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Building Movements Scaling proven ideas across the nation
Initiatives
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Transforming Institutions Bringing leaders together to redesign systems
Momentum is about helping students gain and sustain critical progress at the beginning of their college journey. When students are successful early on, they’re more likely to reach the finish line. Data tells us the best way to create that momentum is to remove unnecessary barriers and ensure students hit essential milestones like completing gateway courses and accumulating credits as soon as possible.
Problem
Students often face structural challenges that impede their progress at the start: Many colleges refuse to give students credit for prior learning, others offer developmental-education sequences that are poorly designed, and some colleges simply fail to tell students how many credit hours they need each term to graduate on time. In every case, student-centered institutions should do all they can to give students a solid start that dramatically increases their odds of success.
$150k
cost for each additional year spent in college beyond on-time graduation
11%
of high school students without dual enrollment credits earn a bachelor's degree compared to 21% of those with credits
71%
of first time Black students are enrolled in remediation compared to 54% of their White peers
Strategies
Credit for Competency
Recognize the prior learning, skills, and knowledge that students possess and establish mechanisms to award appropriate credits.
Multiple Measures
Consider a variety of placement options that include high school grade point average to provide more ways for students to take a college-level class in their first semester.
Corequisite Support
Design structures and pedagogical approaches for students needing or requesting additional support to succeed in college-level foundational math and English courses that allow students to complete requirements in a single academic term.
Dual Enrollment
Provide high school students opportunities to take college classes while they are still in high school so they can get an early start on college.
15 to Finish/Stay on Track
Invest in coordinated communications efforts and structural solutions to match student credit loads with the credits needed for on-time graduation for both part-time and full-time students.
The PLA Boost
This report describes the adult student’s experience with prior learning assessment (PLA) using student record data from 72 degreegranting postsecondary institutions in the United States.
Ten Standards for Assessing Learning
CAEL provides ten standards to guide efforts to assess learning that happens both inside and outside the classroom.
National Conference of State Legislatures: Credit for Prior Learning
State policies for credit for prior learning create consistency among various postsecondary institutions and help students transfer between schools and programs within the state.
No Room for Doubt: Moving Corequisite from Idea to Imperative
A decade of data on the effectiveness of the corequisite model and new insights on how to implement and scale.
Core Principles for Transforming Remediation Within a Comprehensive STUDENT SUCCESS STRATEGY
7 core principals informed by researchers, practitioners, policy experts, advocacy organizations, and philanthropies active in the field.
Unlocking Potential: A State Policy Roadmap for Equity and Quality in College in High School Programs
Roadmap for state policy to drive meaningful change in access, equity, and quality for college in high school programs.
15 to Finish Materials
Designs - including posters, presentations and ads - that can be used for a 15 to Finish campaign.
Even One Semester: Full-Time Enrollment and Student Success
Center for Community College Student Engagement - Even one semester of full-time enrollment can improve engagement and outcomes for students.
How to Encourage College Summer Enrollment: Final Lessons from the EASE Project
Despite the benefits of taking summer courses, most community college students do not do so. MDRC’s Encouraging Additional Summer Enrollment (EASE) study used behavioral insights and a financial incentive with the goal of boosting enrollment rates.
Alliance Highlights
Learn from CCA's Content Experts
CCA has connections to dozens of higher-ed professionals with experience shaping policy, perspective, and practice for the benefit of their states, institutions—and students.
