In 1984, a partnership was developed between San Juan College (SJC) and the Public Service Company of New Mexico's (PNM) San Juan Generating Plant. An agreement was reached to promote training through a planned educational experience in which SJC awarded credit for courses taught by PNM training personnel. The program began in response to the need…

A study was conducted at Oregon's Mount Hood Community College (MHCC) to determine student outcomes for 1994-1996. Data were collected from state employment records for graduates from 1994-95, follow-up surveys of 1993-94 graduates and completers, surveys of former MHCC students who transferred to state system of higher education institutions, and…

With faculty negotiations becoming legal in more states, it is not uncommon to find faculty groups wanting to include the faculty evaluation system as an item to be negotiated. While some courts suggest that negotiating evaluation is against public policy, it is, nevertheless, being negotiated in a significant number of contracts. In 1991, a…

Program and Service Review (PSR) at Pima Community College in Arizona is a mechanism to provide continuous comprehensive evaluation and improvement of instructional programs and those support functions that directly serve students. The PSR's original statement of philosophy stresses the use of qualitative and quantitative measures to identify how…

As part of a program of graduate follow-up studies, Macomb Community College (MCC), in Michigan, regularly conducts surveys of graduates or certificate earners 1, 3, and 5 years after their departure from the college. In September 1993, surveys were mailed to 3,168 alumni from the class of 1992-93 requesting information on graduate…

For over 15 years, the Dean for Educational Services at Jefferson Community College (New York) has regularly identified and written to students whose mid-term grades indicated that they were in potential academic jeopardy. During fall 1988, a study was conducted to measure the effect of this intervention strategy on grades and persistence. Of the…

Advocates collecting student background, needs, and goals data to match students with appropriate programs and thereby counteract the high dropout rate. Uses medical analogies, in which each case is "curable," but only after assessing all relevant information. Descries the lack of dropout research and suggests a prescriptive admissions policy. (JG)

A study examined factors related to the high failure rate of architectural students at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on an essay writing task designed to show proficiency in writing before gaining junior standing. Students become eligible to write the essay by getting a score of 65 or better on the Wisconsin English Placement Test (WEPT)…

Reconstructs the process through which a student becomes familiar with new subject matters and unfamiliar rhetorical and linguistic conventions. Describes one writer's attempt to achieve "specialized disciplinary literacy." Suggests the writer must be able to integrate his/her knowledge of appropriate discourse conventions with a developing…

This staff development module is part of one of three groups of career guidance modules developed, field-tested, and revised by a six-state consortium coordinated by the American Institutes for Research. This module is designed for guidance personnel who are responsible for career resource centers in secondary schools and community colleges. The…

Each year, Onondaga Community College (OCC) undertakes a follow-up survey of graduates to gather data on their experiences at OCC and identify demographic profiles in education and work-related trends. For the class of 1994, surveys were received from 568 of the 1,098 graduates receiving degrees or certificates, while findings were compared to…

Student development leaders must identify what of importance and value should be retained from past approaches to student services delivery and what approaches should be discarded. To accomplish this, community colleges must address certain key internal student development issues: (1) the changing nature of the student body (which is characterized…

Each of the many methods or approaches to assessing student learning is based on a clear understanding of validity, reliability, course objectives, the advantages and disadvantages of different evaluation formats, and the ways assessment data will be used to improve instruction. (Author/MSE)

In 1990, a survey was conducted of alumni of the regional campuses (RC's) of Kent State University who received an associate degree in 1987, 1988, or 1989. Surveys were mailed to all 1,189 alumni, requesting information on their demographic characteristics, goals, education and employment experience, and satisfaction with the programs and services…

Since 1988, Massachusetts' Massasoit Community College has offered two alternative introductory algebra courses for students receiving low scores on mathematics admission tests. One alternative course provides 5 hours of instruction per week, rather than the 3 hours per week in the traditional course, while the other segments the traditional…