.XL – The Summer Bridge & First-Year Experience Program Brock Klein Pasadena City College Pasadena, California

“I did not like high school and I did really bad in high school. And I did not think I would ever graduate and go to college. So right now, I think off it like this is where I can start my life. And then I can go on and do the things I want to and continue on to become a successful person.”.XL3 student

The.XL Mission The.XL program is designed to help first-generation and traditionally underrepresented students make a smooth and successful transition from high school to college in a nurturing, collaborative environment.

Target Population

PCC Summer Bridge: High school graduates take a block of courses in the summer. First-Year Experience: They remain as a cohort for the remainder of their first year. Math SI Math SI Summer Math, Engl, Counseling Fall Math & English Spring High School Graduates Summer Bridge and The First-Year Experience

Program Director Program Director Recruiter Recruiter.XL Student Ambassadors.XL Student Ambassadors Faculty Faculty -- math, English Counselor Counselor Instructional Aides Instructional Aides.XL Staff

Timeline Spring 2008 Secure instructors, classes, days and hours, and rooms February – June February – June 2009 Recruitment at local high schools Plan field trips April & May 2009 Placement tests May & June May & June 2009 Creation of cohorts July 2009, 2 weeks before Summer Bridge Orientation July 6 – August 14 Summer Bridge!

Orientation Registration Textbook & parking permit purchase Student IDs Parent and student contracts Financial Aid advisement

Summer Bridge Data PrealgebraRetentionSuccessPersistence (Summer to Fall).XL5 (Summer 2006) 100%74%95%.XL4 (Summer 2005) 100%76%93%.XL3 (Summer 2004) 92%68%93% Matched Comparison Group (Age, ethnicity, course) (Age, ethnicity, course)80%53%68%.XL Cohorts 3, 4, & 5

Fall Math Data Fall to Spring Persistence Fall to Spring Persistence –.XL 2-5: 88% –PCC: 69% –Hispanic: 67% Success – No significant difference Success – No significant difference

An Important Finding Students engaged in an intense and sustained intervention have a greater chance of staying in school and succeeding than those who do not.

.XL 4-6 Findings.XL success:.XL 4-6 students succeeded in all of their classes at a higher rate (78.5%) than PCC students in all classes (65.9%) and PCC students in basic skills classes (59.4%)..XL success:.XL 4-6 students succeeded in all of their classes at a higher rate (78.5%) than PCC students in all classes (65.9%) and PCC students in basic skills classes (59.4%). Basic skills to transfer math: A greater percentage of.XL 4-6 students (25%) who began in Level 1,(pre- algebra) registered for a transfer-level math course within 9 semesters than their non-.XL counterparts (11.1%). Basic skills to transfer math: A greater percentage of.XL 4-6 students (25%) who began in Level 1,(pre- algebra) registered for a transfer-level math course within 9 semesters than their non-.XL counterparts (11.1%).

.XL 4-6 Findings College environment: Latino/a.XL students demonstrated more positive perceptions of the college environment than non-.XL Latino/a students. College environment: Latino/a.XL students demonstrated more positive perceptions of the college environment than non-.XL Latino/a students. Social adjustment: Latino/a.XL students demonstrated greater social adjustment to college than non-.XL Latino/a students. Social adjustment: Latino/a.XL students demonstrated greater social adjustment to college than non-.XL Latino/a students.

Unexpected but Welcomed Outcomes The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning –Faculty Inquiry –Development of SLOs –Research and Experimentation –Collegiality Collaboration with other first-year experience program directors at PCC Collaboration with other first-year experience program directors at PCC New linked courses and programs New linked courses and programs

.XL Variations.XL Health Sciences.XL STEM.XL Now Reading Jam Math Jam

Questions for Discussion 1. Is it wise to shelter young, under- prepared students? 2. Is the program worth the cost/student? 3. Can the college scale up, offer the same experience to more students, maintain the same standards and level of intimacy, and have the same impact?

A Math Instructor and Her Students “Prealgebra is not so much about teaching math as it is about teaching students that they can do math.”