Highline Community College
Highline Community College (HCC) has increased the transition rates for students enrolled in non-credit English as a Second Language (ESL) courses to courses that count toward credentials with the help of its ESL Transition Initiative.
HCC’s three main interventions are aimed at increasing and accelerating students’ advancement from basic skills and developmental education into college-credit courses. One of these interventions is the ESL Transition Initiative, which assists ESL students to transition successfully from the noncredit ESL program to courses that count toward credentials. Compared to the general college population, these students are disproportionately comprised of immigrants and refugees, students of color, and Latino heritage.
The ESL Transition Initiative engages students through three related components:
- Career-pathway bridge classes that overview employment and credential options and the culture and expectations of the student’s career-area of interest
- One-to-one advising to link students with a faculty advisor from their interest area
- The Transition Referral and Resource Center, established as a clearinghouse for services about transitioning from ESL to credit-bearing courses
Now celebrating its 50th year, HCC is located near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, in one of the most diverse regions in the Northwest. To serve its community, Highline delivers innovative education and training opportunities to foster personal and professional success in our multicultural world and global economy. Highline is one of the state’s largest institutions of higher education and enrolls the most diverse student body of any college in Washington state.
In Fall 2010, HCC enrolled 6,870 undergraduates. That semester, 41% of students identified as white, 15% as Asian/Pacific Islander, 11% as African American, and 6% as Hispanic.
The college has a large population of international students and more than 80% of students at HCC place into developmental mathematics. In addition, HCC enrolls another 3,000 to 4,000 students each year in its noncredit ESL program.
HCC’s other major interventions similarly are aimed at accelerating students through basic skills and developmental education.
MP3-11 is an intervention for students placing three levels below college-level in math and one level below in reading or writing. About 15% of the student population fits into this category, which is disproportionately comprised of students of color. Strategies include advising, mentoring, and co-enrollment in college-level courses.
The Developmental Math Initiative began with mentoring and led to a reform of pre-college math curricula as well as the elimination of one math level, shortening and improving the pathway to credit-bearing courses.
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.
Achieving the Dream Leader Colleges
Leader Colleges are demonstrating the power of the Achieving the Dream Student-Centered Model of Institutional Improvement. They show us it is possible to raise persistence and graduation rates, close achievement gaps, and change lives. Leader Colleges embody the ultimate goal of Achieving the Dream, and as such, serve as mentors within our community of learners.
To be eligible for Leader College distinction, colleges must show three or more years of improvement on one or more of these five measures:
- Course completion
- Advancement from developmental to credit-bearing courses
- Completion of college-level math and English courses
- Term-to-term and year-to-year retention
- Completion of certificates or degrees
