This research analyzed linked high-quality state data from K-12, adult education, and postsecondary state datasets in order to better understand the association between student demographics and successful completion of a postsecondary program. Due to the relatively small sample size compared to the large number of features, we analyzed the data…

Community colleges have multiple missions and one of them is to provide open access services to those seeking to further their education. Community colleges provide remedial courses in math, reading, and writing because many of their students do not meet entrance requirements in these core subjects. However, the usual developmental education track…

"As educators, we have to make the commitment to a very simple proposition: if we admit students to college, we should do everything possible to make sure they succeed. These remarks are not an indictment but a rallying call. We can do much better." With these words, Dr. Raymund Paredes, Texas commissioner of higher education, opened the…

This annual newsletter contains updates on the latest CCRC research, new publications and details of upcoming presentations at major conferences. The feature article in this issue, "Addressing the Needs of Underprepared Students," by Thomas Bailey, summarizes the discussion found in the paper "Challenge and Opportunity: Rethinking…

The Breaking Through (BT) initiative promotes an expanded and enhanced role for community colleges in providing access to college for low-skilled adults. BT is uniquely important in its systematic integration of adult education, developmental/remedial education, professional-technical education (PTE), and career planning and preparation in…

In September 2006, the State Board approved a new System Direction to guide the two-year-college system for the next ten years. One of three primary goals for the system is to increase educational attainment for the economic development of the state and the economic well-being of Washingtonians. Since 2000, State Board staff has provided periodic…

This is a qualitative study of four women receiving assistance through the Trade Readjustment Act (TRA) and who were enrolled in a developmental writing course. The TRA provides money to displaced workers for the purposes of retraining them to reenter the workforce. The four women in the study were nontraditional students and displaced garment…

Eighty percent of New Mexico's 17 community college and vocational school CEOs responded to a survey revealing that they have different views on what constitutes remedial and developmental programs; and although these programs are considered compatible with the CEOs' educational philosophy, programs are not viewed on equal basis with other college…

Questions and answers are presented concerning the consequences for higher education of the passage of the RAISE Bill (Senate Bill 357), a comprehensive education bill designed to raise educational standards in Florida. This statement by Miami-Dade Community College (MDCC) covers: (1) the bill and its provisions for higher education; (2) ways in…

The Virginia STEPS (Student/Teacher Education Planning System) was developed to enable adult basic education (ABE) students to become independent learners responsible for planning, carrying out, evaluating, and making adjustments in their education. ABE instructors at Blackhawk Technical College in Wisconsin have adapted the STEPS model to make…

Four types of developmental education programs have been designed to help students overcome or compensate for: (1) deficiencies in grades or subjects required for admission to a senior institution or to colleges and transfer programs (Pre-Transfer); (2) deficiencies in reading, writing, speech, arithmetic, study habits, motivation, and other…

As part of an ongoing process of curriculum revision at Reading Area Community College (RACC), this program review examines current basic skills programming and support services portions of the college curriculum. Following introductory comments in section I, section II reviews pertinent basic skills research, indicating that useful programs…

Tacoma Community College (TCC) is a comprehensive institution serving 7,000 students per quarter out of the 200,000 residents of Tacoma-Pierce County. Statistics show that 20% of the student population have not graduated from high school; 21% are from minority groups; and an estimated 60% are academically, educationally, or socially disadvantaged.…

State and local policymakers increasingly see the need to adapt workforce and education policies to the economic changes in their states and communities. The new economy is organized around skills, flexibility, and the willingness of all workers and employees to adapt to changing circumstances. For workers, this demands an increased investment in…

A research and development project focused on designing a basic English writing skills curriculum for adult basic education students and implementing that curriculum in a computer-assisted, audio-supported format. Materials were designed for MS-DOS computers and consumer grade audiotape players. The project involved developing 18 computer lessons…