The mission of the First Year Experience Department is to work cooperatively and creatively with academic and support services to offer students a comprehensive first-year experience that empowers them as engaged learners, integrates them into the college community as meaningful participants in campus life, and facilitates their successful transition into future transfer and career pathways.
The FYE Department provides centralized collaboration for first year courses and efforts at Butte. The many excellent student and transfer success programs across the campus have a contact point as they seek to coordinate efforts around the first year experience of our students. The FYE department houses the following courses and programs: • Life Management (LM40) • College and Life Success (CSL20) • On Course (EDUC100) • Career & Life Planning (CLP30) • Other Counseling classes as offered. The FYE "student success courses" (with common SLOs and ongoing faculty collaboration) include: • College and Life Success (CSL20) • Career & Life Planning (CLP30) • College Study Skills (READ126) • Health and Wellness (HLTH2) • Life Management (LM40). The FYE department collaborates with the following courses, programs, departments, and committees: • Health and Wellness (HLTH2) • College Study Skills (READ126) • Exploring Leadership (POS92) • English 118 & 119 • New Student Orientation • Reg2Go • Recruitment, Outreach & Student Life • Summer Bridge • Center for Academic Success • Information Literacy courses • Student Success Committee • Counseling (provides group academic advising to FYE classes each semester) • Assessment • Contract Education / Work Training Center • Numerous other departments across the campus. The FYE Department ensures consistency across the FYE student success courses as they address mutually agreed-upon common core curricula (see SLOs).
First Year Experience Instructor
The recently hired full-time faculty member has not only provided leadership, but has assisted with training and mentoring associate faculty, curriculum and SLO work, unit planning, and other departmental tasks.The new full-time faculty member has also developed and taught (or will teach) online CSL20 and LM40 courses, which traditionally have been fully enrolled and often have a waitlist.
All FYE classes assess students for SLOs/PLOs/GELOs every semester. Students respond to an 18-question online survey, answering using a Likert Scale. Faculty gather to review and discuss the survey results, and to share/plan means for improvement. The department focused on Outcome #1 this year.
Outcome #1:
Practice personal management strategies like time, stress, and finance management and taking responsibility for personal choices.
Outcome #1 was a focus in all FYE classes, with the goal of fostering the strengthening of students' self-management skills across the board. Overall, instructors noted improvement in students' responses to this survey question.
|
Indicator |
Source |
College |
Program |
||||||||
|
2014-2015 |
Standard |
Six Year Goal |
Fall 2011 |
Fall 2012 |
Fall 2013 |
Fall 2014 |
Fall 2015 |
Standard |
Six Year Goal |
||
|
Access |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
- Unduplicated Headcount |
PDR |
12,691 |
|
|
100 |
607 |
726 |
741 |
729 |
|
|
|
Course Success |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
- Overall |
PDR |
70.6% |
70.0% |
73.0% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
- Transfer/GE |
PDR |
71.7% |
|
73.0% |
68.4% |
68.1% |
67.4% |
60.8% |
67.4% |
62.0% |
68.0% |
|
- CTE |
PDR |
75.3% |
|
77.0% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
- Basic Skills |
PDR |
51.7% |
|
55.0% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
- Distance Ed (all) |
PDR |
62.6% |
|
64.0% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Persistence (Focused). Note: The Persistence (Focused) that is included in the PDR is a different indicator than the three-primary term persistence indicator, from the State Student Success Scorecard that is used to measure institutional persistence. The Focused Persistence indicator measures the percentage of students that took a second course in a discipline within one year. There is no relationship between the college and program standards in this area. |
PDR |
71.8% |
67.0% |
75.0% |
6.2% |
6.2% |
5.6% |
7.8% |
6.1% |
|
|
|
(Three-Term) Scorecard |
(Three-Term) Scorecard |
(Three-Term) Scorecard |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
Degrees - annual |
PDR |
1,421 |
|
1,475 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Certificate of Achievement (CA) - annual |
PDR |
814 |
|
475 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Local Certificate (CC) - annual |
PDR |
518 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Developmental Strand Completion |
|
|
|
|
|
||||||
|
- English |
State |
43.7% |
|
45.0% |
|||||||
|
- Math |
State |
33.8% |
|
35.0% |
|||||||
|
- ESL |
State |
42.9% |
|
45.0% |
|||||||
|
Licensure Pass Rates |
|
|
|
|
|||||||
|
- Registered Nursing |
SC |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
- Licensed Vocational Nursing |
SC |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
- Respiratory Therapy |
SC |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
- Paramedic |
SC |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
- Cosmetology |
SC |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
- Welding |
SC |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||
|
Job Placement Rates |
PIV |
|
|
|
|||||||
Strategic Direction
1. Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Academic Achievement
c. Entry
The college sets incoming students on the path to success by:
Empowering new students to succeed through First Year Experience and involvement in campus activities
The FYE department supports the college in meeting its Strategic Direction and Priorities whenever possible. For example, the department was among the first to invite the Guided Pathways coordinator to attend a department meeting and to express a desire to participate in and support the Guided Pathways effort.
The FYE department supports the following Butte College Strategic Initiatives:
1. Enhancing a Culture of Completion and Academic Achievement (conveying to students the possibilities available to them, making students active partners in their educational success, empowering new students to succeed through First Year Experience and involvement in campus activites, connecting sutdents to support services, assisting students to identify potential careers and develop the soft skills required in the workplace)
2. Supporting Student, Faculty, and Staff Success (creating a culture of meaningful interactions with students, engaging students in campus life, actively encouraging and enabling students to make decisions that support their success and completion, putting students first, developing and maintaining collaborative processes across campus)
3. Using data-informed Processes for Continuous Improvement (student achievement, class scheduling)
4. Enhancing a Culture of Inclusiveness (educating students about diversity, improving success of targeted populations)
The Validation Team recommended that the FYE department hire a full-time faculty member to teach and serve in a future leadership role. The department hired a full-time faculty member in Spring 2016.
The Validation Team recommended that the FYE program consider "rebranding," choosing a name more indicative of the program's purpose, for example "College and Life Success." The FYE department continues to discuss this question and agrees that rebranding would be a positive change for students, as well as for the department.
The Validation Team recommended that the FYE program target groups that they can effectively serve with existing program offerings. For example, to facilitate their success, readmitted, disqualified students might be allowed to register as continuiing students for FYE and Basic Skills courses for their first semester post-readmission. This recommendation will be addressed during Guided Pathways discussions.
The Validation Team recommended that the FYE program ensure that they are offering the most appropriate and effective course offerings, based on students' needs. The team suggested possibly offering a three-week FYE class in August for students new to Butte College. The FYE department looks forward to working with Summer Bridge, Student Equity, and othe Student Success Initiatives to meet Butte College Students' needs.
FYE Department Goals
The overarching goal of the FYE department is to reach as many Butte College students as possible. In order to achieve this goal, the department hopes to:
1. Hire another full-time instructor to teach core classes
2. Classify FYE department chair as Chair III in order to allow time to participate in and contribute to campus initiatives, including Guided Pathways and Dual Enrollment
3. Increase student access to and success in FYE courses, especially for disproportionately impacted students
4. Continue strategic collaboration with departments, programs, and individuals across campus to empower and increase student success
5. Support the use of the online environment, including Canvas, to enhance student learning
Strategy 1 - Hire Full-time Instructor
The FYE department will hire a full-time instructor to provide leadership in the department and to teach core classes.
The FYE department currently has one full-time faculty member teaching two of the the department's core courses: LM40 and CSL20. The department hired one full-time instructor in Spring 2016, but another is needed to provide adequate leadership as the college moves forward with Guided Pathways and a focus on student achievement. Full-time faculty members not only provide leadership but assist with training and mentoring associate faculty, curriculum and SLO work, unit planning, and program review.
Currently, most faculty teaching core classes in the department are associate faculty or full-time academic counselors teaching a one-course overload .In 2015-16, several experienced associate faculty found full-time jobs, did not accept teaching assignments for health reasons, or reduced their teaching loads for some other reason.
Strategy 2 - Classify FYE Department Chair as Chair III
The FYE department chair will be reclassified as a Chair III to accurately reflect the amount of time and effort required to perform the duties of the position effectively, including actively participating in and contributing to Guided Pathways and Dual Enrollment efforts.
Prior to the 2014-15 academic year, the FYE department chair received 30% assigned time reduction to manage the department and coordinate the program. In 2014-15 the assigned time was reduced to 20%, which is not adequate to perform the duties of the position effectively while simultaneously working to develop and expand the program to meet the needs of more students -- especially in light of current campus initiatives, including Guided Pathways and Dual Enrollment. In addition to the standard duties of a department chair (including hiring, scheduling, evaluating associate faculty, dealing with student complaints, and managing the department budget), ordering books, attending two-hour Thursday afternoon meetings three weeks per month (Department Chairs, Learning Council, Dean's Area Meeting) along with bi-weekly meetings with the dean, the FYE department chair must meet and work closely with Student Services (Counseling, Orientation, Reg2Go, and Summer Bridge) and other academic departments. Each semester, the department chair is responsible for creating and distributing SLO surveys to all faculty teaching LM40, CSL20, CLP30, HLTH2, and READ126, collecting and analyzing survey results, and distributing results to faculty prior to Institute Day. Last year, the FYE department conducted its first Program Review, which has required considerable time and effort on the part of the department chair.
In Fall 2015, the department chair attended numerous committee meetings and meetings with with college decision makers to request input regarding the future of the First Year Experience program. The chair has been appointed to the Educational Master Planning committee and is also actively engaged in conversations focused on the book Redesigning America's Community Colleges, which makes a strong case for mandatory student success courses. The FYE program is ready to expand to serve even more students. Possibilities for expansion, all of which would require leadership on the part of the department chair, include:
1) Collaborating with the PROD office to serve disproportionately impacted students from local area high schools
2) Collaborating with the Child Development department to offer LM 40 in Spanish to students in the ECE certificate program
3) Increasing the number CLP 30 course sections/locations to serve students hoping to define or refine academic majors and/or career options
4) Supporting and contributing to the Guided Pathways effort on campus
5) Supporting and contributing to the Dual Enrollment effort at area high schools
Strategy 3 - Collaborate Strategically with Departments, Groups, and Individuals
The FYE department will make strategic, broad-based collaboration with groups, departments and individuals across campus its ongoing focus. In particular, FYE will broaden its collaborative model to include working with more Student Services offices. The department has considered the possibility of developing a 12-unit certificate, possibly a certificate that encourage new students to take math and English classes during their first year. The department will continue to engage in meaningful dialogue with Math, English, and LEAD faculty about empowering students' success during their first year at Butte College.
Recommendation 2.4 of the Advancing Student Success in California Community Colleges, The Recommendations of the California Community Colleges Student Success Task Force is to “Require students whose diagnostic assessments show a lack of readiness for college to participate in a support resource, such as a student success course, learning community, or other sustained intervention, provided by the college for new students.”
The narrative for this recommendation broadens the recommendation to include first-year experience programs. The report also cites that experience both in California and throughout the nation demonstrates that these interventions - when carefully and deliberately planned and implemented - do have a positive impact on student success, retention and persistence.
The FYE department hosted a brainstorming session with faculty and administrators from across campus in April 2014. Several ideas came out of the session:
1. Possible Cohorts or Linked Classes: FYE class with a Math, English, or Reading class
MATH 217/READ 126
ENGL 219/READ 126
MATH 108/LM 40, CSL 20, CLP 30
ENGL 118 & 119/LM 40, CSL 20, CLP 30
The FYE department, with support of the Dean of Student Learning, has made excellent progress in working with Counseling and Reg2Go; however, more work between and among departments would allow us to serve more students and help them achieve their academic goals. The department has also made great strides in marketing the program via screens on campus, paper flyers, and letters to counselors and parents of graduating high school seniors who participate in Reg2Go. More time and energy devoted to these efforts would allow the FYE department to address more of the ideas suggested at the brainstorming session, which would ultimately result in greater success for students and higher retention levels for academic programs across the college.
Strategy 4 - Support Use of Online Environment to Enhance Learning
The FYE department will continue to work with colleagues to explore ways to ensure that first year students receive appropriate training in digital literacy,as needed. The department encourages the use of Canvas in all courses.
Numerous conversations and meetings over the past several years have reinforced the need for students to be prepared to succeed in an increasingly digitized and technological world. As Canvas is used in virtually every class at Butte College, and as faculty broaden requirements for students' use of technology in instructional settings, new students need to be equipped with at least basic digital competency skills.
Strategy 5 - Collaborate with Campus Funding Sources to Support FYE Student Success
The FYE department will collaborate with campus funding sources to provide basic organizational supplies to students in FYE classes.
FYE classes teach students self-management and organizational skills, and the FYE department plans to support SP 18 CSL 20 and LM 40 students enrolled in face-to-face classes by providing them with planners in which they can chart daily, weekly, and monthly schedules and record assignment due dates, test dates, and other important times and dates. The total cost would be $5.00 x 250 students = $1250.00.
FYE can purchase customized planners through the Office of Student Life if it is possible to make a commitment to purchase by April 2017.
Strategy 6 - Increase Student Access and Success
The FYE department will seek to ensure that all students, especially disproportionately impacted students, have access to FYE Student Success Classes, including CLP 30, CSL 20, HLTH 2, LM 40, and READ 126.
If, as is consistently seen in excellent FYE programs across the country, Butte College hopes to make FYE Student Success classes a pivotal “jumping off” place for our new students, we obviously must offer enough sections to accommodate student need. When First Year students are successful, the entire campus is more successful. According to Butte College data, students who complete a FYE class are approximately 20% more likely to achieve their academic goals.
The department is actively pursuing the development of online versions of LM40 and CSL20 and has discussed the possibility of adding an online or hybrid version of CLP30 in the future. Two instructors have recently developed online courses, and additional faculty are engaged in online course development. Three FYE Instructors currently teach core FYE courses online.
The FYE department plans to participate actively in campus-wide discussions about the possiblity of developing Guided Pathways at Butte College. Ideally, each Guided Pathway will include at least one FYE class option.
The FYE department would benefit from dedicated classroom space.
The FYE department has a Life Management Foundation Account (from LM40 workbook fees, for LM program development use only). As of 2/2017, the Foundation account balance is $6845.83.
| Original Priority | Program, Unit, Area | Resource Type | Account Number | Object Code | One Time Augment | Ongoing Augment |
| Description | Supporting Rationale | Potential Alternative Funding Sources | Prioritization Criteria | |||
| 1 | First Year Experience | Operating Expenses | $0.00 | $3,500.00 | ||
| The FYE department chair will be reclassified as a Chair III to accruately reflect the amount of time and effort required to perform the duties of the position effectively, including supporting Guided Pathways and Dual Enrollment efforts. Augmentation amount represents stipend increase of $3,500 plus additional 10% reassigned time. | Prior to the 2014-15 academic year, the FYE department chair received 30% assigned time reduction to manage the department and coordinate the program. In 2014-15 the assigned time was reduced to 20%, which is not adequate to perform the duties of the position effectively while simultaneously working to develop and expand the program to meet the needs of more students -- especially in light of current campus initiatives, including Guided Pathways and Dual Enrollment. In addition to the standard duties of a department chair (including hiring, scheduling, evaluating associate faculty, dealing with student complaints, and managing the department budget), ordering books, attending two-hour Thursday afternoon meetings three weeks per month (Department Chairs, Learning Council, Dean's Area Meeting) along with bi-weekly meetings with the dean, the FYE department chair must meet and work closely with Student Services (Counseling, Orientation, Reg2Go, and Summer Bridge) and other academic departments. Each semester, the department chair is responsible for creating and distributing SLO surveys to all faculty teaching LM40, CSL20, CLP30, HLTH2, and READ126, collecting and analyzing survey results, and distributing results to faculty prior to Institute Day. Last year, the FYE department conducted its first Program Review, which has required considerable time and effort on the part of the department chair. In Fall 2015, the department chair attended numerous committee meetings and meetings with with college decision makers to request input regarding the future of the First Year Experience program. The chair has been appointed to the Educational Master Planning committee and is also actively engaged in conversations focused on the book Redesigning America's Community Colleges, which makes a strong case for mandatory student success courses. The FYE program is ready to expand to serve even more students. Possibilities for expansion, all of which would require leadership on the part of the department chair, include: 1) Collaborating with the PROD office to serve disproportionately impacted students from local area high schools 2) Collaborating with the Child Development department to offer LM 40 in Spanish to students in the ECE certificate program 3) Increasing the number CLP 30 course sections/locations to serve students hoping to define or refine academic majors and/or career options 4) Supporting and contributing to the Guided Pathways effort on campus 5) Supporting and contributing to the Dual Enrollment effort at area high schools |
|
|
|||
| 2 | First Year Experience | Operating Expenses | $1,250.00 | $0.00 | ||
| The FYE department will collaborate with campus funding sources to provide basic organizational supplies to students in SP 18 FYE classes. | FYE classes teach students self-management and organizational skills, and the FYE department plans to support SP 18 CSL 20 and LM 40 students enrolled in face-to-face classes by providing them with planners in which they can chart daily, weekly, and monthly schedules and record assignment due dates, test dates, and other important times and dates. The total cost would be $5.00 x 250 students = $1250.00. FYE can purchase customized planners through the Office of Student Life if it is possible to make a commitment to purchase by April 2017. |
|
|
|||
| 3 | First Year Experience | Personnel | $0.00 | $109,877.00 | ||
| Hire full-time instructor | The FYE department currently has one full-time faculty member teaching two of the the department's core courses: LM40 and CSL20. The department hired one full-time instructor in Spring 2016, but another is needed to provide adequate leadership as the college moves forward with Guided Pathways and a focus on student achievement. Full-time faculty members not only provide leadership but assist with training and mentoring associate faculty, curriculum and SLO work, unit planning, and program review. Currently, most faculty teaching core classes in the department are associate faculty or full-time academic counselors teaching a one-course overload .In 2015-16, several experienced associate faculty found full-time jobs, did not accept teaching assignments for health reasons, or reduced their teaching loads for some other reason. |
|
|
|||
| 4 | First Year Experience | Operating Expenses | $17,500.00 | $0.00 | ||
| The FYE department seeks resources to ensure that all students, especially disproportionately impacted students, have access to FYE Student Success Classes, including CLP 30, CSL 20, HLTH 2, LM 40, and READ 126. Augmentation requested for additional class sections and/or "boot camp" experiences for targeted groups of students. | If, as is consistently seen in excellent FYE programs across the country, Butte College hopes to make FYE Student Success classes a pivotal “jumping off” place for our new students, we obviously must offer enough sections to accommodate student need. When First Year students are successful, the entire campus is more successful. According to Butte College data, students who complete a FYE class are approximately 20% more likely to achieve their academic goals. The department is actively pursuing the development of online versions of LM40 and CSL20 and has discussed the possibility of adding an online or hybrid version of CLP30 in the future. Two instructors have developed online courses, and additional faculty are engaged in online course development. The FYE department plans to participate actively in campus-wide discussions about developing Guided Pathways at Butte College. Ideally, each Guided Pathway will include at least one FYE class option. |
|
|
|||