ERIC Number: ED521421
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Dec
Pages: 36
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
2010 Follow-Up of the Community College of Denver FastStart Program
Bragg, Debra D.; Baker, Elaine Delott; Puryear, Margaret
Office of Community College Research and Leadership
An educational initiative that is receiving increased attention nationally is accelerated developmental education, and the Community College of Denver (CCD) is at the forefront of this reform activity. As part of CCD's portfolio of developmental education strategies, the accelerated program called FastStart has become an important vehicle for delivering remedial education. By compressing developmental courses normally offered over two semesters into one term, CCD strives to create a developmental education option that enhances student success in terms of their retention and graduation. This report describes student outcomes by including multiple cohorts enrolled in three accelerated developmental math sequences. Measures of developmental progression and college success were computed, including certificate and 2-year degree completion, transfer, retention, and college credits at 24 and 36 months of enrollment, beginning with the term in which the students participated in the FastStart program. Gains were analyzed for the FastStart math and English/reading cohorts from 24 to 36 months to assess the change in developmental progression and college-level outcomes for cohorts that had sufficient time to be enrolled for 36 months. The number of students involved in computation of gains is relatively small, but is helpful in providing an initial understanding of how FastStart students progress toward college completion outcomes. Results of this follow-up study reinforce the importance of determining college success in multiple ways, beyond completion of a developmental course sequence, so that outcomes such as passing gatekeeper courses, retention, accumulating college credit, transfer, and graduating with certificates and degrees are used to present a comprehensive picture of student performance. Because students who enroll in the FastStart programs have multiple pathways to follow into college (FastStart encourages career exploration rather than career-specific training), it is important to understand a range of retention and completion outcomes. (Contains 14 tables, 13 figures and 4 footnotes.)
Descriptors: Community Colleges, College Students, Student Educational Objectives, Acceleration (Education), College Readiness, Remedial Instruction, Developmental Studies Programs, College Credits, Educational Change, Followup Studies, Career Exploration
Office of Community College Research and Leadership. 51 Gerty Drive Room 129, Champaign, IL 61820. Tel: 217-244-9390; Fax: 217-244-0851; e-mail: occri@uiuc.edu; Web site: http://occrl.ed.uiuc.edu
Publication Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data; Reports - Research
Education Level: Two Year Colleges
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Jobs for the Future
Authoring Institution: Illinois University, Office of Community College Research and Leadership
Identifiers - Location: Colorado
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A