Jean Petty started her community college education right out of high school and had no idea how to “do college.” She walked into the first college she attended not knowing where to start, and no one was very helpful in getting her enrolled and on a pathway. She repeated this experience at three different community colleges over three years. It was not until she went to Orange Coast College in California when that changed.
At Orange Coast, a staff member greeted her: “I am so glad you are here!” When Petty responded, “But you don’t know who I am,” the staff member responded, “I do, you are a student here!”
That interaction changed her life, said Petty, who now holds a master’s degree. It gave her the confidence to pursue her education because someone at the college cared about her.
Dr. Brad Phillips
Many community college students have Petty’s experience. They are afraid to go to college, even before the first day. The application processes are daunting. Potential students are often treated as a number, not a person. Their interactions with staff, especially during the busy enrollment process and the first couple of weeks of attendance, are primarily transactional, not relational. This has a tremendous impact on who stays and goes during the first couple weeks of class.
We’ve developed two different evidence-based frameworks to address this lack of connection early in community college students’ careers: Caring Campus at the Institute for Evidence-Based Change (IEBC), where Petty is a coach, and the Ask-Connect-Inspire-Plan (ACIP) framework at the Community College Research Center. Though they emerged separately, we believe they can work together to improve students’ early onboarding experiences, connect them to their college early, and boost their outcomes.
Research by the Community College Research Center (CCRC) indicates that one reason so many community college students drop out early on is that they are not helped to explore their interests and options and develop an educational plan aligned with their strengths and aspirations. Instead, new student orientation, advising, and other supports are focused on assessing whether students need remediation, introducing students to the college, and helping them schedule their first-term courses. And many of these supports are optional.
