FRANKLIN
Dr. Glenn DuBois, the chancellor of the Virginia Community College System, spoke at Paul D. Camp Community College’s Franklin Workforce Development Center on Friday as part of his statewide listening tour to gather information on best practices for student success at each college.
The goal is to have every student who shows up for the first day of classes to be college ready, DuBois said. If students can successfully complete their first five courses, “their chances of completion go north of 70 percent. If only four courses are successfully completed, that figure is cut to 35 percent.”
Dr. Sharon Morrissey, vice chancellor for Academic Services and Research, was also in attendance and presented as part of a team on best practices for student retention and the VCCS’s Students Transitioning through Education Programs Successfully program. Also accompanying the chancellor were VCCS Internal Communications Manager Laura Osberger and state board members Susan Gooden and Douglas Garcia, both of whom are community college graduates.
“Our STEPS program is aligned with the Chancellor’s College Success Coach Initiative,” said PDCCC’s public relations specialist, Wendy Harrison. “Our STEPS team gave a presentation entailing a research-based, evidence-driven model for effectively serving underserved students.”
DuBois said that the STEPS presentation at Paul D. Camp was the best he had heard so far, and complimented the presenters on the fact that it was research-based.
“It proves that coaching works,” he said.
More information on Paul D. Camp’s STEPS program can be found at www.pdc.edu/success.