Edmonds Community College
Edmonds Community College hopes to explicitly adopt the Achieving the Dream framework and implement the Five-Step Process for Increasing Student Success. The college’s goal in working with Achieving the Dream is to help the college research what programs work and why, and which do not, so they can make better use of data and be more strategic in supporting student success.
Edmonds recognizes from the data sources that in order to increase its yearly retention rate, which currently sits at about 60%, it requires the help of Achieving the Dream to decide what is best for their diverse population of students.
Some programs have already been implemented to support at-risk students’ success in areas of study, such as:
- Trio Student Support Services Program: offers a suite of support services to 160 low-income, first generation and/or students with disabilities annually; 78% persisted into 2009-10 academic year
- Worker Retraining: 190 unemployed students completed a degree or certificate for 2009-10
- Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics Scholarships (CSEMS): the college received two National Science Foundation scholarship grants to support low-income STEM majors, and of the 97 scholars supported under these grants, 75 graduated or transferred to baccalaureate institutions within the award period (33 of the scholars were underrepresented minorities)
Edmonds plans to increase the number of faculty and staff who have access to meaningful data to inform decision-making and program-planning so they can increase opportunities for improved student tracking and advising.
Edmonds Community College was founded in 1967 and has committed to supporting equity in education for low-income and underserved students. Almost half of the enrollment population are students of color, and the residents living in the college's service area contend with particularly challenging socioeconomic conditions with incomes 30% below the poverty level in 2009. Edmonds is a leader in Washington State’s Student Achievement Initiative and for the past four years has ranked 4th out of 34 technical and community colleges in overall Student Achievement points.
Students, who earn any of their two-year degrees or shorter-term certificates, have many opportunities to develop and apply college-wide abilities in preparation for their roles in an increasingly diverse, information-driven society. Edmonds had a total enrollment of 9,660 students in the Fall 2009 semester and 55% were under the age of 25. A little over half of the students attend the college part-time and 55% of students are female. The percentage of full-time, first-time American Indian or Alaskan Native students who began their studies in the Fall of 2006 and graduated within “normal time” of completion of their studies was 33%.
The Achieving the Dream Model
Achieving the Dream community colleges commit to our Student-Centered Model of Institutional Improvement. Based on four principles, the model frames the overall work of helping more students, particularly low- income students and students of color, stay in school and earn a college certificate or degree.
Each college approaches the work differently, but Achieving the Dream’s five-step process provides practical guidelines for keeping the focus where it belongs and building momentum over time. Throughout the process, Achieving the Dream coaches offer customized support and help each college’s core team implement data-informed programs and policies that build long-term, institution-wide commitment to student success.
