The SOCHE Segue - October 2009

Let’s Connect

At SOCHE, it’s our priority to share resources and expertise, and to connect like-minded individuals. This issue of the SOCHE Segue illustrates what happens when higher education connects across campuses and communities. Please spend a few moments with this issue of our e-newsletter to learn about some collaborative efforts of our community college members. You’ll also find additional stories from across our membership and higher education.

Further, I encourage you to join us on the upcoming SOCHE Road Trip to see Malcolm Gladwell, one of today’s most influential thinkers who wrote extensively about the role of connectors in his book The Tipping Point. There are only about 20 spots left on the bus, so register today.

I hope you’ll look among your peers and member institutions to find opportunities to share your talents, and strengthen the region through new connections.

Sincerely,
Sean Creighton

e-Text Book Program Earns State Recognition

In southwest Ohio, students with disabilities have greater access to the resources they need thanks to a partnership between SOCHE and OhioLINK.

Through CUDAC (SOCHE’s College and University Disability Access Collaborative), participating schools use high-speed scanners and software to convert printed textbooks into digital files. The e-versions are uploaded to OhioLINK’s online library and shared with participating campuses.

Thirteen campuses participate in the program – and it may be expanded statewide. SOCHE is working with OhioLINK and the Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission to secure funding to expand the project to include all Ohio higher education institutions with OhioLINK membership.

These efforts earned SOCHE the 2009 Organizational Award from the Ohio Rehabilitation Association. The award is presented annually to an organization with an outstanding record of service to persons with disabilities.

In their nomination, Brenda Cooper and Deanna Arbuckle said “SOCHE’s Disability Services Committee identified a major barrier to academic access, specifically the availability of electronic textbooks. Given the wide spread nature of this barrier, SOCHE took action.” Cooper and Arbuckle both work for the Student Learning Services division of the Ryan C. Harris Learning Teaching Center at the University of Dayton.

SOCHE accepted the award on Friday, October 23.

Sinclair Helps Youth Achieve College and Career Readiness

• The lifetime income of families headed by individuals with a bachelor’s degree will be about $1.6 million more than the incomes of families headed by those with a high-school diploma.1
• Every $1 spent on college education yields $34.85 in increased lifetime income.2
• And, research has consistently shown a link between higher education and good health for both parents and their children.3

While the incentive to attain higher education is real – for students and communities alike – the hurdles to achieving academic success can be challenging.

In the past, the State has jumped in, creating funding sources and programming to help high school students get a head start.

In 2008, a program called “Seniors to Sophomores” (S2S) challenged high school students and helped accelerate their college education. The program dual-enrolled academically qualified high school students, allowing them to earn both high school and college credit at the same time. Successful students earned a year’s worth of college credit at no cost – enabling students to earn sophomore status during their first year out of high school.

Students “were given a hand up,” said Steve Buerschen, Franklin High School’s Director of Educational Services. Through a S2S partnership with Sinclair’s Courseview Campus Center, “we were able to jumpstart their college education and offset some of the cost to families.”

Sinclair Community College was an early adopter of the S2S program, adding it to their comprehensive line-up of pre-college programming. Sinclair currently manages eight programs for students in 7th through 12th grades, and has secured funding from a variety sources, enabling them to continue programs like S2S when state funding was eliminated.

“These programs are a strategic priority for the College,” said Mortenous A. Johnson, manager of Pre-College Programs at Sinclair. “They are an important part of our overarching commitment to serve the community – giving students an educational pathway to college, challenging students who need it, and supplementing education that is delivered in the high schools.”

Sinclair’s pre-college programs overlap, by design, to maximize student success. For example, programs like Upward Bound and the Young Scholars Program prepare younger students for high school success – which will later benefit their college readiness. In 2008, Sinclair found that 75% of students in its Young Scholars Program passed the Ohio Graduation Test (OGT) by the 10th grade. (Passing OGT is required to earn a high school diploma.)

Other programs challenge students who surpass the academic standards for their grade level – allowing them to take college level courses taught by Sinclair’s faculty.

In 2008, Sinclair helped 2,119 young students through the Office of Pre-College Programs.

“We’re prepared to deliver educational services to students with a variety of educational needs,” said Johnson.

“We have a junior high school student taking pre-calculus,” Alisha Mitchell, S2S coordinator at Sinclair, offered as an example. “And, two high school seniors recently earned State-Tested Nursing Assistant (STNA) certification. These students will be prepared and eligible to work in a state medical facility immediately out of high school.”

Johnson said Sinclair is constantly improving programming and innovating its services to meet the needs of students. But, one thing will remain the same: Sinclair’s focus on helping both high school and college students reduce the barriers to higher education.

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Cedarville Earned High Marks in The Student Satisfaction Inventory

Cedarville’s efforts toward quality have been affirmed by the people who matter most – students. According to the 2007–08 Noel-Levitz Student Satisfaction Inventory, Cedarville received numerous first-place rankings.

When compared to all 288 private and public institutions that participated in the survey, Cedarville ranked #1 on seven out of 81 items, including commitment to academic excellence, variety of courses offered, and quality of the career services office. When compared specifically to other Christian universities, Cedarville placed in the top five on 85 percent of the items and in the top 10 on 95 percent.

Dr. Carl Ruby, vice president for student life, describes the University’s approach to student satisfaction in one word: intentional.

“We have a culture here that values quality,” he says. “We’ve made a deliberate effort to listen to our students’ input ... We want to understand what they are talking about,” Ruby says. “What are their frustrations? Their joys? What makes them glad to be at Cedarville?”

Nevertheless, “being intentional about student satisfaction isn’t just about being market-driven,” Ruby says, “and it doesn’t take away from the unique dynamics of the academic enterprise. It’s about modeling a quest for excellence in all we do ... even in the way we provide services like housing, health care or advising.”

Cedarville’s main goal in responding to this survey will be to translate these numbers into a higher retention rate. Though that rate is strong at 85 percent, Ruby intends to see it slide over the 90 percent mark. Three things factor into that: financial aid, a clear academic plan and adequate support for struggling students.

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Three Edison Graduates Named Among Ohio’s Elite Community College Grads

Of Ohio’s nearly 22,000 community college graduates this Spring, three students from Edison Community College were named among the top 50 in the entire state: Sam Friedet and Dustin Hall, both from Sidney, and Nanci Kay from Covington.

A veteran of the United States Marines Corps, Friedet graduated in May from Edison with a paralegal studies degree. Friedet’s career goal is to practice law after attaining a juris doctorate degree.

Dustin Hall is a spring graduate of Edison’s Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Program (PSEOP) and a 2008 Houston High School graduate. At only age 17, Hall will be a college junior next month when he enrolls as a major in wildlife biology and conservation at Ohio University.

Nanci Kay completed an associate degree in human services after being away from school for more than 25 years. As a student worker on the Piqua main campus, she often assisted individuals who had special learning needs. In addition, she spent countless hours volunteering for community service projects to improve the lives of others.

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Kettering College Held Disaster Simulation

The Kettering College of Medical Arts’ Department of Nursing conducted disaster simulations for two groups of nursing students this summer. The premise for each simulation was that a building under construction collapsed during a tour and the hospital’s emergency department was full, so patients were sent to the Kettering College skills lab for triage and treatment.

As part of the exercise, the students set up a command station to triage a large group of patients, including many children, who represented the wide range of injuries that could occur during an actual building collapse.

“All nurses have the potential to feel the impact of a disaster at sometime in their career,” said Amy Jauch, RN, coordinator of the Nextern program. “Disaster planning and care has been integrated into nursing curriculum to assist future nurses in understanding the professional nurse’s role in a disaster. The decision to have the students experience a disaster through disaster simulation, or a disaster drill, was a natural progression to increase the simulation that Kettering College provides its nursing students.”

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Clark State to Build Creative Arts and Conference Center Downtown Springfield

Clark State Community College recently announced plans to build a multi-purpose Creative Arts and Conference Center (CACC) in downtown Springfield. The new facility will fulfill corporate, arts and community needs in the city of Springfield that have been identified over the last several years.

“We are delighted to be able to continue our role in the revitalization of downtown Springfield with a beautiful new venue to serve the needs of businesses, arts groups, youth outreach, and the residents of this area,” said Clark State President Dr. Karen Rafinski. “This is truly a facility that will serve all of our community.”

The CACC will consist of approximately 25,800 square feet in two wings connected by an atrium. The space will provide additional performance and rehearsal space for artists, as well as accommodations for community events, classes and a conference center. Project Jericho, a nationally recognized arts education program, will also be housed in the CACC.

Clark State plans to complete construction by January 2012.

Funding has been provided in part by a Kresge Challenge Grant. The community and private donors must match the Kresge Foundation’s $850,000 grant by June 30, 2010. The State and College Foundation are also contributing financial support.

For more information, including site plans and building timelines, visit Clark State’s CACC web page.

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Students at Southern State Complete “Your Place” Program

Twenty-seven students recently completed Southern State Community College’s Your Place program, which assists individuals-in-transition in achieving their goals of education and/or employment. Individuals in transition may include single parents, displaced homemakers, single pregnant women and anyone who needs to develop new skills in order to earn a livable wage due to divorce, disability, unemployment or underemployment.

Your Place classes emphasized self-esteem, goal setting, decision making, communication skills, conflict resolution, time/stress management, budgeting, parenting skills and more. Students also were instructed on conducting a career search and learning basic computer skills, such as word processing and utilizing the Internet.

Students also completed an online assessment of their interests, abilities and skills in order to start mapping out a career path. Participants also receive 10 copies of their resumes, reference pages and cover letters that were completed during class time.

Upon successful completion of the program, participants earned six college credit hours, which can be used as electives toward the completion of a degree.

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SOCHE Spotlight: Regional Campaign Under Development

SOCHE is in the early stages of building a comprehensive education campaign to attract and retain college students – positioning Ohio as the place for higher education.

Keeping learners and educators in Ohio plays a key role in our economy. In 2007, SOCHE reported that higher education had a $3 billion impact on the regional economy, accounting for the creation of 30,000 jobs.

The campaign will raise awareness of the fundamental importance of higher education and of Ohio’s vast opportunities available to meet the needs of a diverse population of learners.

More information will become available as the strategy is formalized. We are just beginning the critical research phases and may be calling on our member campuses for input.

In the meantime, if you have questions about the campaign, contact Sean.

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In this Issue:

e-Text Book Program Earns State Recognition

Sinclair Helps Youth Achieve College and Career Readiness

Cedarville Earned High Marks in The Student Satisfaction Inventory

Three Edison Graduates Named Among Ohio’s Elite Community College Grads

Kettering College Held Disaster Simulation

Clark State to Build Downtown Springfield

Students at Southern State Complete “Your Place” Program

SOCHE Undertakes Regional Education Campaign

Snapshot of Pre-College Programs at Sinclair

Advanced College Entry (Grades 7-12) Participants are provided enrollment and advising services to complete and obtain college credit from a number of approved courses offered at Sinclair.

Carl D. Perkins IV Act Funded through the Ohio Department of Education and Board of Regents, Perkins funding is used to promote academic achievement, career and technical education, strengthen connections between secondary and post-secondary education, and improve state and local level accountability.

Post-Secondary Enrollment Options (Grades 9-12) PSEO permits high school students in grades 9-12 to take college classes while still enrolled in high school.

Quick Start (Grades 11-12) This program offers transcripted college courses in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) to junior and senior students from eight partnering Montgomery County schools.

Seniors to Sophomores (Grade 12) Seniors who attend Ponitz Career Technology Center have the opportunity to pursue college studies at Sinclair Community College. Students complete their final year of high school and earn dual credit for their freshman year of college.

Upward Bound (Grades 9-12) A federally-funded program for low-income and/or first-generation students, Upward Bound is designed to increase the probability that participants will complete high school, matriculate to college, and complete a program of study at a post-secondary institution.

Virtual Community Schools of Ohio Collaborative VCS students experienced an enriched education and face-to-face tutoring from student tutorial staff.

Young Scholars Program (Grades 8–12) YSP prepares first-generation students within Montgomery County to be academically ready to pursue higher education.

See detailed list of Sinclair’s pre-college programs here.

Student Satisfaction

The Student Satisfaction Inventory developed by Noel-Levitz gives colleges and universities across the U.S. a powerful tool to improve the quality of student life and learning. It measures student satisfaction and priorities, showing not only how satisfied students are but also what issues are important to them.

Save These Dates

Academic Leaders Conference “Academic Freedom”
Friday, October 30, 2009

SOCHE Road Trip “Malcolm Gladwell: Ahead of the Curve”
Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Articulation and Transfer Conference and Work Session
Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Leadership Series “Politics in the Workplace”
Thursday, December 3, 2009

See conference details

More Stories About Higher Education

Central State Hires Renowned Biochemist as New Provost (Dayton Daily News)

University of Dayton Ranked Best Catholic University in Nation, No. 2 Overall for Urban Revitalization (Dayton Daily News)

At Texas Flagship, Budget Cut May Translate Into Shrinking Language Requirements (The Chronicle)

Colleges Face Swine-Flu Challenge (The Chronicle)

On Campus, Dave Larsen & Kelly Mori’s Higher Education Blog for the Dayton Daily News