Glendale
Community College
NCA
Self-Study Report, January 2002
Additional Programs—Collaborative Initiatives
Student Success Council
The Student
Success Council was originally formed to improve communication among the
student services managers who reported to different deans. Currently, the Council is co-chaired by
the Senior Associate Deans of Enrollment Services and Student Life. Its purpose is to promote collaborative
partnerships between instruction and services that will improve retention.
College Technology Committee/Student Services Administrative Subcommittee (CTC/SSAS)
In Spring 2000, a
subcommittee of the College Technology Committee (CTC) the Student Services
Administrative Subcommittee (SSAS) was
formed to examine the technology needs of student and administrative services
and to define ways to use technology to improve services to students.
Multiple Intelligences/Learning for Understanding
The Multiple
Intelligence Learning for Understanding Project (MI/LFU Project) allows and
encourages students who enroll in MI/LFU course sections to explore different approaches
to learning academic material in a variety of disciplines. Through “performances of
understanding” called “Learning Options” (which use one or
more of the intelligences identified by its developer Dr. Howard Gardner),
students are encouraged to become accountable for their own learning and
behavior.
Learning Communities
Learning-community
classes offer a holistic approach to education in which curriculum and pedagogy
are restructured by intentionally linking together courses and course work to provide
greater curriculum coherence and opportunities for increased interaction
between students and faculty.
Learning communities restructure the curriculum, address pedagogical
issues, and foster collaboration and community. In traditional classrooms, faculty teach individual courses
to separate sets of students, and students experience these courses in
unrelated fragments. By pairing or
clustering courses, both faculty and students experience a more coherent and
enriched teaching and learning environment.
Career Development Enrollment Process Team
Representatives
from Career Services, Career Counseling, Academic Advisement, and Enrollment
Services began meeting in Spring 2000 to design ways to engage undecided
students in activities that lead to career choices and better retention.
Go-No-Go Committee
Representatives
from Department Chair Council, Dean of Instruction, and Enrollment Services
began meeting Spring 2000 to recommend processes that would lead to reducing
the number of cancelled classes, early and better schedule building, and
improved student retention.
Retention Subcommittee
The Retention
Subcommittee (part of the Student Success Council) was charged with developing
a College-wide plan to improve student retention. The Committee began meeting in Fall 1999 and developed a
three-year plan.
Enrollment Services Leadership Team
Representatives
from enrollment-related services including Testing Services, Admission, Records
and Registration, Academic Advisement, Cashier, Financial Aid, Multicultural
Affairs, Marketing, and International Students Program meet bi-weekly to
evaluate process and discuss ways to improve services to students. Joint staff
meetings, cross-training and team-building sessions, and improved processes
across departments are outcomes of collaborative efforts.
Educational Services Management Team
The Educational
Services Team, led by the Dean of Educational Services, meets monthly to
evaluate processes and to discuss ways to improve services to students. The Team consists of the managers of
various student services areas.
Marketing Committee
Representatives
from instructional and service departments advise on marketing strategies and
initiatives.
Achievements since 1992
· A Student Services Model that includes cross-functional
teams and services was used as a basis for planning and designing the Student
Services remodeling and building project
· Successful budget requests for document
imaging, mentoring program, and supplemental instruction submitted by the
Student Success Council
· College-wide student satisfaction and
institutional priorities surveys, retention study, and a student-services
subcommittee of the College Technology Committee (CTC/SSAS), which has
facilitated communication among Instructional Technology and student service
areas
· Go-No-Go Committee recommendations for
timelines and planning reports to assist department chairs in monitoring
enrollment in classes and making earlier cancellation decisions, which helps
them plan more effective course schedules
· Development of a College Retention Plan by
the Student Success Council (based on a Noel-Levitz campus survey)
· Established Learning Community and Multiple
Intelligences teaching and learning opportunities
· A “Choosing A Career” brochure
and training module developed through collaboration of the Career Services,
Counseling Services, Enrollment Services, and Academic Advisement areas
· Hiring and functional cross-training
conducted by the Enrollment Services Team for staff from Admissions, Records
and Registration, Academic Advisement, Cashier, Financial Aid, Multicultural
Affairs, International Students Program, and Testing Services for
implementation of one-stop services (EC)
Team Analysis
Team 9 conducted
an initial analysis of factors likely influencing areas of improvement and
their relationship to the measures of success, which included cost
effectiveness, increased retention, and increased student satisfaction with
services. Institutional support of
collaborative initiatives, opportunities to work with employees across the
campus, and reduction of “turf issues” were seen as strengths, but
the limited awareness of collaborative initiatives and a lack of money, time,
and space were seen as weaknesses.
Collaboration does provide an opportunity to optimize the
College’s use of human, financial, and physical resources.
Areas for Improvement
· Need for change-management support to help
employees adjust to new/changed responsibilities related to the Student
Services Model
· Need to expand technological support to implement
initiatives in a timely and comprehensive manner
· Increased staff and budgets to carry out
initiatives
Recommendations
· Strengthen collaboration between
instruction and student services
· Improve retention support systems
· Continue encouraging technology use as a
tool to enable students to be self-directed and to take responsibility for
their decisions
· Continue to implement the
student-development and one-stop services model
· Use brochures to promote services that
assist students in defining and selecting a career
· Increase awareness and participation
through improved communication
· Allocate additional fiscal resources
· Research examples of collaboration at other
colleges and emphasize benefits
· Increase amount of public spaces
· Evaluate/assess collaborative efforts
· Fund pilot collaborative initiatives
Content Area Validation
Collaboration
across departments is increasing and necessary as services become more
integrated in support of the one-stop learner-centered seamless services.
Although time consuming, services to students improve through
collaboration. Collaborative
instructional initiatives have provided faculty and students with enhanced
learning opportunities.
Additional Programs—Community Partnerships
Educational Partnerships
Overall,
partnerships demonstrate the College’s commitment to meet education
needs. Partnership efforts are
created in response to a need or interest expressed by members of the local
community. Partnerships and
academic or economic development initiatives are associated with an academic
department, which in turn is administered by the Dean of Instruction, or, in
some cases, the Dean of Educational Services.
Several programs
have been initiated to encourage high-school students not only to stay in
school, but also to consider and work toward a college degree while still in
high school. Among these programs
are ACE Plus (Achieving a College Education Plus) and the Dysart Project. ACE Plus has been discussed earlier in
this report.
Two off-campus
sites offer ESL and/or developmental classes. The Dysart Project has provided ESL classes for parents of
elementary school children since January 1995. GCC North offers ENG071 and RDG091. The English/Reading faculty at GCC
oversees the curriculum and Dysart School District provides classroom
space. An even larger group of
students has been reached through an online ENG071 initiated in Fall 2001.
GCC’s
partnership with ASU West established the UCC in 1997-98. The Center offers lower-division GCC
credit courses, mainly those that are a part of the Arizona General Education
Core. For 2000-01, the UCC had
course enrollments of 2,672 and a headcount of 1,786 students.
GCC, ASU West, and
DVUSD #97 cooperated to create GCC North, which opened in Fall 2000, with more
than 900 students. DVUSD #97
operates the Northwest Education Center at GCC North, a junior- and
senior-level high school for 150 students who take a regular high-school
curriculum, as well as dual-enrollment courses. For 2000-01, the enrollment at GCC North was 2,833 with a
headcount of 2,007 students.
GCC has
dual-enrollment partnerships with 17 local high schools. The dual-enrollment program, begun in
1998-99, now involves 50 high-school teachers teaching 200 college-level
courses to about 1,500 high school students. For 2000-01, the dual enrollment numbers were 4,778 with a
headcount of 1,500.
Business Partnerships
GCC regularly
partners with a variety of businesses.
The Institute for Business, Industry, and Technology (The Institute) is a GCC Department that provides
businesses, industry, and government agencies, such as GM, A/C Delco and Ford
with quality customized, flexible, and affordable technician-training
programs. Until recently, Choice
Hotels and the College partnered to offer business and training opportunities
for employees, while offering student employment. The Choice partnership is being replaced by a new
partnership with Best Western.
John Deere also has a training facility at GCC. The Institute offers both credit and non-credit classes
focusing on technical, as well as communication and management skills. From July 1, 1999 to June 30, 2000, The
Institute conducted 13
programs and served 2,700 students.
Achievements since 1992
· Automotive partnerships increased student
enrollment, updated equipment, and added the Chrysler (CAP) Program to
complement the existing GM (ASEP) and Ford (ASSET) automotive technician AAS
degree programs
· The Semiconductor Industry/Education
Partnership was developed to work toward increasing the awareness of career
opportunities in the Semiconductor Industry. This multimember partnership involves companies such as
Intel, Motorola, Sitix, Medtronics, and others in cooperation with the
Technology Systems Department
· Microsoft and GCC jointly offer
“Microsoft Certified Professional” certificates to their
employees. The company provides
training materials, and the College provides the facilities and faculty for
more than 170 students
· The CISCO and Oracle certified programs
incorporate CISCO- and Oracle-approved coursework and training materials for
GCC students and faculty. These
graduates are certified to provide service to Internet industry customers
· The expansion of Business/Technology
Partnerships to include Microsoft, Oracle, and CISCO has updated the
curriculum, expanded student and faculty numbers, and allowed replacement of
outdated equipment
· John Deere and Company partners with GCC to
train their regional managers who then train the rest of the company’s
workforce. Two buildings, each
housing 4 classrooms, have been constructed on GCC property for Deere’s
use. About 300 hundred students
are served annually from January to May during John Deere’s cycle. The College uses the classrooms during
the remainder of the year. John
Deere and Company built a second four-classroom building for our combined
operations; outdoor covered teaching areas have been added to the Deere
complex. GCC’s agribusiness
and horticulture classes are allowed to use these facilities when not in use by
John Deere
· The Police Academy Partnership is supported
by local and state law-enforcement agencies. The program has been expanded to include open-enrollment
students who pass the screening requirements. Its primary goal is to provide training for reserve police
officers; nearly 70 % of GCC graduates have been hired as full-time peace
officers. The towns of Buckeye,
Glendale, Peoria, and El Mirage, as well as the Maricopa Sheriff’s Office
and the Arizona Department of Corrections, are actively involved in this
program with 26 students currently enrolled
· The Fire Academy Partnership, created to
prepare entry-level and advanced-level preparation for required examinations,
is supported by an even greater number of communities and has doubled in size
over the past 10 years. This
partnership permits the towns of Avondale, El Mirage, Phoenix, Sun City, and
others to send their department personnel to GCC’s Fire Academy for
up-to-date training. Palo Verde
Nuclear Power Plant, Rural-Metro, and Luke Air Force Base also
participate. More than 260
students are currently enrolled
· Completion of the new GCC/City of Glendale
Fire Station provided access to new equipment and classrooms for GCC fire
science and emergency technology students
· The Paramedic Program is certified by the
Arizona Department of Health Services Bureau of Emergency Medical Services and
averages 120 students per year.
Partnership expansion in the Paramedic Program has resulted in more
class offerings for working students, development of a certification and an AAS
Degree program, and continuing education and re-certification classes
· The Paramedic Program Partnership involves
large government-based operations, such as the Phoenix Police Department and
the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office. Smaller civil and private departments, such as those from
Prescott and Wickenburg, and Professional Medical Transport take advantage of
training partnerships
· ACE Plus has a long list of
accomplishments. The student
headcount has doubled, the list of feeder schools nearly doubled, and over 97%
of ACE Plus students graduate from high school. Their average grade point is 3.2 at GCC when they complete
the ACE Plus program
· The Dysart Project is now funded through
the Opportunity Scholarship Fund, District monies established for at-risk and
non-traditional students
· The UCC was established in 1997-98 to
provide GCC classes at ASU West; currently, 90 sections represent 20 prefixes
and 16 disciplines
· GCC North began offering classes in August
2000 with an enrollment of more than 900 students and more than 30 subject
offerings, which will grow as demand increases owing to the extensive growth in
that area
· Dual enrollment in 17 local area high
schools presently offers 200 sections to 1,500 students taught by 50 high
school teachers
· The Institute has added classes on Motorcycle Safety,
Successful Money Management, and Commercial Tractor/Trailer Driving, as well as
classes for individuals re-entering the workforce and those who need to update
business, office, and computer skills; some can be taken for credit or
non-credit
· Created the early childhood education Head
Start, and La Petite Academy
childcare organization partnership to provide on-site GCC classes for childcare
providers
Team Analysis
Team 11 conducted
an initial analysis of factors likely influencing the areas for improvement and
their relationship to the measures of success, which included reviewing,
evaluating, and updating partnerships on an annual basis; cost-effectiveness;
and student recruitment. While
competition from partnerships at other institutions, e.g., other MCCCD colleges
and ASU West, may pose a threat to enrollment, partnerships do allow the
College to say abreast of changing technologies and provide an opportunity to
offer students current information.
Areas for Improvement
· Lack of an adequate number of classrooms at
certain times
· Recruitment of qualified adjunct faculty
· Money for program development
· ASU West expanding to a four-year
institution in Fall 2001 may have a significant impact on GCC’s student
population
· Finding land for a practice shooting range
within a reasonable distance for the Police Academy in a growing community
Recommendations
· An educational partnership with United
States Automobile Association
(USAA) is being
planned and involves providing general-education coursework to USAA employees
· Expand partnerships to include other
educational institutions
· Create promotional materials to be
distributed to new businesses, perhaps through the “Welcome Wagon”
format
· Offer Staff/Faculty incentives to
create/maintain partnerships
· Encourage alumni to develop partnerships
· Foster community awareness of existing
partnerships
· Create continuing-education partnerships
Content Area Validation
Providing
effective delivery of education to our community is an important element of our
College mission. It is anticipated
that enhancement of community partnerships, especially with other educational
institutions and business and industry in our area, will continue. Of particular importance are
relationships with USAA, ASU West, and local high schools.
Additional Programs—Non-credit Offerings
GCC offers many
opportunities for personal growth, including non-credit classes offered to the
general public as “leisure-learning” classes. Diverse Special Interest classes are
designed for personal development, enrichment, and interest, with subjects
ranging from Arts and Crafts to Business and Finance to Health and
Fitness. The classes, which
involved 13,778 students in 2000-01, are proposed and taught by people who have
expertise in a particular subject unavailable in academic programs. Some, such as aerobics, have generated
so much interest that when the content is appropriate, these classes have been
added to the MCCCD coursebank.
More than 100 classes per semester are offered in the current Special
Interest Program Catalog, published each semester. Classes such as Bass Fishing in Arizona, Origami, Dog
Obedience Training, and Country Swing Dance contribute to this diverse
curriculum. The Program has been
self-supporting for 15 years.
Achievements since 1992
· The summer “Reading Clinic” is
available for children and adults
· “Masterminds,” a program for
gifted children, is the only one of its kind offered in the West Valley
Team Analysis
Team 7 conducted an
initial analysis of factors likely influencing the areas for improvement and
their relationship to the measures of success, which included student
satisfaction with courses, repeat enrollment, and unsolicited positive
feedback. Flexibility in scheduling
non-credit classes and availability of endless resources (people/curriculum)
were deemed strengths, but increasing competition was determined a threat. While a broad availability of teachers
for non-credit topics and population growth were seen as opportunities and
suggest long-term viability, due to the 100% self-supporting nature of
non-credit programs, adequate financial resources remain a continual problem
and was determined a weakness. Due
to flexible scheduling, a wide variety of curricula, and a tremendous pool of
highly qualified instructors, student satisfaction remains high. The main issue is the proliferation of
highly marketed and/or lower-cost non-GCC non-credit courses. Unless addressed, possibly with
additional personnel and/or additional funding, non-credit programs are at risk
in today's abundant community education market.
Areas for Improvement
· Not funded by the College, non-credit
offerings should be included in the normal budget request process
· Adequate classroom space
Recommendations
· Continue to seek ways to utilize facilities
during campus off-hours/days
· Pursue opportunities to share resources and
facilities
· Improve efforts to publicize non-credit
programs to expanding service areas
· Explore opportunities to develop niche
markets based on hiring staff with specific expertise
· Consider expanding the Special Interest
Class Program into other locations where a greater population could benefit
· Continue to define a process and product
for Strategic Planning
Content Area Validation
The non-credit programs were originally created as self-supporting
classes and that is still the expectation. The fact is that a number of other government and private
organizations have begun to offer an increasing number of non-credit course
that compete directly with many GCC non-credit classes. The Special Interest Class Program
needs to request and justify the need for College operational funding through
the College budget development process.
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Last revised 1/8/02. Direct feedback to l.hawbaker@gcmail.maricopa.edu. See Legal Disclaimer.