Carolina Works: First in the World Grant
About
Carolina Works is introducing proactive and individualized success coaching at 10 North Carolina Community Colleges. Carolina Works’ unique combination of targeted student success coaching, predictive analytics, technology supports, and business process changes has the potential to significantly improve student success.
What is coaching
What is coaching, image description
Success Coach
Listen and seek to understand Students' lives & needs.
- Primary point of contact
- Data-informed proactive outreach
- Respond to early alerts
- Help students navigate college
- Academic success strategies
- Promote Student accountability
- Advocate on Students' behalf
- Use technology to prioritize outreach and track student progress
- Connect students to other supports:
- Faculty
- Career services
- Academic support services
- Academic advising
- Financial Aid
- Community Resources
- Faculty
Data informed success coaching
- Proactively reach out to students
- Empower students to choose the right path towards success
- Serve as the relationship manager between the student and the institution
- Use student data to identify and neutralize obstacles and challenges
- Help students set goals, manage their time, and negotiate life challenges related to work and family, not just school
Coaching Can Lead to Transformative Change
Research
Carolina Works will introduce proactive and individualized success coaching to validate the effectiveness of the intervention across 10 North Carolina community colleges. Proactive success coaching has been proven in other contexts to remove academic barriers leading to increases in persistence and completion rates (Bettinger & Baker, 2014).
Treatment
Student assigned to a Success Coach
- Coach proactively outreaches to student
- Coach receives auto-alerts & achievement alerts, and reaches out to student
- Coach uses Aviso risk score to inform student outreach
- Coach receives staff-generated early alerts, and outreaches to student
Business As Usual
Services already in operation at college
- Assignment of advisor to student
- Academic/Student Success Center
- Programs serving unique populations (e.g. TRIO)
- Other college-specific services
New Aviso functionality
- Students create profile in Aviso
- Students receive auto-alerts from Aviso for attendance, grades, registration
- Students receive achievement alerts from Aviso
- Students assigned predictive analytic risk score by Aviso
Background
In 2008, only 26% of first-time community college students attained a degree or certificate within five years (DOE Completion Toolkit, 2011).
40% of community college students leave without a credential within the first two semesters, especially at risk students (DOE Completion ToolKit, 2011).
Research Goals
The Carolina Works project will test whether or not success coaching has a positive and significant impact on community college students' retention and credential completion rates compared to the business as usual condition. Carolina Works will gather evidence through a randomized controlled trial (RCT) meeting the What Works Clearinghouse standard-without reservations.
Methodology
Sample intake will occur across 4 semesters and sample will be comprised of students not enrolled in the prior three terms. 50% of students will be randomly assigned to treatment (assignment of a Success Coach) and 50% of students will be randomly assigned to the business as usual condition.
Success coaches will be informed of their students' progress through a web-based early alert system using predictive analytics. Proactive outreach to students will occur beginning when an alert is generated, then prioritized by risk of attrition.
Participants
- ~15,000 students from 10 North Carolina community colleges
Key Outcome Measures
- First to second semester retention (i.e. fall to spring, spring to fall)
- First the third term retention (i.e. fall to fall, spring to spring)
- Credential completion during the study period
Research Findings
Study begins Fall 2016. Final results will be reported Fall 2020.
Our Goals
- Validate success coaching as an effective intervention for retention and credential completion
- Identify best practice characteristics of success coaching for adaptation by other colleges statewide and nationally
- Through a return on investment analysis, demonstrate that success coaching is a sustainable practice
- Scaling statewide/nationally
News & Media
Resources
- A Statewide Model to Improve Persistence and Completion: Using an Individualized Success Coaching Program
- Coaching "Treatment" Visual Guide
- First in the World Overview
- First in the World Validation Study: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Meeting Students Where They Are: Success Coaching as a Strategy for Student Success
- Overview Handout, FITW Grant
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Proactive Success Coaching Presentation for NCCCS
Presented to NCCCS Research group. Overview of the Carolina Works project, significance of 10 NC community colleges involved, overview of Aviso software.
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Proactive Success Coaching Presentation
Petcha Kutcha session presented at Scholar/Practitioner Symposium at NC State. Overview of Carolina Works project and evaluation design. Expected results included.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluation Design
Overview of what an RCT is, why it is the most rigorous form of evaluation, and why it is important for the Department of Education's-What Works Clearinghouse.
- Student Perspectives on Success Coaches
- Validating the Effectiveness of Success Coaching on Community College Student Outcomes with a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) Design
Grant Contacts
-
Project Activity Director
Sarah Deal
shoffarth@cccc.edu
(919) 718-7486 -
FITW Research Analyst
Derrick Dupuis
ddupuis@cccc.edu
(919) 718-7320 -
Principal Investigator
Dr. Brian Merritt
bmerritt@cccc.edu
(919) 718-7426
College Contacts
Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute
Project Leads
C. Shannon Brown
Director, Counseling and Advisement
csbrown@cccti.edu
Dena Holman
Vice President Student Services
dnholman@ccti.edu
Success Coach
Jamison McIver
jmciver@cccti.edu
Carteret Community College
Project Leads
Dana Merck
Dean of Student Services
merckd@carteret.edu
Success Coach
Felicia Wright
felicia2526@carteret.edu
Central Carolina Community College
Project Leads
Jairo McMican
Dean of Student Learning
jmcmi643@cccc.edu
Success Coach
Jennifer Babb
jbabb312@cccc.edu
Bryan Koprowski
bkoprowski@cccc.edu
Kevin Pearson
kpearson@cccc.edu
Candice Solis
csolis@cccc.edu
Cleveland Community College
Project Leads
Andy Gardner
Vice President of Student Services
gardnera@clevelandcc.edu
Dr. Emily Hurdt
Director of Enrollment Services
hurdte@clevelandcc.edu
Success Coach
Elia L. Grahl
grahle113@clevelandcc.edu
College of the Albemarle
Project Leads
Dr. Evonne Carter
Vice President, Learning
evonne_carter@albemarle.edu
Lynn Hurdle-Winslow
Vice President Student Success and Enrollment Management
lynn_hurdlewinslow@albemarle.edu
Success Coach
Carolyn Hoffman
carolyn_hoffman75@albemarle.edu
Jami Rulo Baron
jami_rulobaron42@albemarle.edu
Isothermal Community College
Project Leads
Debbie Puett
Interim Dean of Academic Success and Advising Academic Success and Advising
dpuett@isothermal.edu
Pamlico Community College
Project Leads
Jamie Gibbs
Vice President of Student ServicesJgibbs@pamlicocc.edu
Success Coach
Cristy Warner
cwarner@pamlicocc.edu
Randolph Community College
Project Leads
Melinda Eudy
Dean of Curriculum Programs
maeudy@randolph.edu
Roanoke-Chowan Community College
Project Leads
J. Darius Greene
Dean of Student Services
jdgreene@roanokechowan.edu
Amy Wiggins
Director, Enrollment Services & Curriculum Registrar
wigginsa@roanokechowan.edu
Success Coach
George Holley
Gwholley5870@roanokechowan.edu
Southwestern Community College
Project Leads
Thom Brooks
Executive Vice President
tbrooks@southwesterncc.edu
Cheryl Contino-Conner
Dean of Students
cheryl@southwesterncc.edu
Success Coach
Tori Ellison
t_addingtonellison@southwesterncc.edu
Content developed under grant P11GX150010 from the U.S. Department of Education but do not necessarily represent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.