Beyond the Open Door: Increasing Student Success in the California Community Colleges
This report provides detailed analyses of factors related to student success, connects those factors to state and institutional policies, and offers recommendations for policy reforms. It includes a qualitative analysis of the California Community Colleges’ assessment and placement process.
Rules of the Game: How State Policy Creates Barriers to Degree Completion and Impedes Student Success in the California Community Colleges
This report finds low completion rates among degree-seeking students and identifies several areas of state policy that inadvertently create barriers to student success. It offers general recommendations for how changes to state policy in these areas can increase student success.
Diminished Access to the Baccalaureate for Low-income and Minority Students in California: The Impact of Budget and Capacity Constraints on the Transfer Function
This article was published in the journal Educational Policy (vol. 19, no. 2)
Effect of Racial/Ethnic Composition on Transfer Rates in Community Colleges: Implications for Policy and Practice
This article was published in the journal Research in Higher Education (vol. 45, no. 6).
Ensuring Access with Quality to California Community Colleges
IHELP was a contributing author to this report published by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. The report integrates enrollment projections for community colleges with in-depth interviews with educators, analyzes the scope of current access problems, and makes recommendations aimed at avoiding even greater problems over the next decade.
Diminishing Access to the Baccalaureate through Transfer: The Impact of State Policies and Implications for California
This report discusses the reasons behind a narrowing transfer pathway from community colleges to universities in California. It raises questions policymakers should consider in targeting scarce resources to generate the best educational outcomes for Californians.
On the Durability of The Master Plan in the 21st Century, or “If it’s breaking, why isn’t anyone fixing it?”
This article analyzes the reasons why the Master Plan, adopted in 1960, has largely resisted attempts at revision in spite of numerous calls for some substantive changes.
Envisioning a State of Learning: Conference Summary and Observations on the California Master Plan for Higher Education
These Proceedings of the 14th annual Envisioning California Conference were edited by IHELP Director Nancy Shulock, and includes her chapter summarizing lessons of the conference.
A Fundamentally New Approach to Accountability: Putting State Policy Issues First
This report was prepared for the Forum on Public Policy of the Association for the Study of Higher Education.
Capacity Constraints in California’s Public Universities: A Factor Impeding Transfer?
This report examines the issue of capacity constraints in California’s public universities, and whether limited capacity is a factor impeding the success of the community college transfer function.