In the Spirit of Student Success
COS Five-Year Strategic Plan
Here is the reviewable draft of our 2010-2015 Strategic Plan. It is the compilation of work beginning in Fall semester with the formation of the Institutional Planning Committee, with initial campus input during our first campus charrette in December 2009, to refine and define the 6 areas of focus, followed by input from our Spring 2010 Convocation, as well as community and student forums held during February and early April.
The Institutional Planning Committee is seeking final input on the draft from faculty, staff, and students through the end of April. This reviewable draft of the Strategic Plan is posted on SharePoint (website-inside COS-Intranet-President’s Office-type strategic plan in the box “what are you looking for?”) You may send comments and suggestions to anyone on the committee.
Because our focus is on student success, there may be overlapping themes that are addressed in more than one area. An interesting note is that many of the strategies, goals, and outcomes parallel those that are developing separately through our “Achieving The Dream” process, which hopefully indicates that as a campus we are united in thought.
The Institutional Planning Committee is in the process of developing a Tactical Plan to accompany the Strategic Plan. The Tactical Plan will identify different committees and areas throughout the campus that will be responsible for developing action plans to accomplish our measureable outcomes. When you review the Strategic Plan for comments, please keep in mind that the outcomes did not consider available resources at this time, fully aware that as campus priorities shift funding and human resources will shift as well.
Questions we are particularly interested in your feedback are:
· Is there something critical that we have missed?
· Is there something that needs clarification?
· Are our measureable outcomes doable within the time frame we established?
· What baseline data will be required before we can start implementation?
The Institutional Planning is committed to making this a dynamic document, which will be reviewed and updated annually with input from the campus and community.
Your participation has been greatly appreciated as we’ve tried to make this a fully participatory process, and we hope you will continue your participation in the spirit of student success.
Thanks from your Institutional Planning Committee:
Jeff Basham and Duncan Graham (Co-chairs), Tim Garner, Lisa Loewen, Lori Luna, Deborah Nolan, Michael Samaniego, Frank Tebeau, Jane Thomas, Marvin Turk, and Jan Woodall
STUDENT ACCESS
Definition:
Students can easily apply and register for classes they need and receive timely support services from their first contact with COS in order to complete their educational program in a timely manner, including an easily accessible physical campus.
Goal 1. Enhance institutional access through technology
Strategies
1. Keep the website updated with current information for each semester
2. Increase basic computer access for all students
3. Provide online tutoring
4. Provide online processes and procedures in more than one language.
5. Eliminate delays in student access to the network by increasing Banner update frequency.
6. Provide access to instructional material, especially for students with disabilities.
7. Improve and integrate technology (Banner, Blackboard, Email, debit card, and modern media access).
Measurable Outcomes
· By Spring 2011, establish a process to ensure that the information on all the district websites is current.
· By Spring 2011, provide basic computer access for all students in labs that are on campus.
· By Fall 2012, a system will be in place to allow students a single log in to access Banner, Blackboard, e-mail, and all other technologies provided by the College.
Goal 2. Seamless transition from high school to COS with better integration of services.
Strategies
1. Provide matriculation workshops for students.
2. Ensure students complete a college readiness inventory.
3. Make student orientation mandatory.
4. Create online worksheets to ensure that incoming students can complete college readiness inventory.
5. Work with high school and middle school counselors to make them aware of the qualifications necessary to succeed at COS.
Measurable Outcomes
· By Fall 2011, provide workshops on how to navigate the matriculation process, in online and face-to-face formats.
· By Fall 2011, develop a process that will allow student access from many different modalities for enrollment.
Goal 3. Provide and expand student services with excellent customer service with sensitivity to and understanding of various cultures.
Strategies
1. Extend services for evening and weekend classes.
2. Provide cultural competency training to all employees.
3. Provide customer service training to all employees.
4. Provide students with affordable child care.
5. Increase book loan programs, book rental programs, and open educational resources.
Measurable Outcomes
· By Fall 2012, COS will offer students services on Saturdays and weekday evening hours when classes are offered.
· By Fall 2014, provide students with affordable child care.
· By Fall 2012, increase book loan program, book rental program, and open educational resources by 20% over 2009-10 baseline.
Goal 4. Improve access to the physical campuses
Strategies
1. Increase bicycle lanes and racks/parking.
2. Increase public transportation to the college and centers.
3. Provide an inter-campus shuttle.
4. Increase parking.
Measurable Outcomes
· By Fall 2011, COS will have an annual transportation plan that includes physical needs of the campuses with input from students.
· By Spring 2013, COS will have a shuttle bus service for students to travel between campus sites.
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STUDENTS’ SUCCESS IN COMPLETING THEIR EDUCATION
Definition:
All students create a Student Education Plan (SEP) and complete their lower division education through the completion of a degree, certificate, or transfer to a four-year institution in a timely manner.
Goal 1. Create a culture of achievement.
Strategies
1. Ensure a mastery of basic skills no later than a student’s second semester.
2. Require students to complete a Student Education Plan (SEP).
3. Provide sufficient support services (counseling, tutoring, mentoring, math and writing centers, supplemental instruction, financial aid, and scholarships).
4. Grant priority registration to students who demonstrate success with their SEP (as opposed to units completed).
5. Establish a student-manned, fully-funded center to provide mentoring and emotional support.
6. Developing a method to track student success after transfer, graduation, or certificate completion.
7. Having teachers meet annually with high school counterparts and identify curriculum gaps accordingly.
Measureable Outcomes
· By Spring 2013, COS will develop a student-manned, fully-funded center to provide mentoring and emotional support.
· By Fall 2015, COS will have a system to track students after completing their SEP.
· By Fall 2012, COS will have a computerized degree audit system for SEPs and priority registration will be based upon students’ progress of their SEPs.
Goal 2. Expand student opportunities to achieve their educational goals.
Strategies
1. Providing focused seminars throughout a semester to provide information related to career clusters and paths.
2. Expanding career programs.
3. Pairing novices with seasoned students.
4. Increasing the availability of student services.
Measureable Outcomes
· By Fall 2013, the district will develop a series of fully-funded career opportunity seminars that will be offered through human development classes or career pathways.
· By fall 2014, increase the availability of Student Services by extending hours and being open six days a week to match student’s schedule.
· By Spring 2011 offer enough classes to meet student demand by decreasing the number of students on the waitlist by 5%, annually.
· By Spring 2015, Increase the number of full time students completing their education plan in 5 semesters by 10% annually.
Goal 3. Improve alignment between certificate/degree requirements and job/transfer opportunities.
Strategies
1. Provide educational options for student learning and career planning (internships, job shadowing, immersion developmental education, flexible scheduling/terms).
2. Inform students on how their education transfers to real-world experience and knowledge.
3. Provide more student jobs on campus funded by local businesses.
Measureable Outcomes
· By Fall 2012, all programs will develop and utilize professional advising committees.
· By Fall 2014, COS will implement a plan for local businesses to employ students on campus.
· By Fall 2013, all divisions will develop and implement internship programs that require application of theoretical concepts.
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STUDENTS’ MASTERY OF BASIC SKILLS
Definition:
Students master basic skills when they are academically prepared to take college level courses in English, Math, and Communication. Such mastery will include successful learning, time management, and critical thinking skills for use in college, society, and work.
Goal 1. Allocate resources (human, facilities, and fiscal) to ensure that we are offering classes and labs in basic skills to meet student demand.
Strategies
1. Develop a course offering strategic plan to meet the enrollment demands for basic skills and ESL courses (including face to face and online offerings).
2. Develop a faculty hiring plan to meet basic skills English, Math, and ESL demand based on the three year Basic Skills course offering data.
3. Develop a plan to determine if we have adequate classroom, lab, and tutorial space to meet the needs of all basic skills students.
Measureable Outcomes
· By Fall 2011 a basic skills strategic plan will be implemented through sufficient numbers of course offerings and faculty, which will increase our ability to meet enrollment demands by 10% each year over a baseline of Fall 2009.
· By Fall 2014 Basic Skills Center building will be designed, constructed, and opened.
Goal 2. Increase the placement levels into English, Math, and ESL for incoming students by improving preparation and assessment.
Strategies
1. Align curriculum from Adult Schools and High Schools with COS Math, ESL, Reading and Writing courses that is reviewed annually.
2. Better prepare students for placement assessments in English, Math, ESL and Information Literacy.
3. Offer more pre-assessment courses, workshops, and/or study guides (such as Math 401).
4. COS will have a personalized “Needs Analysis of Basic Skills” for students to take prior to assessments for Math, English, ESL placement, and information literacy, that will determine if any interventions are required.
5. Work with feeder high school counselors to help students understand the importance of preparing for college placement assessments.
Measureable Outcomes
· By Fall 2014, COS will have English, Math, and ESL curriculum aligned with Adult Schools and High Schools that is updated annually.
· Starting in Fall 2012, 10% of Incoming students will place higher in English, Math, and ESL over Fall 2010 baseline levels, and will continue to increase by 10% annually.
Goal 3: Students will successfully complete basic skills courses the first time they are taken.
Strategies
1. Students with basic skills needs will include basic skills courses in their Student Education Plan, and enroll in their basic skills courses in their first semester.
2. Students who place into one or more basic skills classes must take the Human Development course in college success.
3. Establish Faculty/Staff interest groups (FIGS) researching and focusing on basic skills successful instructional strategies such as: modular, immersion, and accelerated learning.
4. Offer professional develop training opportunities for basic skills instructors that incorporate successful pedagogy and delivery methods.
5. Implement successful lab/tutorial components in all basic skills courses.
Measureable Outcome
· Starting in Fall 2013, Students enrolled in basic skills courses will increase successful completion rates by 10%, over 2010 baseline data for students taking a basic skills course for the first time.
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Efficient and Effective College Practices
Definition:
Efficient and effective college practices are achieved when all resources (personnel/financial/facilities) are developed, supported, and allocated through program review and used in a transparent manner to achieve student success, communicated in language that is straightforward, clear, and understandable (not filled with educational jargon), and delivered in a way that is accessible to our students and community.
Goal 1. COS will have comprehensive, transparent, and accountable internal systems for college operations.
Strategies
1. Hold annual meetings to include students, regional businesses and community representatives to provide updates and input into COS’s Strategic Plan.
2. Review all internal systems and ask “why do we do it.”
3. Allocate resources based on accountable and systematic program review.
Measurable Outcomes
· By Spring 2011 COS will implement a plan to review and update our Strategic Plan to include students, regional businesses, and community members.
· By Fall 2010 Program Review process will be incorporated college-wide with transparency and accountability.
Goal 2. Become a “green” campus as a model to improve air quality, and to conserve and manage natural resources.
Strategies
1. Increase efforts to reduce printing and the use of paper.
2. Incorporate recycling into the COS campus culture.
3. Instructors increase the number of assignments turned in by students electronically.
4. Offer community and college workshops and seminars on conservation.
Measurable Outcomes
· By Fall 2011, a recycle container is available next to every garbage receptacle.
· By Spring 2012, reduce forms required on paper format by 50% over 2010 baseline.
· By Fall 2011, have a recycling marketing plan in place.
Goal 3. Improve the use of campus technology.
Strategies
1. Create and maintaining a social networking page (Facebook, etc.).
2. Review and refining the Wait List process.
3. Ensure that every college website is up to date and thorough.
4. Have Career Pathways completed and staff trained by Fall 2011.
Measurable Outcomes
· By Fall 2011, establish a Social Network system for COS.