Transcript Establishing Course Enrollment Maximum

Setting Course Enrollment Maximums:
Process, Roles, and Principles
Adopted Spring 2012
The Academic Senate of the California Community Colleges
Questions from Cañada Faculty
• Address the Board of Trustees ruling
regarding the number of students
needed to teach a class?
• Stop classes from being cancelled?
• Percentage rate vs. number of actual
students?
Community College Funding
• CA funds community colleges based on FTES (full-time
equivalent student)
•
One student attending 15 hours a week for 35 weeks (1
academic year) generates 1 FTES.
•
1 FTES = 15 (student contact hrs./week) X 35 (weeks) =
525 (weekly student contact hrs./yr.)
• Effectiveness determined by reaching 525 WSCH
Note: District has changed allocation model
Response to reduction in
state revenue
• PIV process – program viability cuts; Cañada loses
adaptive physical education program
• SMCCCD promotes managed hiring; early
retirement incentives to prevent lay-offs
• Full-time students - units reduced by 20%; enrolling
in 12 units rather than 15 units
• Three colleges began aligning classes; similar class
designations and unit credits
Changes to Allocation Model
• Based on addressing community needs measured in
other ways than the state defined FTES
• Allocate additional funds to Cañada to address
infrastructure needs
• Maintain a steady source of funding for CSM and
prevent further funding decline
• Allow the colleges to continue to serve their
communities in innovative ways
Abstract
“Appropriate course enrollment maximums are an essential
aspect of guaranteeing the quality of instructional programs.
Colleges must consider many factors in establishing these
enrollment limits, including legal codes, student and
instructor safety, instructor workload, and
the fiscal viability of the institution.
However, the primary basis of any determination regarding
enrollment maximums should be the pedagogical factors
that influence the success of the students in the course.”
Whereas;
“Non-pedagogically based class caps
have a serious impact on effective
instructional delivery and student
success, and raising class caps in many
classes such as Career Technical
Education and science laboratory classes
not only impacts effective instruction but
can also negatively impact safety
conditions for students”
Faculty:
• Enrollment should not exceed the number of
students a faculty member can attend
• The number of students in a class must be
appropriate for the method of instruction and
presentation (lecture, lab and online)
• Determine the lowest capacity level new classes are
allowed and increase growth over two semesters
•
Example 25 max: new class (Semester 1) 70% capacity = 18 students;
(Semester 2) 85% capacity = 22 students; (Semester 3) 100% = 25
students
Curriculum Committee:
• Determine the faculty member have considered all
relevant factors from all sources (advisory groups)
• Review the data presented and allow faculty the
opportunity to explain and defend their conclusions
• Equitably consider all special populations (capstone
classes, honor classes, CTE and ESL classes involve
increased interaction with the faculty member
during class)
• Publish enrollment decisions in official CORs
Academic Senate:
• Ensure policies and procedures are transparent;
publish in official college documents to ensure they
are preserved
• Delegate authority to the curriculum committee to
approve faculty recommendations
• Provide an appeals process and resolve issues
• Collaborate with college administrators to apply
policies and criteria fairly
Administration:
• In a multi college district - optimum class size and
capacity level must be argued on behalf of student
learning
• Advocate for variance allowances when Cañada is
compared to her sister colleges regarding enrollment
growth; physical and spatial limitations prevent
“course by course” comparisons
• Administrators must explain the limitations of the
campus to the board or community when questions
arise regarding enrollment size occur
Conclusion
• As results of reduced funding continue to plague the
state, Cañada must adopt the policies and
procedures for optimal and effective class size
detailed in the resolution adopted the Academic
Senate of California Community Colleges
• The Cañada community must cooperate and support
faculty recommendations regarding optimal and
effective class size while continuing to support
students with their educational goals.