Connect2Complete Program: Theory of Change

1. Connect2Complete Program Theory of Change 1/26/12 OMG Center for Collaborative Learning

2. C2C Goal: C2C students will increase academic success and persistence towards credential completion and will be more engaged with their peers, community college, and broader community as a result of peer to peer mentoring and community engagement opportunities. C2C will also work toward embedding community engagement and peer to peer interaction into community college systems as strategies for retentionand persistence. Target partners: Connect2Complete will engage community colleges, state affiliates, and Campus Compact to accelerate 4,500 students through developmental education courses, increasing their academic success and persistence towards credential completion.

3. Working Theory of Change: Providing PELL eligible students who place into developmental education with peer advocates and supportive peer cohorts will increase their likelihood of persistence towards credential completionfrom community college. The relationship between developmental education students and peer advocates will build leadership skills in both groups and increase community engagement on local college campuses. By embedding this work in the mission of the community college and through supports provided by state affiliates and Campus Compact : 1) local campuses will be able to repurpose existing infrastructure and funds and leverage new ones to increase productivity and sustain this program beyond the grant and 2) this model can be scaled nationally. KEY STRATEGIES LONG TERM OUTCOMES INTERIM OUTCOMES Partner with Strong Community Colleges Design and implement pilot programs that marry vision and local context; track program and use data for continual improvement; repurpose existing public and private funds or secure new ones to institutionalize programs; commit to ongoing learning community participation, best practice dissemination, and work towards a collaborative state agenda. Increased student completion, policy and practice changes at C2C institutions, increased non-pilot campus adoption - implementing program (scaling and institutionalization), state and federal agenda and emerging policy and practice changes in support of community engagement , peer to peer mentoring, and retention on college campuses. Institutionalized C2C programs at community colleges (pilot sites and non-pilot institutions) that are achieving student and system level outcomes such as increased student persistence and more coordinated student supports. Engage State Affiliatesfor Support, Network Building and Program Expansion Manage state learning community; support implementing colleges, including through relevant advocacy support; advise national office; prepare for broader implementation by identifying and leveraging funding and communicating to Compact network about C2C; disseminate findings. Increased C2C and community college presence within the Compact network and nationally. Campus Compact seen as expert on building community engagement in college settings, peer-to-peer impact models. Leveraged funds to support the C2C agenda. Develop National Learning Community and Make the Case for Scale to a Broad Audience Serve in an advisory role to state and community college partners; package lessons learned , finance approach and research findings; codify and disseminate model broadly; build political will to influence policy and practice changes; secure funding for scale and sustainability.

4. Connect2Complete Theory of Change The Context for Campus Compact’s Work Our Assumptions Our Strategies for Change “Something different has to be tried because what we are doing is not working” Assumptions about the student population & program design • C2C students need personal guidance and individualized support over multiple semesters to meet their educational goals. • Students are the most underutilized community college resource, and there exists an opportunity and need to engage them. • C2C students & peer advocates have the necessary capacities and willingness to participate in this program. • The more students are engaged in their college system and in community pursuits, the more likely they are to persist. • Peers want to engage with peers. • Student voice is essential for student development and C2C success. • Community engagement opportunities will create a sense of community among students and increase academic persistence. • Faculty will be willing, engaged participants in C2C design and implementation and are critical factors for its sustainability. • Each CC will bring innovation and creativity to the design of their C2C program, will adapt it differently based on their context (vocational vs. transfer focused CC), and will work collaboratively with their state office and other C2C CCs toward a shared agenda. • CCs with an existing community engagement infrastructure and mentoring programs will be better suited pilot institutions. • This is a pilot program, and we are testing C2C models for codification/rapid prototype development with scale as a goal from the start. • There is a growing need for colleges to improve institutional productivity; the mobilization of student mentors and advocates may help address this by providing no cost/low cost approaches for student supports at scale on campuses. • Large pockets of existing public dollars can be leveraged and repurposed if C2C achieves success and is replicable for rapid prototype development. Assumptions about network building and program expansion • State affiliates are local experts that can help shape policies related to their community colleges; they are important partners necessary for scale. • Organizing CCs in state clusters will build a stronger state agenda, link CCs to additional resources, and allow for a stronger evaluation as factors external to the grant will be considered. • Learning communities will be effective ways to share learning across CCs and increase likelihood of scaling. • Stateaffiliateswill need to create the right environment and policy setting to adopt this practice more widely. • Linking eligible states to the Gates Foundation’s priority states will provide opportunities for potential accelerated adoption of C2C and for future leveraging of success and resources. Opportunities • The current administration, the funding community, and the business community are focusing on college completions as paramount to the future of our country and our economy. • Since 2008, community college enrollment has increased 15 percent; there may be urgency and readiness for initiatives to tackle some of the college’s pressing needs. • There is currently national attention being paid to developmental education and more knowledge about the challenges related to it; the timing may be ripe to pilot an initiative with this target population. • There may be community reinvestment funding available for initiatives that can link to twenty first century workforce skill development. Challenges: • Budget cuts at the state and federal levels have led to a constrained resource environment at many of the country’s community colleges. • In the face of low resources, community colleges are dealing with numerous competing demands and there is concern of “being spread too thin.” • At many institutions of higher education including community colleges, the systems that impact students are not integrated with one another. • There are federal pending policy changes, including within the Corporation for National & Community Service, that may impact the ability of the C2C students and peer advocates to use federal funding and other in-kind supports to support their educational trajectory. F.ex. The federal government has eliminated the provisions allowing students additional semesters of Pell grants within the award year that could be used for summer study, impacting the ability of some students to take summer courses. Partner with Strong Community CollegesDesign and implement pilot programs that marry vision and local context; track program and use data for continual improvement; repurpose existing public and private funds or secure new ones to institutionalize programs; commit to ongoing learning community participation, best practice dissemination, define and work towards a collaborative state agenda. Engage State Compact Offices for Support, Network Building and Program Expansion Manage state learning community; support implementing colleges, including through relevant advocacy support; advise national office; prepare for broader implementation by identifying and leveraging funding and communicating to Compact network about C2C; disseminate findings. Develop National Learning Community and Make the Case for Scale to a Broad Audience Serve in an advisory role to state and community college partners; package lessons learned , finance approach and research findings; codify and disseminate model broadly; build political will to influence policy and practice changes; secure funding for scale and sustainability.

5. Connect2Complete Theory of Change Strategy 1. Partner with Strong Community Colleges: Design and implement pilot programs that marry vision and local context; track program and use data for continual improvement; repurpose existing public and private funds or secure new ones to institutionalize programs; commit to ongoing learning community participation, best practice dissemination, define and work towards a collaborative state agenda. Long-term Outcomes (5+ Years) Intermediate Outcomes (Years 1-3) Activities Overall aiming for student completion, policy and practice changes at C2C institutions, increased non-pilot campuses implementing program. Student completion, transfer rates, job transition rates Community engagement is embedded into the mission of the institution, as evidenced by policies and practices that encourage and support student community engagement throughout campus and with the broader community, f.ex. Reconfigured Work Study programs to support student leadership development/community engagement and persistence Peer-to-peer mentoring and community engagement are common and core practices toward retention that are institutionalized at the pilot CCs Increased # of CC implementing this model (beyond pilots and Compact network) Community colleges design and implement pilot programs that: • Include incentivized participation for peer advocates (through work-study funding, course credit, and additional creative means) to engage C2C students both one-on-one and in cohorts and connect them to existing CC resources • Include community engagement activities for C2C students and peer advocates • Include leadership development activities for C2C students and peer advocates • Include student voice through a strategic feedback mechanism • Establish selection criteria for faculty, administrators, and other essential partners that includes expected level of commitment, ability to dedicate time, and being vested in CC • Garner commitment from CC leadership to make the pilot a priority for their campus’ completion agenda • Incorporates key players across CC departments • Promotes vision of “one college and one community” Community Colleges track pilot program outcomes and commit to using data to drive continual program improvement and build the case for replication and scale-up Leverage existing revenue streams or secure new ones to sustain program Participate in technical assistance and support opportunities, contribute to state and national dissemination efforts, and collaborate with other local C2C CCs on state agenda Overall aiming for student persistence, increases in community engagement and leadership, and community colleges reinventing the way they work with this population. C2C students: • Increased persistence (movement out of D.E. courses, passing intro English & math gatekeeper courses) • Re-enrolling in consecutive semesters • Movement into peer advocate roles • Increased familiarity with/knowledge about CC system • Increased confidence in academic abilities and career aspirations • High self-reports that program is effective • Higher GPAs • Increased knowledge and positive attitude re: peer group, CC, and broader community • Increased commitment to personal and/or professional involvement in improving her/his community Peer advocates: • Increased career aspirations • Increased engagement in peer group, CC, and broader community, as evidenced by take up of peer advocate role in C2C • Increased commitment to personal and/or professional involvement in improving her/his community. Community colleges: • Program well known throughout CC & linked to core mission of institution, established and common definition of “success” for C2C and students • Additional funding secured and/or repurposed to institutionalize program f.ex. Work Study funds • Better alignment of support services • Faculty and cross-departmental staff have a greater grasp of developmental learning and contextual challenges students face, increased institutional capacity to identify students who are at risk • Build additional/strengthen existing community partnerships

6. Connect2Complete Theory of Change Strategy 2. Engage State Affiliatesfor Support, Network Building and Program Expansion: Manage state learning community; support implementing colleges, including through relevant advocacy support; advise national office; prepare for broader implementation by identifying and leveraging funding and communicating to Compact network about C2C; disseminate findings. Activities Intermediate Outcomes (Years 1-3) Long-term Outcomes (5+ Years) Design and manage a state-based learning community agenda that supports national C2C agenda and links state community colleges Coordinate learning and sharing opportunities for C2C community colleges that support implementation and statewide C2C agenda; use knowledge gained through these opportunities to advocate for additional stakeholder and state support and to integrate C2C into Compact’s broader state agenda Advise national Compact regarding design, training, troubleshooting for C2C expansion to other states Advocate for value added of C2C to state network to prepare for implementation at other CCs Disseminate best practices and outcomes to relevant state stakeholders Identify and leverage funding for broader implementation to new campuses Overall aiming for funds to sustain existing C2C programs, scaling implementation to other institutions across the state, high visibility of C2C program and outcomes, support from broad cast of stakeholders, and increased Compact presence across state. Increased C2C and community college presence within the Compact network High state visibility of C2C program and by extension Compact’s vision, work, and network Increased state affiliates adopting (key elements of) these models Increased engagement, knowledge, and financial contributions from business community and other public and private philanthropic partners Strengthened network around college completion, with more leaders engaged in these conversations, sharing at conferences, and authorship on thought leader pieces State-focused plan for replication, adoption and scale of successful C2C model has been developed in partnership with pilot institutions Overall aiming for diversified funding streams at state level to support C2C and similar programs, state level policy change, and Compact seen as expert in field. State wide organizations and institutions are committing resources to C2C as well as other strategies that impact community engagement and peer-to-peer mentoring to increase retention on college campuses State affiliate offices seen as local and national experts on using community engagement and peer-to-peer models for student retention Data and outcomes from C2C used to impact state level policy setting, education policy setting, college completion grants (f.ex. states incorporate C2C into their higher education plans, work study resources are reallocated to C2C kinds of approaches)

7. Connect2Complete Theory of Change Strategy 3. Develop National Learning Community and Make the Case for Scale to a Broad Audience: Serve in an advisory role to state and community college partners; package lessons learned , finance approach and research findings; codify and disseminate model broadly; build political will to influence policy and practice changes; secure funding for scale and sustainability. Activities Intermediate Outcomes (Years 1-3) Long-term Outcomes (5+ Years) Develop vision, common goals and non-negotiable implementation elements including management of grant process, data collection capacity/requirements, and all partners (Brandeis, CCNCCE, leadership team) Coordinate training, technical assistance, and support to state offices and campuses for implementation Implement national learning community that produces and shares best practices across pilot CCs Capture and package promising practices, tools, and evaluation results, including: • Codification of effective program elements for replication/ transferability to other community college campuses • How use of technology and social media can increase productivity, reach more students, and reduce costs • “Student voice” in program design and implementation • Develop & maintain database for tracking data across CCs Distribute lessons learned and codified program model broadly through conferences, online publications, video, and the syllabi project to key players, including Compact’s member institutions, Gates Foundation funded CCs, and other CC networks and organizations Build political will to begin shifting attitudes and influencing policy and practice with regard to target group, community engagement, and peer-to-peer programs at different levels (federal and state policy, higher ed institutions, etc.) Develop an plan for/pathway to scale - seek resources to sustain and scale C2C. Overall aiming for increased national visibility of Campus Compact, awareness about C2C impact, strengthened college completion network, and secured financing. High national visibility of C2C program and by extension Compact’s vision, work, and network Increased awareness on the part of key partners including national community college networks, philanthropy, practitioners, and policy makers about the impact of this program on C2C students, peer advocates, and community college system Strengthened network around college completion, with more leaders engaged in these conversations, sharing at conferences, and authorship on thought leader pieces Secured public and private funding toward expanding C2C Three year student outcome metric goals as proposed to the Gates Foundation are met across the three state project. Overall aiming for institutionalization of C2C core elements in community college systems, Compact seen as national expert, federal policy and practice changes. Across the compact network, the value and power of peer to peer connections and community engagement become standard operations at community colleges for the purpose of improved productivity and retention. Campus Compact is seen as a national lead organization looking at community engagement to increase college persistence and success Policymakers and practitioners adopt and implement policy changes, based on lessons learned through C2C, aimed at increasing persistence of target population and increasing community engagement opportunities on campus