INSTRUCTION AND ACADEMIC SUPPORT
This chapter reviews the instruction and academic support functions of the Alamo Community College District (ACCD) in the following sections:
- A. Organization and Program Management
- B. Institutional Effectiveness and Program Review
- C. Resource Management and Productivity
- D. Academic Support
- E. Special Programs
- F. K-16 Initiatives
F. K-16 INITIATIVES
Increasingly, states are initiating policies that help students transition more easily among high school, the community college and four-year or upper-level institutions. Collaborative efforts between secondary and postsecondary institutions are making it possible for students to get a head start on a college education through dual enrollment courses and for community college students to transfer more of their courses to senior colleges and universities through articulation agreements.
There are two primary reasons for the growing popularity of dual enrollment programs: they provide rigorous academic challenges to high school students and they ease the transition from secondary to postsecondary education. Parents, students and policymakers support these efforts because they create access to postsecondary education at an early age, which ultimately moves students into the workforce earlier and better prepared. These programs also encourage greater collaboration between high school and college faculty, which has long been a challenge. Much of impetus for the dual credit movement in Texas comes as a response to THECB's report, Closing the Gaps, which outlines a plan to improve teaching at elementary and secondary grades, reach new standards of excellence at colleges, make higher education more affordable and increase minority enrollment.
Dual credit programs enable students who meet certain guidelines to earn college credits while completing their high school requirements. A successfully completed dual credit course earns the student college credit, which may be applied toward an associate degree and/or may transfer to other colleges and universities. Courses must adhere to college-level standards and are similar in academic rigor to advanced placement courses.
FINDING
ACCD works actively with all service area independent school districts, charter and private schools and home-schooling programs to promote dual credit opportunities for high school students who have completed their sophomore year. Exhibit 2-26 lists the ACCD service area school districts by county.
Exhibit 2-26 Source: ACCD, Web site, 2003.
ACCD Service Area
By County and School District
County Independent
School DistrictAtascosa Charlotte
Jourdanton
Lytle
PoteetBandera Bandera
MedinaBexar Alamo Heights
East Central
Edgewood
Ft. Sam Houston
Harlandale
Judson
Lackland
North East
Northside
Randolph
San Antonio
Somerset
South San Antonio
Southside
SouthwestComal Comal
New BraunfelsGuadalupe Marion
Navarro
Schertz-Cibolo-Universal City
SeguinKendall Boerne
ComfortKerr Center Point
Divide
Hunt
Ingram
KerrvilleWilson Floresville
La Vernia
Poth
StockdaleStudents may earn community college credit for skills mastered or work completed while they are in high school. The dual credit program is designed for students who plan to earn a certificate, an associate degree, or a four-year degree, as well as for those who just want to take general education college courses. Many of the courses are transferable, and students may earn up to 24 hours of college credit. Curriculum addresses both college course competencies and the Texas Education Agency's (TEA) Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) requirements.
The TEA, THECB and SACS each provide minimum standards, rules and regulations that ACCD colleges must meet in order for high school students to receive dual credit or concurrent course credit. After meeting the required standards, ACCD's colleges develop dual credit agreements with area high schools, using a standardized format. Faculties collaborate on curriculum development and jointly facilitate the student's academic progress. Such beneficial partnerships help to strengthen the overall quality of curriculum and better prepare students for additional college-level course work. In addition, these partnerships help college-level instructors gain insight into the learning needs of high school students.
In the fall 2002, ACCD articulated agreements with nearly 100 area high schools and enrolled almost 4,100 students in more than 190 dual credit classes across the district. A few of the dual credit courses that meet TEKS requirements and count toward a high school diploma are shown in Exhibit 2-27.
Exhibit 2-27 Source: ACCD, college coordinators of Dual Credit programs.
Examples of ACCD Courses Meeting Dual Credit Criteria
2002-03
ACCD Courses High School Equivalents Botany/Zoology
BIOL 1411/1413Biology Advanced Placement (AP)-Dual Credit (DC) Intermediate Spanish
SPAN 2311/2312Spanish III Freshman Composition
ENGL 1301English IV DC American Government (National)
GOVT 2305Government DC Introduction to Criminal Justice
CRIJ 1301Introduction to Criminal Justice Integrated Software Applications I
ITSC 1309Business Computer Information Systems US History I
HIST 1301American History College Algebra
MATH 1314Pre-Calculus DC Elements of Statistics
MATH 1442Statistics AP-DC Introduction to Computer and Information Systems
COSC 1301Computer Science I-DC Fundamentals of Programming
COSC 1315Computer Science I-DC Freshman Comp II
ENGL 1302Literature Genre-DC US History II
HIST 1302American History AP-DC Introduction to Word Processing
ITSW 1301Business Computer Information Systems Macroeconomics
ECON 2301Economics AP-DC Through partnerships with school districts that have low numbers of college-going students, ACCD helps to fulfill the Closing the Gaps goal of adding 500,000 additional higher education students by 2015. H.B. 400 requires each school district whose students have low college-going rates to establish a partnership with a higher education institution aimed at increasing college enrollment rates. Exhibit 2-28 shows these ACCD partnerships and growing student participation levels.
Exhibit 2-28 Source: ACCD, college coordinators of Dual Credit programs, February-April, 2003.
Sample of Participation of Low College-Going Independent School Districts
In ACCD Dual Credit Programs
2001-02 through 2002-03
College,
School District
and/or High SchoolNumber
of Students
2001-02Number
of Students
2002-03Northwest Vista College Northside ISD* NA NA Palo Alto College Edgewood ISD 103 109 Harlandale ISD 39 96 Jourdanton ISD 75 79 Lackland ISD 0 0 Lytle ISD 22 23 Marion ISD 120 127 Medina ISD 130 138 Poteet ISD 34 58 Poth ISD 17 32 Randolph Field ISD 17 14 Somerset ISD 88 83 San Antonio ISD 55 86 South San ISD 115 86 Southside ISD 80 65 Southwest ISD 127 194 San Antonio College Bandera ISD 170 172 Boerne ISD 17 22 Center Point ISD 50 58 Harlandale ISD 10 14 Kenedy ISD 92 100 New Braunfels ISD 48 50 Nixon-Smiley ISD 52 52 Southside ISD 39 42 Seguin ISD 267 350 St. Philip's College Edgewood ISD 5 6 Harlandale ISD 35 33 San Antonio ISD 157 73 S. San Antonio ISD 15 11 Southside ISD 2 4 Southwest ISD 7 11 Adelante Academy (Private) 18 39
*Northside ISD is the largest ISD in San Antonio with 56 percent Hispanic students and 42 percent of the district economically disadvantaged, however, it is not considered a low college-going ISD.COMMENDATION
ACCD colleges make it possible for public and private high school students, as well as home-schooled students, to earn college credit inexpensively and conveniently through dual credit courses.
FINDING
The ACCD dual credit program is cost-effective and financially self-supporting. In 1995, H. B. 1336 and H.B. 2447 significantly changed the dual credit program by allowing community colleges to waive tuition and fees for public and private school students enrolled in a course in which students receive both high school and community college credit. The ACCD board has waived tuition and fees for high school students enrolled in up to two approved dual credit courses per semester. Students taking more than two courses per semester pay any associated tuition and fees above the two-course
limit. In spite of costs for assessment testing, registration and record keeping, Exhibit 2-29 shows that ACCD dual credit programs were largely self-sustaining in fall 2002, covering their costs with state reimbursement based upon the number of contact hours generated.
Exhibit 2-29 Source: ACCD, District Treasurer.
ACCD Dual Credit Expenses and Revenue
Fall 2002
Colleges Northwest Vista Palo Alto San Antonio St. Philip's Total Expenses Salaries (recruiters, director, program administration) $20,743 $15,950 $23,500 $16,843 $77,036 ISD faculty $61,200 $16,800 $15,000 Not Reported $93,000 Full-time ACCD faculty N/A $66,000 $50,000 $28,600 $144,600 Total Expenses $81,943 $94,550 $73,500 $52,643 $302,636 Revenue Enrollments 1,179 906 1,242 642 3,969 Contact-hour Reimbursement $522,181 $321,284 $474,369 $380,284 $1,698,118 Net Revenue $440,238 $226,734 $400,869 $327,641 $1,395,482 COMMENDATION
ACCD's dual credit program supports itself by generating state funding based on contact hours.
FINDING
ACCD colleges have expanded the original intent of dual credit programs, which is to help high school students get a head start in college, into career development fields via Tech-Prep initiatives. For example, the Southwest Campus offers an alternative education program, Phoenix, and two high school career academies as dual credit Tech-Prep programs. Funded by the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act, Tech-Prep is a federal education initiative that calls for the development of articulated secondary and postsecondary programs of study to address the need for highly skilled two-year college graduates. Initially authorized in 1990, the Tech-Prep Education Act was reauthorized in 1998, the same year the Texas legislature passed H.B. 2401, which defines the initiative in Texas.
The Phoenix program at the Southwest Campus, which began in 1997, enables 150 juniors and seniors selected from the San Antonio Independent School District (ISD) to complete TEA-required courses while exploring career options. Upon passing the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), students are eligible to participate in the dual credit program. Phoenix instructors help students adjust to a college environment and outline occupational and educational plans. Students attend workshops and seminars on career assessment and job search skills, as well as sponsored career and job fairs.
The Southwest Campus also offers two high school academies, one in aerospace and the other in information technology and security, which unite the college, the city, several school districts and industry representatives in an educational and workplace partnership. Through these academies, the Southwest Campus serves all of the low college-going ISDs.
The Information Technology and Security Academy (ITSA), started in fall 2002, was designed for high school juniors, in order to provide a steady stream of high-wage, high-tech employees to San Antonio's growing information technology and security industry. ITSA is a collaborative effort among ACCD, the San Antonio Technology Accelerator Initiative (SATAI), the new Center for Infrastructure Assurance and Security at the University of Texas at San Antonio, the City of San Antonio, local industry partners and 18 independent school districts in and around Bexar County. High school juniors who excel in the program will be eligible for jobs with the government, including the National Security Agency and the military and with large corporations. Paid summer internships are provided between the junior and senior high school year, and students receive up to 30 semester hours of college credit and six high school credits for the two-year program.
The other academy, the Alamo Area Aerospace Academy (AAAA), is a community partnership providing youth with education, experience and job opportunities in the aerospace industry. The aerospace industry is one of San Antonio's core driver industries and a major source of high-wage, high-skill jobs that are essential to the city's prosperity. Yet, the industry faces the serious problem of finding a sufficient source of highly skilled workers to support business expansion and replace the large flow of retirees expected from the current workforce over the next decade. An outgrowth of the mayor's Better Job initiative, the Alamo Area Aerospace Academy is a unique and innovative partnership of all 17 Bexar county school districts, a number of aerospace industry employers, the ACCD and the Greater Kelly Development Authority. The AAAA enrolled its first students in the fall of 2001 and graduated its first 25 students in May 2002. It also provides paid summer internships between the junior and senior year. Upon graduation, students are ready for jobs in the aerospace industry, where they can complete their technical training toward an FAA license or use their credits toward a college degree.
Southwest Campus programs serve the San Antonio area's needs for skilled employees. They are self-supporting through state reimbursement, which is based upon the number of contact hours generated multiplied by an amount set by the THECB for each type of training. Exhibit 2-30 shows the costs.
Exhibit 2-30 Source: ACCD, vice president, St. Philip's College - Southwest Campus.
Dual Credit Expenses and Revenue at Southwest Campus
Fall 2002
Fall 2001 Spring 2002 Fall 2002 Spring 2003* Total Expenses Salaries (recruiters, director, program administration) $45,523 $54,860 $73,853 $10,803 $185,040 Full-time ACCD faculty $125,000 $125,000 $125,000 $125,000 $500,000 Part-time faculty (Security and Aerospace academies) 0 0 $28,325 $28,325 $56,650 Total Expenses $170,523 $179,860 $227,178 $164,128 $741,690 Revenue Generation City of San Antonio (Academy Grant) $100,000 $100,000 $147,062 $147,062 $494,124 ITSA Enrollments NA NA 81 76 157 Contact Hours 18,766 17,839 36,605 State Reimbursement NA NA $67,933 $64,578 $132,511 Project Phoenix Enrollments 97 147 82 105 431 Contact Hours 6,528 13,728 7,622 10,848 38,726 State Reimbursement $29,115 $61,227 $33,994 $48,382 $172,718 Alamo Area Aerospace Academy (AAAA) Enrollments 334 301 337 139 1,111 Contact Hours 12,928 37,440 21,376 6,832 78,576 Other Dual Credit State Reimbursement $62,959 $71,686 $111,530 $31,441 $277,616 Enrollments 1 15 42 16 74 Contact Hours 112 800 4544 1632 7,088 State Reimbursement $500 $3,568 $20,266 $7,279 $31,613 Totals Enrollments 432 463 542 336 1773 Contact Hours 19,568 51,968 52,308 37,151 160,995 Revenue Generation (State Reimbursement) $192,574 $236,481 $380,785 $298,742 $1,108,582 Net Revenue $22,051 $56,621 $153,607 $134,614 $366,893
*Note: Spring 2003 enrollment does not include an accelerated 12-week session, because it had not yet started at time of this review.COMMENDATION
ACCD is expanding its dual credit program into several career education fields in order to meet the community need for highly skilled workers.
FINDING
ACCD's joint articulation agreements, that is, formal written agreements between two institutions, enable students to more easily transition to certain four-year colleges and universities, primarily in the central Texas region. These include St. Mary's University, Southwest Texas State University, Our Lady of the Lake University, Trinity University, University of the Incarnate Word, Texas A & M in Kingsville, Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Texas A & M University in Corpus Christi, The University of Texas Health Science Center - Laboratory Technician Program, Wayland Baptist University and The University of Texas at San Antonio. ACCD is continually adding joint articulation agreements with other four-year institutions through its college counseling centers.
ACCD students can pursue a bachelor's degree in one of the programs offered at a four-year college or university by signing a joint admission agreement from the first date of ACCD enrollment; maintaining a grade point of 2.00, or a C average, on all college-level work; completing the application for admission with the four-year institution; submitting official copies of transcripts and satisfying all TASP requirements prior to enrollment in the four-year college. Concurrent enrollment, that is, simultaneous enrollment in both institutions, is possible once all prerequisites for upper-division courses have been met and the student has completed at least 54 credit hours. Typically, the student makes such an agreement with a department or college within the university, involving a specific course or courses.
Agreements also specify that universities provide information on former ACCD students. For example, Southwest Texas State University (SWTSU) provides ACCD with reports on the success of their former students who transferred to SWTSU. These reports provide information on enrollment, academic performance and retention.
ACCD has also established "2 + 2" agreements with Prairie View A & M University, St. Mary's University and the University of Texas at Dallas to accept the first two years of college credit earned at ACCD colleges. These agreements are designed for students who complete the first two years of a particular program with a minimum of 60 applicable degree hours and satisfy the requirements for an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Arts. SACS requires that at least 15 of these hours be in core curriculum areas, that is, Humanities/Fine Arts, Social/Behavioral Science, Natural Science and Mathematics. The Texas Higher Education Act, as set forth in Subchapter F, Sections 51.301 and 51.302, also requires that students complete six semester hours in United States/Texas Government and six semester hours in United States/Texas History.
To facilitate agreements and to ease the transition to a four-year college or university, ACCD manages college transfer centers at each college. In addition, since more students transfer to The University of Texas at San Antonio than to any other institution, the university maintains a college representative on both the San Antonio and Palo Alto campuses. Texas A & M at Kingsville has a physical presence at Palo Alto. For similar reasons, ACCD colleges also bring university representatives to their campuses to discuss the transfer process and to assist in the transition to a four-year school.
COMMENDATION
ACCD helps students transfer from the two-year college by developing various kinds of agreements with area four-year colleges and universities.