East Georgia State College 2023

East Georgia State College (EGSC) is an associate degree granting, liberal arts institution providing access to academically transferable programs of study and targeted baccalaureate degrees at low cost to its students. As a unit of the University System of Georgia (USG) within the State College Sector, EGSC extends its access mission from its home campus in Swainsboro to instructional sites on the campuses of Georgia Southern University in Statesboro and Augusta University in Augusta.

Presented in Tables 1a and 1b below are the number and percentages of EGSC fall semester students broken down by location and mode of delivery for Fall 2014 through Fall 2023. The declines in enrollment experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 have moderated in the last two years but continue.

Table 1a: Enrollment by Location/Delivery Mode: Fall Semesters 2014-2023

Fall Semester	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
High School	12	23	115	101	96	33	76	100	151	191
Online Only	171	232	260	383	443	493	797	680	558	490
Augusta	307	468	462	429	386	357	246	236	193	191
Statesboro	1,343	1,327	1,249	1,078	1,075	973	634	425	413	370
Swainsboro	1,077	951	1,066	1,012	942	885	662	582	585	526
Total Enrolled	2,910	3,001	3,152	3,003	2,942	2,741	2,415	2,023	1,900	1,768

Table 1b: Percentage of Enrollment by Location/Delivery Mode: Fall Semesters 2014-2023

Fall Semester	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
High School	0.4%	0.8%	3.6%	3.4%	3.3%	1.2%	3.1%	4.9%	7.9%	10.8%
Online Only	5.9%	7.7%	8.2%	12.8%	15.1%	18.0%	33.0%	33.6%	29.4%	27.7%
Augusta	10.5%	15.6%	14.7%	14.3%	13.1%	13.0%	10.2%	11.7%	10.2%	10.8%
Statesboro	46.2%	44.2%	39.6%	35.9%	36.5%	35.5%	26.3%	21.0%	21.7%	20.9%
Swainsboro	37.0%	31.7%	33.8%	33.7%	32.0%	32.3%	27.4%	28.8%	30.8%	29.8%

EGSC Academic Program Review

EGSC currently offers five associate degrees listed below:

Associate of Arts in Elementary Education
Associate of Arts in Liberal Arts (formally Associate of Arts, Core Curriculum)
Associate of Arts in Social Sciences (introduced in Fall Semester 2021)
Associate of Science in Business Administration
Associate of Science in Natural Sciences (introduced in Fall Semester 2021)

In addition, EGSC is approved to offer its students the following eMajor degrees in cooperation with USG eCampus:

Associate of Science in Financial Technology (begun in Spring Semester 2023)
Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice (begun in Fall Semester 2023)
Bachelor of Science Degree in Organizational Leadership (beginning in Spring Semester 2024)

Fall Semester 2023 Comparisons of EGSC with the USG State College Sector

Throughout the Complete College Georgia initiative (2012 to 2023), EGSC’s four largest demographic cohorts have been African American (Black) Females; African American (Black) Males; White (Non-Hispanic) Females; and White (Non-Hispanic) Males. As indicated in Table 2 below for Fall Semester 2023 the ethnic composition of EGSC’s student population differed from the State College Sector overall. EGSC serves higher proportions of Black and multiracial students and lower proportions of Hispanic and Asian students.

Table 2: Fall 2023 Student Ethnic Composition

Student Ethnic Composition	EGSC	USG
White	42.9%	44.1%
Black	39.9%	25.6%
Hispanic	7.5%	20.2%
Asian	1.6%	4.9%
Two or More Races	4.6%	3.1%
Other	3.6%	2.0%

For Fall Semester 2023, EGSC’s student population was similar to the USG State College Sector in some ways and dissimilar in other ways. 58 percent of EGSC students were full-time compared to 57.3 percent of students across the State College Sector. EGSC women students made up 56.7 percent of the student population compared to 62.7 percent the State College Sector.

Student Profile

A numeric breakdown of EGSC’s Fall 2023 enrollment demographic cohorts by location and mode of delivery is presented below in Table 3a. A percentage breakdown of EGSC’s demographic cohorts is presented below in Table 3b.

Table 3a: Fall 2023 Enrollment Count by Gender and Ethnicity by Location/Delivery Mode

	Augusta	Statesboro	Swainsboro	High Schools	Online Only	Overall
Female	112	191	269	112	318	1,002
Black or African American	55	63	134	27	136	415
White (Non-Hispanic Origin)	35	95	101	57	128	416
Multiracial	7	18	19	10	25	79
Other	15	15	15	18	29	92
Male	79	179	257	79	172	766
Black or African American	39	62	119	10	63	293
White (Non-Hispanic Origin)	24	90	97	44	84	339
Multiracial	6	20	29	9	17	81
Other	10	7	12	16	8	53
Total	191	370	526	191	490	1,768

Table 3b: Fall 2023 Enrollment Percentages by Gender and Ethnicity by Location/Delivery Mode

Fall 2023 Enrollment	Augusta	Statesboro	Swainsboro	High Schools	Online Only	Overall
Female	6.3%	10.8%	15.2%	6.3%	18.0%	56.7%
Black or African American	3.1%	3.6%	7.6%	1.5%	7.7%	23.5%
White (Non-Hispanic Origin)	2.0%	5.4%	5.7%	3.2%	7.2%	23.5%
Multiracial	0.4%	1.0%	1.1%	0.6%	1.4%	4.5%
Other	0.8%	0.8%	0.8%	1.0%	1.6%	5.2%
Male	4.5%	10.1%	14.5%	4.5%	9.7%	43.3%
Black or African American	2.2%	3.5%	6.7%	0.6%	3.6%	16.6%
White (Non-Hispanic Origin)	1.4%	5.1%	5.5%	2.5%	4.8%	19.2%
Multiracial	0.3%	1.1%	1.6%	0.5%	1.0%	4.6%
Other	0.6%	0.4%	0.7%	0.9%	0.5%	3.0%

Fall Semester 2023 First-Time Freshmen (FTF) Profile

Presented in Table 4 below is a breakdown by percentage of first-time freshmen (FTF) based on course load for Fall Semester 2023. Most first-time freshmen who attend one or more classes at an EGSC location are full-time. In contrast, a smaller majority of FTF taking classes online only are full-time students.

Table 4: Fall 2023 First-Time Freshmen by Course Load

FTF Fall 2023 Course Load	Augusta	Statesboro	Swainsboro	Online Only	Overall
Full-Time Percentage	82.4%	87.4%	92.4%	63.1%	85.5%
Part-Time Percentage	17.6%	12.6%	7.6%	36.9%	14.5%

Presented in Table 5 below is a breakdown by percentage of Fall 2023 first-time freshmen are first generation college students and who receive a Pell Grant.

Table 5: Fall 2023 First-Time Freshmen First Generation and Pell Grant Recipients

FTF Fall 2023 First Generation /Pell Recipient	Augusta	Statesboro	Swainsboro	Online Only	Overall
First Generation Percentage	19.8%	19.2%	27.0%	31.0%	24.3%
Pell Grant Recipient Percentage	62.6%	55.7%	70.3%	67.9%	64.8%

EGSC Comparisons with Peer Colleges

In 2017, EGSC selected fifteen colleges, including three within the USG, as its comparison group for the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Each EGSC data feedback report generated from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) compares the College to this group. According to the IPEDS Data Feedback Report 2023 for the College, 38 percent of EGSC enrolled students in Fall Semester 2022 were Black, in contrast with 6 percent for its comparison group. In addition, 46 percent of EGSC enrolled students in Fall Semester 2022 were white, in contrast with 60 percent for its comparison group. The majority of EGSC were full-time students, while the majority of students in its comparison group were part-time. In Fall Semester 2022, EGSC also had 40 percent of its students taking at least one course online, in contrast to 28 percent of its comparators. As in previous years, tuition and fees charged by EGSC to full-time, first-time (FTFT) students were lower than its comparison group. In contrast, the average net price of attendance for FTFT students was higher at EGSC than its comparison group. The 2023 feedback report included three-year associate degree graduation and transfer-out rates for the Fall Semester 2016 FTFT cohort. While EGSC’s graduation rate of 13 percent was lower than the 27 percent average for its comparison group, EGSC’s transfer-out rate of 53 percent was substantially higher than the 14 percent average for its comparison group. The combination of these two rates for the Fall 2016 FTFT cohort indicates a success rate of 66 percent for EGSC in fulfilling its access mission.

Success Inventory

CATS 1101 Update (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

CATS 1101 Update

Momentum Area:

Purpose

Mindset

Category:

Access for Underserved Populations

Career/Major Exploration

Curriculum Design

First Year Experience

Mindset

Course Redesign

Orientation

Strategy/Project Description:

Redesign content and format to improve transition experience for students and increase student success and retention

Activity Status:

Piloting

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and measures: Assessment of goals and course student learning outcomes at the end of the semester

KPIs:

Success rate in the CATS 1101.
Retention of the students enrolled in the CATS 1101 class.
Semester GPA of the students enrolled in the CATS 1101 class.

Baseline measure (for each KPI):

	Fall 2021	Spring 2021	Fall 2022	Spring 2022
Success rate in the CATS 1101	65.8%	55.8%	63.5%	57.8%
Retention of the students enrolled in the CATS 1101 class (next semester) *Spring-to-Fall Retention	74.2%	49.2%*	76.1%	48.3%*
Semester GPA of the students enrolled in the CATS 1101 class	1.81	1.71	1.88	1.65

Current/most recent data (for each KPI)

No current data yet since the update of the CATS 1101 class was implemented at the beginning of the Fall 2023 semester.

Activity # 1 (concluded)

Goal or targets (for each KPI):

Success rate in the CATS 1101: increase success rate by 10%
Retention of the students enrolled in the CATS 1101 class: increase retention by 5%
Semester GPA of the students enrolled in the CATS 1101 class: increase average GPA by 0.5 point

Time period/duration: after final grades are posted at the conclusion of each semester

Progress and Adjustments:

The following steps have been completed:

The session for the course was changed from 8-weeks to 16-weeks.
A task force made up Faculty who taught a CATS class was set up during Spring 2023. After campus input, the task force identified six main topics to be addressed in each section.

The Focus to Career Test and Steppingblocks will be emphasized.
All instructors were oriented to the changes prior to the beginning of semester.
General uniformity was created for the syllabus, attendance policy, topics and grades.
Student Success Coaches, advisement staff, library director, and campus workshops and events will be incorporated more intentionally to help new students.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

At the conclusion of Fall 2023, the instructors, Director of Student Success and Library Director will meet to assess and reflect on the successes and failures of the new design. Final grades will be reviewed. Changes will be determined based on the results of both forms of assessment and will be implemented in the spring semester.

Primary Contact:

Provost, AVP Academics, and Campus Coordinators

Curricular Analytics (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Curricular Analytics

Momentum Area:

Pathways

Category:

Program Maps

Strategy/Project Description:

Use curricularanalytics.org platform to analyze EGSC’s current academic programs to identify courses that create curricular bottlenecks and formulate strategies to improve course sequencing and/or potential courses where additional student academic support will be needed.

Activity Status:

Refining/Maintaining

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and measures: Completion of academic programs curricular complexity analysis.

KPIs: Percentage of current academic programs that have been analyzed.

Baseline measure (for each KPI): 100 % of programs analyzed.

Current/most recent data (for each KPI) 86% of programs analyzed.

Goal or targets (for each KPI): Complete curricular analysis for the outstanding academic program.

Time period/duration: End of Fall 2023 semester

Progress and Adjustments:

The eMajor BS in Criminal Justice was added to our academic programs beginning Fall 2023

Plan for the Year Ahead:

Add or copy the BS in Criminal Justice to our curricular analytics portfolio

Primary Contact:

AVP for Grants and Data Analytics

Update of Curriculum Maps (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Update of Curriculum Maps

Momentum Area:

Pathways

Category:

Advising

Program Maps

Strategy/Project Description:

Update the curriculum maps for the 7 academic degrees offered by EGSC to encompass Fall, Spring and Summer semesters with a redesign of the maps to make them more engaging to students.

Activity Status:

Refining/Maintaining

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and measures: We will ask students, faculty, and advising staff their opinions about the new curriculum maps.

KPIs:

% of academic programs with an updated curriculum maps.

Baseline measure (for each KPI): None of the curriculum maps for the Core IMPACTS have been created.

Current/most recent data (for each KPI)

None. The curriculum maps will be updated during Spring 2024.

Goal or targets (for each KPI): All curriculum maps will be updated by the end of Spring 2024.

Time period/duration: Spring 2024

Progress and Adjustments:

The redesign of the curriculum maps for our 7 academic degrees was intended to start in Summer 2023, but the news of a significant change in the core curriculum halted the progress. With the approval of the new Core IMPACTS in October 2023, we will begin to redesign the curriculum maps according to the new curriculum.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

The following steps will be completed:

Update the design of all 7 of our academic degree program curriculum maps.
Add a plan for students who enroll in Fall, Spring and Summer semesters.
Redesign the maps to make them more engaging to students.

Primary Contact:

Provost, AVP Academic Affairs, Campus Coordinators, and Director of Student Success

Survey of the HIPs activities (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Survey of the HIPs activities

Momentum Area:

Purpose

Mindset

Data & Communications

Category:

Data

Mindset

Strategy/Project Description:

EGSC Faculty have implemented High Impacts Practices (HIPs) activities in their classroom for several years. However, there is no process to report these activities, and their assessment plan and results.

Activity Status:

Initiating

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and Measures: we will send the HIPS survey to Faculty and analyze the results every semester.

KPIs:

% of Faculty who complete the survey
% of Faculty who include HIPS in their class
% of Faculty who access their HIPS

Baseline measure (for each KPI):

Faculty completed the survey during Spring 2023:

	Spring 2023
% of Faculty who complete the survey	76.6%
% of Faculty who include HIPS in their class	84.4%
% of Faculty who assess their HIPS	80.4%

Current/most recent data (for each KPI)

There is no current data. The same survey will be sent to Faculty at the end of the Fall 2023 semester.

Activity #4 (concluded)

Goal or targets (for each KPI):

The goals are:

100% of Faculty complete the survey
100% of Faculty who perform a HIPS, assess this activity.

Time period/duration: this activity will be ongoing.

Progress and Adjustments:

The survey about the Spring 2023 semester was sent to Faculty during the summer 2023 and was analyzed.
We will review the survey and update if needed.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

We will:

Send the survey about the Fall 2023 semester at the end of the Fall 2023 semester.
Analyze the results of the survey.
Discuss the importance of an assessment plan for these activities with Faculty who didn’t design one before the beginning of the next semester.

Primary Contact:

Provost, AVP for Academic, and Campus Coordinators

Survey of growth mindset activities (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Survey of growth mindset activities

Momentum Area:

Purpose

Mindset

Data & Communications

Category:

Data

High Impact Practices

Mindset

Strategy/Project Description:

EGSC Faculty and staff have implemented growth mindset activities and strategies for several years. However, there is no process to report these activities, and their assessment plan and results.

Activity Status:

Initiating

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and measures: We will send the mindset survey to all EGSC employees and analyze the results every semester.

KPIs:

% of EGSC employees who complete the survey
% of EGSC employees who include mindset activities in their work
% of EGSC employees who access their mindset activities

Baseline measure (for each KPI):

None. Survey will be first sent during Fall 2023.

Current/most recent data (for each KPI)

None.

Goal or targets (for each KPI):

The goals are:

100% of ESGC employees who complete the survey
100% of EGSC employees who perform a mindset activity assess this activity.

Time period/duration: this activity will be ongoing.

Progress and Adjustments:

The mindset survey has been created and will be sent to all EGSC employees at the end of Fall 2023

Plan for the Year Ahead:

We will:

Send the survey about the Fall 2023 semester at the end of the Fall 2023 semester.
Analyze the results of the survey.
Discuss the importance of an assessment plan for these activities with ESGC employees who didn’t design one before the beginning of the next semester.

Primary Contact:

Provost and AVP for Academic Affairs

Academic Advisement: College in 4 or 6 semesters at EGSC (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Academic Advisement: College in 4 or 6 semesters at EGSC

Momentum Area:

Mindset

Category:

Advising

Strategy/Project Description:

To provide another option for students to take less credit hours and perform better academically, but still graduate in two years. See two attachments: Two-Year (four semesters) and Two-Year (Six semesters).

Activity Status:

Refining/Maintaining

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and Measures: Key performance indicators include examining how many semesters, historically, it takes students to graduate from East Georgia.

KPIs:

Numbers of students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours over one academic year (Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer semesters).
Average number of credits for students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours during an academic year.
Average academic year GPA for students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours during an academic year.
Two and three-year graduation rate for full-time students enrolled in an Associate program.

Baseline measure (for each KPI):

	Academic Year 2021	Academic Year 2022	Academic Year 2023
Number of students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours over one academic year (Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring and semesters)	413	367	336
Average number of credits for students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours during an academic year (Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring and semesters)	33	33	33
Average academic year GPA for students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours during an academic year (Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring and semesters)	2.57	2.49	2.61

Full-time Student Graduation Rates

Fall 2018 Cohort

Fall 2019 Cohort

Fall 2020 Cohort

Two-year graduation rate for students enrolled in an Associate program (USG Qlik app)

9.4% Institutional

9.5% System-Wide

7.6% Institutional

7.6% System-Wide

9.1% Institutional

9.1% System-Wide

Three-year graduation rate for students enrolled in an Associate program (USG Qlik app)

16.4% Institutional

16.7% System-Wide

13.0% Institutional

13.0% System-Wide

Current/most recent data (for each KPI)

Data will be collected at the end of the FY 2024.

Goal or targets (for each KPI):

Numbers of students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours over one academic year (Fall, Winter, Spring and Summer semesters): increase by 10%
Average number of credits enrolled for full -time students during an academic year: increase by 3 credit hours.
Average academic year GPA for students enrolled in at least 30 credit hours during an academic year: increase by 0.5 point.
Two and three-year graduation rate for students enrolled in an Associate program: increase by 5%.

Time period/duration: on going activity

Progress and Adjustments:

Academic Counseling is a personal process for each student so one-on-one meetings help to create and identify the right academic plan. Advisors need to explain the difference and help students make a commitment to four or six semesters. It is an individual choice, and the advisor can provide academic advice on course scheduling.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

The advisement team is facilitating conversation with EGSC administrators to develop a strategic plan on how to enforce this as an advising approach on all EGSC campuses. Faculty administration is getting faculty advisors involved and additional staff have been added to the advisement team.

Challenges and Support:

Communicating the importance of not withdrawing from classes if students are enrolled in 12 credit hours. If they do not attend class and are dropped, then students stand the risk of not being a full-time student and not graduating on time. If they had 15 credit hours and were dropped from a class; they would still have full-time status and stand a better chance of graduating on time.

Primary Contact:

Provost and Director of Student Success

Student Success Coach (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Student Success Coach

Momentum Area:

Purpose

Mindset

Category:

Student engagement

Tracking Student Success

Strategy/Project Description:

Incorporate Success Coach workshops within the academic classrooms to improve student success.

Activity Status:

Initiating

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and Measures: Improve success rates in CATS, ENGL 1101, and Area A math

KPIs:

Number of workshops and class visits conducted by success coaches in classes
Success rate in CATS 1101, ENGL 1101, and Area A math
Fall to Spring retention
Fall to Fall retention

Baseline measure (for each KPI): current retention rate

	Fall 2021	Spring 2022	Fall 2022	Spring 2023
Number of workshops and class visits conducted by success coaches in classes	0	0	0	0
Success rate in CATS 1101	65.8%	57.8%	63.5%	54.2%
Success rate in ENGL 1101	47.8%	39.1%	55.8%	36.1%
Success rate in MATH 1001	43.2%	43.3%	46.4%	40.1%
Success rate in MATH 1111	63.5%	61.2%	39.2%	45.6%

	Fall 2020	Fall 2021	Fall 2022
Fall-to-Spring Retention*	64.0%	64.3%	69.7%
Fall-to-Fall Retention*	32.9%	34.2%	34.2%

*These data are not cohort specific.

Current/most recent data (for each KPI) [NEW for 2023]:

This activity was initiated in August 2023 so no data is available.

Goal or targets (for each KPI): increased student success within academic classes

Number of workshops and class visits conducted by success coaches in classes: 30
Success rate in CATS 1101, ENGL 1101, and Area A math: increase by 5%
Fall to Spring retention: increase by 5%
Fall to Fall retention: increase by 5%

Time period/duration – ongoing

Progress and Adjustments:

Videos were developed to allow inclusion of workshops within online CATS courses to address the three deficiency areas: time management, study skills, and learning styles. The process must be expanded to include co-requisite courses to ensure first-year students are adequately prepared for academic success.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

Professional advisors have become student Success Coaches to expand the academic guidance of students. This will allow for more one-on-one meetings to contribute to student engagement.

Primary Contact:

Provost and Director of Student Success

Inclusive Access for Digital Content used as Textbook (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Inclusive Access for Digital Content used as Textbook

Momentum Area:

Data & Communications

Category:

Data

Other/Undefined

Strategy/Project Description:

We would like to set up inclusive access for all the digital content used as textbook for all sections that require the purchase of a textbook. Inclusive Access, also known as automatic textbook billing, is a sales model for college textbooks. Inclusive access allows for the digital content to be delivered to students by the first day of class. Students have a period to “opt out” before they are billed through their tuition and fees.

In addition to saving money on the price of the digital content, inclusive access was shown to increase student success in classes and retention.

Activity Status:

Piloting

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and Measures:

We will get student data from Banner and dollar saved from the bookstore.

KPIs:

The number of courses that offer inclusive access.
The number of sections that offer inclusive access.
The number of students in sections with inclusive access.
The % of students who opt out.
The amount of dollars saved by the EGSC students.
A, B, and C rate in sections with inclusive access

Baseline measure (for each KPI):

	Fall 2022
Number of courses with inclusive access	0
Number of sections with inclusive access	0
Number of students in sections with inclusive access	0
% of opt out students	0
Dollars saved by inclusive access	0
A, B, and C – MATH 1111	39.2%
A, B, and C – MATH 1113	67.1%

Current/most recent data (for each KPI

	Spring 23	Summer 23	Fall 23
Number of courses with inclusive access	2	2	7
Number of sections with inclusive access	11	3	43
Number of students in sections with inclusive access	269	50	921
% of opt out students	1.9 % (5 students)	2% (1 student)	0.9% (8 students)
Dollars saved by inclusive access	$22,867.69	$4,250.50	$49,574.86
A, B, and C – MATH 1111	45.9%	50%	NA
A, B, and C – MATH 1113	74%	86.7%	NA

Goal or targets (for each KPI):

Our goal is to:

increase the number of courses with inclusive access.
Increase the number of sections with inclusive access.
Increase the number of students in sections with inclusive access.
Maintain a low % of op out students.

Time period/duration: this is an ongoing activity.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

We will expand the number of courses with inclusive access. In addition, we collect additional data to assess the effectiveness of this strategy. This data will be the % of students who complete all homework and assignments on the online learning platform.

Primary Contact:

Provost, VP for Business Affairs, and AVP for Academics

Student Success Inventory for Student Learning Communities (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Student Success Inventory for Student Learning Communities

Momentum Area:

Purpose

Mindset

Category:

First Year Experience

High Impact Practices

Learning Communities

Mindset

Student engagement

Tracking Student Success

Strategy/Project Description:

Student Learning Communities

Summary of Activities:

Student Learning Communities

Activity Status:

Piloting

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and measures: See pg. 55 of the QEP: https://www.ega.edu/about/sacscoc/qep/files/egsc-quality-enhancement-plan-2020.pdf

KPIs: (pg. 34 of QEP)

Success-rate: Percentage of passing grades (ABC)
Average Cumulative GPA for participants in SLCs
Retention Rates

Baseline measure (for each KPI): (pg. 34 of QEP)

Participants in SLCs who are taking first-year courses will have a higher percentage of passing grades (15% more) and fewer DFWI grades than students who did not participate in an SLC.
Average Cumulative GPA for participants in SLCs will be .5 higher than similar students who did not participate in an SLC.
Participants in SLCs will have retention rates several percentage points higher than students who did not participate in an SLC.

Current/most recent data (for each KPI):

Success-rates: In the Table below, the percentages of passing grades for students taking SLC courses are compared to students who did not participate in an SLC. In Spring 2021, Fall 2021, and Spring 2022, students in SLCs performed significantly lower and had higher rates of DFWI grades. In Spring 2022 and Summer 2022, training sessions for faculty were implemented for creating and teaching SLCs. In Fall 2022 and Spring 2023, the passing rates of students participating in SLCs increased and surpassed those in previous semesters (by 18-21%). In addition, the DFWI rates decreased and was less than those for students who did not participate in an SLC. However, the goal of a 15% more pass rate for students in an SLC was not achieved in any of the semesters that SLCs were conducted.

SLC v Non-SLC Grade Performance	Student Count	ABC Grades		DFWI Grades
SLC v Non-SLC Grade Performance	Student Count	Count	Percent	Count	Percent
Spring 2021
SLC Sections	62	32	51.6%	30	48.4%
Non-SLC Sections	1,251	713	57.0%	538	43.0%
Fall 2021
SLC Sections	131	49	37.4%	82	62.6%
Non-SLC Sections	1,959	1,076	54.9%	883	45.1%
Spring 2022
SLC Sections	168	83	49.4%	85	50.6%
Non-SLC Sections	1,764	1,098	62.2%	666	37.8%
Fall 2022
SLC Sections	264	178	67.4%	86	32.6%
Non-SLC Sections	2,795	1,714	61.3%	1,081	38.7%
Spring 2023
SLC Sections	92	65	70.7%	27	29.3%
Non-SLC Sections	1,236	750	60.7%	486	39.3%

Cumulative GPA: The goal is for students who participate in an SLC to have an Average Cumulative GPA .5 higher than similar students who did not participate in an SLC. The Table below compares students who participated in an SLC with those who did not in terms of their semester GPAs and overall GPAs. In Spring 2021, Fall 2021, and Spring 2022, students in SLCs performed significantly lower in regard to their term and overall GPAs. In Fall 2022, students in SLCs showed an increase in their term GPA, which was closer to those of their non-participating equivalents. However, students who did not participate in an SLC had a greater overall GPA (by .2). In Spring 2023, students who participated in an SLC had a higher term GPA by .03, but still fell behind in the overall GPA by .08. Thus, while students have shown progression towards the baseline KPI in the last year, our current goal has not been met.

Grade Point Averages	SLC Students		Non-SLC Students
Grade Point Averages	Term GPA	Overall GPA	Term GPA	Overall GPA
Spring 2021	1.58	1.82	2.05	2.17
Fall 2021	1.21	1.34	2.07	2.10
Spring 2022	1.71	1.71	2.21	2.29
Fall 2022	2.13	1.96	2.16	2.16
Spring 2023	2.19	2.16	2.16	2.24

Retention Rates: The goal is that participants in SLCs will have retention rates several percentage points higher than students who did not participate in an SLC. In Fall 2021, non-SLC students had higher retention rates than students who participated in an SLC. The Table below illustrates that non-SLC students had a 6.9% higher rate of retention. However, in Fall 2022, students who participated in SLCs had a 10.1 % higher retention rate. It is also important to note that in comparison between Fall 2021 and Fall 2022, the retention rate for SLC students increased from 29.9% to 46.9%; this was a 17% increase for the year. Thus, while SLCs did not meet their goal in the first year, they did meet it in the second year.

1-Year Retention	SLC Students			Non-SLC Students
1-Year Retention	Not Retained	Retained	% Retained	Not Retained	Retained	% Retained
Fall 2021	47	20	29.9%	918	535	36.8%
Fall 2022	68	60	46.9%	963	561	36.8%

Goal or targets (for each KPI): pg. 34 of the QEP: https://www.ega.edu/about/sacscoc/qep/files/egsc-quality-enhancement-plan-2020.pdf

Time period/duration: QEP was implemented in 2020. The QEP is currently in its second piloting stage. During Fall 2022, the QEP Team entered Phase 3 of the timeline. During Phase 3, the QEP evaluated the SLCs effectiveness and attempted to revise accordingly. Initially the QEP proposed that it would be increasing the numbers of SLCs during Fall 2023 and Spring 2024, lack of enrollment, scheduling issues, and other factors led to a discussion of a new approach to implementing SLCs. This new approach was approved at the end of April 2023. The first thematic approach to SLCs will be implemented in spring 2024. The 5-yr plan will be in 2025.

Progress and Adjustments:

Over the last year, the Quality Enhancement Plan team has focused on training faculty to prepare them for creating, teaching, and assessing Student Learning Communities. As the Director, Jessica Todd has assisted with training faculty and led presentations to assist faculty with their learning objectives, teaching strategies, and assessment.

On February 25, 2022, at least 25 faculty members attended a training workshop which Jessica Todd led on using the backward design process to create an SLC.

On March 25, 2022, a faculty workshop was held to review how to complete and submit an SLC Application. In addition to training, at least 4 faculty members who taught an SLC shared their insights on their past experiences of teaching an SLC. For instance, faculty discussed some approaches and assignments they used with their English and History linked courses. In addition, other faculty shared their experiences with their linked Wellness and English courses. Each faculty member shared how SLCs can be improved and a few challenges that they encountered.

In April 2022, Jessica Todd coordinated SLC classrooms visits with Harley Smith, our Marketing and Community Relations Coordinator. Mrs. Smith visited classrooms to interview the professors and students about their SLC experiences. These video interviews and photos were used in the new promotional materials on campus (i.e., freshman orientation module and QEP banners).

On May 17, 2022, Dr. Ren Denton led a workshop to discuss direct and indirect assessment. The workshop was designed to assist faculty with developing assessment methods for their SLCs and to aid in the completion of the SLC Faculty Self-Assessment Form. Jessica Todd assisted with the workshop and led a Zoom discussion with some of the attending professors.

On June 9, 2022, at least 10 faculty members attended a training workshop, which Jessica Todd led. During the workshop, topics such as student success strategies for SLCs, interdisciplinary learning, and activities to engage students were addressed. Resources from the K. Patricia Cross Academy were shared with faculty, so they could explore activities to incorporate into their classrooms. In addition, the importance of being transparent about course objectives, links between the two SLC courses, and course policies were addressed (TILT).

On July 12, 2022, 15 faculty attended a training workshop, which Jessica Todd led. She reviewed how to create learning objectives, how to assess objectives, how to assess a course, how to create effective lesson plans, and how to promote student engagement. This workshop was in response to faculty feedback from the previous workshop on June 9, 2022.

On September 9, 2022, Jessica Todd took part in the Faculty Professional Development workshop. She reviewed the Quality Enhancement Plan and its purpose for new faculty. She also discussed some of the feedback she received from the Spring 2022 faculty concerning their SLCs (reported on their self-assessments). She also discussed some activities that she was using in her ENGL 1101 Composition course to foster the connection between the students, their linked ART 1100 Introduction to Art course, and the campus community. She encouraged other faculty to share how their SLCs were doing and any strategies they were implementing. Lastly, she discussed some free webinars for educators hosted by Adobe.

On September 22, 2022, EGSC Augusta faculty participated in the Augusta University reading of the Amendments for Constitution Day. The professors not only participated in the reading, but they also brought their SLC students from their American History and American Government classes to the event. At least 16 of their 20 students attended the 2-hr. celebration with readings, voter registration information, and snacks.

In November 2022, the students in Jessica Todd’s Student Learning Community with Mr. Purcell, ART 1100/ENGL 1101 class, showcased an exhibit of artwork created with AI. The students’ work was displayed in the EGSC Art Gallery and was the basis of a collaborative effort for students to argue whether art created by AI was considered “true art.”

In November 2022, Jessica Todd worked in conjunction with the EGSC Library to develop a Faculty LibGuide to help with Faculty Development and the QEP: https://ega.libguides.com/faculty_development. Topics on the LibGuide include interdisciplinary teaching, high-impact practices, student learning communities, and faculty/student mindset. We tried to incorporate many eBooks and online sources, so that faculty on any campus would have access to the resources without having to request them through GIL or Interlibrary Loan.

In December 2022, Jessica Todd attended the SACSCOC Annual Conference in Atlanta. As the QEP Director, Jessica Todd attended various workshops and seminars related to the QEP and retention in order to help benefit the college with our current QEP regarding Student Learning Communities (SLCs).

In Spring 2023, there were four SLCs. Of these four, two SLCs were conducted on the Statesboro campus, one was conducted on the Swainsboro campus, and one was conducted online. During the Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 semesters, the QEP team met to discuss new approaches and strategies for implementing SLCs due to decreasing enrollment and scheduling issues. From these discussions, a new approach to SLCs was proposed. The QEP Director, Jessica Todd, presented the new thematic approach to SLCs to faculty on February 2, 2023. Faculty were able to express their opinions and vote whether they approved of this new approach. Jessica Todd also contacted faculty to gauge which faculty would be interested in working with students in the residence centers, clubs/organizations, and/or teaching thematic SLCS for the Spring 2024 semester. Note: Survey was sent out on Feb 10, 2023. Only 5 faculty completed the survey.

On April 7, 2023, Jessica Todd presented the new thematic approach to SLCs to the APCC where it was approved. On April 21, 2023, Jessica Todd presented the new thematic approach to SLCs to the Faculty Senate where it was approved. On April 28, 2023, the new thematic approach to SLCs went to the President and was approved. Note: No SLCs were planned or implemented during fall 2023 because of the change in approach. The fall 2023 semester was spent on informing and training faculty/staff about the new approach to SLCs and planning and creating new SLCs for spring 2023 and fall 2024.

On Aug 8, 2023, Jessica Todd met with the Learning Support Directors to plan which courses and themes might be best for students in Learning Support English and Learning Support Math. This team created two possible Learning Communities around the themes of Community and Literacy.

On Aug 9, 2023, Jessica Todd met with the Director Student Success, to discuss a few possible SLCs and the best times for scheduling these courses. Jessica Todd discussed the two SLCs targeted toward Learning Support Students (Community and Literacy) as well as two other SLCs which focus on the minority experience in the United States and entrepreneurship. Dr. Georgia Sanders felt that the themes and topics would interest and engage our students. We discussed the best times for the SLCs, and Director Student Success noted that students tend to be more successful in classes that start around 9:30 am and end by 3:15 pm. She noted that students tend to focus and engage more in classes that fall between these time frames.

On Aug 18, 2023, Jessica Todd led an information session to inform faculty of the policy and structural changes for SLCs. For instance, the co-requisite model will no longer be used, and the thematic approach will replace it. The reasons behind the change were illustrated to faculty; the QEP Team wants students to have flexibility with scheduling and the ability to withdraw from a class if they are at risk of failing.

The QEP Director held an information and training session on Sep 8, 2023, to demonstrate how faculty will form thematic groups. In addition, Jessica Todd discussed the process of creating the SLCs’ themes, learning objectives, and how to complete the SLC Thematic Group Proposal Form. Training materials and links were also provided on how to construct measurable learning objectives and how to use Bloom’s Taxonomy in the development of learning objectives.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

During the Fall 2023 semester, Jessica Todd will continue to initiate connections between thematic SLCs and the college community. For instance, she will also be contacting Housing to arrange a possible residential learning community for the fall 2024 SLCs. Note: The QEP Director has a possible meeting on Nov 2, 2023, to discuss the fall 2024 Residential Program with Sherrie Helms and Mikella Hansley.

In addition to fostering connections to Housing, Jessica Todd will be contacting program directors for certain pathways to encourage student on student interaction. For instance, we hope to have students within the Teacher Education program lead various activities or workshops in the student residence centers to facilitate student engagement and a sense of community.

Jessica Todd will also contact advisors of various campus clubs to start building themes for possible SLCs and collecting their interests to foster connections between SLCs and student clubs and organizations.

Training sessions for faculty interested in teaching an SLC in fall 2024 will be conducted in January-February 2024.

Promotion of the SLCs for the Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 semester is also another goal for this year. Jessica Todd would like to have the fall 2024 and spring 2025 SLCs prepared in advance, so promotional materials for spring 2025 SLCs can be printed to distribute to club advisors and students during the Fall 2024 semester.

Challenges and Support:

Student enrollment may impact the QEP. In addition, faculty participation in teaching SLCs and faculty involvement in the community aspect of the campus will also play a role (i.e., whether faculty advisors agree to participate in SLCs with their clubs, whether program directors agree to allow their students to participate in outside class college community activities, etc.). Promotion of the SLCs will also affect their success. Thus, the QEP Team hopes to have the support of faculty, administration, and the marking team to assist with the development and support of the project.

Primary Contact:

Director of QEP, Jessica Todd

Predictive Modeling (East Georgia State College-2023)

Strategy/Project Name:

Predictive Modeling

Momentum Area:

Change Management

Data & Communications

Category:

Predictive Analytics

Strategy/Project Description:

Using predictive modeling to determine fall and spring semester enrollment. This requires two sets of models that must be joined together. The first set will focus on the predicted retention of currently enrolled students and the second set will focus on the enrollment of new applications.

Activity Status:

Initiating

Evaluation/Assessment plan:

Evaluation Plan and Measures: The number of models completed and comparison to corresponding semester enrollment projects.

KPIs: Proportion of retention and applicant enrollment models completed.

Baseline measure (for each KPI): No models have been completed at this time.

Current/most recent data (for each KPI) [NEW for 2023]: 0% of the five models completed.

Goal or targets (for each KPI): All models completed by the end of Fall 2023.

Time period/duration: End of Fall 2023 semester

Progress and Adjustments:

The underlying datasets for the retention models have been combined and model development is underway. Once the models are developed, the recent classes will be scored for probability of retention, then those probabilities will be compared to students’ actual enrollment for the respective semesters. Also, a similar process needs to be completed for Application data.

Plan for the Year Ahead:

Continue to develop the models for fall-to-fall, fall-to-spring, and spring-to-fall retention along with the fall and summer applicant enrollment models.

Primary Contact:

AVP for Grants and Data Analytics

Campus Plans Supplemental Sections

Observations and next steps

What strategies and activities have been most successful?

1- Inclusive access: At the beginning of Fall 2022, the East Georgia State College Academic Team decided to implement a new sale model for college textbooks called inclusive access. This model, which is also known as automatic textbook, involves the delivery of digital content to students by the first day of class. The cost of the textbooks is directly charged to the students’ account. However, students have a period to opt out of receiving the digital textbook. After a discussion with Lucy, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Academic Library Services and Executive Director of GALILEO at the University System of Georgia, we were able to start the inclusive access model in Spring 2023 and have expanded it through Fall 2023. While the effects on course success rate still need more semesters to be fully analyzed, this approach has been successful because the number of courses, sections, and students in sections with inclusive access have increased from Spring 2023 to Fall 2023, resulting in more than $75,000 saved in textbook cost. Finally, the very opt out rate suggests that students have adopted this model to deliver digital content.

2- Success coaches: At the beginning of the Spring 2023 semester, Success Coaches began scheduling workshops within the library after hours to provide academic tips in areas our students reflected deficiencies in such as study skills, and time management. Although many workshops were offered, we had very few students attend and realized we needed to collaborate with faculty to get inside the classrooms. Fall 2023 marked the beginning of Success Coaches collaborating with faculty to present workshops within the co-requisite classes. We have seen an increase of activity within the Academic Center for Excellence and look forward to collecting data on the impact these workshops have made within the classes attended success rates. We will continue to expand on the topics available to online and on-campus students based on the deficiencies noted by faculty when scheduling is done with Success Coaches.

What have been least effective?

The update of the two-years plan: In June, we had planned to update and redesign the curriculum maps for each degree program, making sure they were accurate and making them more appealing and understandable to the students. Later in the summer, before we began our efforts, we learned of a new and different approach to the core curriculum being developed and working through the USG, so we tabled our efforts until the new core curriculum was available. Therefore, updating our curriculum maps for our degree programs was our least effective effort.

How has your institution made adjustments to your completion activities over the past year?

Over the last year, the Student Learning Communities have encountered some issues. For instance, decreasing student enrollment, limited faculty, scheduling issues, and the co-requisite model have all affected the implementation and success of the project. Under the co-requisite model, students who participated in an SLC were required to register for the co-requisite course associated with it. If the student wanted to withdraw from one of the courses due to being at risk of failing, then he/she was also required to withdraw from the co-requisite course. Thus, students had to make difficult decisions about withdrawing from two courses, putting them behind in their academic progress or remaining in a class that they could potentially fail, which would impact their GPA. As a result, during the Fall 2022 and Spring 2023 semesters, the QEP team met to discuss new approaches and strategies for implementing SLCs. From these discussions, a new approach to SLCs was proposed. Under the thematic approach to SLCs, four to five faculty members would select a theme or themes to base their courses around. Each section of the course taught by these faculty members would be labeled with the theme and have an SL section designation for Student Learning Communities. These four or five courses would be open to all students and not require any co-requisites. If a student registered for at least two of the courses within the thematic learning group, then the student would be considered an SLC participant. It is the hope that this approach will help combat the issues with student enrollment, limited faculty, scheduling issues, and the co-requisite model.

The QEP Director, Jessica Todd, presented the new thematic approach to SLCs to faculty on February 2, 2023, and faculty were able to express their opinions and vote whether they approved of this new approach. The approach was received favorably by the faculty and went through the appropriate forms of governance; it was approved at each step. During the Fall 2023 semester, information and training sessions were implemented to make faculty and advisors aware of the new format and approach to SLCs. Proposal forms for SLCs were revised to reflect the new thematic approach and a training session on how to complete the form was held. For the Spring 2024 semester, we have one thematic SLC on the schedule. We also have a few other thematic SLCs in development for the Fall 2024 semester on each campus.

Where would you want to see student success efforts shift in the coming year(s)?

1- Complete of the Core IMPACTS Mathematics and Writing within 30 hours:

Increasing the percentage of new freshmen completing initial writing sequence and mathematics courses within their first academic year is one of the focuses from the upcoming EGSC strategic plan. Presented below are the number and percentages of students who were beginning freshmen in a fall semester and successfully completed their core Mathematics and Writing requirements by the conclusion of the following summer semester by earning a Grade C or better in all three core math and writing courses for the 2019 through 2023 academic years.

First Year Writing/Math Success Data	Fall 2018 (AY 2019)	Fall 2019 (AY 2020)	Fall 2020 (AY 2021)	Fall 2021 (AY 2022)	Fall 2022 (AY 2023)	Average Percentage
Beginning Freshmen	1,086	1,037	678	654	675	4,130
Area A Successful	317	291	135	146	134	1,023
Percent Successful	29.2%	28.1%	19.9%	22.3%	19.9%	24.8%

We are currently revising the activities that will be implemented to achieve this goal. We asked for input from Faculty during a recent faculty workshop.

2- Students enroll in 30 credit hours for each academic year (Fall, Spring, and Summer):

As an access institution, we have two pathways that students can take when enrolling in classes to reach the 30-credit hour goal. One allows them to take classes during the Fall and Spring with a Summer break, and the other requires enrollment during all semesters. While each path allows the student to complete their degree withing two years, the three-semester path allows students to complete with less academic stress.

2 Years = 4 semesters
Fall	Spring		Fall		Spring
15	16		15		16
2 Years = 6 Semesters
Fall		Spring		Summer
12		6		13
13		6		12

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