Serving the Non-traditional Student Population: Accelerated Initiatives that Increase Retention and Completion
The presentation delivers information about the structure and implementation of non-traditional and accelerated programs at a virtual campus and how the intentional design elements ensures quality teaching and learning. In the last five years, non-traditional students have become a majority in many educational institutions in the United States and around the world. This is the new norm and requires a different approach to satisfy students’ educational needs. Program design must be innovative, flexible and on-demand as well as affordable. In addition, student services must be tailored to accommodate busy life style schedules. Established in 2014, TCC Connect Campus is the newest and fastest growing campus of Tarrant County College District and delivers eLearning and accelerated Weekend College programs to over 20,000 students. The session discusses the campus design to meet the need of the non-traditional student
via eLearning and accelerated programs, Competency-Based Education, and degree pathways that afford students the opportunity to complete an associate degree in 18 months or less, which also addresses student retention and completion deficiencies. The objective of this presentation is to propose TCC Connect Campus’ model as a cutting-edge option for non-traditional students pursuing an associate degree.
Technologies
PowerPoint
Explain project results
In the last decade the number of non-traditional students has increased not only in number but also in proportion to traditional students at higher education institutions, thus requiring swift responses to their needs. They are adults, juggle multiple jobs/responsibilities, and many have postponed education and do not have time to attend a traditional educational program. A plan was developed to accommodate this student population within the Tarrant County College District (TCCD), which began in 2014 with the inception of TCC Connect Campus. The Campus offers eLearning programs, Weekend College and recently embarked on several accelerated initiatives to increase completion and student success. These efforts have resulted in 67.9% student success rate among all the offerings. TCCD is a Hispanic Serving Institution and within three years of operation, at present time, 26% of the enrollments of TCC Connect Campus are students of Hispanic descent.
Why it should be considered best practice?
In response to educational, industry, government needs and mandates these initiatives help students achieve their educational goals quicker. Higher education institutions have struggled with student retention, enrollment figures, funding and the integration of technology. Each of these components provides an area of opportunity that institutions can leverage to become better at what they do; teaching and learning. In the state of Texas, the legislature implemented two important measures to improve graduation rates: 1) Performance Based Funding by enacting House Bill 9 (Texas Legislature, 2011) and 2) Texas 60×30 initiative (Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, 2015). The combination of these strategies and initiatives paired with dedicated student services/support permits to classify TCC Connect Campus, Tarrant County College District as a direct contributor to the allocation provided to the state of Texas on the 60×30 plan as students graduate in less time, with less debt and integrate quickly to the workforce.
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