College Connection Northeast Texas College March 6 2008

College Connection Northeast Texas College March 6, 2008

Presenter Mary Hensley, Ed. D. Vice President, College Support Systems and ISD Relations mhensley@austincc. edu 512 -223 -7618

Agenda Closing the Gaps Overview College Connection How It Works Program Results Program Recognition State and National Interest in Expansion College Connection How To Start College Connection Guiding Principles Common Challenges Questions and Answers

Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Strategic Plan “Closing the Gaps” Overview

Closing the Gaps in Participation Closing the Gaps warns that if more Texans do not receive college degrees by 2030, the State could lose up to $40 billion in annual household income. The goal is to increase student enrollment in higher education by 630, 000 by 2015. Most students will elect to start at a community college. Northeast Texas Community College expects over 781 more students by 2015. Source: http: //www. thecb. state. tx. us/Closingthe. Gaps/ctgtargets_pdf. cfm? Goal=1

College Connection Overview

Education Beyond High School Increases earning potential and employment opportunities U. S. Department of Education

Learn to Earn Source: Postsecondary Education OPPORTUNITY

Excuses For Not Continuing Your Education No one in my family has ever gone to college. I’ve been in school for 12 years. That’s enough! I just want a good job. I can’t afford it. I don’t know what I want to do with my life. College is too hard. I won’t fit in. I don’t know how to apply or where I want to go. Source: Adapted from The College Board’s “Seven Excuses Not to Go to College and Why They’re Lame”

Improving High School to College Transitions Provide admission and pre-enrollment services to seniors on their school campuses Create an expectation that “College is in everyone’s future. ” Increase percentage of high school seniors who enter college after high school graduation.

Northeast Texas Community College Service Area College Transition Rates Texas High School Graduates from FY 2006 Enrolled in Texas Higher Education Fall 2006 School District Chapel Hill Total High School Graduates Students Enrolled in Texas Universities Students Enrolled in Texas 2 -year Colleges Students Not Located in Texas Higher Education * 155 26 17% 50 32% 79 51% Como-Pickton 49 6 12% 11 23% 32 65% Daingerfield-Lone Star 76 13 17% 27 36% 36 47% Harmony 66 15 23% 21 32% 30 45% Hughes Springs 83 14 17% 29 35% 40 48% Mount Pleasant 295 23 8% 111 38% 161 54% *Includes students who were not enrolled in Texas colleges or universities in the year immediately following graduation, as well as students who were enrolled out-of-state. **Districts with less than 25 graduates are not included in this report. Source: http: //www. thecb. state. tx. us/Reports/PDF/1324. PDF

Northeast Texas Community College Service Area College Transition Rates Texas High School Graduates from FY 2006 Enrolled in Texas Higher Education Fall 2006 School District Mount Vernon Total High School Graduates Students Enrolled in Texas Universities Students Enrolled in Texas 2 -year Colleges Students Not Located in Texas Higher Education * 107 20 19% 37 34% 50 47% 65 11 17% 22 34% 32 49% Pittsburg 103 11 11% 44 43% 48 46% Winnsboro 101 18 18% 26 25% 57 57% 1, 100 157 14% 378 34% 565 52% Pewitt Total *Includes students who were not enrolled in Texas colleges or universities in the year immediately following graduation, as well as students who were enrolled out-of-state. **Districts with less than 25 graduates are not included in this report. Source: http: //www. thecb. state. tx. us/Reports/PDF/1324. PDF

College Connection How It Works

College Connection Program Many high school students find the college enrollment process intimidating. Austin Community College provides handson, one-on-one support to assist every student through each step of the college admissions process. During graduation ceremonies, high school graduating seniors receive acceptance letters to Austin Community College.

Students Receive Services at the High School: Required • • • Admission application ASSET or COMPASS Pre-advising Academic advising Graduation letter Recommended • Senior presentation • Financial aid application Optional • • • Student life info Teleconference Campus tours Registration Other

College Connection Activity Grid Sample ISD District Lead: Sandra Dowdy, Assistant Superintendent, 512 -386 -3040, sdowdy@del-valle. k 12. tx. us Del Valle HS Lead: Jean Mac. Innis, Principal, 512 -386 -3210, jmacinnis@del-valle. k 12. tx. us Admin. Assistant: Nadene Norwood, 512 -386 -3211, nadene. norwood@del-valle. k 12. tx. us ACC District Lead: Mary Hensley, 223 -7618, mhensley@austincc. edu Exec. Assistant: Esther Buzard, 223 -7618, ebuzard@austincc. edu College Connection Lead: Luanne Preston, 223 -7354, luanne@austincc. edu Admin. Assistant: Laurie Clark, 223 -7354, lclark 2@austincc. edu Senior Count: 400 Activity Date Time Location Equipment Communication Del Valle HS Contact (*Lead Contact) name@del-valle. k 12. tx. us ACC District Contact (*Lead Contact) name@austincc. edu High School Planning Committee Meeting August 9, 2007 2: 00 p. m. – 3: 00 p. m. Del Valle Admin 5301 Ross Road Del Valle, TX • E-mail • Announcement *Jean Mac. Innis Jmacinnis *Luanne Preston luanne College Connection Agreement Prior to beginning Fall semester *Sandra Dowdy Sdowdy *Luanne Preston luanne Senior Presentation Kickoff Activity September 13, 2007 10: 30 a. m. – 11: 30 a. m. Auditorium *Sarah Mabry Sarah. mabry *Ashley Williams awillia 4 Admissions Application October 10, 2007 8: 30 a. m. – 4: 00 p. m. Rooms A 205, C 216, D 130, D 208 *Sarah Mabry Sarah. mabry *Pat Colunga pcolunga Make-Up Day • Notice in parent newsletter • Notice on high school website • Non-citizen students must obtain alternate ID before completing application SHADE/BOLD – Required College Connection Activities

Lifetime Acceptance “at ACC” Application discarded never Provide a permanent college home Students come to ACC: ◦ Full-time ◦ Part-time ◦ In Summer for transfer ◦ After military service ◦ After career changes ◦ Co-enroll while attending 4 -year institution

Lifetime Acceptance “at ACC” Cohorts can be tracked by semester of entry Longitudinal collected for ◦ Retention ◦ Completion ◦ Success data

Program Results

College Connection School Districts 2003 -04 Year 1 2004 -05 Year 2 2005 -06 Year 3 2006 -07 Year 4 San Marcos Austin Bastrop Del Valle Leander Hays San Marcos Leander Austin Bastrop Blanco Del Valle Elgin Fredericksburg Harper Hays Jarrell Johnson City Lago Vista Leander Liberty Hill Lockhart Luling Manor Nixon-Smiley Pflugerville Prairie Lea Round Rock San Marcos Smithville Manor Pflugerville San Marcos 2007 -08 Year 5 Austin Lake Travis Bastrop Leander Blanco Liberty Hill Del Valle Lockhart Dripping Springs Luling Eanes Manor Elgin Nixon-Smiley Fredericksburg Pflugerville Georgetown Prairie Lea Harper Round Rock Hays San Marcos Jarrell Smithville Johnson City Wimberley Lago Vista

School Districts Participating in the College Connection Program 2007 -2008 School District Number of High Schools Number of Seniors Year Started Austin ISD 12 5, 189 2004 Bastrop ISD 2 609 2004 Blanco ISD 1 72 2006 Del Valle ISD 2 544 2004 Dripping Springs ISD 1 265 2007 Eanes ISD 1 650 2007 Elgin ISD 2 264 2006 Fredericksburg ISD 1 247 2006 Georgetown ISD 2 791 2007 Harper ISD 1 62 2006 Hays CISD 3 723 2005 Jarrell ISD 1 48 2006 Johnson City ISD 1 52 2006 Lago Vista ISD 1 89 2006

School Districts Participating in the College Connection Program 2007 -2008 School District Number of High Schools Number of Seniors Year Started Lake Travis ISD 2 415 2007 Leander ISD 4 1, 518 2004 Liberty Hill ISD 1 180 2006 Lockhart ISD 2 387 2006 Luling ISD 1 131 2006 Manor ISD 2 255 2005 Nixon-Smiley CISD 1 57 2006 Pflugerville ISD 4 1, 385 2005 Prairie Lea ISD 1 17 2006 Round Rock ISD 5 2, 790 2006 San Marcos CISD 2 483 2003 Smithville ISD 1 140 2006 Wimberley ISD 1 169 2007 58 17, 532 Total (27)

College Connection Program Growth Over 4 years: 1 school district to 27 school districts 2 high schools to 58 high schools 400 students to 17, 000+ students

The College Connection Program Works! ISD San Marcos Austin Bastrop Del Valle Leander Hays Manor Pflugerville Students NOT located in Texas Higher Education Fall 2003 Students NOT located in Texas Higher Education Fall 2004 Students NOT located in Texas Higher Education Fall 2005 Students NOT located in Texas Higher Education Fall 2006 Number 273 2, 155 286 293 444 281 51 194 Percent 66% 56% 69% 77% 48% 57% 47% 219 2, 066 234 312 459 309 74 201 Blue=Year College Connection started Percent 55% 56% 57% 80% 48% 56% 57% 47% 234 2, 005 239 236 422 290 87 204 Percent 59% 54% 66% 42% 55% 62% 48% 294 2, 014 282 229 418 286 89 156 2006 Increase of Students in Higher Ed Since Implementation Percent 66% 52% 61% 71% 40% 51% 68% 46% 0% 4% -4 % 9% 8% 5% -6 % 2% Red=Year Seniors attend ACC after College Connection 1 -Source: http: //www. txhighereddata. org/Reports/PDF/0961. pdf 2 -Source: http: //www. txhighereddata. org/Reports/PDF/0963. pdf 3 -Source: http: //www. thecb. state. tx. us/Reports/PDF/1161. PDF

College Connection Diversity of Participants 2006 -07

Traditionally Underrepresented in Higher Education - Students Enroll at ACC More than 55% of College Connection enrollees are minorities Higher percentage entering ACC through College Connection than in the general ACC student population

College Connection Results for ACC, 2004 -2007 Positive effect on Fall enrollments ◦ Immediate great results: 37. 6% increase first year ◦ 59% increase over two years Positive effect on Early College Start enrollments ◦ 25. 6% increase in enrollment from ‘ 04 to ’ 05 ◦ 45% increase in enrollment from ’ 04 to ’ 06 ◦ 3, 209 students enrolled Summer 2007 (record-breaking ECS enrollment) Positive effect on Tech Prep enrollments ◦ 4, 336% increase in number of students receiving Tech Prep credit 36 students in 2003 -04 48 students in 2004 -05 293 students in 2005 -06 1, 597 students in 2006 -07

Program Recognition

College Connection Program National Acclaim & Recognition

Awards Received • THECB Star Award Recipient November 2006 • Excelencia in Education Award Semi-Finalist October 2006 • Bellwether Award Recipient January 2007

State and National Interest in Expansion

National Interest: Florida Department of Education Launched state-wide campaign in April 2007 called “Go Higher-Get Accepted” modeled after College Connection Maine Interest in College Connection Proposed law requiring graduating high school seniors to complete at least one college application before getting diploma. Support from “Compact for Higher Education”

“Attaining advanced levels of education for disadvantaged students cannot be done without developing a college-going culture in every middle school and high school in the state of Texas. . . then suddenly, (going to college) changes from being a possibility to an expectation. ” --Raymund Paredes Commissioner, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board January 6, 2005

THECB Statewide College Connection Expansion 2007 -2009 • Ten Schools Receive Implementation Grants • • • Alamo Community College District Blinn College Del Mar College Houston Community College System Lee College Odessa College Richland College South Texas College Tarrant County College District Weatherford College

THECB Statewide College Connection Expansion 2007 -2009 • Five Schools Receive Planning Grants • Cedar Valley College • Cisco Junior College • Northeast Texas Community College • Paris Junior College • Victoria College

THECB Statewide College Connection Expansion • Schools Already Adopting College Connection • Alamo Community College District • Coastal Bend Community College • Del Mar Community College • Houston Community College District • Temple Community College • Victoria College

External Support for ACC Funding to expand College Connection Funding for Mobile Go Center Funding for statewide College Connection Regional Forums

Mobile Go Center

Related Initiatives Mini-College Connection for Adult Education College Connection Scholarships

College Connection: How To Start

Formal Agreement Between college and school district Signed by chancellor and/or president and superintendent Establishes transfer of student data from high school to college Details responsibilities and expectations

Advance Briefing District/Central High Office Staff School Principal

Planning Meeting One meeting held annually usually in the Summer Schedule one hour (slightly longer for new schools or multiple schools) Complete activity grid Focus on scheduling Leave activity details for * contacts

Communications between School District and College Electronic via list serv Updated activity grid sent via e-mail when changes occur College Connection website links i. Cal ◦ Combined calendar for internal use

Data Collection Collect electronically (Excel spreadsheet) Collect from high school ◦ ◦ ◦ Name Address DOB HS Student ID (for later record matching) Test Scores (HS Exit Exam, SAT, ACT) Mark records as College Connection cohort in student database

Data Follow-Up Track by school, how many students complete each activity May need multiple visits to get 100% participation Give high school principal participation rates for use at graduation announcement ceremony Report Fall enrollment from pilot schools (compare to benchmark), Spring persistence

Austin Community College Connection Website www. austincc. edu/isd Access to scheduled activities for students, parents, and school officials Calendars Links to pertinent ACC school district sites

Website Participating Links schools to school pages Link to college pages of interest Press coverage/special events

College Connection Logo

College Connection: Guiding Principles

Guiding Principles: College Connection Deliver services on high school campus ◦ “If they’re really interested, they should come to us” ◦ “Getting them to the college campus really gets them excited; they need to see the college campus” ◦ Traditional recruitment has not produced desired results What if the school wants to bring students to the college campus for activities other than campus tours? ◦ Ascertain the school’s purpose – this approach can be useful in some circumstances, but it is generally more efficient to serve students at the high school

Guiding Principles: College Connection Deliver services during school day Work with every category of high school student ◦ ◦ ◦ Gifted and talented Advanced Placement/Honors Bilingual/ESL Section 504 Special Education

Guiding Principles: College Connection Students do not need to repeat steps ◦ Dual-credit students do not have to re-apply ◦ Exempt students do not have to re-test Design activities within one bell period ◦ Exception is assessment testing ◦ Be respectful of instructional time Customize service delivery to meet high school needs, honor school preferences Look for ways to incorporate suggestions of school personnel

Guiding Principles: Personnel Team structure has worked for ACC Sharing personnel across departments Cross-train and re-deploy ◦ Recruiter/advisers Use trained college volunteers outside their regular duties ◦ Tutors proctor tests

Guiding Principles: Personnel Have personnel assigned to specific schools ◦ Builds relationships and trust ◦ Early warning about problems One “expert” available on-site ◦ Example: One admissions coordinator to address complex matters; other team members may be generalists

Guiding Principles: Personnel Have college personnel responsible for results ◦ Level of participation in each activity How many completed the activity? Do the preliminary results approach the projected numbers? Did most students apply? Did about 50% test? ◦ Interim results Have checkpoints Contact responsible school or district personnel in time to provide make-up dates before end of year, if numbers are low

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities Required Activities ◦ What does a student have to complete, at a minimum, to enroll at your institution? Application How much time is needed for an application to be available in the student information system? TSI compliance (Assessment) What tests do you offer students? How much time is needed for scoring?

College Connection: Activity Sequence College School District 1. Senior Presentation 2. Admission application 3. Financial aid application 4. ASSET assessment 5. Tour of Austin Community College campus(es) 6. Pre-Advising 7. Advising 8. Acceptance letter to Austin Community College at graduation 9. Registration for Austin Community College classes Red=Required Blue=Recommended 1 a. Senior Roster 3 a. Test Score Roster Black=Optional

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities Required Activities ◦ What does a student have to complete, at a minimum, to enroll at your institution? Orientation Is orientation mandatory? Do you enforce its completion before students can register? Before they can be advised? Advising Is advising required prior to registration? What action allows a student to register?

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities Recommended Activities ◦ FAFSA Completion ◦ Senior Presentation Optional Activities ◦ Career Information ◦ Campus Tours ◦ College Days

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities When to schedule activities? ◦ Planning Meeting After graduation, before fall semester Before spring, if all activities to be completed in spring ◦ Senior Presentation Prior to first activity, as soon as possible after school starts Usually admissions follows ◦ Admissions Application End of September, October, or November through Thanksgiving After receipt of data roster In time, where possible, for seniors to prepare for Spring dualcredit registration

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities When to schedule activities? ◦ Assessment End of January through early March After receipt of test score roster – timed to allow maximum number of SAT/ACT test scores to be included Allows students to receive the most instructional content prior to testing ◦ Financial Aid Mid-January through Mid-March Presentations timed to coincide with W-2 arrival, tax preparation, and meet college priority filing deadlines Night presentations and workshops for parents and students Financial Aid Saturdays

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities When to schedule activities? ◦ New Student Orientation ACC calls this step “pre-advising” Completed online as ACC 101 Live program replaced by online module per school request School manages where and when students complete Student prints checklist as proof of completion Many schools schedule during advisory Schedule window of time prior to academic advising Recommend 1 -3 weeks prior to advising session

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities When to schedule activities? ◦ Academic Advising Mid-February through Mid-April Allow time, if needed, for test scores to be entered or processed and available to advisors ACC requires three weeks is using ASSET ◦ Complete all College Connection activities by mid. April ◦ Deliver graduation packets three weeks prior to ceremony

Guiding Principles: Sequencing Activities Senior Presentation DVD

See, it didn’t hurt! Recruiter’s name prefix@austincc. edu

Guiding Principles: Scheduling The planning meeting for each school should occur before Fall semester, or as soon after school starts All events should be completed by mid-April with rare exceptions ◦ The month of May through end of school is extremely busy on high school campuses A student should be able to complete an individual activity (exception assessment testing) with one bell period

Guiding Principles: Scheduling Provide capacity to staff activities at more than one school on the same day Decide what dates are ineligible for college personnel ◦ First day of registration ◦ Two weeks leading up to start of semester ◦ First week of classes

Guiding Principles: Scheduling Plan on the following high school availability constraints: ◦ End of six-week grading period/testing ◦ TAKS testing dates ◦ A/B Block scheduling (must provide activities on both A and B days) ◦ Sports conflicts Example: Tuesdays and Fridays are varsity basketball game days ◦ Mondays and Fridays are the worst attendance days ◦ Beginning/end of semester ◦ Spring Break date differential (HB 1)

Guiding Principles: Scheduling Efficiency Schools are deeply concerned about loss of instructional time All College Connection required activities can be completed in the equivalent of one school day

Guiding Principles: Scheduling Efficiency Size of school may allow for combined activities ◦ Example: Senior Presentation followed by Application Advantages – Immediacy A/B Block bell periods are 90 minutes long

Guiding Principles: Scheduling Efficiency Length of bell period may allow for combined activities ◦ Example: Application, FAFSA Pin Number, online pre-advising Advantages Uses entire bell period Already disrupted for application Eliminates need for a second pullout Disadvantages Students usually complete pre-advising well before advising Increases chance they will not retain important information High school staff must retain printed checklist for students to avoid loss

ACC 101 Demonstration http: //www. austincc. edu/acc 101/index_content. html

Scheduling Efficiency – How Much Time? Senior Presentation – 20 minutes Admissions Application – 25 minutes ◦ Residency Form ◦ Missing Credentials Assessment – 5 hours ◦ Partial testing takes less time Math only – 1 hour Reading/writing – 2. 25 hours Pre-Advising – 25 minutes Advising – 15 minutes average

Planning Meeting Recommended Participants College High School District lead person Principal Implementation lead person Grade level principal or AP Team leader for services Lead or senior counselor Person in charge of testing/scheduling Tech person (use of computer labs) Other staff who works with the “senior class” ◦ ◦ ◦ Admissions representative Financial Aid representative Assessment representative Recruitment representative Advising representative Recorder

Planning Meeting Recommended Things to Bring College High School College Calendar Bell schedule Admissions Team Calendar School calendar Financial Aid Team Calendar A/B Block scheduling Assessment Team Calendar Testing calendar Student Recruitment Team Calendar Advising Team Calendar

College Connection Planning Meeting Demonstration Will be held in subsequent NTCC training session

High School—College Partnership

Plan for Success

Central Office Staff Sign formal agreement before beginning ◦ Work with superintendent Understand vocally support College Connection program ◦ Announce program in meetings, newsletters, e-mails Ensure your Board is informed ◦ Invite college to do a brief presentation

Central Office Staff Participate/help schools participate in “launch” activities ◦ Press conference ◦ Campus tours, celebrations, or special events Attend as many campus planning meetings as possible ◦ Planning meetings to be held before activities begin on campuses ◦ Lays the foundation for organized program activities ◦ Everyone is literally “on the same page”

Principal Understand vocally support College Connection program ◦ Announce program in meetings, newsletters, e-mails Participate in your campus planning meeting; your leadership is KEY Clear obstacles – allow access to students Assign a positive, helpful, supportive “asterisk” person to coordinate each activity

Principal Allow the use of necessary school facilities during the school day for activities (computer labs, gyms for testing, etc. ) Help faculty understand your support for the program ◦ Students will be pulled out of classes 3 or 4 times during the year ◦ Announce dates of College Connection activities well in advance so faculty have time to plan Understand College Connection as a process with sequenced activities ◦ Time is needed between activities

Principal Emphasize the importance of 100% participation ◦ Allow repeated access, if necessary, to ensure that all students are included Schedule a senior presentation by college personnel ◦ Help students understand the befits of the program ◦ Establish college personnel as student advocates Assign staff to accompany students to College Connection activities ◦ To help keep order ◦ To personally identify students to TCCD staff

Principal Ensure that your school website features College Connection Help solve any problems that may arise ◦ During an activity ◦ During the school year ◦ Call College Connection contacts if needed Support financial aid activities for students

Principal Recognize College Connection at graduation ceremonies; some examples ◦ Announce how many students receive acceptance letter ◦ Ask College Connection students to stand Ensure students receive college acceptance letter along with their diploma Ensure final, official high school transcripts for all students given to college at the end of the school year

Counselor Understand vocally support the program ◦ Announce in Classroom visits Senior assemblies To individual students “Counselor’s corner” of the school newsletter E-mails to parents Participate Clear Be in your campus planning meeting obstacles – allow access one of the positive, helpful, supportive “asterisk” people coordinating one or more College Connection activities

Counselor Help faculty colleagues understand ◦ Your support of the program ◦ Program benefits for students ◦ Students will be pulled out of classes 3 -4 times during the year Understand the importance of 100% participation ◦ Help students understand the benefits of College Connection even if the student has applied or been accepted to another college Free testing FAFSA Easy entrance Higher income for more education

Counselor If a student refuses to participate, encourage them to complete the process Help solve any problems that may arise during an activity, or during the school year ◦ Call College Connection officials, if needed Ensure that official high school transcripts for all students are given in a batch to college at the end of the school year ◦ Saves time for students when enrolling ◦ Makes process smoother for students not entering directly after graduation

Best Practices—Getting Started Small and successful=Others will come Get internal support from: ◦ Information Technology ◦ Public Relations ◦ Dual Credit ◦ Tech Prep ◦ Foundation ◦ Student Recruitment ◦ Student Services Do away with thinking that students “have to come to the college” to meet college processes Focus on what works for the school district

Best Practices—After You’ve Started Use publicity and press conferences at every opportunity Get Foundation involved in raising scholarships Make a presentation to each school district Board Keep College Board of Trustees involved

Best Practices—After You’ve Started Continually Involve Keep thank and recognize participants staff in recognitions College Connection process simple Name a single point-of-contact for problem solving Utilize technology for communication including web, listserv, and online calendars (I-Cal) Build a superintendents’ e-mail list

Best Practices—After You’ve Started Increased staff enrollments will build programs and support Many good “off shoots” develop: ◦ Chamber of Commerce events/support ◦ Grants and Contracts ◦ Annexation ◦ Scholarships ◦ Continuing education ◦ Training ◦ Teacher certification ◦ Instructional Aide Training ◦ Dual Credit ◦ Tech Prep ◦ Other

Best Practices—After You’ve Started Have joint College and School District Board meetings Form College/ISD Executive Team Provide Pace immediate response/service for success

Common Challenges

Challenge #1 – Faculty Resistance Why does this occur? ◦ Faculty not well-informed about the program ◦ Some have traditional bias against community colleges Concerns about quality of programs/instruction and transferability of classes

Strategy – Counter Faculty Resistance Feature a College Connection presentation at general faculty meeting Provide general information about college programs, costs, state-wide transfer of classes between public institutions Provide dates of pullouts well in advance, to allow for faculty planning Emphasize benefits to students ◦ Students will be “ready-to-register” at your college at the end of the year

Challenge #2 – Student Resistance Why does this occur? ◦ Students not exposed to the program in advance ◦ Some are convinced they are going to college elsewhere or convinced they won’t need to go at all ◦ A “cool” student has refused to participate

Strategy – Lessen Student Resistance Schedule a College Connection senior presentation before activities begin Encourage participation and explain program benefits to any student refusing to participate Recruit school opinion leaders and role models to influence their peers

Challenge #3 – Alleviate Parent Concerns Why does this occur? ◦ Parents don’t want to give sensitive family income information to students, school or college staff ◦ No computer access at home ◦ Parents’ work schedule prevents easy completion

Strategy – Counter Parent Resistance on FAFSA Time school FAFSA activities to coincide with arrival of W-2 and filing of taxes Provide evening FAFSA workshops – invite college personnel to participate or lead Coordinate with volunteer programs that assist families with preparing/filing taxes Provide information about necessary documents/information in advance to parents

Questions and Answers

For copies: Power. Point Presentation: www. austincc. edu/isd/northeast/030608 Presentation. ppt Handouts: www. austincc. edu/isd/documents