Adult Basic Education to Community College Transitions

1. Adult Basic Education to Community College Transitions Berkeley Policy Associates Chris Furgiuele, Project Director chris@bpacal.com 510-465-7884

2. Study Objectives • Identify ABE programs successful at transitioning their students to postsecondary programs • Highlight the aspects of these programs that appear to make them successful in transition

3. Research Questions • Which aspects of ABE program operations contribute to successful postsecondary transitions? • How do these aspects contribute to postsecondary transitions? • How do ABE programs help students overcome personal and academic barriers to advancing to the postsecondary level?

4. Presentation Overview • Data-driven selection of ABE programs with relatively high performance in transition • Detailed case studies of 16 high-performing ABE programs • Preliminary research findings • Next Steps

5. Conceptual Framework • Important factors in promoting ABE to postsecondary transition • Institutional setting • Appropriate target audience • Academic preparation • Support services • Linkages to postsecondary programs

6. Research Methodology I Program Selection • Developed with guidance from an expert panel • Selected four states with capacity to match between ABE and postsecondary data • Washington, Wisconsin, Kentucky, Florida • Collected data on ABE student characteristics and actual transition outcomes • Selected four programs in each state with the strongest performance in transition

7. Program Selection (continued) • Washington • ABE programs administered by State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) • 34 campuses with ABE programs • 32,799 students enrolled in ABE statewide in 2001-2002 cohort • 53% ESL • 37% ABE • 10% ASE

8. Program Selection (continued) • Wisconsin • ABE programs administered by the Wisconsin Technical Colleges (WTC) • 16 campuses with ABE programs • 16,986 students enrolled in ABE statewide in 2001-2002 cohort • 24% ESL • 58% ABE • 18% ASE

9. Program Selection (continued) • Kentucky • ABE programs administered by Kentucky Community and Technical Colleges (KCTCS), local school districts, and community based organizations • 120 ABE programs • 45,947 students enrolled in ABE statewide in 2001-2002 cohort • 9% ESL • 52% ABE • 39% ASE

10. Program Selection (continued) • Florida • Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Education administers ABE programs through school districts, and community based organizations • 190 ABE programs • 158,068 students enrolled in ABE statewide in 2001-2002 cohort • 10% in community college-based programs • 30% in school district-based programs • 60% in community based organization programs

11. Program Selection (continued) High-Performing ABE Programs • Used data on ABE student characteristics and postsecondary enrollment • 2000-01 and 2001-02 student cohorts • Gender, age, ethnicity, ABE functional level, highest grade, employment status, TANF receipt, etc. • Calculated actual transition rates for all programs in each state • % attempting postsecondary credits • % completing postsecondary credits • % completing a postsecondary program

12. Program Selection (continued) High-Performing ABE Programs • Modeled actual transition rates on student and program characteristics Yi =  + 1(age) + 2(level) + …. + i(program) + i Yi = transition(0/1) for individual model Yi = transition rate for program model

13. Program Selection (continued) High-Performing ABE Programs • Generated “predicted” transition rates for each program • Ranked programs in each state according to difference between predicted and actual transition rates • Selected four programs in each state with the biggest difference between actual and predicted rates

14. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Washington  Skagit Valley College (Mount Vernon)  Renton Technical College (Renton)  Bates Technical College (Tacoma)  Lower Columbia College (Longwood)

15. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Washington (con’t) Unadjusted Postsecondary Transition Rates 2001-02

16. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Wisconsin Northcentral Technical College  (Wausau) Fox Valley Technical College  (Appleton)  Moraine Park Technical College (Fond du Lac)  Blackhawk Technical College (Janesville)

17. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Wisconsin (con’t) Unadjusted Postsecondary Transition Rates 2001-02

18. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Kentucky Anderson County ABE  (Lawrenceburg) Mayo/Big Sandy CC/TC (Paintsville) Breathitt County ABE (Jackson) Pulaski County ABE  (Somerset)

19. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Kentucky (con’t) Unadjusted Postsecondary Transition Rates 2001-02

20. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Florida  Gulf County Adult School (Port St. Joe) W. Travis Loften High School  (Gainesville) South Technical Academy (Palm Beach) Lindsey Hopkins Technical Ed Center (Miami)

21. Selected High-Performing ABE Programs - Florida (con’t) Unadjusted Postsecondary Transition Rates 2001-02

22. Research Methodology II Case Studies • State ABE directors contacted each program and invited them to participate • Only one program declined (FL) • Research team conducted two-day site visits to each ABE program • Collected basic program information in advance • All visits took place between March and December 2005

23. Case Studies (continued) • Interviewed staff from both ABE and postsecondary side • ABE directors, instructors, tutors, and volunteers • Community college presidents, vice presidents/deans, counselors, and admissions • Purpose of interviews was to identify transition-related practices • Strategies respondents believe promote transition • Not an evaluation of program effectiveness

24. Case Studies (continued) • Interviews last 60-90 minutes and covered the following topics: • Program environment, capacity, and management • Recruitment, intake, and assessment • Curriculum and instruction • Support services • Advancing learners to the next stage

25. Study Limitations • Analysis focuses on transition practices in ABE programs • Exploratory analysis, not an evaluation • Program selection data cover an earlier time period (2000-02) than site visits (2005) • Lack of counterfactual • Did not talk to ABE students

26. Preliminary Findings • Institutional Setting • ABE programs need to be valued and prioritized within their administrative structure • Programs must have adequate resources for transition activities

27. Preliminary Findings (continued) • Appropriate Target Audience • GED students are the most common target audience for transition efforts • Structured goal setting encourages transition among all ABE students

28. Preliminary Findings (continued) • Academic Preparation • Importance of a relevant curriculum • Preparation for college assessments • Alignment between ABE and college curricula

29. Preliminary Findings (continued) • Support Services • ABE students’ personal and academic barriers can inhibit transition • Community colleges offer a network of support services • Workforce and welfare programs are potential partners in the provision of support services • ABE instructors are an important program resource

30. Preliminary Findings (continued) • Linkages to Postsecondary Programs • Postsecondary staff speaking to ABE students about selecting and applying to college programs • Career counseling as part of the ABE program • Programs such as TRIO can help ABE students apply for and secure financial aid

31. Next Steps • ABE-to-postsecondary transition Symposium will provide guidance for future research • Finalize report

32. Questions for Discussion