TSPR Austin Community College

Chapter 2
INSTRUCTION AND ACADEMIC SUPPORT

This chapter reviews Austin Community College's (ACC) instruction and academic support functions in the following sections:

A. Organizational Structure

B. Programs

C. Institutional Effectiveness

D. Course Scheduling

E. Academic Support

F. K-12 Initiatives

K-12 Initiatives - Part 1

K-12 Initiatives - Part 2

F. K-12 INITIATIVES - PART 2
As reported by AISD, three high schools in the district, Lanier, Reagan and Travis, had low higher-education entry rates. As shown in Exhibit 2-34, their participation rates in Early College Start were less than other high schools in the district, which averaged a 2.3 percent participation rate.
Exhibit 2-34
Austin ISD Participation in Early College Start Program by High School
2001-02

AISD High
School Total Number
of ECS Students
2001-02 Student
Enrollment
2001-02 Percent of
At-Risk Students
2001-02 TEA Accountability
Rating
2001-02 Percent of Early
College Start
Enrollment 2001-02

Akins 5 1,063 76.4% Acceptable 0.5%

Anderson 32 1,742 60.0% Recognized 1.8%

Austin 61 2,026 68.1% Acceptable 3.0%

Bowie 110 2,611 60.4% Recognized 4.2%

Crockett 78 2,362 80.3% Acceptable 3.3%

Garza Ind. 49 358 94.1% Acceptable 13.7%

L.B.J. 16 1,675 64.1% Acceptable 1.0%

Johnston 17 1,496 79.8% Low Performing 1.1%

Lanier 35 1,801 81.8% Acceptable 1.9%

McCallum 37 1,657 71.4% Acceptable 2.2%

Reagan 8 1,282 87.9% Acceptable .6%

Travis 15 1,694 79.6% Acceptable 0.9%

Total 463 19,767 2.3%

Source: Austin Independent School District Web site and ACC, Early College Start Program interviews, June 2002.
Because of their low, higher-education entry rates, H.B. 400 requires these three schools in the Austin ISD, and other high schools that have lower college entry rates, to establish a partnership with an institution of higher education to develop and implement a plan aimed at increasing enrollment rates at higher education institutions. Early College Start is one mechanism that school districts use to meet the mandate of H.B. 400.
Both ACC and Early College Start students receive benefits from the program. The students receive free tuition and fees for college-accredited courses. Early College Start also teaches students "going to college skills" and prepares them for the transition from high school to college. Frequently, day, evening and weekend classes are available, and the length of time spent in credit classes may vary. In class, self-paced and technologically delivered instruction is common. Student support services, such as basic-skills assessment, career aptitude and interest assessments and learning labs and tutorial support help guarantee success.
The college receives state reimbursement on contact hours generated for Early College Start. For the fall and spring 2002, the state reimbursed the college $611,048. In addition, ACC is able to offer restricted sections on a high school campus with no faculty salary costs for the college. When an ISD faculty member who also qualifies as an ACC adjunct faculty member teaches an ACC section as part of the high school teaching load, ACC does not pay the faculty member. Of the 60 restricted sections offered on high school campuses in 2001-02, 11 different high school faculty who also qualify as ACC adjunct faculty taught 16 sections. Of these 16 sections, 12 were sections in which ACC did not pay the faculty member as the faculty member taught as part of the high school teaching load. The savings to the college was $34,200.
The college also reaps the benefit of having greater numbers of Early College Start students returning to ACC after high school graduation than students not participating in the program. The post-high school entry to ACC was 38 percent for Early College Start participants and 19 percent for nonparticipating students in the ACC service area from 1999-2000 through 2000-01.
In public forums, a number of students and members of the community said that high school counselors and ACC counselors and advisors need better training on Early College Start policies and procedures. The Early College Start staff host semi-annual meetings with superintendents and principals and meet directly with counselors at campuses. Early College Start staff review enrollments by high school and actively seek linkages with low-participating schools. They also work with the student recruitment office to visit high-priority schools throughout the service area. In summer 2002, Early College Start staff scheduled classes on Austin ISD high school campuses where Early College Start participation had been low and nearly doubled participation within the district.
Enrollment has increased at ACC campuses where the faculty and campus administrators are familiar with Early College Start and market the benefits to nearby districts. At the Pinnacle campus, staff help market the program to area districts, and this is reflected in the enrollment numbers from Fredericksburg Hays and Wimberly school districts.
Recommendation 19:
Improve training and information on Early College Start provided to targeted high schools in the service area.
In addition to onsite training of counselors and principals and providing more information to campus faculty and administrators, the college should include a list of "frequently asked questions" on the ACC Early College Start Web page and include a link to Early College Start on the ACC Student Resources Web page.
IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES AND TIMELINE

1. The associate vice president of Instructional Support Services and the director of Early College Start develop a training calendar for Early College Start, targeting high schools with low-participation rates and low-entry rates into institutions of higher education. February 2003

2. The director of Early College Start contacts targeted schools and confirms training calendar dates and times. March 2003

3. The associate vice president of Instructional Support Services provides additional information to campus deans regarding Early College Start and the benefits to both the college and students. April 2003

4. The associate vice president of Instructional Support Services and the executive director of Marketing and College Relations make changes to the ACC Web site to provide a list of "frequently asked questions" and a link to the Student Resources Web page. May 2003

FISCAL IMPACT
By increasing contact hours for student participation in the Early College Start program to effect a 1-percent revenue increase, ACC should realize savings of $6,110 per semester beginning in fall 2003 based upon the state's annual reimbursement of $611,048 for both fall and spring semesters of 2002 ($611,048 x .01). Annual savings should reach $12,221 (2 semesters x $6,110).

Recommendation 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07

Improve training and information on Early College Start provided to targeted high schools in the service area. $0 $12,221 $12,221 $12,221 $12,221

FINDING
The Tech-Prep Consortium has not developed and implemented a process to determine the status of articulation agreements for each school district and has not provided staff development to all districts in the service area. The Consortium is unsure of where districts are in the process of developing articulation agreements with the college. Further, not all ACC workforce education programs use the process in place for creating and updating articulations, including a matrix to compare articulated high school courses to college courses in regard to instructional objectives, curriculum activities, curriculum resources and performance assessments. Articulation involves aligning the curricula and training faculty. As a result of the lack of articulation agreements and understanding of the benefits of the program, student enrollment in Tech-Prep is declining in the Consortium's service area.
As part of its 2002-03 goals, the Tech-Prep Consortium has a goal for articulation agreements:
The Capital Area Tech-Prep Consortium will develop and maintain articulation agreements between school districts and colleges based on coherent sequences of courses with enhanced curriculum in specified career concentrations. An articulation documentation system will identify career employment opportunities, align instructional objectives between college and high school Tech-Prep courses, align curriculum resources, and define student skill assessments related to workplace skill standards.
Objectives, activities and results as well as timelines for all goals are included as part of the Consortium's grant application process to THECB. These include:

provision of labor market information, tools and systems for articulating career concentrations;
a fully developed and implemented articulation documentation/monitoring process and an increased number of school districts participating in articulation agreements; and
provision of successful professional development training to support Tech-Prep instructional methods, the articulation process, the credit-in-escrow process, the PEIMS coding process and work-based learning opportunities.

School districts not participating in Tech-Prep said that they found the process for articulating Tech-Prep programs difficult. The time it takes to work through the logistics, especially making critical connections between ACC faculty and school district faculty, is sometimes discouraging to those who are trying to articulate.
Staff development for all area high school faculty on how to create an articulated Tech-Prep program was not accomplished in 2001-02. The Consortium provides funding for member schools to use as mini-grants for the development of curricula or support of articulated programs with an attending form to evaluate the alignment of the activity with Tech-Prep goals. Not all schools responded to the grant process, and a number of districts have let their Tech-Prep agreements lapse due to change in district personnel.
Only 18 of 39 districts in the Tech-Prep Consortium area are reporting Tech-Prep students, and the enrollment has been declining in all but five of the districts as shown in Exhibit 2-35.
Exhibit 2-35
Changes in Tech-Prep Enrollment by Participating School Districts
1997-98 through 2001-02

Independent
School District 1997-98 1998-99 1999-2000 2000-01 2001-02 Net
Change Percent
Change

Austin 145 0 888 290 1,472 1,327 915.2%

Bastrop 31 14 54 111 2 (29) (93.5%)

Elgin 79 64 79 31 94 15 19.0%

Smithville 241 332 297 319 0 (41) (100.0%)

Johnson City 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Blanco 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Burnet CIST 358 82 36 60 42 (316) (88.3%)

Marble Falls 75 111 111 49 39 (36) (48.0%)

Lockhart 0 0 6 0 0 0 0.0%

Luling 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Prairie Lea 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Flatonia 54 7 5 6 4 (50) (92.6%)

La Grange 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Schulenburg 1 0 0 0 0 (1) (100.0)%

Fayetteville 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Round Top/Car. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

San Marcos CISD 38 0 0 194 47 9 23.7%

Dripping Springs 0 10 0 1 0 0 0.0%

Wimberley 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Hays CISD 224 559 236 73 75 (149) (66.5%)

Giddings 3 1 0 0 0 (3) (100.0%)

Dime Box 0 0 15 0 0 0 0.0%

Llano 7 52 29 0 0 (7) (100.0%)

Pflugerville 6 85 46 25 8 2 33.3%

Manor 47 32 93 98 33 (14) (29.8%)

Eanes 0 0 0 0 26 26 0.0%

Del Valle 53 95 99 38 5 (48) (90.6%)

Lago Vista 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Lake Travis 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Florence 10 9 0 0 0 (10) (100.0%)

Georgetown 173 127 273 61 114 (59) (34.1%)

Granger 16 10 4 3 0 (16) (100.0%)

Hutto 0 0 0 242 0 0 0.0%

Jarrell 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Liberty Hill 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Round Rock 891 879 898 45 137 (754) (84.6%)

Taylor 51 45 31 36 137 86 168.6%

Thrall 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0%

Leander 633 252 725 409 217 (416) (65.7%)

Total 3,136 2,766 3,925 2,091 2,452 (684) (21.8%)

Source: Capital Area Tech-Prep Consortium, June 2002.
Only Austin, Elgin, San Marcos, Pflugerville and Taylor school districts have increased their Tech-Prep student enrollment from 1997-98 to 2001-02, and enrollment levels for all districts has decreased by 684, or 21.8 percent. THECB, the agency responsible for Tech-Prep oversight, reviewed the Capital Area Tech-Prep program in April 2002 and cited the program as not meeting standards for student participation, enrollment and follow-up.
THECB concluded that after 12 years of Tech-Prep implementation, almost all schools should be participating, and the numbers of participants should be increasing, not declining. Statewide, the number of students enrolled in Tech-Prep programs increased by 320 percent from 1997-98 through 2001-02, from 23,595 students to 99,125 students.
Recommendation 20:
Improve the Tech-Prep program articulation process and training.
ACC should improve its staff development process for Tech-Prep articulation, and the Consortium should provide more frequent communication and coordination with the districts. The college should review its articulation process internally to ensure a smooth flow of communications and transition for students.
IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES AND TIMELINE

1. The associate vice president of Workforce Education directs the Tech-Prep executive director to develop a staff development plan for Tech-Prep articulation for all districts in the Consortium area. February 2003

2. The Tech-Prep executive director meets with the Consortium and reviews staff development curriculum for clarity and consistency. March 2003

3. The Tech-Prep executive director and the Tech-Prep manager provide training on articulation agreements to counselors and principals in Consortium districts. April - June 2003

4. The associate vice president of Workforce Education meets with workforce deans and program coordinators to review the articulation process and ensure that articulation tools are being used across all workforce program areas. May 2003

5. The Tech-Prep executive director and the Tech-Prep manager evaluate the training to counselors and principals and make changes as needed in the training curricula and articulation process. July 2003 and Ongoing

FISCAL IMPACT
This recommendation can be implemented with existing resources.

AISD High School	Total Number of ECS Students 2001-02	Student Enrollment 2001-02	Percent of At-Risk Students 2001-02	TEA Accountability Rating 2001-02	Percent of Early College Start Enrollment 2001-02
Akins	5	1,063	76.4%	Acceptable	0.5%
Anderson	32	1,742	60.0%	Recognized	1.8%
Austin	61	2,026	68.1%	Acceptable	3.0%
Bowie	110	2,611	60.4%	Recognized	4.2%
Crockett	78	2,362	80.3%	Acceptable	3.3%
Garza Ind.	49	358	94.1%	Acceptable	13.7%
L.B.J.	16	1,675	64.1%	Acceptable	1.0%
Johnston	17	1,496	79.8%	Low Performing	1.1%
Lanier	35	1,801	81.8%	Acceptable	1.9%
McCallum	37	1,657	71.4%	Acceptable	2.2%
Reagan	8	1,282	87.9%	Acceptable	.6%
Travis	15	1,694	79.6%	Acceptable	0.9%
Total	463	19,767			2.3%

1.	The associate vice president of Instructional Support Services and the director of Early College Start develop a training calendar for Early College Start, targeting high schools with low-participation rates and low-entry rates into institutions of higher education.	February 2003
2.	The director of Early College Start contacts targeted schools and confirms training calendar dates and times.	March 2003
3.	The associate vice president of Instructional Support Services provides additional information to campus deans regarding Early College Start and the benefits to both the college and students.	April 2003
4.	The associate vice president of Instructional Support Services and the executive director of Marketing and College Relations make changes to the ACC Web site to provide a list of "frequently asked questions" and a link to the Student Resources Web page.	May 2003

Independent School District	1997-98	1998-99	1999-2000	2000-01	2001-02	Net Change	Percent Change
Austin	145	0	888	290	1,472	1,327	915.2%
Bastrop	31	14	54	111	2	(29)	(93.5%)
Elgin	79	64	79	31	94	15	19.0%
Smithville	241	332	297	319	0	(41)	(100.0%)
Johnson City	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Blanco	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Burnet CIST	358	82	36	60	42	(316)	(88.3%)
Marble Falls	75	111	111	49	39	(36)	(48.0%)
Lockhart	0	0	6	0	0	0	0.0%
Luling	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Prairie Lea	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Flatonia	54	7	5	6	4	(50)	(92.6%)
La Grange	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Schulenburg	1	0	0	0	0	(1)	(100.0)%
Fayetteville	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Round Top/Car.	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
San Marcos CISD	38	0	0	194	47	9	23.7%
Dripping Springs	0	10	0	1	0	0	0.0%
Wimberley	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Hays CISD	224	559	236	73	75	(149)	(66.5%)
Giddings	3	1	0	0	0	(3)	(100.0%)
Dime Box	0	0	15	0	0	0	0.0%
Llano	7	52	29	0	0	(7)	(100.0%)
Pflugerville	6	85	46	25	8	2	33.3%
Manor	47	32	93	98	33	(14)	(29.8%)
Eanes	0	0	0	0	26	26	0.0%
Del Valle	53	95	99	38	5	(48)	(90.6%)
Lago Vista	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Lake Travis	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Florence	10	9	0	0	0	(10)	(100.0%)
Georgetown	173	127	273	61	114	(59)	(34.1%)
Granger	16	10	4	3	0	(16)	(100.0%)
Hutto	0	0	0	242	0	0	0.0%
Jarrell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Liberty Hill	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Round Rock	891	879	898	45	137	(754)	(84.6%)
Taylor	51	45	31	36	137	86	168.6%
Thrall	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.0%
Leander	633	252	725	409	217	(416)	(65.7%)
Total	3,136	2,766	3,925	2,091	2,452	(684)	(21.8%)

1.	The associate vice president of Workforce Education directs the Tech-Prep executive director to develop a staff development plan for Tech-Prep articulation for all districts in the Consortium area.	February 2003
2.	The Tech-Prep executive director meets with the Consortium and reviews staff development curriculum for clarity and consistency.	March 2003
3.	The Tech-Prep executive director and the Tech-Prep manager provide training on articulation agreements to counselors and principals in Consortium districts.	April - June 2003
4.	The associate vice president of Workforce Education meets with workforce deans and program coordinators to review the articulation process and ensure that articulation tools are being used across all workforce program areas.	May 2003
5.	The Tech-Prep executive director and the Tech-Prep manager evaluate the training to counselors and principals and make changes as needed in the training curricula and articulation process.	July 2003 and Ongoing