Emerging Practices with Promise
Submitted By: Martha Mendez, Victor Valley College
Transition counselor helps ease concerns about postsecondary education
- Type of Practice: Seamless Transitions
- Targeted Population: Adult Basic Education Students, Adults with Disabilities, English Language Learners, High School Equivalency Students, K12 to CC Transitioning Students
- Program Area(s): Adult Basic & Secondary Education, Adults with Disabilities, English as a Second Language & Citizenship , Career Technical Education
- Consortia Involved:
West Hills College Consortium: Apple Valley Unified School District, Hesperia Unified School District, Lucerne Valled Unified School District, Snowline Joint Unified School District, Victor Valley College, Victor Valley Union High School District
The Challenge
The Victor Valley Adult Education Regional Consortium found that it was difficult for adult learners within its region to transition from adult education to community college. To begin with, many felt overwhelmed by the adult education itself and the number of steps required to complete a program, and they also didn’t understand the pathway from adult school to postsecondary education or the steps to enrolling in postsecondary education. The students also were not fully aware of how their adult education programs were linked with other entities within the region, such as county support services, postsecondary programs and relevant state agencies. The consortium wanted to find a way to demystify the college transition process and give students a greater degree of understanding and comfort around advancing to postsecondary education.
The Solution
To meet the challenge, the consortium relied on a transition counselor who packaged the most critical information into a College 101 presentation and delivered it to students at their adult school, allowing them to be introduced to the information in a familiar environment, making the process a little less intimidating. Employed by Victor Valley College, working exclusively for the AEBG program, the bilingual counselor worked closely with the adult schools to support the transition process, including visiting schools regularly to conduct the College 101 workshops, which provided information about steps to enrollment, financial aid and certificate and degree programs at the community college. All students received, in English and Spanish, important information and guidance about admissions and registration, orientation, Extended Opportunity Programs & Services (EOPS), Disabled Students Programs & Services (DSPS), Cooperative Agencies Resources for Education(CARE), and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The counselor used the Remind text messaging system to communicate with students.
Outcomes
Thanks to the focused efforts of the transition counselor, adult students understand the requirements to complete adult education programs and clearly understand the steps they have to take to enroll in a community college and pursue a career pathway. Adult students receive individual education plans that link their postsecondary education with a career pathway. Students also now recognize the links between their adult education programs and the support services they receive from the state, county and local agencies. Several of the adult education students who enrolled in college courses participated in a College 101 workshop.
4)Adult students receive individual education plans that link their postsecondary education with a career pathway.
As a result, VVAERC will continue to develop the transitional program in order to capture and support students through successful transition to College academic and CTE programs.
The Data
As of August 2017, the transitions counselor provided services to 586 students in the Victor Valley Region.
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