University of Houston - Downtown
The University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) added soft skills to gateway courses and its College Success Program, which was expanded to all first-years in 2010.
UHD began offering its College Success Program (CSP) course to all incoming first-year students in Fall 2010. Previously, only students on academic probation were required to take the course.
As part of a Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board pilot program, UHD added the soft skills emphasized by the Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) system to the CSP course and to introductory math, history, writing, and psychology courses.
UHD is developing a CSP course for transfer students and restarting students, who make up more than 70% of the student body. It is also considering making CSP mandatory for all first-years.
Of the 1,200 first-year students in Fall 2010, 650 participated in the university's first common reader. Of the 348 students who completed surveys at the Freshman Convocation, 60% planned to form study groups and 77% indicated they would seek help at the Writing Center.
Located in Houston's central business district, UHD is part of the University of Houston System. It offers 43 baccalaureate and four master's degree programs.
A federally designated minority- and Hispanic-serving institution, UHD had 12,900 students in Fall 2010. Thirty-seven percent were Hispanic, 28% were African American, nine percent were Asian, and five percent were non-resident aliens. Students of color were predominantly women: 63% of Hispanic students and 69% of African American students were women. In 2009-2010 academic year, 42% of students received Pell grants.
In addition to administrators' leadership, UHD's Achieving the Dream efforts have benefitted from Faculty Senate members leading student success discussions and using data to inform decisions across the campus.
The success of the Achieving the Dream Statistics Lab at UHD led to two related innovations: the College of Business added a statistics tutoring lab and the Department of Social Sciences hired tutors to assist students who take social sciences statistics courses.
UHD also participate in:
- Houston Pathways, which aims to improve the alignment between the curricula used by five school districts and programs at UHD, Houston Community College, and San Jacinto Community College District and
- Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program (GEAR UP), a national effort that prepares middle and high school students for college.
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.
