School Senior Year (2001) reported that only ten states have aligned their high school graduation and college admissions requirements in English and only two have done so in math. Tech Prep offers students planned career pathways that link high school classes to advanced technical education at colleges. These programs usually begin during the last two years of high school and continue into the first two years of college. Tech Prep has made some progress in formalizing articulation between secondary and postsecondary education (Orr, 1998; 1999; Bailey & Morest, 1998). Its growth, however, has been hampered by the perception that it is a vocational program, while the emphasis of secondary education is increasingly on academics.

Strengthening Transitions by Encouraging Career Pathways: A Look at State Policies and Practices

In order to be economically self-sufficient, youth need some education beyond high school. Nonetheless, persisting in college and earning a credential is difficult for many students. To facilitate students’ transitions into college and careers, policymakers and practitioners are attempting to find ways of connecting formerly separate facets of the education system. One such effort is the establishment of P-16 (preschool through postsecondary) commissions in 30 states (National Governors Association, n.d.), whose goal is to reconceptualize education as a pathway spanning high school, college, and the workplace. Attention is also being paid to the integration of academic and occupational preparation in order to increase the rigor of career and technical education (CTE) and to make stronger connections to high-wage, highgrowth occupations. At the federal level, these goals are encouraged by proposed changes to a key funding stream for career and technical education, the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Act. The federal government seeks vocational education reform in keeping with its emphasis on higher academic standards and accountability. These changes will encourage the refinement of CTE programs in occupations that require postsecondary credentials, to ensure both rigorous academics and a smooth secondary-to-postsecondary transition. Perkins funding may be an impetus for reform, but states must address the ways that their own systems of education support these goals. States need to rethink the structure and focus of the educational pipeline, including the relationships between high schools and colleges, academic and applied courses, and educational credentials and the labor market. This Brief summarizes a report prepared to assist the U.S. Department of Education’s College and Career Transitions Initiative (CCTI). The report presents a sample of state-level policies and legislation that support the implementation of career pathways and other strategies that facilitate educational and employment transitions. Data gathering for the investigation consisted of interviews with CCTI site contacts and other experts in education and workforce development, and web searches for information on legislation and regulation pertaining to career pathways.

They Never Told Me What to Expect, So I Didn't Know What to Do: Defining and Clarifying the Role of a Community College Student

Increasing the number of young people who attain postsecondary credentials has become one of the primary educational objectives of the 2010s. While low college success rates are typically linked to students’ lack of academic preparation for college and their subsequent need for developmental or remedial instruction, research suggests that even many students who are deemed “college-ready” by virtue of their placement test scores or completion of developmental coursework still do not earn a credential. This paper builds on previous work arguing that community college success is dependent not only upon academic preparation but also upon a host of important skills, attitudes, and behaviors that are often left unspoken. Drawing on role theory and on a qualitative study conducted at three community colleges, this paper aims to clarify the role of community college student and the components of that role that must be enacted for students to be successful. Using data from interviews at the study sites, we provide a concrete, actionable description of the community college student role. We also present a framework that practitioners can use to help students learn how to be successful community college students.