Preparing for College: Building Expectations, Changing Realities

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Preparing for CollegeBuilding Expectations,
Changing Realities

• William G. Tierney
• Wilbur-Kieffer Professor of Higher Education
• and Director
• Center for Higher Education Policy Analysis
• Rossier School of Education, WPH 701
• University of Southern California
• Los Angeles, CA 90089-0031
• www.usc.edu/dept/chepa

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Nine Key Components of College Preparation
Programs

• 1. A rigorous academic curriculum
• 2. Academic, college, and career counseling
• 3. Co-curricular activities

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Nine Key Components of College Preparation
Programs (cont.)

• 4. Incorporation of students cultures
• 5. Family and community engagement
• 6. Peer support

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Nine Key Components of College Preparation
Programs (cont.)

• 7. Mentoring
• 8. Timing of interventions
• 9. Funding priorities

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Component 1

• A rigorous academic curriculum

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Academic preparationThe key to college
enrollment

• What is Academic Preparation?
• Preparation generally refers to completing a
  substantial number of rigorous courses during the
  high school years. It points to the development
  of skill levels that will prepare students for
  college level work.

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Strategies for supporting and strengthening
academics in college preparatory programs

• Begin efforts to improve academic preparation
  before high school.
• Ensure that students have opportunities to enroll
  in rigorous coursework.
• Offer additional academic support.
• Coordinate with K-12 and college educators.

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Component 2

• Academic, college, and career counseling

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Guiding adviceQuality counseling enhances
college-going

• Fast Facts on Counseling
• Recommended maximum counselor-
• to-student ratio 1250
• National average counselor-to-
• student ratio 1513
• Average counselor-to-student ratio in
• large urban cities 1740

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Strategies for improving counseling services

• Begin early and foster long-term relationships.
• Make counseling a priority in programmatic
  design.
• Decrease counselor-to-student ratios.
• Acknowledge students diverse needs.

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Strategies for improving counseling services
(cont.)

• Improve counselor training and professional
  development.
• Acknowledge the role of teachers in the
  counseling process.
• Partner with colleges.
• Engage families

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Component 3

• Co-curricular activities

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Outside the curriculumDo co-curricular
activities influence college-going?

• Co-Curriculum refers to school- and
  community-based activities that take place
  outside the structure and timing of the regular
  classroom and school day.

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Types of social activities associated with
college prep programs

• Informal
• before- and after-school activities
• weekend social events
• group trips to cultural events
• hanging out with friends in the
• same college prep program

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Types of social activities associated with
college prep programs

• Formal
• election to a college prep leadership
• office
• participation in summer workshops
• that are social in nature
• retreats to discuss college-going plans
• a trip to visit colleges

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Types of social activities associated with
college prep programs

• Formal (cont.)
• participation in graduation ceremonies from the
  program
• enrollment in college classes
• participation in service learning activities

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Strategies for enhancing co-curricular activities

• Offer a wide range of academic and non-academic
  activities.
• Minimize obstacles to participation.
• Solicit student input on worthwhile
  extra-curricular activities.

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Strategies for enhancing co-curricular activities
(cont.)

• Incorporate cultural values and themes into
  extra-curricular events.
• Ensure that all students have access to
  school-sponsored activities.
• Partner with civic groups and elected officials.

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Component 4

• Incorporation of students cultures

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Cultural wealth Tapping into local identities

• Defining culture in college prep
• We define culture as the racial and ethnic
  identity of the students and their families in
  college preparation programs.

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Strategies for bringing student cultures into
college preparation

• Engage the family and community in college
  preparation.
• Utilize peer groups.
• Use cultural resources.

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Component 5

• Family and community engagement

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Family mattersFamilies influence college-going

• Why involve families?
• Engagement with families is a way of affirming
  students cultures.
• Family members can provide relief and additional
  support.

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Strategies for engaging families

• Start early to bridge the information gap.
• Encourage networking.
• Empower parents as advocates.
• Inform families of pathways to college.

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Component 6

• Peer support

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Friends in school Peer groups influence
college-going

• Peer groups play a crucial role in identity
  development and building college aspirations for
  minority youth.

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Strategies for bringing peers into the college
preparation process

• Cultivate the peer groups that might be
  produced by college preparation programs.
• Use peer groups as a resource to be developed.
• Develop a sense of teamwork within the peer
  group.
• Incorporate the socio-cultural aspects of peer
  groups.

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Component 7

• Mentoring

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The tasks of mentoringA critical component for
college-going

• Purposes of mentoring
• to provide general guidance for college and
  career
• to offer additional support to marginalized youth
  by affirming self worth and cultural norms
• to encourage college-going aspirations
• to affect behavioral outcomes (e.g. truancy, drug
  use)
• to improve grades and test scores

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Fast facts on mentoring

• The average mentor program serves 291 students.
• The average mentor-to-student ratio is 125.
• Students receive less than 5 hours of mentoring
  contact per month.
• The average cost for a program is 1,100 per
  student per year, excluding the volunteer time
  for the mentor and in-kind contributions,
  materials, and equipment.

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The tasks of mentoringA critical component
forcollege-going (cont.)

• Types of formal mentoring programs
• peer-based
• school staff and faculty-based
• community volunteers
• corporate/professional volunteers
• one-on-one programs
• one mentor working with a small group of
• protégés

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Strategies for developing a mentoring program in
college preparation

• Specify the role of the mentor and clarify
  mentoring goals.
• Develop and support long-term mentor
  relationships.
• Understand the cultural considerations that must
  be taken into account in mentoring programs.

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Strategies for developing a mentoring program in
college preparation (cont.)

• Evaluate mentors and mentoring programs so that
  their potential can be better understood.

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Component 8

• Timing of interventions

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Strategies for scheduling interventions

• Engage students in rigorous academic preparation
  and college guidance no later than middle school.
• Provide students with ongoing information about
  college and the admissions process.

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Strategies for scheduling interventions (cont.)

• Foster college-going aspirations beginning in
  elementary grades.
• Help students prepare for college entrance exams.

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Component 9

• Funding priorities

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Weighing the costsEvaluating quality,
determining priorities

• Steps to guide cost-benefit analysis
• 1. Determine the costs of the program
• What is the total cost of the program, including
  in-kind donations?
• What is the cost per student?
• What are the program components, and what does
  each cost?

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Weighing the costsEvaluating quality,
determining priorities (cont.)

• 2 . Consider the programs benefits
• How does the program track outcomes? How are
  benefits measured?
• Does the program produce the impact it was
  designed to produce?
• What are the intangible benefits of the program?
  What are the tangible benefits?

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Weighing the costsEvaluating quality,
determining priorities (cont.)

• 3. Pay attention to the following aspects of
  determining costs
• Quality of information How thorough are the
  data you are using in your analysis?
• Short vs. long-term impact Do we know what
  happens to students well after the intervention
  is complete?

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Weighing the costsEvaluating quality,
determining priorities (cont.)

• Pay attention to the following aspects of
  determining costs (cont.)
• In-kind contribution Does the program take
  advantage of in-kind contributions and community
  resources? What relationships might be beneficial
  for the program?
• Evaluate continuously Create a feedback loop
  that relies on consistent program evaluation.
  When evaluation is an integral part of program
  maintenance, programs can operate more
  effectively.

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Center for Higher Education Policy Analysis

• Rossier School of Education
• WPH 701
• University of Southern California
• Los Angeles, CA 90089-0031
• www.usc.edu/dept/chepa