When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, there was a decline in enrollment at community colleges and technical colleges. But it also spurred schools to innovate to higher serve students who would otherwise fall through the cracks. Xueli Wang, a professor of upper education on the University of Wisconsin-Madison, summarizes among the steps community colleges have taken in her newly published book: “Keeping the promise: Equity-driven educational change and innovation at community colleges and universities of applied sciences.” In the next questions and answers she goes into some examples.
How has the pandemic modified community colleges and technical colleges?
The pandemic caused schools to handle some long-standing challenges. Among other things, they began forming recent partnerships with four-year colleges and universities.
In the state of Wisconsin, for instance, the Wisconsin Technical College System and the University of Wisconsin System joined forces in 2021 to create this Universal Credit Transfer Agreement. The agreement describes a core set of courses – as much as 72 credits – that might be transferred throughout the two systems. This will make it easier for college kids, especially those that are unsure what they need to check, to change from one system to the opposite or to take courses in each systems, depending on what they need. Before the pandemic, the systems were considered two separate systems with few transfer options between them.
The transfer agreement got here about partially due to the regular decline in enrollment over time, which reached a breaking point when the pandemic hit and enrollment for the Wisconsin Technical College System fell 10% about 5% for the University of Wisconsin system.
This partnership was also facilitated partially by our shared give attention to student well-being. As one educator described it, “This is the time to support students in their educational goals.” Previously, she said, administrators and educators within the two systems viewed students as customers of 1 system or the opposite. Now, she says, they’ve a greater sense of collective responsibility to serve.
What other innovations were there?
Among probably the most notable are efforts to create more holistic supports that address students' diverse challenges. These can include informational, financial and private challenges.
A superb example of that is the Student Resource Center at a community college in North Carolina. As with all the colleges on this book, I keep the identity of the college anonymous as a part of the research protocol. Founded by a team of officials from various departments (e.g., financial aid, admissions, and advising), the middle's purpose is to offer students with greater access to support services. The center is led by a vp and chief student services officer.
The center offers all the pieces students need in a single place: a library, bookstore, food bank, financial aid counseling, course advising, admissions and registration. The center also has workstations where staff can connect with students online or in person and guide them to the support they need.
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This innovation allowed the school to direct more students to nearby resources, even those that most certainly wouldn’t seek help.
What is probably the most interesting story you found?
It would must be the Science Pathway Program at Midwest Technical College – a pseudonym for one in every of the colleges I mention in my book.
It was a program that promoted the concept that education just isn’t a transaction but goals to develop the entire person. Yes, they prepare students for the world of labor, but additionally they teach them find out how to apply the science they learn of their on a regular basis lives. For example, students can apply their scientific knowledge to other courses through the search and interpretation of data and recognize the influence of science on decision-making in areas comparable to politics, economics and society.
To prepare students for employment, instructors work with industry partners so that they are ready for careers comparable to laboratory technicians. You may also prepare for a profession in quality assurance in food, agriculture, chemical production, and other fields.
As far as training is worried, students take the topics Organic Chemistry I and II. Completing these courses enables students to enter advanced courses within the fundamental subjects of biology, chemistry, environment and other natural sciences. When students complete this system, they will transfer to one in every of the state's three public four-year institutions to earn their bachelor's degree. Or they will enter the job market directly.
The program has above-average completion rates in comparison with other programs. Perhaps more importantly, graduates have a 100% employment rate of their field of study.
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