Transcript The Interstate Passport Initiative

A New Transfer Framework based on
Learning Outcomes
The National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students
January 31, 2013
Peter Quigley, Pat Shea, and Cathy Walker
www.wiche.edu/passport
Questions for the Attendees
Re: General Education
 What transfer obstacles do you face?
 What is your experience negotiating transfer in
your own state or system?
 What efforts has your state/system made toward
transfer clarity and streamlining?
 What is your experience negotiating transfer
with out-of-state institutions? More or less
cumbersome than in-state?
-At X college we
require two of those;
you have one
-Your college’s version
of that class didn’t
have X
Transfer poses challenges laterally as well as to 4-year campuses
Translation and conversion exercises
 Many of us have identified this issue INSIDE our
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states
And have developed strategies
Articulation agreements go in all directions
Common course numbering, etc.
California, of course, has over 100 gen ed
strategies, one for every district
Success varies from state to state
Not too long ago, moving around in Europe
was like bringing your transfer credits to
another college
A process with
excruciating
calculations
that always left
you with
residual
“credit” that
didn’t “fit”; a
pocket full of
detritus
The Alliance wanted to know how we could
create a zone of transfer where general
education completed in one state was good
in a number of states
About the Passport Initiative
 A grass-roots originated effort by
academic leaders in the WICHE
states to advance friction-free
transfer for students in the region
 Envisioned as a series of related
projects over an approximate
five-year span
 Participation is voluntary in all
projects
Vision
New agreements and policies will allow
transfer students to carry with them
an Interstate Passport, signaling their completion
of the general education core based on LEAP
Essential Learning Outcomes, that will
help streamline their pathway to
graduation.
Why?
On average …
 27 percent of all transfer students cross
state lines (Signature Report, NSC, 2012)
 Transfer students who earn a B.A. take 1.2 years
longer to do it (U.S. Dept. of Education, 2010)
 The extra time costs a student over $9,000 for
tuition and fees alone (WICHE, 2010)
 Unnecessary duplication of courses costs time
and money for students, institutions, states, the
federal government, and taxpayers
LEAP Outcomes & Passport
 LEAP outcomes serve as the translating device
reconciling particular sets of outcomes from
many campuses and many states
 Mapping to a set of universal outcomes allows
multiple campuses and states to synchronize
General
Education
in Hawaii
General
Education
in Calif
General
Education
in Utah
General
Education in
North Dakota
General
Education
in Oregon
LEAP Outcomes
 Developed by Association of American Colleges and Universities
( http://www.aacu.org/leap/vision.cfm )
 Multi-year process
 Faculty at hundreds of institutions involved
 Input from business community and reports
 Analysis of accreditation requirements
 Liberal Education and America’s Promise—students should
prepare for 21st century challenges by gaining…
 Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical and Natural World
 Intellectual and Practical Skills
 Personal and Social Responsibility
 Integrative and Applied Learning
Scope of First Project
Phase I
Block
First Project
 Funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York:
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$550,000 over two years
Two-year project: Oct. 1, 2011-Sept. 30, 2013
Participants: 23 two-year and four-year institutions
Scope: Lower division general education core
Co-Chairs:
Dr. Michel Hillman, Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student
Affairs, North Dakota University System
Dr. Peter Quigley, Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs for
the University of Hawaii System
Project goals
Three major components:
1. Research status of general
education core in the WICHE
states and relationship to
transfer
2. Conduct a pilot project to establish block
transfer agreements based on outcomes
3. Identify implications for institutional and state
policy for a transfer framework based on
outcomes
1. Research Component
 Develop understanding of
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definition of general education
core in WICHE states
Determine the role of outcomes in defining the core
Identify existing block transfer agreements for
general education core
Determine how many students transfer among the
WICHE states
Explore the relationship between state policy and
transfer patterns
Research Findings
Gen Ed Core
 Eleven of 15 WICHE states have a statewide general
education core
 Three WICHE states (CA, MT, UT) have identified and aligned
student outcomes from the Gen Ed core to the LEAP Essential
Learning Outcomes
 Areas or disciplines that compose the Gen Ed core in 14 of
the 15 WICHE states:
 Communication – written or oral
 Humanities/social or behavioral sciences
 Quantitative skills/critical thinking (includes mathematics in some
states)
 Physical and natural sciences (includes mathematics in some states)
www.wiche.edu/passport
Research Findings: Fall 2006 Cohort
Student Transfer Patterns in the WICHE States
 Fall 2006 Cohort* = first-time, full- or part-time, precredential students of any age who began
postsecondary education fall 2006
 Total cohort = 668,583 students
 Percentage of students who transfer = 33.6%
*Data provided by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center
http://www.wiche.edu/passport/research
Research Findings: Fall 2006 Cohort
Destination of All Transfer Students:
In-State
 Two-year students = 84.6%
 Four-year students = 74.7%
Out of State
 Two-year students = 15.4%
 Four-year students = 25.3%
Research Findings: Fall 2006 Cohort
Frequency of Transfer
A quarter of all students – both full- and parttime – transfer at least once
Timing of Transfer:
 Year 1 = 15.19%
 Year 2 = 33.20%
 Year 3 = 25.10%
 Year 4 = 15.76%
 Year 5 = 10.76%
Research Findings
WICHE Region
 Total number* of students in four-year and two-year
schools in WICHE region in Fall 2006: 3,460,836, or
29% of national total
 NSC data indicate that, nationally, 33% of students
transfer—approx 1,142,075 annually in WICHE
region
 NSC data indicate that, nationally, 27% of those who
transfer cross state lines—approx 308,360 annually
in the WICHE region
*IPEDS data
Forthcoming Research
 Identify existing block transfer agreements for
general education core, both within states and
between states
 Determine when students complete the gen ed
core – before or after transfer
2. Pilot Component
Work with representatives of institutions in five
WICHE states to achieve “Passport Status”
 Assemble state teams of faculty and
administrators to participate in project
 Align lower division general education core with LEAP
outcomes
 Determine how students will demonstrate they have
met learning outcomes
 Compare and negotiate a regional transfer agreement
 Sign “Passport Status Agreement” among participants
 Provide participants an “Interstate Passport”
stamp to be used on student records of eligible
students
Pilot Participants
 California: California State University, Sacramento;
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Sacramento City College
Hawaii: Leeward Community College;
University of Hawaii West Oahu
North Dakota: Dickinson State University; Lake Region State
College; North Dakota State University; North Dakota State College
of Science; University of North Dakota; Valley City State
University; and Williston State College
Oregon: Eastern Oregon University; Columbia Gorge Community
College; University of Oregon; and Lane Community College
Utah: Dixie State College of Utah; Salt Lake Community
College; Snow College; Southern Utah University; The University
of Utah; Utah State University; Utah Valley University; and
Weber State University
Pilot State Facilitators
Dr. Debra David, Project Director, "Give Students a Compass“
CSU Office of the Chancellor
Dr. Dick Dubanoski, Dean, College of Social Sciences
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Lisa Johnson, Director of Articulation and Transfer
North Dakota University System
Dr. Phyllis “Teddi” Safman, Assistant Commissioner for Academic Affairs
Utah Board of Regents
Dr. Karen Marrongelle, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Standards
and Collaborations
Oregon University System
Passport Process Model
Passport Learning Outcomes Negotiation
Oral Communications Example
Task Force on Student Tracking
Comprised of registrars and institutional research
staff from the pilot participating institutions
Charge:
 Determine most efficient and agreed-upon
methods for recording the Passport on student
records
 Determine how performance data on Passport
students should be tracked and delivered to
sending institutions
3. Implications Component
 Identify implications for institutional and state policy
resulting from a transfer framework based on learning
outcomes
 Compile a list of challenges and opportunities
resulting from the pilot
 Determine which ones merit further research
 Seek funding to conduct research and/or expand the
project
Initial Implications of New Transfer
Framework
1. Develop learning outcomes and proficiency level
for rest of lower division general education areas:
humanities, social and behavioral sciences,
computer technology, and physical natural sciences
2. Establish mechanism at member institutions to
record Passport on student record.
3. Establish student tracking mechanism at member
institutions and share data for continuous
improvement.
4. Conduct periodic review of learning outcomes and
proficiency level for lower division general
education to measure Passport student success.
Initial Implications (continued)
5. Establish centralized agency to monitor compliance
6.
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with Passport agreement.
Develop new member process.
Determine and agree on the term that the Passport
is in effect for students.
Update and maintain information on the web
about the Passport and which schools participate.
Establish awareness campaign targeting provosts,
registrars, and students.
Advisory Board
Dr. Susan Albertine
Association of American
Colleges and Universities
Dr. Karen Paulson
NCHEMS
Dr. Michel Hillman
North Dakota University System
Dr. Peter Quigley
University of Hawaii
Community College System
Dr. Nancy Krogh
University of Idaho
Dr. Jane Sherman
Washington State University
Dr. David Longanecker
WICHE
Jeff Spano
Chancellor’s Office of the
California Community Colleges
Dr. Susan Neel
Utah State University-Eastern
Project Staff and Evaluator
Pat Shea, Principal Investigator
Director, WICHE ICE, Western Academic Leadership Forum,
Western Alliance of Community College Academic Leaders, WICHE
Cathy Walker, Research Analyst/Project Manager
Robert Turner, Pilot State Coordinator
Former Assistant Vice Chancellor, Oregon University System
Nancy Shulock, Evaluator
Professor and Executive Director, Institute for Higher Education
Leadership and Policy at California State University, Sacramento
Questions
Thank you!
Peter Quigley
Pat Shea
Cathy Walker
Passport Co-Chair
[email protected]
808.956.3870
Passport PI
[email protected]
303.541.0302
Passport Project Manager
[email protected]
303.722.5635
www.wiche.edu/passport