Transfer Student Success Partnership Conference Agenda

Senate Bill 366, which passed during the 2021 legislative session, modifies section 1007.23, Florida Statutes, to require the Statewide Articulation Agreement to establish three mathematics pathways for students by aligning mathematics courses to programs, meta-majors and careers. Those three pathways, which take effect in Fall 2024, are Algebra to Calculus, Mathematical Thinking in Context, and Statistical Reasoning. Within each pathway, the first general education mathematics core course has been identified. The goal of the pathways is to “facilitate seamless transfer of credit.” Per the results of a survey sent out to all SUS and FCS institutions, there are clear pathway recommendations for certain majors (based on CIP codes), and unclear expectations for others. The recommendations regarding pathways will be written into FCS rule and SUS regulation in spring 2024. How will UCF decide to align their majors with the three pathways? How will that information then be disseminated to the partner FCS institutions to ensure that they are advising students to the right courses for those majors? In this presentation, the pathways, their core courses, and possible collaborations between academic affairs and advising, both internally and externally, will be discussed.

In this interactive presentation, participants will learn how students in a Fundamentals of Speech course learned to write prompts, create a Persona in ChatGPT to brainstorm and draft an outline to begin researching an informative speech topic. Students also used Ideogram to create an image of their Persona which became part of the presentation aid. Student reflection on the speech assignment and lessons learned will be shared. Conference participants will have the opportunity to work in small groups to share their experiences with integrating technology into speech or other assignments and to create a persona.

The researchers will present a two-prong approach developed to increase student success. The approach involves 1) Creation of a specific set of modules specifically targeting the prerequisite knowledge needed by the students to be successful in Statics and Dynamics courses and 2) Mentoring of “”at-risk”” students by student mentors (SMs) starting from the second week of the semester. The developed modules include pretests and targeted interventions based on each student’s knowledge needs. In addition, sets of videos, practice problems, and further assessments are provided to ensure that all students have the same baseline knowledge and the tools to be successful in these courses. In addition, assigning students to SMs also helps students with their social integration into the university environment.

These close knits serve as a “”Learning Community”” providing opportunities for a deeper understanding of the material being learned and closer interaction with fellow participants as well as helping them navigate all the university facilities and opportunities. This presentation describes the authors’ efforts in developing and implementing the above approach, along with some very promising preliminary results.

General education courses vary widely in content, cognitive skills, practical applications, and desired learning outcomes – even when we have aligned learning outcomes and topics lists across DirectConnect institutions. In this interactive discussion, faculty and staff from Valencia College will share several examples of how they are measuring course learning outcomes for a transparent view of exactly what students have learned. Focusing on course learning outcomes can help clarify expectations across institutions for students who meet general education outcomes along different pathways.

In this inter-institutional discussion participants will compare assessment methods. Then with results from Valencia’s assessments as examples, the session will conclude with steps to develop improvement strategies. It will become clear that faculty need opportunities to interpret learning outcomes results in their context. By looking at the learning outcome attainment of transfer populations, we can all better direct students’ pre-transfer learning and improve post-transfer success.

Senate Bill 266 has outlined a revised approval process for General Education courses – specifically referencing Institutional Gen Ed courses. General Education courses must now be approved by our Board of Trustees before going to the state for review and approval. In this interactive session, we will go over the statute and rule in depth, and learn from each other our plans to address institutional compliance with statute (faculty and staff involvement, principles for inclusion that include breadth of knowledge for Gen Ed, thresholds for inclusion, etc.).

Students at post-secondary institutions face unique advising challenges as they navigate requirements for both a degree pathway and an associated academic program. This presents specific challenges for students, impacting how readily they can access pertinent information for both their degree program and intended academic goals. Platforms used to manage and communicate information to students must be accessible, regularly updated, and consistently provide accurate information for both degree and associated academic program requirements.

Using credit hour benchmarks, advising guides were created to supplement student academic experiences by guiding them through additional co-curricular activities related to their intended degree goals. To foster a strong student-advisor relationship the guides include responsibilities for the student as well as the advisor and common questions to ask an advisor.

This session focuses on the process of developing an advising guide including its origin, evolution, and successful application by students and advisors. Participants will learn how to create an advising guide and integrate it into the day-to-day student-advisor relationship.

As a Hispanic-Serving Institution, Valencia College (VC) serves a diversified student population including students pursuing STEM degrees. Similar to previous findings highlighting increased attrition of underrepresented students pursuing STEM degrees (1), retention and 3-year graduation rates of VC STEM seeking students indicate a need for interventions to support STEM degree attainment and career pursuits. Valencia Engaging for Completion Through Opportunities in Research (VECTOR), an NSF S-STEM grant (#1833818), supports STEM degree-seeking students that are low-income students demonstrating academic advancement using a cohort mentorship model of research experiences, growth mindset interventions, and transfer support. This presentation reports on findings for retention, academic performance, graduation, and persistence beyond transfer for program participants. Broader impacts included developing and facilitating a professional development course for VC faculty and staff to support underrepresented students in STEM as well as peer mentorship interventions through a partnership with the University of Central Florida. Project results to date indicate that early programmatic support measures for STEM students at VC can improve retention, academic performance, early experiential learning opportunities that support STEM career development, and transfer to a STEM baccalaureate program.

Chen, Xianglei. National Center for Education Statistics. (2013, November). STEM Attrition: College Students’ Paths Into and Out of STEM Fields. A Statistical Analysis Report. http://nces.ed.gov/

Data shows a success gap between first time in college (FTIC) students and Florida College System (FCS) transfer students as they progress through their mathematics courses at UCF. Our group of two faculty members from Valencia College and two faculty members from UCF have developed a model for colleagues at our institutions to observe each other’s courses to address this gap. We use these observations to study differences in course practices and culture from the perspective of a student transferring between our institutions. We will discuss our model, findings from our observations, and future directions during our presentation.

The Central Florida Education Ecosystem Database is a collaborative data sharing project including Orange County Public Schools, The School District of Osceola County, Valencia College, and University of Central Florida. CFEED has developed a database with front-end analytic capability that compiles historical and ongoing data from all partners allowing us to conduct research and identify insights about student success, course pathways, and other trends via data analysis and reporting tools.

CFEED is excited to share our most recent work demonstrating student specific readiness at different points in their academic journey. CFEED has been a driver of change within the college to university transfer landscape.

Specifically, we have been deeply involved in the Helios Transfer Scholars Grant which was designed to support transfer students to UCF with incentives to ensure courses relevant to their major are taken prior to transfer. CFEED will demonstrate the ways we use our Interactive Transfer Readiness model which incorporates our analytics connecting Relevant Courses for UCF majors to determine the likelihood of student success.

Additionally, our team has helped establish programs like the Osceola Prosper program to increase student enrollment at the college level. CFEED will demonstrate our ability to connect the emerging trends of student movement and readiness from Osceola Prosper to future transfer success.

Perhaps the curriculum alignment and the effects of transfer shock may have many possible solutions. One possible solution could be via Multiple Attempt Testing (MAT). Many Transfer Students (TS) suffer transfer shock despite their readiness and strength as students. At the University of Central Florida (UCF), two large classes were tested in Spring 2023 using MAT, Dynamics and Thermodynamics with 167 and 245 students, respectively. Herein, the students were given three chances per test and a final cumulative with also three attempts to save whoever needed it before the course was over. The methodology proves to be more effective as a learning method rather than a simple examination methods. Students were effectively learning from their mistakes with every new attempt. A lot of the TS, among other minority groups, persevered till the end trying all possible attempts to improve their grades in comparison to the rest of the class. The overall class DWF was reduced to more than 40% in both classes. Partially due to the last chance of the final cumulative MAT examination, forgiving the students failure during the semester. It seems that the transfer shock and other curriculum alignment disparity are compensated by MAT. The comfort, anxiety-free ambiance and the hope MAT gives the students with every attempt encourages the students to learn better, get the better grade they seek, allows the students to maintain their scholarships and helps retain the students.

Students were given survey questionnaires that indicated most students liked the MAT and would like to see it in other courses as well.

In 2021 Valencia College initiated assessment of sets of Common Program Prerequisites described as AA Degree Pathways. After defining several pathway learning outcomes for each pathway, groups of faculty planned and implemented assessments. The results were interpreted to develop learning improvement strategies. The Director of Learning Assessment and Director of Institutional Effectiveness will facilitate this workshop along with Valencia faculty to broaden the discussion for any faculty or student affairs representatives across all direct connect colleges. In the workshop, small groups will work together to determine how general or specific learning outcomes associated with pathways need to be. Participants will leave the session ready to engage their colleagues in discussion about multiple methods of assessing pathway learning outcomes and when and how students can attain the learning necessary to meet those outcomes.

Learn how Seminole State College and the University of Central Florida, through the DirectConnect program, collaborate to ensure transfer readiness. Transfer student success begins with students and advisors working together to map clear pathways, ensure transferability of credits, and provide resources to address gaps.
Our institutions partner together through events such as Fall and Spring Curriculum Alignment meetings, utilization of Navigate to create academic plans that include common program prerequisites for UCF majors, and on campus partnered activities. Come learn about our creative methodologies used to engage with our students and ensure they are transfer and major ready.


Our students Go State, Go Far, and Charge On!!