The Next Challenge: Collecting Completion Data

1. The Next Challenge: Collecting Completion Data

2. This presentation addresses several questions. • What data do grantees provide for the Completion Strategy evaluation? • Why do we love data so much? • What does the data collection process look like? • What are the challenges of data collection and how do we overcome them?

3. Data collected for the Completion Strategy evaluation

4. Colleges are collecting several types of data for the Completion Strategy evaluation • Process data • Outcome data • Impact data

5. Process Data: How many people are you serving? • Counts of people served with a variety of offerings: • Outreach • Basic Ed /refresher courses in math, English, and computers • Workforce Development courses • Support services • Completion/Plus50 Coaches and Advisors • Financial aid supports • Career development workshops • Employer linkages

6. Process Data: How are you tailoring your approach to plus 50 learners? • Methods for tailoring to your population: • Customizing support services • Supporting pedagogy for plus 50 learning styles • Flexible schedules • Accelerated courses

7. Outcome Data: How many plus 50 learners are achieving completion, as well as other outcomes? • Completion • Degrees • Credit Certificates • Non-credit Certificates • Transfer credits and credits for prior learning • Employment

8. Impact Data: Increase in total number of plus 50 completers. • The trend for total number of plus 50 completers changing over time • Looking at the wider population of plus 50 learners at your school. • This trend approximates the impact of your completers from your program on the number of completers as a whole.

9. The wonderfulness of data!

10. These data have a variety of uses, and are useful for diverse audiences. • For current funders • For potential funders • For internal college constituencies • For external partners • For other community colleges • For YOU!

11. The type of results you’ll be able to show.

12. The type of results that AACC might be able to show for the Completion Strategy as a whole.

13. Data collection: Setting up a system and process

14. We’ll get you set up! • Your Evaluation Liaison • Someone who knows your program and can help you figure out the best way to collect data. • Program components • Which support services are you including as part of your program? • Which workforce development courses do you want to include? • Data collection worksheet • We will fill this out together. • It becomes the basis of your data collection system.

15. We’ll include an Institutional Research department contact in the conversation. • The importance of having an IR contact involved. • We will need an IR researcher to extract some data to include in the data collection workbook. • It is helpful to include them early! • The IR contact can help you. • The IR contact often serves as a “bridge” between the evaluation team and the program.

16. Your Evaluation Liaison will develop for you a data collection workbook and detailed instructions. • The data collection workbook • An Excel workbook that asks you to fill in different types of data on each tab. • Detailed instructions • There are tab-by-tab instructions • They contain information provided on exactly how it makes sense at your college to collect data. • There is a section for the Tabs that program staff complete, and a section for Tabs that IR staff complete.

17. You will have ongoing support throughout the process! • Suggested data collection schedule • The instruction workbook will contain a suggested data collection schedule to help keep you on track • Your Evaluation Liaison will check up on you • She will check in at critical junctures in the data collection schedule to see if you have any questions or need help. • You can call or email any time! • She can also take a look at your workbook in progress to provide pointers.

18. Challenges, and overcoming them

19. Your Evaluation Liaison can help you think through challenges! • Data collection can indeed be challenging…. • Figuring out the right sources for process data. • Assigning people to report different data elements to you. • Making data collection part of your routine. • Tips from colleges in the first cohort: • Be sure you have a clear understanding of the data collection and reporting requirements. • Begin on day one with the end in mind. • Bring IR/IE people to the table early. • Develop a calendar for data collection that keeps you on track. • Don’t be afraid to ask questions! Your Evaluation Liaison is a resource for you.

20. Questions?