Integrated Planning

Basic Skills Initiative | Student Equity | Student Success & Support Program

Executive Summary

At Victor Valley College, every student is valued. The Victor Valley College Mission Statement serves as the foundation for programs offered and the services provided to students. The mission of Victor Valley Community College is to:

• Cultivate intellectual growth, social responsibility, environmental stewardship, cultural enrichment, and economic development.
• Create exceptional and accessible lifelong learning opportunities that afford students within our expanding communities the attainment of knowledge and skills necessary for success in the global economy.
• Embrace difference in our communities by integrating their wealth of multicultural knowledge and wisdom into a cohesive and resourceful learning environment for all.
• Inspire innovative teaching and service with imaginative uses of collaboration and technology, fostering vibrant programs that are measurably effective in addressing student learning and community needs.
• Empower each student to learn by modeling academic integrity, democratic citizenship, and meaningful contribution to society.

The Mission Statement is the foundation for the parameters which the college provides for transfer, occupational and basic skills programs as well as student services to diverse populations. The Student Equity Plan is designed to advance the college mission by addressing the needs of those student groups that have been historically underserved. The Equity Planning process involves collecting and analyzing student success data disaggregated by ethnicity, gender, and disability, foster youth status, veteran status, and low income status in order to identify areas of strength and need. From these data, a work plan is created that leverages areas of strength and addresses areas of need.

Goals and Outcomes

Our principal goal is to increase rates of success in each area by 5% (or close the gap) for each underserved group within 3 years (2020).

1. Increase access by 5% (or close the gap) by 2020 of this plan for males, students with disabilities and veterans.
2. Increase course completion by 5% (or close the gap) by 2020 of this plan for students who are African American/Black, Low- Income, current or former foster youth and females.
3. Increase basic skills pathway completion by 5% (or close the gap) by 2020 of this plan for students who are African American/Black, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Native Alaskan, Hispanic/Latino and students with disabilities
4. Increase degree and certificate completion by 5% (or close the gap) by 2020 of this plan for African American/Black, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/Native Alaskan students.
5. Increase transfer rates by 5% (or close the gap) by 2020 of this plan for students who are Black/ African- American, Students w/ Disabilities, Males, Low- Income, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian/Native Alaskan
6. In order to meet the 6-year ESL remediation target of 15%, a comprehensive review of all ESL courses will be conducted to develop a plan for improvement.

Activities

The following activities will begin the process to increase rates of success for identified groups:

• Programs, events and services to promote student engagement, mentoring and academic advising
• Activities to develop and strengthen cohort learning models (first year experience programs, learning communities, etc.)
• Activities to create events and programs to bring awareness to financial aid requirements/changes, importance of educational plans and setting goals, academic/student services support
• Outreach and Recruitment to underrepresented and/or underserved groups
• Establishing partnerships with community agencies (city and county)
• Increasing opportunities for professional development
• Activities to increase the importance of collecting and analyzing success indicator data for at-risk student groups

A number of the activities listed will improve or strengthen activities that already exist or are currently in progress. The college will increase the opportunities for a culturally-responsive teaching and learning professional development, strengthening Math and English pathways to serve and improve academic success to underserved student groups, develop a summer bridge preparation program to assist students identified in the Equity Plan to improve completion through basic skills English and Math courses to complete college level courses and increase the amount of course-embedded tutoring offered by the college. Activities are also associated with several of the programs and services associated with the SSSP, such as increased outreach initiatives to identify and communicate with all student groups, extending orientation services to student groups who have identified equity gaps, and increasing the number of activities that assist underserved students in developing educational plans and pathways. The plan will also strengthen African American/ Black, Foster Youth and Veterans services and explore additional data to help the college community understand these equity gaps in a more distinctive way.

In addition to improving our existing services, the college will engage underserved students by increasing our outreach/communication through marketing materials and social media. The college will also support and increase participation in the student ambassador program (peer mentor) with an emphasis on recruiting and mentoring students who belong to groups that have an identified equity gap. Finally, the development of UMOJA and STEM academic programs that serve underrepresented students.

Budget

The student equity funding for 2014-2015, 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 was expended to provide interventions that were aligned with our equity goals. In 2014-2015, Victor Valley College received $755,523 that was used to hire part-time counselors to perform educational plans and follow up services, book vouchers to low income students enrolled in basic skills/developmental courses, school supplies to students participating in categorical programs, hired a dean to oversee the district equity planning. Additionally, the college assigned financial aid and categorical staff to foster youth, homeless, DACA and veterans to provide additional support.  For the first time in the state, student equity funding was issued out to all the California Community Colleges, therefore there was a need to provide professional development to faculty, staff, and administrators to learn about supporting and increasing success among our Disproportionately Impacted (DI) students.  In 2015-2016, the student equity budget doubled to $1,458,474, with the increase, the college hired additional tutors, student workers, and other support staff. Additional resources were allocated to send faculty and staff to conferences, seminars and hosting student equity workshops. Book vouchers and student success kits were purchased for students enrolled in basic skills/ developmental courses and low income students. For 2016-2017, the college received approximately $1,521,996. This allocation is to sustain the previous two years and examine alternative best practices to increase access, success, completion and transfer rates among our DI student populations. Also, the creation of our first year experience program was funded through equity which targeted first year/first time college students that assessed in below college level Math and English.

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