1. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Addressing the Needs of a
Diverse Student Population
Through a
First Year Experience Program
April 30 – May 1, 2009
Sacramento, CA

2. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Frances A. Gusman
Vice President, Student Services
francesg@cos.edu

3. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
College of the Sequoias Profile
• Single campus district with two centers
• Enrollment 13,000
• 47% (math) and 31% (English)test into
developmental levels
• Low income (over 70% receive BOGG fee waiver)
• Hispanic students now comprise largest ethnic
group of student body (51%)
• 14 feeder high schools plus adult schools,
continuation schools, court schools and charter
schools.

4. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
The Community We Serve
• Increasingly Diverse
• Many Foreign Born, Non-
English Speaking
• More Living in
Poverty/Unemployment
• Fewer HS grads & BA
holders

5. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
The percent of
8.7 adults in Tulare
Tulare
4.7
County with a
Bachelor’s
CA
18.6 Degree lag far
9.6 behind adults
in the rest of
17.1 the state and
U.S.
8.4 nation.
0 5 10 15 20
Percent of adults > 25 with a Bachelor’s Degree
1990 2006

6. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Tulare 18.5 Family poverty
rates are twice
as high in
CA 9.7
Tulare County
than in the rest
of the state and
nation.
U.S. 9.8
0 5 10 15 20
Percent of families living below the federal poverty level, 2006

7. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
The
Tulare county is
number of experiencing
Latino
residents dramatic
increased demographic
25% in the
last six shifts
years

8. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
COS is
Other
12 witnessing a
12
sharp increase in
the proportion of
44
Latino Latino students
35
and a drop in
35
White students
White
48
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
Percent of student population by race/ethnicity
1997- 2007-
1998 2008

9. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Challenges for COS
• ACCESS: low participation
rate
• PERSISTENCE: high numbers
of:
– Applicants who do not enroll
– Enrollees who drop
– Students who do not continue
beyond 1 semester

10. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
First Year Experience
Learning Communities
Evolution
• Success Program – early 90’s
• LISTO I………..1999 – 2004
• LISTO II……….2004- 2007
• FYE …………......2007 to present

11. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
First Year Experience
Learning Communities
FYE – Fall 2007- Fall 2009
• Focus shifted to developmental English and Math
• Offered to any incoming freshmen and
re-entry students who have less than 30 units
• Expanding to 12 communities by Fall 2009

12. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
First Year Experience
Learning Communities
FYE – PIC (Preparatory/Intermediate/Collegiate)
Model 12 communities
Prep level Remedial English 13 units
Pre-Algebra
First Year Seminar
Intermediate level Intermediate English 13 units
Algebra I
First Year Seminar
Collegiate level Transfer English 10- 14 units
Transfer Music
First Year Seminar
Other class per counseling
Students advance to next levels in spring

13. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
FYE Academic Challenges
• Faculty buy-in
• Scheduling classes
• Administrative input
• Collaboration with Academic and Student
Services

14. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
FYE Learning Council
• Designed to improve collaboration with
Academic Services / Student Services and solve
implementation issues
• V.P. Academic Services, V.P. Student Services,
academic deans, student services deans, FYE
counselor, division chairs
• Scheduling issues
• Outreach
• Recruitment of faculty

15. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
ELI and FYE
• English and Math basic skills learning
communities
• ESL learning community – Fall 2010
• Career Technical Education learning
communities
• Nursing – Fall 2008
• Ornamental horticulture – Fall 2009
• Learning Resource Specialist for FYE
(funded by BSI)

16. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Future Plan
Number of Number Sections Number
Learning of of of
Semester Communities Students FYE Seminar Students
Fall 2007 6 130 -- 0
Spring 9 225 1 22
2008
Fall 2008 11 275 6 255
Spring 12 300 6* 400
2009
Fall 2009 12 300 10** ?
* Implementation of large lecture section
** All COUN 110 courses part of a Learning Community

17. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Initial Success and Retention Data
Fall Semester 2007
Re-enrolled
Group “C” or Better Spring 2008
Math 360 26% 74%
English 360 52% 73%
Cohort 1 51% 84%
Cohort 2 64% 88%

18. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Student Success and Retention Data
Spring 2008, Fall 2008
“C” Re-enrolled
Semester Number /Group or Better next semester
Spring 08 8 Learning Communities 46% 57%
Fall 08 11 Learning Communities 53% 80%

19. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
What We Know
• The majority of new students entering COS require basic skills
support
• Students are failing developmental courses at abysmal rates and
many that get to college level transfer courses do not complete
the courses to transfer or graduate with a degree
• These same students are the ones who rarely, if ever, utilize the
services and resources available to them
• Students need and require more “touches” by individuals on
campus. These students are uninformed and do not know how to
even begin to access information and/or support services
• Intrusive assistance is required if these students are to be
successful

20. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
What We Can Do
A team like approach of staff to work with our FYE students would
ensure the students meet and get to know staff who are assigned to
them and subsequently access services and resources. Like
EOPS, students would be required, as outlined in their contract, to meet
each person on their team at least once a semester. The team members
could then collaborate with other team members to assist the student.
Potential Triage/Team Intervention could be composed of the
following staff:
• Outreach staff - we have not tapped into the rich informational
resource this staff possesses
• Counselor - in place
• Financial Aid staff
• Disability Resource Center - when indicated
• Student Activities Staff – possibly Associated Student Body Student/Officer
• Faculty training – BSI – First Annual Summer Institute for Teaching and
Learning at Asilomar Conference Center

21. Basic Skills Regional Meeting
Future Plans
• Continue to link FYE with our Basic Skills Initiative
• Further refine data collection / evaluation of FYE
• Increase retention efforts :
• Faculty has been asked not to drop students without contacting the FYE Office
• Implemented Early Alert System Spring ‘09 (Banner) Progress Reports
requested be entered the third week of the semester
• Continue our expansion plans to serve more students
• Continue to implement additional service components such as:
• Student Book Loan Program
• Summer Bridge Program – Peer Mentors
• Continue to implement multiple sections of the FYE Seminar course
• Achieving The Dream Initiative