St. Louis Community College
STLCC wants to fully develop the social and economic fabric of the community by increasing the number of residents who enroll in its programs and complete credentials. With Achieving the Dream, STLCC plans to build on its culture of inquiry and evidence-based decision-making to support student success by:
- Enhancing the college's capacity and institutional will to use data for systemic improvements in programs and services;
- Supporting the First Time in College (FTIC) student population with the following interventions:
- The College Registration Enrollment Workshop (CREW), an introductory registration and enrollment group session for FTIC students, who often have little to no knowledge of basic college information and operations;
- New Student Orientation and Follow-Up (NSO-F) to provide a consistent and systematic approach for providing all FTIC students with an overview of college resources to assist them in successfully completing the first semester of college;
- College success courses: a mandatory 3-credit hour course for students who place into developmental courses as well as a mandatory 1-credit hour course for students who are college ready; students who have direct interaction with faculty who are committed to student success and a structured, safe place (ideally, the classroom) to solve problems related to their efforts to succeed in college are more likely to accomplish their goals;
- Focusing on retention and
- Reshaping the developmental education curriculum using learner-centered developmental education programs such as K-14 Strategies and Learning Communities.
These innovations will be designed to accelerate the time to transitioning to college-level courses for students placing into two or more developmental courses.
St. Louis Community College (STLCC), the largest community college district in Missouri, is a highly diverse, four-campus urban institution founded in 1964. The college also features four Centers of Excellence, specializing in information technology, digital arts, engineering and manufacturing and plant and life sciences. In 2006, STLCC received a Nursing Workforce Diversity Grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to increase success rate of minority and international nursing students.
The Fall 2010 semester’s enrollment totaled 29,130 students; 35% were African-American. The majority of the student populations at two of the college's campuses are students of color. District-wide, STLCC serves students who are natives of 119 different countries. More than half of the college's students receive Pell Grants.
Enrolling and graduating underserved populations is a priority for the STLCC, and in recent years it has taken several steps to improve student success. The college implemented a reading requirement as a prerequisite for college-level work; redesigned the general education curriculum; added a college orientation requirement; revamped enrollment management systems; and instituted Centers for Teaching and Learning at all four campuses to encourage use of best practices in classrooms.
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.
