Putting Students at the Center

at Guttman Community College:

Accomplishments and

Challenges in the Inaugural Years

Nan Bauer-­‐Maglin, Camille Rodríguez, Alexandra Weinbaum

We dedicate this report to the people whose vision and creative planning led to the creation of GCC and to those who have

contributed their hard work and dedication to students' success.

August 2014

Contents Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Part I. Putting Students at the Center: Overcoming Binaries and

Creating a Third Space ............................................................................................ 6 Part II. Ethnographies of Work and Learning About Being a Successful

Student: The Roles of College Staff, Faculty, and External Partners in Supporting ..................... 12

Part III. Sustaining Innovation: Issues for Consideration ................................. 39 Concluding Reflection .................................................................................................... 48 Appendix: EOW and LABSS, 2013-­‐14

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Introduction

We offer a clearly defined educational pathway including an integrated first-­‐year curriculum that is inquiry-­‐based and majors that prepare students for careers and baccalaureate study. Guttman programs are academically rigorous, multidisciplinary, and experientially based. Mission Statement, Guttman Community College

Forty-­‐five percent of college students in the United States are enrolled in public community colleges.1 Currently and historically, community colleges have been an important gateway to higher education for low-­‐income students.2 Because of this, community colleges are a focus of national attention by the Obama administration and by researchers and educators in the field. The students who succeed in completing their associate degrees in a community college do well in finding employment with median incomes that surpass those with only a high school diploma.3 However, the majority do not succeed in completing their associate degree in a timely manner.4 Guttman Community College (GCC) was created to address the barriers to degree completion by developing an innovative approach to retaining students and supporting them in earning an associate degree within three years.5

1 Community College Research Center, Columbia University. http://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/Community-­‐College-­‐FAQs.html 2 Ibid. In 2011-­‐12, 44 percent of community college students had family incomes of $25,000 or less and 57% had family incomes of $32,000 or less. Of these 81 percent are African American or Latino. 3 $1,066. Data Points (American Association of Community Colleges, February 2014). 4 Of community college students who began school in 2006, 47.2 percent did not complete their degree or were not enrolled in six years. Of those who completed in 2012, 23.9 percent achieved an associate degree or certificate at their starting institution or at another two-­‐year institution; 9.4 percent completed

-­‐institution (without attaining an associate degree). Signature Report 6 (National Student Clearinghouse, November 15, 2012.) http://nscresearchcenter.org/signaturereport6/ 5 Special note should be made of the critical groundwork laid during the planning period under the leadership of John Mogulescu, Chair of NCC Planning and Senior University Dean for Academic Affairs and Dean of the School of Professional Studies at CUNY, and Tracy Meade, NCC Project Director and principal author of The New Community College Concept Paper. Under their guidance, 119 members of CUNY colleges, other higher education institutions, public high schools, and community-­‐based organizations formed 11 working committees to elaborate on the concepts underlying the proposed college.

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Key principles of the innovative design are:

Infusing what is typically defined as remedial education into credit-­‐bearing courses that address academic skills as needed while providing a college-­‐level curriculum in the humanities, social sciences, and mathematics during the first year.

Providing a first-­‐year curriculum that requires full-­‐time attendance for all

students; it includes a City Seminar, an interdisciplinary seminar that focuses on significant issues affecting New York City and other global cities.

Offering a limited number of carefully chosen majors. Five are currently offered out of a proposed eight that are the most likely to offer skilled employment opportunities now and in the future.6

Proactive academic advisement and counseling provided by Student Success Advocates, who work consistently with the same group of students throughout the first year, and by Career Strategists, who work with students to plan next steps, including transfer and employment, after the first year.

A one-­‐year course, Ethnographies of Work (EOW), taught by faculty that combines the lenses of anthropology and sociology to examine different types of work and workplaces. This course is linked to a weekly practicum facilitated by Student Success Advocates entitled Learning About Being a Successful Student (LABSS), which supports students in learning effective study habits and prepares them for choosing their majors and developing a professional identity.

Working with the faculty, staff, and administration, a Partnership Office develops and sustains relationships with industry, employers, community organizations, and government agencies for purposes of curriculum planning and developing internship and employment opportunities, providing a seamless and synchronized way to engage all students from day one. The office facilitates the college's emphasis on the integration of work-­‐based and classroom learning.

Subsequently, the implementation continued under the guidance of the founding President Scott Evenbeck, founding Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs José Luis Morín, and former Deputy Director of the NCC Planning Team and founding Dean of Strategic Planning and Institutional Effectiveness Stuart Cochran. Jennifer Lee, former Director of College Admissions and Success, Rebecca Hoda-­‐Kearse, former Assistant Dean of Student Engagement and Success, and Antoinette Gifford, former Associate Director of NCC Initiative and Director of Partnerships, were key in constructing the admissions system, the student support office, and the partnership office, respectively 6 The five majors currently offered are Business Administration, Human Services, Information Technology, Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Urban Studies.

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A Center for College Effectiveness that connects institutional goals with a collaborative formative assessment process linked to a professional development program.

Since 2010, three documentarians have observed planning meetings; reviewed documents; interviewed staff and faculty; sat in on selected classes since the opening of the college in the fall of 2012; attended professional development days; observed student presentations; Previous reports include a case study published by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which has been funding aspects of the college for four years. Collectively the reports provide a year-­‐by-­‐year snapshot of aspects of the college as it evolved from a small planning team to a functioning community college beginning its third year of operation.7 In each report, we raised Issues for Consideration. In doing this, we were deeply aware of the challenges of creating such an innovative institution, particularly within the largest urban university in the U.S., which by necessity has regulations that apply to all of its 28 institutions. The CUNY administration generously supported the launching of the college, and the then Chancellor Goldstein also negotiated a significant start-­‐up grant from the Bloomberg Administration in the fall of 2009.8 Since then, the CUNY administration has been largely supportive of GCC, but inevitably innovation collides with policies and practices that are standardized across the university. We document both the support as well as the ways in which the college has held to its vision while navigating external and internal challenges and constraints.

7 The authors issued interim reports to the New Community College Planning Committee and emergent college community. In each instance, the interim documentarian report was used as a moment of collective discussion and reflection. The interim reports included Mobilizing University and External Constituencies (June 2009); Planning for the New Community College: January 2009 June 2010 (November 2010); New Community College Planning September 2010 2011: A Discussion Paper (July 2011); and Designing The New Community College: Accomplishments and Challenges January 2009 January 2012 (March 2012). Rethinking Community College for the 21st Century (February 2013) and Instructional Teams at Guttman Community College: Building a Learning Community of Students, Faculty, and Staff (September 2013) are available on the GCC website: http://www.guttman.cuny.edu/about/strategicplanning/planning-­‐documents.html 8 http://www.cuny.edu/news/publications/cunymatters/fall09/mayor-­‐bloomberg-­‐pledges.html

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This briefing paper has three main sections: Part I. Putting Students at the Center: Overcoming Binaries and Creating a Third Space We propose that the college be viewed from its focus on the whole student. With this

example, academic versus student services or developmental education versus

Part II. Ethnographies of Work and Learning About Being a Successful Student: The Roles of College Staff, Faculty, and External Partners Understanding of Work and Careers As the title indicates, the focus is on Ethnographies of Work (EOW I and II) and the related seminar led by Student Success Advocates, Learning About Being a Successful Student (LABSS I and II) a course and weekly practicum that are unique to the college. We describe this third space in detail. It is one that we documented this year and also one that illustrates the theme of this report very well. We also discuss the critical roles of Student Success Advocates; Career Strategists, who work closely with faculty; and the Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement all of which are instrumental in counseling and advising students and deepening their understanding of educational and career pathways. Part III. Sustaining Innovation: Issues for Consideration Because the college is a new and innovative institution, it is still a work in progress. Faculty and staff both implement and reflect on their work and make changes to better support student success. In Part III, we examine the continuing challenges and accomplishments of faculty and staff as they designed the college beginning in 2009 and

We reviewed Issues for Consideration, discussed in previous reports, in order to highlight successes in addressing challenges as well as issues that may need further study and changes in practices. Because the college has created ongoing venues for such reflection, it is at its cor

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Methods Used by Documentarians The following methods were used to gather information: Interviewing faculty who teach EOW and the Student Success Advocates who lead the accompanying practicum, LABSS. Conducting observations in EOW classes and LABSS. We observed selected classes with

work (names deleted) to gain a better understanding of how the various assignments contributed to an understanding of work, workers, and workplaces. Interviewing faculty who developed and are currently implementing the programs of study and supervising and organizing related inter Interviewing Student Success Advocates, Career Strategists, the Director and staff of the Office of Partnership & Community Engagement, and the Director of the Peer Mentors Program and Peer Mentors for their roles in the following: academic and career advisement and support; organizing opportunities for students to meet with employers; and developing internships and employment-­‐related skills and knowledge. Reviewing all of the briefing papers, selecting issues that remain pertinent to the college, and providing questions and resources for continuous discussion among faculty and staff regarding the dilemmas and strengths of an innovative college.

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Part I. Putting Students at the Center: Overcoming Binaries and Creating a Third Space The GCC design can be characterized as an intentional bridging of what is often portrayed as antithetical binaries prevalent in postsecondary education. Examples include remedial education versus college-­‐level education, an academic versus a vocational focus, and the separation of academic and student support services. From its inception, GCC has worked to challenge these binaries by finding a space between, which might better address the needs of students. 9 This report is a story about a sustained effort to transform community college education within the largest urban university in the nation. It is a story told from our perspective as three documentarians who had the privilege of following the planning and implementation of a small, experimental community college from 2009 to 2014. Immersed throughout this five-­‐year period in the development of a new approach to community college education, we witnessed an elaboration of the model; the launch of a new college; the progress of its faculty, staff, and programs; and, finally, the admission, education, and graduation of its first cohort of students. This new college the Stella and Charles Guttman Community College (GCC) (originally the New Community College) at the City University of New York opened its doors in August 2012. Many individuals joined together in this effort with fervor, optimism, and energy during both the planning stages and the implementation period. These included a wide range of supporters, a small group of advisors, and a core group of full-­‐time educators and staff dedicated to addressing the educational challenges of first-­‐generation students. Some left before the college opened or shortly thereafter for a variety of reasons, and others persevered despite the naysayers at different points in time. In ways big and small, each contributed to the formation of the model.

-­‐year implementation were issued in two reports, constructed from documents, observations, interviews, and moments of reflections with some of its key actors. However, the interim reports developed over five years are but snapshots taken at various points in time, and there is a general acknowledgement that our ability to document the many aspects of the college was limited by the availability of time and resources. The college will, of course, continue to evolve and continue to be a story of boldness, risks, challenges, courage, and hesitancies in the face of opportunities and of overwhelming odds. The need for this college is and remains great as report after report reveal the limitations of traditional postsecondary education to effectively serve generations of students who are the first in their families to go to college. At no point in time has this

9 The authors, Putting Students at the Center at Guttman Community College, 7.

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need become more urgent. Today, postsecondary education offers one of the few opportunities for upward mobility, while the diversity among younger generations who are the first in their families to go to college has increased enormously. Both dynamics represent a significant challenge for traditional postsecondary institutions and for public higher education institutions facing declining support and diminishing resources. The GCC design can be characterized as an intentional bridging of what is often portrayed as antithetical binaries prevalent in postsecondary education. Examples include remedial education versus college-­‐level education, an academic versus a vocational focus, and the separation between the academic and student support services side of a college. From its inception, GCC has worked to challenge these binaries by finding a space between them which might better address the needs of its students.

10 generated sites of negotiation and meaning-­‐making among diverse sectors of the GCC college community. Thus, the progression of this college can be viewed from the perspective of how these spaces were constructed, negotiated, and implemented in the nasRather than affirm traditional boundaries, the college created the time and space to determine how boundaries can be bridged all in an effort to re-­‐center support for the whole student rather than create a college designed along traditional lines. This experience was not without its challenges. The purposeful creation of spaces to reconcile longstanding disparate traditions required a commitment from everyone involved at GCC a commitment that was often widely affirmed but at other times met flashes of resistance. The process required that all participants build a common understanding of the model within the college while also meeting the challenges of the external environment. Inequitable power relationships as well as variations in history and experience required everyone to translate across discourses and mediate the implementation of the GCC design. At times, this meant breaking down the walls between those invested in traditional practices and those proposing an untested model using many different, sometimes untested strategies. Despite these differences, university administrators, college leaders, college faculty, and college staff were involved in a continuous joint effort to make the model work. Ongoing and interim spaces were created for such dialogues during both planning and

10 The concept of a third space has been advanced in contemporary times by the disparate work of Lev Vygotsky, Franz Fanon, Paulo Freire, Edward Said, bell hooks, Derek Wolcott, and Homi Bhaba, among others. The seeds of naming this negotiated space or sites of fusion can be found in the early work of Latin American writers from Felipe Guamán Poma de Ayala (c. 1550-­‐1616) to José Martí (1853-­‐1895), thinkers who recognized and affirmed the cultural shifts occasioned by the historical convergence of a colonial power and subjugated peoples in new territory. It is no accident that some of the leading thinkers of a

obligatory changes.

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implementation, including face-­‐to-­‐face meetings and online collaborations. For example, faculty and staff worked in partnership within the Instructional Teams on the first-­‐year experience; their time was structured for deliberation and problem-­‐solving. Faculty and staff also worked together on designing and implementing field experiences as proposed by the model and as needed; less structured, their time required efforts to carve out the space for consultations on a more ad hoc basis. Deliberations between college leadership and faculty included both structured time and less structured time. Not so obvious was that within these spaces sometimes long-­‐held ideas had to be dropped and new approaches embraced and implemented. For example, it was necessary to make collective choices about what was to be included and what was to be excluded what was to be in the foreground and what in the back ground. Ultimately, the spaces involved relentless hard work, frustrating dissonance, and bursts of creativity

extensive research, discussion, and experience. Third spaces have frequently been characterized as chaotic, dynamic places of interacting forces. These are places that often become sites of new hybrids, forms, and experiences if and only if boundaries are breached and walls deteriorate to enable the new. Such dynamic sites invite creativity and promote the emergence of alternative perspectives as traditional paradigms morph into different views.11

11 What is interesting about the emergence of new hybrids, paradigms, and perspectives is the extent to which they are incorporated into prevailing views. Incorporation depends on recognition and affirmation of the new in a way that provides access for future generations. While the new is often passed on to others verbally or visually, it is the written word that increases the chances for cementing the newer legacy thus the importance of creating an intentional body of work for subsequent generations. This is the essence of knowledge management. Otherwise, the new is often lost and destined for extinction.

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Merging academic and support services. Colleges and universities typically separate the academic and support side of postsecondary activities. Often considered a voluntary collegiate experience, student support services are available under the assumption that students needing help will seek it. By placing both the academic and support side of the college under the Office of Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, GCC intentionally brought these two parts of traditional college administration together with the intent of creating a seamless support system for students. This support system is embodied in the Instructional Teams (ITs) of the first year in which faculty, Student Success Advocates, and Information Commons (library) staff work to support students in the first year and troubleshoot obstacles to their success. With their weekly time

the ITs are among the most innovative and also structured third spaces at GCC. Building academic skills within the college curriculum. Remediation a value-­‐laden word lies at the heart of ongoing debate and research within higher education. Remediation, referred to more recently as developmental courses, carries little or no credit and relies on tests given on entry to predict college readiness and success. At GCC

research12 and advocated in the concept paper. There are no placement exams, 12 For example, J.C. Calcagno and B.T. Long (2008). The Impact of Postsecondary Remediation Using a Regression Discontinuity Approach: Addressing Endogenous Sorting and Noncompliance. NCPR Working Paper (2008); T. Bailey, the Community College. Community College Research Center, Teachers College, Columbia University (2008).

Third Spaces in the GCC Model

Merging Academic &

Support Services

Building Academic Skills

within the College

Curriculum

Interdisciplinary First Year

Ethnographies of Work & LABSS

College & Community

Pathways to the Majors

Formative Assessment & the Center for

College Effectiveness

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although students must take the various CUNY tests before they move into their majors. Within the interdisciplinary first-­‐year curriculum, a great deal of emphasis is placed on promoting literacy and quantitative reasoning as well as learning statistics. This begins with the 10-­‐day Summer Bridge program and continues throughout the first year, when students are required to attend full-­‐time. Interdisciplinary teaching and the first-­‐year courses, Ethnographies of Work (EOW), with its accompanying practicum, Learning About Being a Successful Student (LABSS). The interdisciplinary teaching in the first year is reinforced by the Instructional Teams, in which faculty come together to plan curriculum and address the needs of students in a holistic manner. While all faculty members were hired in areas of specialization that corresponded to the Programs of Study, they are also required to teach during the first year. As a result, they develop and teach a rich, interdisciplinary curriculum that encompasses reading and writing in history, literature, sociology, and anthropology as well as quantitative reasoning and statistics. As the name implies, Ethnographies of Work immerses students in the study of work from a sociological as well as an ethnographic perspective. Students learn the skills of observation, interviewing, and documentation. This rich, interdisciplinary curriculum is linked to its accompanying practicum, Learning About Being a Successful Student.13 In general, the interdisciplinary first year enables students to become acquainted with their professors and future teachers for the majors and provides them with a combination of academic as well as practical knowledge regarding the pathways to a career that interests them. College and community. GCC strives to view the college as an integral part of the New York City, rather than as college residing in the city. Through the Office of Partnerships and Community Engagement (OPCE) in collaboration with the Working Group on Partnerships,14 and the Student Success Advocates in the first year, and Career Strategists thereafter, students have multiple opportunities to meet professionals in fields that may interest them, options for internships, and support in learning the protocols of writing resumes, learning to talk with employers, and dressing appropriately for interviews. For two days each semester OPCE also helps place students in community organizations, another venue for understanding the variety of opportunities for employment and for participating in community work as employees, paid interns, or volunteers. Several of the majors require internships, especially Human Services, which requires 125 hours of guided work in a Human Services agency. Placements are developed both by Human Services faculty and the OPCE. 13 See Part II. 14 Background for the OPCE was developed by Antonia Gifford, formerly Associate Director of the NCC Planning Team and Coordinator of the Working Group on Partnerships. The implementation was developed by the founding and current director of OPCE. A faculty member in Experiential Education and Service Learning is responsible for organizing the Community Days.

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Pathways to the majors. Beginning with the first year and continuing throughout enrollment at GCC, the Student Success Advocates and Career Strategists provide guidance in the selection of majors. The OPCE and faculty invite representatives from the areas of expertise addressed by the majors to speak with students. In this way students are guided into making informed choices of their major as well as thinking about their future, including transfer to a four-­‐year college and immediate or future employment. Attendance at these events, which is often required, makes the infusion of information and people related to the majors a significant part of student experience throughout their time at GCC. Formative assessment and the roles of the Center for College Effectiveness (CCE). The

enrollment, progress, and next steps. The Center participates in national surveys of student and faculty and analyzes the data with faculty and staff in relation to the

collaboration with faculty would gather data about teaching and learning and begin to use what is learned in planning, professional development, and orientation of new faculty and staff. This effort remains a work in progress. CCE is currently planning to hold two Assessment Days in the fall and spring semesters in which both teaching and student work are examined and lessons learned are culled and, to the extent possible, introduced into teaching and assessment.

(GLOs), adapted from those developed by the American Association of Colleges and Universities, to assess key dimensions of student learning and to inform future practice.15 It is anticipated that all graduates will have accumulated a portfolio of signature pieces of work that they can use in seeking employment or pursuing further education. These portfolios are currently being developed with an ePortfolio system used by faculty, staff, and students.

In particular, we focus on the interdisciplinary, faculty-­‐taught course, Ethnographies of Work, and the practicum, Learning About Becoming a Successful Students, led by Student Success Advocates. Part II discusses the ways in which GCC has embedded itself in the community through partnerships with community organizations and professionals working in areas related to the majors. Also included in this section is a discussion of the ongoing debate about how to create collaborative, supportive structures for students, faculty, and staff beyond the first year.

15 Guttman's Learning Outcomes are explicit statements specifying what the college expects students to achieve. They are an adaptation of essential learning outcomes developed by the American Association of Colleges and Universities' LEAP project and http://www.luminafoundation.org/publications/The_Degree_Qualifications_Profile.pdf

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Part II. Ethnographies of Work and Learning about Being a Successful Student: The Roles of College Staff, Faculty, and External

Careers

In essadvising a set of activities, orientations that lead to teaching students how to develop self awareness, identify options, weigh information, set goals, and make realistic plans.16

Central to the philosophy and organization of Guttman Community College (GCC) is the concept that academics and support services for students should not be compartmentalized, as they traditionally are in many colleges. Academic advisors, career counselors, and faculty need to be partners in supporting student self-­‐awareness, goal-­‐setting, and planning for the future. The reasoning for this concept is that the transition from high school to college is especially challenging for low-­‐income, first-­‐generation students, resulting in far lower graduation rates when compared with middle class students with comparable academic skills.17 GCC was designed to address this disparity in outcomes for low-­‐income students. As a result, the adults at GCC with whom they come in contact serve multiple functions: as role models in their work habits, compassionate listeners, and supporters of students in addressing social and emotional problems and in developing college-­‐level academic habits of study and class participation. They help students envision, learn about, and prepare for future careers as well as develop the capacity to enjoy the world of ideas and think critically. Although assigned to various people, these roles cannot be neatly divided. In effect, every adult who comes in contact with a student is a potential mentor, teacher, and advisor. Part II is divided into four sections: A. Learning about Work, Workplaces, and the Programs of Study in the First Year: Ethnographies of Work/Learning About Being a Successful Student. This section focuses on how advisement, counseling, and teaching are combined to develop

16 Melinda Mechur Karp, Entering a Program: Helping Students Make Academic and Career DecisionsWorking Paper 59. CCRC Community College Research Center, Teachers College, Columbia University (May 2013). 17 Paul Tough Who Gets to Graduate? New York Times Magazine, May 18, 2014.

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program of study. The course of study is the vehicle in which this learning and advisement mainly takes place. B. Addressing the Needs of Continuing Students. This section focuses on how students continue to be advised, counseled, and supported in persisting in completing their associate degrees, transferring to four-­‐year colleges, and finding employment. C. Reflections and Issues for Consideration. This section focuses on the dilemmas that have arisen as the college pioneered its second year and raises questions to consider in going forward. D. Concluding Thoughts. Glossary We begin with a glossary of terms: Ethnographies of Work (EOW) and Learning about Being a Successful Student (LABSS). EOW is a two-­‐ semester course that combines a sociological and anthropological exploration of work and workplaces. LABSS, held each week for an hour and a half, complements EOW in both semesters and supports students in developing their academic identities and work habits as effective students. It is facilitated by Student Success Advocates (see below), who participate in many ways in preparing students to choose their majors. Staff members who support these efforts include: Student Success Advocates (SSAs). The four counselors/advisors are each assigned to one House for first-­‐year students. They support students in learning how to become effective students. In addition to three touch points in each semester in which they

effective students, they also counsel students on an ongoing basis, participate in Instructional Teams of faculty for each House, which meets weekly to plan and support student persistence and success, and conduct weekly LABSS sessions. Career Strategists (CSs). stages of complein selecting a major in the first year and continue to advise students throughout their time at the college about next steps, such as whether to transfer to a four-­‐year college or to seek employment. Faculty. All faculty teach in the first year; among these many teach EOW. Faculty work closely with SSAs and later CSs as students plan and enter the programs of study. They help develop placements for the majors that require internships, especially Human

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Services. They assist with advisement regarding the selection of majors and on a continuing basis with students in their classes. Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement (OPCE). This office develops relationships with partners who work in areas connected to the five majors and are interested in supporting the college. OPCE brings the partners to campus where they give presentations, meet individually with students, and develop internships for majors that require them and for majors that have elective internships. A faculty member who is also appointed to OPCE plans and oversees the implementation of experiential learning, especially the two Community Days that occur in the Fall I and Spring I semesters. During the Community Days, students participate in a guided experience in a community organization of their choosing while faculty meet for assessment and professional

-­‐portfolios. OPCE also supports students in developing their resumes and cover letters for future employment and maintains files for all students. These positions are supported by Peer Mentors, who are either second-­‐year students at GCC or students from other CUNY colleges who have multiple functions, including assisting students with their course work and supporting their perseverance in completing assignments.18 In the first year, Graduate Student Coordinators lead Studio, a weekly practicum designed to develop academic skills and approaches to becoming effective students. Faculty, SSAs, and Graduate Student Coordinators leading Studio meet weekly in Instructional Teams to review the work of their Learning Community. First-­‐year students are assigned to a House which consists of three cohorts of 25 students, faculty who teach all the courses, a librarian, and an SSA who is assigned to each House. Each House with its students, faculty, and SSA together form a Learning Community.

The College is also dedicated to the use of technology in advising, teaching, and assessing student progress. Regarding the latter, each faculty member, advisor, counselor, and student participates in using e-­‐portfolios. Students graduate with a portfolio that shows their academic growth through signature assignments and their own reflections on their development. The portfolios include their experiences in internships , employment, and community days, with reflections on those experiences.

18 The Peer Mentor program evolved into three types of Peer Mentors. The Academic Peer Mentors, discussed in the body of this report, are primarily students from other, four-­‐year campuses. There are also the Admissions and Access Peer Mentors and the Leadership and Service Peer Mentors staffed by GCC students. All Peer Mentors have to be in good academic standing.

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A Center for College Effectiveness conducts qualitative and quantitative research to inform the college community of student outcomes, effective practices, and issues for professional development and future planning.

A. Learning about Work, Workplaces and the Programs of Study in the First Year: Ethnographies of Work/Learning About Being a Successful Student

Work is a very broad subject to describe but in Ethnographies of Work I was able to dig deep into it. Student, EOW I, November 17, 2013 Work should not be solely a context which students learn about. It is a context through which students learn and develop.

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1. Ethnographies of Work: An innovative Course

Some critics accuse community colleges of being too oriented toward jobs and skills rather than toward encouraging students especially minority students to follow an academic track that leads to a four-­‐(former leader of the Postsecondary Success Strategy at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation), have been raised against this stereotyping of community colleges (and thus liberal arts colleges as well): Accept that preparing for work and pursuing a liberal-­‐arts education are not mutually exclusive. This is a pernicious debate, because it stereotypes institutions (liberal-­‐arts colleges versus community colleges) and by extension, their students. Such stereotypes are at best ill-­‐ 20

Ironically, many four-­‐year liberal arts colleges are now exploring how to add a job/skills component as they realize the need for this, as shown by the title of a recent article in Inside Higher Ed Private Bridge Programs Expand to Fill College-­‐to-­‐ 21 In a 2011 report issued by Harvard University, the authors asserted that many students who graduate from four-­‐year colleges "can't see a clear, transparent connection between

19 From New Perspectives for Learning-­‐-­‐Briefing Paper 3 (EU Fourth Framework, February 2001). http://www.pjb.co.uk/npl/bp3.htm 20 Hilary Pennington, Chronicle of Higher Education, April 8, 2012. 21 Allie Grasgreen, February 20, 2014. http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/02/20/private-­‐bridge-­‐programs-­‐expand-­‐fill-­‐college-­‐career-­‐gap#sthash.d9baKylg.Lw4ShiCB.dpbs

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22 Now many four-­‐year colleges are realizing they need to focus out of their institutions whether that's making sure students have all the skills they

23 They are doing this by beefing up existing career services,

-­‐campus programs, connecting students with local businesses or even setting them up with a temporary post-­‐

themselves as an alternative to traditional higher education. Others form partnerships with colleges and work with their students during academic 24

But whichever the four-­‐year colleges choose (career services, campus programs, or private bridge programs, which are private ventures that are an add-­‐on expense for the students), they are continuing an age-­‐old separation between the academic and the vocational (should be countered). The fact that discussion of this dichotomy is still raging is apparent in a February 12, 2014, article in which President Karen Lawrence of Sarah Lawrence College describes the list of qualities/abilities that all students should have by

Think critically; express ideas effectively through written communication; envisage and work independently on a project; exchange ideas effectively through oral

Lawrence asserts that these qualities are not antithetical to qualities needed in business: she refers to the public debate in education as "a false dichotomy between a

qualities for students to attain is entirely consistent with surveys of what business leaders say they want, and with what liberal arts colleges provid

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Recognizing that students need to be prepared for the job market, Guttman Community College has been ahead of the curve by establishing Learning about Being a Successful Student. By inserting LABSS into the two-­‐semester course Ethnographies of Work, they have joined occupational knowledge to the academic. The aim of EOW, taught by 22 Pathways to Prosperity: Meeting the Challenge of Preparing Young Americans for the 21st (Harvard University Graduate School of Education, February 2011, 2014, 10-­‐11) http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news_events/features/2011/Pathways_to_Prosperity_Feb2011.pdf 23 Grasgreen 24 Grasgreen 25 Inside Higher Ed, February 12, 2014. http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/02/12/sarah-­‐lawrence-­‐creates-­‐its-­‐own-­‐assessment-­‐tool-­‐bypassing-­‐standardized-­‐tests#ixzz2uveANMMS

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faculty, is to introduce students to the basic concepts and approaches of sociology and anthropology, train students in critical observation and analysis through the use of ethnographic methods, provide professional skill training, and help students think in-­‐

Students learn ethnographic methodology that they can apply to themselves, to their work as students and to their majors, and to workplaces and jobs/careers. At the same time the LABSS component, facilitated by Student Success Advocates, supports students in exploring and practicing work skills and presenting themselves, as well as in examining the choices of majors and associated job expectations (and what kind of education is needed for these). One of the faculty members who was on a working committee to plan EOW believes that what GCC is doing with the EOW curriculum is unique: "EOW is an innovative course introducing students to the world of work in a rigorous and engaged way using field study as a foundation for learning. Colleges that want to expose students to work tend to

Sociology of Wor courses. Bringing together academic and professional learning will surely put EOW on the national map as a model for an undergraduate introduction to work.

Heal the Academic

Despite all that John Dewey tried to teach us, we often underestimate the rich conceptual content of occupations. A powerful feature of contextualized learning is that it forces us to articulate the conceptual dimensions of the vocational course of study. Likewise, occupations have a history and sociology and politics that can be examined. And they give rise

.26

As stated in the introduction to this report, in the short time GCC has been in operation, the college has established a tradition of assessment and revision, led by the Center for College Effectiveness. In addition, in the Instructional Teams, the integrated first year is discussed, evaluated, and revised EOW and LABSS being a component of the first-­‐year curriculum. GCC opened its doors to its first class in August 2012, and the second cohort of students completed the first year in spring 2014. Thus EOW I and II have been offered for two years now: each time revisions were made to EOW/LABSS as faculty and SSAs evaluated the course.

It is important to note is that EOW/LABSS is extremely well-­‐liked by both faculty and students. Students learn that analytic/observational skills can be applied to many disciplines. Through an academic and experiential approach to understanding work and workplaces, students can become more informed agents in their choices of further education and career aspirations.

26 Chronicle of Higher Education, September 12, 2010.

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2. A Brief History of EOW/LABSS

The Concept Paper, the founding document of GCC (August 15, 2008), proposed an integrated first-­‐year program where all students attend full-­‐time and participate in a City Seminar, Professional Studies, and Math Topics course in the first year. The Professional Studies course would allow students to explore the occupational roles that figure prominently in each case study in City Seminar. This would involve researching career tracks, understanding expectations for the types of jobs associated with these tracks, and ultimately, acquiring the related skills needed today and in the future.

From this initial proposal in the Concept Paper, over the next two years a Planning Team and then a Working Committee and finally a Working Group (Spring 2010) fleshed out this plan for the integrated first year, defining and deepening City Seminar (3 components: Critical Issues; Reading/Writing and Composition I; Quantitative Reasoning), changing Math Topics to Statistics, and strengthening Professional Studies, which was renamed to better reflect its content, Ethnographies of Work.

The Working Group infused the new course with academic content and accordingly renamed it Ethnographies of Work. The intent was to cover general education requirements and at the same time begin to prepare students for

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their majors. As described in the Letter of Intent to the CUNY Board of Trustees:27

Ethnographies of Work I will introduce students to sociological and anthropological perspectives on work as they investigate careers. Using the lens of ethnography viewing work as a cultural system invested with meanings, norms, values, customs, behavioral expectations, and social hierarchies this course will provide students with an understanding of key questions to investigate workplaces, occupations, and career pathways in an urban context. Ethnographies of Work II builds on the ethnographic framework and tools for inquiry acquired by students in the first semester. The focus of this course is on conducting in-­‐depth investigations of specific occupations and careers. Students will conduct field work including interviewing and observing individuals in selected jobs or organizations to compose thick description accounts of the experience of working in these contexts. Supplemented by artifacts from the selected worksites, documented research on occupational data, and in-­‐class presentations by guest speakers, students will learn how to distill aspects of workplace culture, authority structure, mission, employment qualifications and conditions, and personal and professional competencies, etc., to fill out ethnographic descriptions.

Included in the first-­‐year program was a once-­‐a-­‐week meeting of first-­‐year students which was called Group Workspace (later renamed Studio). It supported students in developing their understanding of assignments from City Seminar and carrying them out

advisement component for the Ethnographies of Work course, which later was named Learning About Being a Successful Student LABSS. The proposal to align EOW and LABSS was an educational decision based on research that the study of work should be approached from an academic point of view and that the choosing of a major and plans for a job/career should not be siloed in a careers or advisement office, as is usually the case. Rather, it could be integrated into the EOW course in the form of a LABSS component. LABSS would constitute an agreed upon percent of the EOW grade; the EOW instructor and the LABSS leader, who is an SSA, would meet together weekly with the other members of the Instructional Team (those teaching the components of City Seminar) to discuss course content, pedagogy, and the whole student.

27 Letter of Intent for NCC Initial Programs of Study (August 27, 2010), 11 12.

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3. Description and Discussion of Ethnographies of Work (EOW I and II)

Ethnographies of Work I introduces students to sociological and anthropological perspectives on work as they investigate a range of careers. The course approaches work as a cultural system invested with meanings, norms, values, customs, behavioral expectations, and social hierarchies. Students pose key questions through the lens of ethnography in order to investigate workplaces, occupations, and career pathways in an urban context. Guided by the ethnographer's assumption that there's "always more than meets the eye," students are encouraged to uncover myths and stereotypes about the work world and gain appreciation of how and why work matters to individuals in a range of occupations. Students explore dimensions of work life in the context of contemporary dynamics of disruption, uncertainty, innovation, and diversity, and draw connections between the self and work through readings, films, interviews, and fieldwork. The centerpiece of the course is for students to compose and present ethnographic accounts of workplace relations and vocational pathways as they contemplate their own career journeys.

Ethnographies of Work II uses social science concepts, perspectives, and methods to increase student understanding of the work world and the processes and contexts that link the self and work. The focus for the second semester is to conduct an ethnographic investigation of an occupation of interest to the student. Students conduct fieldwork at a work site; they use observation, interviews, and artifact analysis as methods to learn to identify and reflect on personal, cultural, social, structural, and economic aspects of the work experience. Students also research quantitative data on occupations and employment trends to better understand the depth of particular careers. Throughout the semester, students add more in-­‐depth ethnographic writings to their body of ethnographic works and continue to reflect on their own journey toward deciding on a career path. (See Appendix for learning outcomes, readings used, assignments, and syllabi.) Most students were very positive about EOW. According to one faculty member, her students indicated it was their favorite class and also the most challenging. In terms of skills learned, another faculty member saivery helpful; students noted this in their essays. One faculty member said it was not that

workplaces, and a career. Students also see it related to future work situations from which they can step back and look at analytically In examining themselves, the work of family and friends, and workplaces, students came to different but personally useful conclusions. One student interviewed his father who has been a welder for 25 years; he wrote that he knew his father was a welder but he

saying he felt pride in knowing that a building would not be possible without the careful work he contributes as a welder. However, the long hours and physical demands (and

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dangers) of the job take a definite toll on the body. The student concluded the interview with the following ins

because I never thought of his daily occupation as somewhere he could be

that required teamwork, but now I know. This interview also helped me learn about why he got into the field of welding in the first place and why he has been doing it for such a long time. I learned a lot of new things

ctives by interviewing him on his career.

Another student observed a consignment sneaker store called Flight Club and interviewed his sister who is a nurse. He concluded from the interviews that he wanted

he had gained much insight into the Another student observed meetings at City Hall and interviewed his brother

One student said his interview and observation led me to feel more comfortable and realize that I want to become a teacher more than In EOW II, this student had expressed an interest in observing another kind of work such as that in human services. Providing such access to various fields that students are not familiar with or may have no interest in is an intentional part of the assignment. A student who talked to a case manager working with an HIV/AIDs population concluded that she could not work in such a field. She felt that she would not be good at listening to problems and helping them emotionally. Rather, she will think about being a pediatrician where she can mainly treat physical ailments. Looking at the environment of work at Yankee Stadium, one student noticed how everyone worked as a team (referring to the staff, such as ticket sellers and security

team is very important because it is one of the best ways to keep a work place organized

Comparing the Guided Tours office at the UN with the Desktop Support Department at Viacom, one student observed the culture in both offices, noting how workplace ethic and environment

At the Guided Tours office (UN), they are very task-­‐oriented; to the point that they become seemingly more serious compared to X and his colleagues. The environment is also more formal, as they are in the business of relaying, receiving, and dealing with international affairs. The attire is more business casual/formal, and the culture of it is also more

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formal. Unlike at the Desktop Support Department (Viacom), where the employees are also task-­‐oriented but they also prioritize their fun, creative side along with it. The office environment is very casual and laid-­‐back and the interactions between employees match that atmosphere.

After observing and interviewing workers at both places, the student wrote:

My observations and interview did not necessarily impact or change my decision for my future career and/or educational choices. However, I did find that I liked the environment at Viacom a lot better and enjoyed my time observing there. So, I now know the type of work environment I am more inclined towards.

through the category of gender and ethnicity, noticing that the men and women in a fast food restaurant wore different colored uniforms.

The course provided an important space for students, noted a faculty member. It gave students an opportunity to talk to their parents and other loved ones about work. Often

appreciation for having done this exercise. And as students were discovering their own aspirations, they could voice them in class and, for some, to their family: for one young

28 One faculty member noted that the students loved the assigned text, Gig.29 Dealing with the

discussions that allowed the students to express feeling vulnerable about their hopes,

passion versus pursuing a well-­‐paying job. Students entered the course not having thought about pursuing a passion, or being cynical about such a pursuit: as one student

28 Anand Giridharadas, New York Times, December 14, 2012. 29 John Bowe, Marisa Bowe, and Sabin Streeter (Eds.), Gig: Americans Talk About Their Jobs (New York: Three Rivers Press, 2000).

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expressed it their passion. Or if they did f 30 While students wrestled with the idea of meaningful work, they acknowledged that work was also about the means to an end allowing them to pay their bills. Through their journal and other writing assignments students put work under a microscope,

most of the students changed to liberal arts after realizing they wanted to pursue their passion. But

that more of my students would take risks in

underage workers and undocumented immigrants and their own observations and interviews of parents who worked in fish markets all day and of parents and friends who could not find work after years of searching. They had discovered that the social formulas we often hear about work are not applicable to them and, in particular, that the trajectory of dreaming, planning, and achieving a successful and well balanced

31 In sum, students developed an analytic approach to work and workplaces that helped them make their immediate decision regarding a major and their subsequent decisions about transfer to a four-­‐year school and their future career and workplace.

Faculty we interviewed as well as others we heard from informally all expressed a similar sentiment: they enjoyed teaching EOW. Two faculty members declared that it is the best course they have ever taught. One faculty member who taught the year-­‐long course a second time after having taught it during the opening year of the college made several comments. She felt that the first year was a learning experience as she struggled with becoming familiar with the content, and, at the same time, she was assessing her

second time around had more depth. Another faculty member stated that EOW provoked thought not only among her students but also for herself. Teaching the course was a cathartic experience for her particularly when discussing the work/life balance. Regarding academic skills and pedagogy, the writing skills emphasized in EOW and in

member revised his approach by having the students write in the classroom rather than at home. By observing them as they worked, he could make comments and ask questions. This proved to be a more successful strategy for the students. Similarly, some

30 Giridharadas, New York Times. 31 Journal of College Literacy and Learning.

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faculty have decided to have the students do the majority of work in class, so rather than read articles for homework, students would read and summarize material in small groups in class.

When asked if the course manages to include both academic and applied skills and whether the two approaches were integrated, a faculty member said he believed they accomplished both aspects with the ethnographic research and the interdisciplinary approach to work, structures, and ideology. Some of the concepts and skills focused on in EOW I were: cultures at workplaces and unwritten codes of the workplace, power dynamics within workplaces and schools, and understanding sociological concepts, such

as well as the skills of observation and analysis. Students learned about and practiced interviewing as an ethnographic method i.e., interviewing after designing questions, transcribing, and then analyzing. One faculty member expected that over time as students experienced life in the workforce they would recollect some of the key points raised in the course. Although there is no coordinator of EOW, faculty have created a community of conversation mainly via email where they shared EOW content and practice.

4. Description and Discussion of Learning about Becoming a Successful Student (LABSS I and II) Only 4 of 10 students consider counselors their primary source of advice regarding academic plans, according to the National Survey of Student Engagement, an annual poll of freshmen and seniors. A third turn to friends and family. One in 10 students never meet an academic advisor. 32

Most college students do not seek the support of counselors and advisors. However, colleges throughout the country are beginning to address this situation. They recognize that because of poor or no advisement for students and their families, many students in community colleges have to repeat credits or fail to graduate at all or in a timely manner because their credits are not accepted in the four-­‐year institutions to which they wish to transfer. A recent national study of those who do graduate from four-­‐year institutions

likelihood of ever completing their B.A.33

32 New York Times, April 11, 2014. 33 CUNY Matters, Spring 2014. This article summarizes the findings of Paul Atwell, Professor of Sociology, CUNY Graduate Center. http://www1.cuny.edu/mu/forum/2014/04/22/maintaining-­‐the-­‐momentum/

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To address the issue of advisement and counseling head on in the first year, The

previously in the discussion of EOW. Professional Studies was intended to provide experiential learning in workplaces that addressed issues studied in City Seminar; it was also intended to provide advisement related to choosing majors and preparing for employment. The experiential aspects would be organized and facilitated by an Office of Partnerships working in coordination with faculty and student advisors. As noted previously, implementation of these ideas has changed since the development of the Concept Paper. The changes came from the need to create a credit-­‐bearing course that would examine work from the perspective of the social science disciplines and provide students with general education credits in these areas. The result was the development of the unique EOW one-­‐year course. The additional weekly one and one half-­‐hour practicum, Learning About Being a Successful Student (LABSS) led by a Student Success Advocate focuses on becoming a

and interests, and developing pre-­‐employment skills, including resume development and strategies for effective interviews. The hiring of highly qualified staff to undertake the position of the SSA has been one of the most effective aspects of the first year. Selection of candidates has been carefully planned to engage people with diverse backgrounds that reflect those of the student body. The effectiveness of the SSAs as role models for students makes their leadership of LABSS even more meaningful. They themselves have contended with some of the obstacles that students face; they understand what it takes to persevere and become a highly successful professional. At the college they take on roles not only as counselors, who know each student well, but also as teachers facilitating a well-­‐developed curriculum. (See Appendix for learning outcomes and course syllabi for LABSS I and II.) To understand LABSS I and II, we observed classes in both semesters. In the first part of LABSS I, the SSAs focus on helping students develop the habits of effective students, including persistence and regular, timely completion of assignments. SSAs noted that in LABSS one of the most important and successful activities is having students map out their day hour by hour and decide how they will dedicate time to studying and preparing for class while also carrying out the other necessary aspects of their lives. Many students live in crowded apartments and need to find time and space where they can concentrate. Information Commons staff report that when they arrive at 7 a.m., students are already at the dquiet space at home. In addition to learning appropriate study habits and ways to organize their time,

Students have dreams of what they would like to do, but their dreams are usually

26

unrelated to what they think they will have to do to earn a living. SSAs play an important role in helping students develop effective study habits and persistence in learning, on the one hand, and on the other in guiding them to explore their interests and to link those interests to possible careers. Students are required to choose a major in the first part of the Spring semester of EOW II. To help them develop their understanding of the majors while also exploring their interests and passions, the second part of the first semester of LABSS EOW I focuses on understanding the majors. In small groups of four or five, students were asked to make presentations on one of the five majors.34 These presentations required the group to develop a Power Point or Prezi (cloud-­‐based presentation) that would describe the major, including course requirements, transfer to schools that offered this major and would accept the credits from GCC, and employment opportunities including types of workplaces, types of positions, and salaries over time. To do this they needed to conduct and summarize research, interview someone at the college, usually a professor from the major that was their focus or someone in the field, and discuss the work of a contemporary or historic figure who represented a career in this field.

regardless of personal preferences, students were assigned to groups. Their research and presentation were supposed to represent the collective efforts of all group members. Students judged presentations using a rubric, and the instructor met with the group and provided feedback based on the rubric. A key element of the rubric was the

an agreed upon percent of the grade for EOW, students have an incentive to put effort into preparing these presentations. The following description made by one of our team members provides a detailed account of what such a presentation entailed and how students responded to the presenters: The Health Information Technology (HIT) presentation was made by four young men. They walked the class through a description of the field highlighting the relationship of this work to information technology and medicine. They talked about the skills needed including an attention to details, research, and statistical knowledge as well as knowledge of medical terminwork provides the frontline medical staff. They elaborated on the adverse consequences should there be errors in the data. They walked through the number and description of courses proposed at GCC which involves a slightly lengthier time to graduate because it

34 Business Administration, Human Services, Information Technology, Liberal Arts, and Urban Studies. Health Information Technology will be offered in the future.

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requires an additional 3 credits. They pointed to the fact that graduates needed to pass a test to receive certification in the field. Subsequently, they described the range of jobs (health analyst, insurance claims analyst, health and records technician specialist, medical coding specialist, and patient information coordinator) and the difference between a health information technician and a health information management associate, the next step up in the career ladder.

small group of public or private programs. They talked about starting salaries and salaries higher in the payroll scale entailing more experience and skill development. They noted that NYC salaries for these positions were 20 percent higher than for comparable positions nationwide. Finally they shared a brief recording of their interview with a professor in HIT in which she described how she moved into and up in this field. The presentation was followed by a lively Q & A from students. The presenting students agreed that this was not a field they would choose after learning more about it. The instructor clarified for students that although the major was not going to be offered immediately, it would be offered in the near future. This caused some dismay among students who were planning on entering it. They were told that they would be helped in finding another program in CUNY or an external institution, which offered HIT if this remained their first choice of major. While this presentation was especially well researched and presented, each group worked hard to include the elements that were required, learning something about themselves in the process. Uniformly across the many LABSS classes that we observed, the question and answer period was robust and interesting. For example, following the HIT discussion in another classroom, students expressed the view that the major seemed to provide expertise for entry-­‐level jobs at a low salary level, and not one in which they could grow in skills. The SSA made clear that HIT was an upcoming field in the city with many avenues in which to grow and opportunities in which to pursue both a four-­‐year degre The introduction to the majors addresses one of the important aspects of a college experience that is often cursorily treated, especially in community colleges, namely:

aking choices based on a variety of personal needs and interests; and understanding the various pathways to the majors and the requirements and prerequisites of each. Also essential to student understanding is the weighing of the pros and cons of various majors and their related careers. The sessions in LABSS clarified for students, who may be the first in their families to go to college, what the various programs of study could lead to, the various qualifying degrees, starting salaries and future prospects, the conditions of work in the various fields, and how those conditions fit their personalities and strengths. In addition, students also need to know that their choices are not binding

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and that often people change fields and profit from what they have learned in each major that they pursue something that each LABSS leader was able to illustrate from her or his own career. In general, students were interested in what their peers had to say and asked many questions, some of which the LABSS instructors also helped to address. In one of the LABSS classes the SSA routinely provided additional information after the presentation so that students had a fuller understanding of the major. When needed, he also addressed misinformation so that students were clear about the program of study and the career options. For example, the presentation on Urban Studies did not give students a full understanding of the many careers this major might lead to, such as health, housing, urban planning, and community relations. The SSA expanded the definition of the major with examples of workplaces and types of jobs and brought in his own experience as an Urban Studies major in graduate school. Because the first year is instrumental in moving students forward in many pathwaystheir development as effective students, their ability to work in groups, their presentation skills and confidence before an audience, their honing in on their strengths and how these might be used in their choice of majorsreflections on what the first semester meant to them. The reflections attest to the growth that occurred for many students through their relationships with faculty, their SSA, and other adults with whom they interacted. 35 In the following three excerpts the students are frank about areas they need to improve and hopeful that they can indeed make improvements. They are clearly reflective and hone in on what they consider to be difficult areas for them. The fact that they emphasize group work and public speemphasis on developing these skills is needed and does build confidence over time.

Reflection 1: My first semester I would say has been very stressful and overwhelming because I was struggling so much in math. For Fall 2 I am going to work on being more organized and give in all my papers on time.

Reflection 2: I am very proud to have completed my first semester of

been hard but I kept going and fighting to make it through. I know that if there is so

35 These reflections were handwritten immediately after the last LABSS class. We chose three that were sufficiently easy to read. They are transcribed here exactly as written.

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attend this college because the ?, support and professors has really

not have the same strength to keep on. It was very difficult to be in this class for many reasons, such as respect, community and work ethics. The hardest part has been the group work. But the greatest part is knowing I did my part and more to be where I am today. I know it will pay off.

Reflection 3: I thoroughly enjoyed my semester. My best moment would be presenting as a group our proposal, mainly because a goal I had this semester was public speaking. I improved immensely, but still got a long way to go (thank you Eddy). While I did fall behind in homework, I managed to catch up a lot. I am proud I was able to minimize the effect it had on my grade. I still failed statistics, however, this will not bring me down. I just need to try harder. I know one day I will change the world.

These examples reflect the powerful impact of the first semester on specific students, along with the learning that comes from taking on areas that frightened them most and the recognition that a failure in a subject is not something to be ashamed of but rather an area to improve. All three students wrote about learning and improving as a process. The students acknowledged the areas that need improvement and felt proud of what they did accomplish. Two of the statements acknowledged the support of either a professor or an SSA in helping them persist.

5. Choosing a Program of Study: Advisement by Career Strategists and the Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement

Career Strategists. After the first year, Career Strategists, according to their academic backgrounds and prior employment history, are assigned to work with students according to the majors selected. This year one CS supported students in Business Administration and Information Technology; another supported students in Urban Studies and Human Services; the third supported students in Liberal Arts, the largest major. Together they developed relationships with students that are needed to help guide them through the complex process of applying to college and/or seeking employment opportunities. The extensive role of the CS combines the expertise and work of a college advisor with that of a career advisor. The CSs conduct the following activities:

already undertaking their programs of study as well as with those students still preparing to enter their programs of study. This also includes counseling via email and in person, as needed.

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Transfer planning, which involves help with obtaining scholarships and conducting college tours, including to private, out-­‐of-­‐town colleges. A few students have been accepted to elite colleges with scholarships or to CUNY Baccalaureate, a highly competitive program within CUNY.

Support for students in creating professional and co-­‐curricular e-­‐portfolios that

include not only their academic history but also leadership at the college and activities off and on campus in internships and employment.

Career preparation, which includes fine-­‐tuning skills to make students

marketable, learning about professional organizations, and connecting with professionals to learn what it takes to be successful.

In carrying out these various activities, the Career Strategists focus on getting to know the students well, so that the students trust them and can share their dreams as well as their anxieties and any obstacles keeping them from completing their programs of study. In Spring 2014, toward the beginning of LABSS II, Career Strategists visited all of the classes with two goals in mind: first to introduce themselves to the first-­‐year students so that when students begin their second year they would seek the Career Strategists out for future planning and employment. The second goal was to help students select their majors. To this end the Career Strategists devoted one session of LABSS to describing the various programs of study for which they are responsible. Once students have chosen their majors, the Career Strategists hold sessions to introduce students to the professors who will be teaching the courses in their program of study. Each faculty member briefly describes the courses they will be teaching and when they will be offered, followed by a Q&A period. At the end of each session students receive a book that will inspire them and/or pique their interest in their major (e.g., for Business Administration, Flash Boys by Michael Lewis). Another feature of these sessions is the presence of some students who are already enrolled in the program of study and can explain, for example, why math requirements, such as pre-­‐calculus, are useful for their future employment in a program like Business Administration or how to present and conduct oneself in a Human Services internship. Second-­‐year students also know where they will be going to college and can inspire the first-­‐ Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement. Acting as a bridge between Guttman Community College and New York City, the Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement (OPCE) works with community partners to provide experiential opportunities designed to support an enriched curriculum and career preparation. Helping to provide New York City businesses and organizations with highly motivated and qualified students, the OPCE seeks to establish lasting connections with

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professionals and businesses in the New York City area. Community partnersindividuals and organizations that are part of the civic, cultural, and economic life of New York are involved in a variety of college activities. Some partners collaborate in multiple ways while others target their efforts within a particular area.36 Much of the actual connecting with employers and professionals in the fields of the major is done via OPCE, which reaches out to professionals and professional organizations to support students either in finding suitable internships, employment while they are in college, and/or employment after graduation. OPCE staff research employers and employees interested in the areas of the majors offered by the college and support students in learning more about their chosen pathways and opportunities for employment. Over time this Office has developed a cadre of professionals who are dedicated to giving time to the students and who understand their aspirations and needs. This work requires patient outreach and cultivation of individuals who demonstrate real interest in the students and the ability to connect with them. Such individuals should be successful professionals who are willing to take the time to meet

choices. Representatives from occupations related to the majors visit the college frequently to

questions and concerns. Two days in both the Fall and Spring semester are set aside to bring young professionals in fields related to the programs of study to the campus. New

development, mentorship, and professional networks to enable students to realize their academic and career as Students are required to attend at least two workshops conducted by NYNY. Many of the people who volunteer from NYNY are from socioeconomic and racial/ethnic backgrounds similar to those of the students. Their stories and descriptions of their academic and work trajectories enable students to begin envisaging similar trajectories for themselves. An example of one such workshop was given by individuals whose major in college and/or graduate school was in the Liberal Arts. The four presenters, each of whom found work in diverse areas, not necessarily related to their college or graduate school majors, included: a human resources professional in a Federal Reserve Bank, a global accounts manager in a global tech company, a legislative and financial analyst for the New York City Council, and an editorial director in a global company. In addition to the speakers who talked about their careers and the qualities needed to succeed, students had opportunities to meet and ask questions of an assistant principal of a charter 36 See Guttman Community College website: http://www.guttman.cuny.edu

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school, a medical writer, and an analyst for the NYC Council.

Together with key faculty, the Office of Partnerships plays a critical role in finding internships for students. The Human Services major requires that students have 125 hours of supervised internships in an agency related to this field. This past year was especially challenging because the process did not begin until quite close to the beginning of the semester a delay that was frustrating both for the faculty and the Office of Partnerships. Nevertheless, they were able to find internships for all of the students and in the future will employ someone who coordinates the internships and is the critical liaison with the organizations involved.

Most of the majors do not require an internship; however, internships are an elective in several majors Liberal Arts, Urban Studies, and Business Administration and will certainly be a focus of the OPCE in the future.

OPCE also finds jobs for students who need them while attending GCC; this includes supporting students in having appropriate attire for interviews, such as providing lightly used, suitable clothing. In addition to these experiences each student has opportunities in the Fall and Spring semesters to visit and observe a community organization. OPCE arranges placements while the faculty design an assignment that will allow students to

e-­‐portfolio.

B. Addressing the Needs of Continuing Students

After the first year it became clear that many students who persisted in the college were mastering the course work successfully, taking at least two courses in the Fall II semester and doing well in them. They were likely to graduate in Spring I or II in 2014.37 While the exact percentage is not yet known, a little under 30 percent of those students continuing in the second year are likely to graduate at the end of Spring I or Spring II. Most seek to transfer to a four-­‐year college. Another group, with somewhat lower credit accumulation, is nevertheless likely to graduate by the end of their third year.38

The goal of the college has been a 35 percent graduation rate after three years. This will certainly be surpassed. For these students the programs of study as designed have been working well, and the improvements made with students who entered the college in 37 The college has a year-­‐round academic year: 12 weeks in Fall I, 6 weeks in Fall II, 12 weeks in Spring II, and 6 weeks in Spring II. This schedule allows some students to complete all of their credits in either Spring I or II. 38 The average CUNY graduation rate after two years in a community college is three to five percent.

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2013, benefiting from much more support in choosing their majors appear to be demonstrating good results. Students are better informed about their majors due to the changes that were made in LABSS I and the connection with their Career Strategist in the Spring I semester, as described above.

Nevertheless, significant numbers of students are not likely to complete their course work within the two-­‐ or three-­‐year time frame. Some because of personal issues that may have led to missing course work, or dropping out temporarily, and needing to come back and repeat courses; some because they had not passed the required reading, writing, and math CUNY-­‐mandated tests and were discouraged.39 In the first GCC class, 70 percent of all students passed the CUNY reading and writing tests on the first try, and 80 percent passed after a practicum. The CEAFE math test, which focuses on algebra, remains more of a challenge for many students. Although 50 percent passed the test after taking Statistics, which includes support in algebra, a rate comparable to that of CUNY over all, the need to have all students pass the test in a timely manner remains a hurdle for a significant number of students.

College staff and faculty had not anticipated that ending both the Learning Communities and the support of Student Success Advocates at the end of the first year would be discouraging for many students, including both those likely to graduate in two or three years and those who needed more time. The Learning Communities in the first year provided both community and ongoing support for students and faculty, and its abrupt termination was a loss.

To address the issue of students needing more time, faculty and staff decided not to refer to the college as a two-­‐year college but rather as a college offering associate degrees, thus emphasizing the importance of degree attainment and not the number of years required to achieve it. Another change in nomenclature was also suggested.

-­‐t all students are

, thus undermining the notion that only those students who graduate in . In addition to changing the nomenclature, and taking

Continuing Students Committee with a charge to address a number of issues emerging

Improving the transition from the First-­‐Year Experience Developing some form of Learning Communities for all students, no matter

where they are in their trajectory toward a degree, as well as for faculty teaching the programs of study

39 Another factor in discouraging students is the financial expense of repeating courses.

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Through the use of faculty/staff reports and student surveys identifying ongoing obstacles that continuing students face and how to address them

Following an initial discussion of representatives from every area of the college, a decision was made to divide into committees, each of which would address a critical area for continuing students. The committees include: Learning Communities for Faculty and Students; Advisement Models and Issues of Probation; and Transition after the First Year.

Thus far many proposals are being considered. For example, the Continuing Students Committee members agree that some form of the Learning Community is needed for both students and faculty. One proposed structure is based on the majors: any student taking at least two courses in that major would be part of that Learning Community. The Learning Communities for Continuing Students would include faculty, Career Strategists, and students. The development of Learning Community strategies focuses on how to integrate continuing academic support for students who need it while realistically assessing student progress.

Another area of concern was the issue of advisement and the role of faculty. Faculty felt that they should have a greater role in advising students about their majors. New proposals have already been implemented to increase their roles. One already discussed above is that Career Strategists in conjunction with faculty conduct a session in which students learn about the majors. Facilitated by the Career Strategists, the faculty present the courses they will be teaching and explain critical aspects for the major, for example, the required internship in Human Services, and the math background required for the Business Administration and Information Technology majors.

C. Reflections and Issues for Consideration

The combination of advisement, counseling, and teaching about work, workplaces, and majors that was carried out in EOW I and II and LABSS I and II by the faculty, Student Success Advocates, Career Strategists, and Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement has been critical to dwork and careers and their ability to make informed choices of majors. The SSAs, faculty, CSs, and the OPCE all play critical roles in building a community among students, teaching skills needed by students that often are not developed in high school, and supporting students in making informed, thoughtful choices of majors. EOW and LABSS played critical roles in helping students understand work and workplaces from sociological and anthropological perspectives and in providing them with experiences in ethnographic observations of workplaces and in interviewing

understanding of work, in some cases deepened their appreciation of what their parents

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draw on their interests, talents, and passions. Such an approach was emphasized in both EOW as well as LABBS and by the counseling provided by both SSAs and CSS. Faculty and staff together accomplished the kind of teaching, advising, and counseling that the literature suggests is needed by all students, and especially by low-­‐income students whose exposure to career possibilities may be

periences were also enhanced by the multiple opportunities provided by the Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement to learn about careers made possible through meetings with professionals, internships, and experiences working in community-­‐based organizations. While all of these aspects of the college are under development, already they have made a positive impact on the lives of many students.

planned; many issues needed to be addressed. In their second year, the transition to consulting with CSs was a difficult one for many students, who continued to seek out their former SSAs for support. SSAs reported that at times half their case load included students from the previous year who remained loyal to them. Another difficulty was that until mid-­‐year there were only two CSs, resulting in an enormous work load. This was especially true regarding the support needed for students who wanted to transfer to a four-­‐year college. The CSs took on the multiple roles of college advisors, including assistance with college selection, the transfer process, and scholarship applications. These issues have been addressed, both through the hiring of another CS and through introducing the CSs to students in LABSS II so that they get to know them personally and understand that they will play an important role in supporting their next steps after GCC whether in transferring or in finding employment. It also become obvious to everyone that it would be necessary to focus on (1) coordination of the majors, perhaps with Program Coordinators for each one, and (2) development of some form of Learning Communities after the first year that would address the needs for community among students. Both are works in progress. The issue of burn-­‐out in start-­‐ups is always great both among faculty and staff

because of the influx of more students, faculty, and staff. Certainly as the college grows, the resources and professional development needed to provide the level of advisement and counseling that currently exist for students will have to be addressed. The work load carried by the SSAs and CSs is more than most highly qualified and dedicated staff are able to sustain over time. Also needed is a career track in these positions, which is currently being developed.

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Faculty have expressed concerns that more of the advisement regarding major selection should reside with them. This was especially true for faculty who had a very small enrollment in their major, in part because first-­‐year students did not understand the major very well. During the second year of the college, when LABSS was revised, the focus on the majors in LABSS I and II was very helpful and successful since students knew much more before they had to declare their majors in mid-­‐March.40 Some of these issues were addressed by the Continuing Students Committee, as explained above, including having a session for each major in which faculty introduce and explain the courses. The need for constant reinvention must be balanced by remaining grounded in the original philosophy and vision. The Committee on Continuing Students is an excellent example of how the college reinvents itself. It was formed because of the widespread acknowledgment of issues in the second year that had not been anticipated. They were not discussed in the Concept Paper, which focused on the innovative first year and research on possible majors. It is clear that many aspects of the college will need reinvention as it grows in size and space. How this is done and the extent to which the founding philosophy of the college informs these decisions needs to reviewed and revisited. As new faculty and staff come on board without deep understanding of the history or philosophy of the college, the possibility that GCC will gradually resemble a more traditional community college grows. The mission and philosophy may need to be revisited, even revised if necessary, but they should be considered a baseline for future planning. Ongoing professional development for both new staff and seasoned staff is needed. In Fall 2013, recently hired faculty felt they had to accommodate college in its mission, organization, and pedagogy without sufficient preparation. This is an urgent need since the approaches that were so finely honed during the founding years of the college are not always conveyed to new staff, who are often left

such as SSAs and CSs is essential as the college grows in numbers. It is essential that all faculty (seasoned and new) have continuous opportunities to improve their practices by sharing ideas and effective strategies, bringing in new

developing a three-­‐the college and based on those developed by the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U). Sufficient time must be devoted not only to the assessment process itself but also to what is learned from it and how it can be applied to practice.

40 Unlike other CUNY community colleges, which require that students declare a major when they register for the first year, GCC wisely postponed decision-­‐making until March of the Spring semester, thus allowing time for students to make informed choices.

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Ufour-­‐year institutions and their careers is crucial. The Center for College Effectiveness (CCE) is charged with collecting ongoing data about student progress, including qCCE is currently engaged in the analysis of several data sets from national surveys that have included GCC students and faculty. During Professional Development Days they have facilitated discussions of the findings with faculty and staff. Currently CCE lacks the staff to address all areas of inquiry in which it proposes to engage. Another area of

our-­‐year colleges and/or employment. D. Concluding Thoughts The attention that GCC has paid to advising students and helping them think through their majors in the context of learning about themselves as students and future employees is a major achievement. Allowing students a full semester to learn about the majors, as happened this year, made them better prepared to thoughtfully select their major. Devising ways to improve the college, as done by the Committee on Continuing Students, is a model of how the college needs to identify and address needs as they emerge. In many ways the college has begun to address a pressing need of low-­‐income students identified in literature in both the U.S. and Europe. The Institute for Regional Innovation and Social Research (IRIS) noted in its Briefing Paper 51:

Marginalized youth often have a more limited view of career possibilities or lack an understanding of what it takes to achieve their career goals. In addition, the range of their networks are marginal to the larger society while at the same time, they underestimate their networks as a bridge to greater possibilities. In addition the authors noted: Few programs engage young adults in a process involving active participation or a process of recognizing their informal learning experiences.41

Through the development of a unique course and practicum (EOW and LABBS) and through advisement and counseling positions suited to the college, along with an Office of Partnerships & Community Engagement, we believe that GCC is addressing the needs identified in the IRIS Briefing Paper.

41 Paper 51 (IRIS, December 2004).

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The college takes as its guiding principle that New York City community college students are most often first-­‐generation college students, who enter with personal, family, and community life and work experiences that should be validated and built upon. Nonetheless, the EOW course and LABSS practicum as well as the supporting positions of SSAs, CSs, and the OPCE also assume that the range of imagined jobs and careers the students enter with is limited and thus see their goal to be one of opening up possibilities. EOW and LABSS in particular are designed as a college-­‐to-­‐work program in one sense, but as a two-­‐year-­‐ to four-­‐year college program in another sense giving the students tools to imagine and plan their futures. The tools are both practical/vocational and academic/analytical, grounded in social science disciplines. To repeat what Hilary Pennington asserted concerning the vocational/academic divide: for work and pursuing a liberal-­‐ 42 A larger percentage of students than is ordinarily the case in community colleges are moving on to the next phase of their lives-­‐-­‐either to four-­‐year colleges or employment. Data on student outcomes beyond GCC, which the Center for College Effectiveness will collect, will tell more of the story. CCE will also study current and future structures, such as Learning Communities for the majors and Continuing Students, and report to the college about its findings. These ideas for new structures need to be fleshed out further. They cannot replicate the First-­‐Year structures since they must meet different needs. What is promising is the willingness on the part of students, faculty, and staff to face the challenges of

42 Hilary Pennington. Chronicle of Higher Education, April 8, 2012,

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Part III. Sustaining Innovation: Issues for Consideration The goal of Part III is to highlight a select group of "issues for consideration" that emerged over the years in relation to students, faculty and staff, curriculum, and the institution. GCC staff and faculty are already in conversation about many of the suggested approaches to addressing the issues and certainly are aware of most of them. Discussions both formal and informal about making the college the best it could be to support its students were an integral part of the five-­‐year conversation that the documentarians have been a part of a process of mutual learning and mutual respect. What follows is offered in the spirit of improving the outcomes for first-­‐generation college students through ongoing dialogue and debate about the implementation of an innovative community college model. A. Issues for Consideration: The Students How can the college develop a more complex and nuanced understanding of the diversity of student backgrounds and identities?

categories that are increasingly of little use in understanding the myriad of experiences students bring to their postsecondary experience. It is not enough to label someone white, black, Latino, or Asian, as each of these broad categories comprise a diversity of experiences that include such distinctions as native-­‐born or immigrant; monolingual or multilingual; members of traditional, nontraditional or extended families; had age-­‐appropriate formal schooling or experienced interrupted schooling, and more. Such distinctions, along with gender and differentiated abilities, inform the identities students develop. In particular, New York is home to one of the most diverse linguistic communities in the world. GCC faculty and staff have been sensitive to the need to adapt curriculum to the backgrounds that the students bring. The multilingual backgrounds have been recognized and affirmed by many of the faculty as demonstrated in their classroom practices. While faculty and student support staff spend a considerable amount of time learning about their students over the course of an academic semester or year, such information should inform their pedagogical practices up front rather than as a delayed

previous schooling experiences, whether they are native-­‐born or recently-­‐arrived, their range of language skills, and their thoughts about their future, among others. Much of this preliminary information could be gathered during the admissions process where students could voluntarily choose to self-­‐report their identities and preferences (protecting the identities of individual students in keeping with FERPA requirements). Such information gathering could help the college anticipate and plan for the academic and support services that a particular class or cohort would need. This would also

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to this is the process of planning for the professional development of the college professional community. In addition, the diversity of the curriculum can only be enhanced by the diversity of the professional staff. The SSAs, in particular, but also the faculty and administrators, have been important role models i

all levels reflect the student population and having these role models engaged professionally with staff that are not of their backgrounds sends a profound message of academic worth and presents students a view of a more equitable future. Given this diversity, how might GCC articulate a clear policy that would entail welcoming

students in every major? Such a policy would broaden the intellectual range of their knowledge base and strengthen their employability for a global economy. How can GCC deepen its understanding of differentiated paths to college success? The college was founded to create greater opportunities for students who have been historically marginalized by the traditional process of remediation. Thus, the GCC first-­‐year experience was designed to give students the chance to move directly and on a clear path into their college major. The ultimate goal is the successful completion of a community college degree. Internally, discussion continues among faculty and staff about students who are persisting but having a more difficult time moving at the same rate as some of their peers. This is happening for many reasons some academic and some not. Many members of the professional staff understand that not all students need the same type of support. The student body is very diverse and different steps have been taken to try to address the needs of students who may be falling behind. How can general information about these learners be shared? What worked and with which students? How do we know it worked and what can be done to improve upon what seemed to have worked? At the same time, what has not worked, how does GCC

Both the successes and the challenges for the college and its students are learning experiences that can inform practice internally as well as externally. Preliminary results suggest that GCC will surpass its targeted outcomes, and its website notes examples of successful student efforts and outcomes. GCC is small and young enough to seize this early experience as a learning opportunity for itself and for the postsecondary community at large struggling with how to educate first-­‐generation

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students. The college that is able to successfully graduate its most vulnerable students, and not its students who will most likely succeed, will be the one to watch. Concretely, how could the university support GCC in the sharing of mistakes and failures

strengthen the academic success for students most at risk, but also by contributing to a knowledge base that addresses this important population? That would also mean that

also entail following students post-­‐graduation. In this scenario, CUNY would support

work. How can GCC generate relevant data to inform practice? At the heart of this consideration is teasing out from the generalities typically provided by data timely information that will inform practice. This involves a deeper probing qualitatively and quantitatively of disaggregated data on students, teaching, and support practices. We recognize that our proposals, mainly intended for the Center on College Effectiveness, require resources beyond what is currently available. We suggest the following activities in which data could be gathered in the future to inform the GCC community with possible implications for other community colleges:

Admissions process. With the changing demographics in the city, is GCC continually reflective of a disaggregated city population so that no one group is advantaged over another? This includes race, ethnicity, gender, and students who are differently-­‐abled.

Partnerships. What types of partnerships seem most related to the majors and

provide the most successful or unsuccessful experiences? Are the experiential learning experiences capturing the full range of city life-­‐-­‐diverse populations, businesses, cultural life, and other institutions both big and small?

s degree programs.

Which colleges provided a clear pathway for GCC students, were most successful in graduating GCC students or were not?

Majors. What changes are occurring in employment in New York City and what are the implications for the majors in terms of growth areas and pathways to better incomes as well as truncated career paths to be avoided?

Follow up on successful outcomes. How can GCC track its former students who

earn graduate degrees or experience successful employment? What can GCC learn from them?

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B. Issues for Consideration: The Faculty and Staff How can the complex roles in the GCC model be understood and managed? Understanding the model: GCC is a new college implementing an innovative model. As such, faculty and staff are required to understand and adapt the model while implementing it. Some applicants have not fully understood what it might mean to be part of a start-­‐up. In addition, the intensive work of a start-­‐up might not be fully understood, appreciated, or supported by the CUNY administrators who have oversight responsibilities over the fledging community college. The collaborative nature of the model involves a great deal of overlap in roles, namely that it emphasizes a role for everyone in reinforcing success for students. Reinforcing successful student outcomes might mean fluctuating roles over time depending on the student needs and the workloads of professional staff. However, it is generally recognized that no one person or group can do it alone. Most GCC positions can be described as nontraditional when compared with the boiler-­‐plate job descriptions typically issued by colleges and universities. The nontraditional nature of these positions has in fact captivated many who applied. There is the GCC teaching focus not atypical of community college faculty which also includes the additional responsibilities of intensive peer collaboration on multiple levels including the collaboration with student support services. In addition, there is the student support focus which involves continuous collaboration with faculty and a deeper relationship than is typically found on other campuses. What does being a part of this innovation mean for newly-­‐hired faculty and staff? How can the onboarding process for every professional staff member entail attention to the healthy development of a faculty or staff identity within the model? There must be recognition that less experienced as well as more experienced professional staff can be challenged by this new population and new program in ways that can create self-­‐doubt or a sense of failure. There must also be recognition that each faculty member and support staff member is at a different stage of his or her professional life. How can a transparent institutional strategy of recognition and support be articulated? How can faculty and staff be encouraged to describe not only what they would contribute to GCC but also where they would like to be in five years and how they see themselves getting there? How can GCC support new faculty? GCC still has a significant full-­‐time faculty core who, unlike most other community colleges, play a prominent role devoted to the first-­‐year experience. This is a strength of

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the model. However new faculty may have limited experience with this student population, with this unique interdisciplinary curriculum its embedded developmental education or with the intensive collaborative nature of this work. How can new faculty be supported in understanding the first-­‐year experience and their varied roles in it? How might an onboarding process be developed for faculty that addresses the various components of the model and the complexity of roles in GCC? How might an onboarding curriculum for new faculty and support staff create a sequenced process for their learning the model by affirming their assets, addressing good educational practices, and developing an understanding of the relevancy of the model for GCC students? How can GCC support adjunct instructional faculty? Adjunct instructional faculty are an important part of the college. How are they introduced and connected to the full-­‐time faculty and to the student support staff? How can they have a targeted onboarding curriculum of their own addressing their unique needs as adjuncts? How might the open invitation to have them participate in activities the full-­‐time faculty attend be maintained? How can faculty research be promoted? Community colleges are increasingly raising the expectations and rewards for faculty research comparable to the expectations of faculty in the senior colleges. In the larger

which is central to GCC, has yet to carry the value associated with contributions to a

teaching and learning be developed over time? How can student support staff be promoted? Student support staff are typically overshadowed by the work of the faculty in most colleges and universities. How can the heavy lift that student support staff undertake at GCC be routinely acknowledged, applauded, and rewarded? At what points should their onboarding process overlap with that of the faculty and at what points should they diverge? How will GCC address their growth and development as typically younger professionals in the field? How can administrative roles at GCC reflect the innovative approach of the college? Administrators can significantly shape the college culture. Their practices can remain

collaborative learning support new ways of implementing administrative roles? What are the implications for their onboarding process?

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C. Issues for Consideration: The Curriculum

-­‐-­‐ especially in the implementation of the curriculum. This was a time of trial and error-­‐-­‐a testing period that experienced both flashes of brilliance and elements of frustration in translating and implementing the curriculum model. Within Instructional Teams and in their individual classes, faculty continuously rethought and offered suggestions as to how the curriculum could be refined or rethought. Below we focus on three aspects of the curriculum: the use of technology in the classroom, embedding developmental education in the course content, and EOW and LABSS. What is the role of technology at GCC? The use of technology was an integral part of the GCC experience. The development of a GCC ePortfolios site was prominent as were varied uses of an assortment of online tools. Usage of these tools by faculty, support staff, and students was uneven and depended upon the familiarity, interests, and comfort level each had with online technology. Faculty/staff with this experience shared examples of their practices on the ePortfolios for others to see and learn from. Those less comfortable with the technology did not use this venue. Then there were students who demonstrated great proficiency with the technology, for example, by incorporating videos into their classroom presentations. Sometimes, however, this was at the expense of demonstrating their understanding of more complex content. The challenge for faculty then was to help improve the content that students produced as well as their technical proficiency. Many first-­‐generation students had limited access and experience with online tools; the Information Commons became the primary resource for them. How can more support be provided to first-­‐generation students with limited access to technology to develop their proficiency? How can the college support all students, whether proficient or not, in developing a critical stance with respect to technology? This issue includes the abuses as well as the advantages technology brings. How can the overall structure for ePortfolios be evaluated in relation to the GCC model? How can a standard protocol be developed and used based on the outcomes and products from this tool that GCC requires? How can embedded developmental education be reinforced for continuing students? Embedded developmental education provides students with many opportunities to strengthen skills during the freshman year. There were many examples of improved writing skills as well as successful results in CUNY writing assessments. Improving quantitative skills was more of a challenge, but gains were made here as well. What became obvious to faculty was the need to continue strengthening these skills as students moved into their subsequent college years and their majors. Each major

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requires increased literacy and quantitative reasoning as a basis for pursuit of advanced degrees or gainful employment. The challenge GCC faces is to determine how this would be implemented above and beyond Composition 2 and the basic math requirements for each major. Will the faculty in each major include in their course outcomes demonstrated proficiency in the application of literacy and quantitative reasoning skills? Such an effort has implications for the professional development of the faculty. Should their reinforcement of these skills be made explicit? What resources are available to help them do this work? Is there another support mechanism that might be implemented? Given that various majors may lead to both lower and higher wage pathways, how can students learn about the importance that greater literacy and quantitative reasoning

How will EOW and LABSS experience and learning be captured? The relationship between EOW and LABSS links skills development, reflective practices, and an academic approach to the world of work. The content is rich and varied. Students report a great deal of interest in looking at work from varying perspectives, such as the cultures of work, the varied styles of work, and dilemmas encountered in all fields. Work sites are explored as cases to be examined analytically, using lenses that students learn. Students are asked to read research studies, view videos, collect anecdotal material, and conduct interviews with workers. In addition, the interviews give first-­‐year students the tools to explore the work experiences of family and friends, which is an important connection to their lives as they move through college. Added to this is the variety of enriched experiences students are afforded on community days or other experiential opportunities for EOW and throughout the first year. What would a knowledge management system that culled data from EOW and LABSS teaching and learning look like and in what ways could it inform community college education in general? Where does the responsibility lie for collecting such data and are the resources available to support this? How can such data be shared internally and when might it be available to the broader community? A knowledge management system for an innovative college could become a laboratory for community college education in general. D. Issues for Consideration: The Innovative Institution What investments are needed to sustain the innovation? Innovations require a substantial upfront investment to both initiate the innovation and foster its growth. Thus, an initiating period is followed by a developmental period where a process of trial and error rests on the hope and expectation of successful outcomes. Yet many innovations have a relatively brief life span as they are impacted by changes in

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the political, economic, and social environment. Innovations can be fragile unless ways to sustain it are implemented sooner rather than later. The City University of New York, a traditional university system committed to initiate an innovative community college model by leveraging significant support from the private sector. It was a model inspired by innovative practices on several CUNY campuses as well as by other colleges and substantiated by research on effective ways to serve first-­‐

model to evolve into an institution that sustains and shares its innovative practices through research and dissemination. What resources are needed to sustain the model as the college grows in enrollment? Student population growth at GCC must be accompanied by a comparable increase in resources to sustain the model. Such resources should be based not on the traditional formulas but rather on formulas reresources for the following: adequate space, collaboration among staff and faculty, professional development, time for instructional teams to meet and for assessment days, research on the scholarship of teaching and learning, multi-­‐tiered student support systems, an elaborated partnership program, and an institutional research model. Private funds can and will provide some support, but it is sustained support from CUNY

of making the innovation sustainable and useful to a wider postsecondary community. What administrative model best serves GCC students, faculty, and staff as the college continues to grow? An innovative model needs an administrative structure aligned with the model in order to make it an efficient operation. If the innovation is part of a more traditional structure, the administrative structure must also serve as a buffer and protector of the innovation within the more traditional institution. This raises a very different set of expectations and requires an enormous amount of flexibility by the administrative leadership of the innovating unit and the staff responsible for managing administrative decisions within the innovation. A flatter administration and a decentralized decision-­‐making process are key to sustaining innovation. The temptation of most institutions is to increase administrative staff and encourage separation between faculty and staff. A flatter administrative

priorities, and also promotes internal communications and timely adaptation to changing contexts. A decentralized decision-­‐making process that acknowledges the

With institutional goals as a guide, each GCC unit should propose and obtain approval for an annual budget (with fixed and discretionary costs) which the unit can manage

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within certain general parameters. Management can support a decentralized financial system by forecasting, monitoring, and facilitating the timely processing of administrative transactions. How can the college roll-­‐out its philosophy and design beyond the first year? While the first-­‐year design continues to develop, it is mature compared to the program design of the succeeding college years. What is the GCC literacy and quantitative reasoning model for students in their majors? What additional support do students require after the first year based on their accomplishments and on their needs? Time and resources are needed to help articulate a GCC model for significant transition points and for increasing enrollment into the continuing years. How can GCC address faculty and staff turnover and maintain diversity? The college has had a high turnover in faculty and staff. What are the plans and resources for preventing turnover while maintaining diversity among staff and faculty that reflects the diversity of the student body? What are the plans for sustaining

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Concluding Reflection We have witnessed the planning and initial years of an innovative community college dedicated to improve the outcomes of first-­‐generation students. We marveled at the creativity of the staff and faculty engaged in building the college, and we were concerned during challenging times. The individual and institutional risks taken and the willingness to reflect, assess, and revise are the outstanding hallmarks of GCC. To create a different kind of college, experience for students, faculty, and staff than prevails in most community colleges. We hope that the college continues to explore postsecondary alternatives for first-­‐

report will be both sustained and continuously improved to meet the needs of students and staff.

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APPENDIX

1. LEARNING OBJECTIVES FOR EOW Upon successful completion of EOWI, students will be able to:

1. Identify and apply fundamental social science concepts and methods to

explore the relationships between the individual and the world of work.

2. Begin to use a range of ethnographic methods to research and compose

written and oral presentations on the behaviors and experiences of

individuals in diverse work contexts.

3. Begin to analyze and evaluate ethnographic texts and data about work

through the lens of social science perspectives and concepts.

4. Examine how

and choices, identifying how one's own life story promotes and constrains

vocation and career decisions.

Upon successful completion of EOWII course, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate the ability to use diverse ethnographic methods (e.g.,

crafting pertinent research questions, conducting fieldwork with

observations, an interview, and the recognition and analysis of artifacts) and

concepts to research and compose a reflective, multifaceted analysis of the

experience of individuals working in specific occupations.

2. Identify work trends and organization in the larger society and within

the New York City context to understand their influence on occupational

choices and pathways for individuals and social groups.

3. Show evidence of scientific knowledge about specific occupations and

the entry-­‐level requirements, employment trends and conditions, and career

potential for individuals within those occupations.

4. Demonstrate a growing understanding of the complexity and range of

factors that link self to work, particularly career choice.

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5. Show enhanced understanding and practice of responsible and ethical

work habits gleaned from ethnographic accounts of people at work in their

research sites. These include regarding information gathering and analysis,

self-­‐presentation, giving & receiving feedback, communication, personal and

social responsibility.

2. READING AND ASSIGNMENTS OF EOW I and II

EOWI: Most faculty used the following:

Bowe, J., Bowe, M., and Streeter, S. (Eds.). (2000). Gig: Americans talk about

their jobs. New York: Three Rivers Press.

Murchison, J. (2010). Ethnography essentials: Designing, conducting and

presenting your research. San Francisco: Jossey-­‐Bass.

Course pack: EOW 1:

http://ncc.cuny.libguides.com/content.php?pid=483180

Faculty supplemented the course with NY Times articles, songs, poetry, TED talks,

and related videos in addition to a selection of the recommended journal articles.

-­‐

For source material, a faculty member used a section on the web called NY TIMES

Big Data.

For EOWI, major ethnographic written assignments consisted of 1. an observation a

workplace, 2. an interview a family member or friend about their experiences

working, 3. an auto-­‐ethnography and presentation that analyzes how the

sociological perspectives on work explored in class intersect with your evolving

ideas/beliefs about work using evidence from your research portfolio, and 4. a

weekly journal reflecting on your own work history and career aspirations, as well

as your attitudes, ideas and beliefs about work.

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EOWII texts included a continued use of Ethnography Essentials by Murchison or

Doing Cultural Anthropology and/or Projects in Ethnographic Research, both by

Michael V. Angrosino. Additional books used have been: Nickel and Dimed by

Barbara Ehrenreich, Labor and Legality: An Ethnography of a Mexican Immigrant

Network by Ruth Gomberg-­‐Munoz, Chutes and Ladders: Navigating the Low-­‐Wage

Labor Market by Katherine S. Newman, Behind the Kitchen Door by Saru Jayaraman.

In EOWII the major assignments were: 1. Ethnography Plan: Your Plan for Studying

a Specific Workplace, 2. Space Observation of a Workplace (Physical Space, Social

Space, and Symbolic Space), 3. Research Questions and Design, 4. Interview of an

individual or group interview with a professional or professionals working in the

profession that you have been researching, and 5. Final Ethnography Report and

Reflection.

3. SAMPLE EOW I AND II SYLLABUS

EOWI SYLLABUS

Conducting Ethnographic Research

DATE TOPICS, READINGS, ASSIGNMENTS & ACTIVITIES

Monday

September 9

Investigating and understanding patterns in work and social

life

Review of syllabus and course policies

Murchison pp. 3-­‐ Gig

613-­‐617; Gig, pp. 391

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Wednesday

September 11

What is Ethnography?

Murchison Contd.

Reading Due: Gig, pp. 510-­‐

pack)

Assignment Due: Journal Response #1

LABSS Topics: Self-­‐awareness & Self-­‐advocacy; Learning styles

Monday

September 16

Murchison, pp. 19 -­‐

Wednesday

September 18

Learning About Work Through Ethnographic Observation

Reading Due:

o Gig, pp. 54-­‐

o Sidewalks documentary excerpt

Monday

September 23

Reading Due:

o

o Excerpt from Corner Office (Handout)

Assignment due: Journal Response #2

LABSS Topics: Defining success & setting goals

Wednesday

September 25

Practice and Recording Practice and Recording

Reading Due:

o Murchison, pp. 67 -­‐

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Monday

September 30 Hodson & Sullivan, Evolution of Work

Assignment due:

o Observation Notes (handwritten)

o Journal Response #3

LABSS Topics: Asset map/Needs assessment

Wednesday

October 2

-­‐Making

Reading Due:

(Course pack)

Assignment Due: Journal Response #4

Monday

October 7

Reading Due:

o Murchison, pp. 115 -­‐

o

pack)

o Assembly Line Video Clips in class)

Assignment Due: Narrative Description of Observation Notes

(typed, min. 1 page)

LABSS Topics: Time management

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Wednesday

October 9

Descriptive Accounts and Revisions

Reading Due:

Gig, pp. 227-­‐

Gobo, pp. 196 -­‐

(Course pack)

Murchison, pp. 99 -­‐

Assignment Due: Journal Response # 5

Wednesday

October 16

Descriptive Accounts and Revisions

Reading Due:

Scott-­‐

Moss and

Assignment due: Final Observation Assignment (3 pages)

LABSS Topics: Problem-­‐solving strategies; Study & work habits

Monday

October 21

Factors That Shape Work Choices: Preparing Interviews and

Data

Reading Due:

(Course pack)

Assignment Due: Journal Response # 6

LABSS Topics: Problem-­‐solving strategies; Study & work habits

Monday

October 28

Factors That Shape Work Choices: Practice and Recording

Reading Due:

Gig, pp. 53 -­‐

Assignment Due: Revised Interview Script

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Wednesday

October 30

Factors That Shape Work Choices: Practice and Recording

Reading Due:

pack)

Ted Talk: Mike Rowe: Learning From Dirty Jobs

LABSS Topic: Revisit/Refine Goals and Definition

Monday

November 4

Analyzing Themes, Patterns, and Meanings

Reading Due:

Assignment Due: Narrative Description of Interview Notes

(typed, min. 2 pages)

Wednesday

November 6

Analyzing Themes, Patterns, and Meanings

Reading Due:

o Murchison, pp. 183 -­‐

Building

In class film: One Week Job/TBD

Assignment Due: Journal Response # 7

LABSS Topic: Job and Career Exploration

Monday

November

11

Descriptive Accounts & Revision

Patterns, Key Events, Maps

**Final Draft of Interview Assignment and Response 8 due***

Wednesday Discovering Possibilities and Challenges: Putting It All Together

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November

13

Reading Due:

o Murchison, pp. 211-­‐222

o

(Coursepack)

Handwritten Outline/Plan of Auto Ethnography Assignment (1

page) in class

Monday

November

18

Expanding/Refining Auto-­‐Ethnographic Draft

Readings Due:

Wednesday

November

20

Expanding/Refining Auto-­‐Ethnographic Draft

Readings Due:

Gig, pp. 96-­‐

In class: Pleasures and Sorrow of Work (Video)

Assignments:

Draft of Auto-­‐Ethnography Assignment (typed, min. 3 pages)

LABSS Topics: Role-­‐playing workplace scenarios

Monday

November

25

Auto-­‐Ethnography In Class Review

Monday

December 2

Expanding/Refining Auto-­‐Ethnographic Draft

Readings Due:

Course Review

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**FINAL AUTO-­‐ETHNOGRAPHY DUE in DIGICATION**

Wednesday

December 4

Students will present their research portfolio from the semester. Self-­‐

reflections will be included as a preparation for their work in

Ethnographies of Work II.

Readings: Student research portfolios

Spring 2014: Worksite worksheet

December 9 Conferences

EOWII SYLLABUS

MODULE 1: Weeks (1-­‐3)

LABSS: Painting My Professional Portrait

Week 1: Building on Existing Knowledge: Labor Markets, Work Trends and

Career Clusters

Students will focus on broad occupational, labor market, and globalization trends to

provide background for and inform their ethnographic investigations of work.

Students will begin the process of selecting an occupation to research over the

course of the semester as they consider relevant employment data, specifically from

the U.S. Department of Labor.

Readings: -­‐7; Presser,

-­‐ -­‐465 (Wharton) (Libguide);

403-­‐411 (Libguide)

Assignments: In-­‐class quantitative data literacy/writing work

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LABSS TOPIC:

Supply Shopping: Assessing My Needs

Week 2: Work in Changing Contexts: Occupational Entry and Career Mobility

Students will examine ethnographic readings and shifting employment trends, as

well as a range of occupational and career pathways as they begin to compose

research questions about job, employment, and workplace features to explore in

their ethnographies.

Readings: -­‐33

Weak Ties and Online

-­‐261 (Sternheimer) (Libguide); Giddens,

-­‐

427 (Libguide)

Assignments: Crafting research questions

LABSS TOPIC: Applying the Primer: Sketching My Outline

Week 3: Framework for Exploration: Crafting an Ethnographic Research Plan

and Review of Ethnographic Methods

Students will learn the elements of and how to construct an ethnographic research

plan. Class time will be spent discussing specifics of the occupation and work site

and hypothesizing about the performance, conditions, and social, emotional, and

cultural experience of being employed in that job to determine the best fieldwork

strategies to pursue and to assess the feasibility of the field plan. Discussion on the

sensitive nature of conducting research, gaining access and trust, and potential

conflicts between research and subject.

Readings: for the Ethnographic

-­‐47; -­‐10

Assignments: Cover sheet & Narrative Ethnographic Research Plan

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LABSS TOPIC: Final Touches: Framing Your Work

Module 2: Weeks (4-­‐6)

LABSS: Marketing my Professional Portrait

Week 4: Workplace Observations: Mapping Physical, Social, & Symbolic Space

Students will examine the interaction between physical, social, virtual, and symbolic

spaces within the work environment. Students will be introduced to ethnographic

analysis of objects as and will increase awareness and discuss the

importance of symbols in workplace culture. The topics of human environments and

occupational health and safety will be introduced and explored.

Readings: -­‐66 (Charon)

-­‐142

Assignments: Observation Assignment #1: Mapping

LABSS TOPIC: Opportunity Search Techniques

Week 5: Workplace & Organizational Culture: Rituals, Symbols, Language

Patterns

Students will continue to examine workplaces as sites of informal and formal rules,

norms, habits, patterns, and processes that promote and constrain work experience.

Students will incorporate their questions about organizational culture into their

ongoing ethnographic observations.

Readings: -­‐61;

-­‐288 (Clarke &

Robboy)

Assignments: Observation Assignment #2: Task & Role

LABSS TOPIC: Interviewing Techniques and Dressing for Success

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Week 6: Workplace Observations: Work Group Dynamics

Students will examine sociological and interpersonal dynamics of employee

relationships, interactions, authority, autonomy, routinization, competition,

cooperation, and team work.

Readings: pp. 345-­‐357

(coursepack); Henslin,

-­‐171 (Libguide)

Assignments: Observation Assignment #3: Cultural Dynamics

LABSS TOPIC: Networking Techniques & Communication Skills in the

Workplace:Elevator Speeches, Small Talk & Code Switching

Module 3: Weeks (7-­‐9)

LABSS: Navigating My Workplace

Week 7: The Professional Self: Identity & Aspiration

Students will examine processes that shape self-­‐expression, emotion, and conduct in

occupations and workplaces. Additionally, cultural influences on identity will be

examined.

Readings: Joseph

122-­‐133 (McNall

pp. 11-­‐49

Assignments: Interview Guide

LABSS TOPIC: Office and Workplace culture.

Week 8: Gender, Race Relations, & Workplace Diversity

Students will examine the dynamics of diversity in the workplace and within

occupations, emphasizing opportunity and discriminatory practices.

Readings:

189-­‐201 (Wharton

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-­‐252(Libguide)

Assignments: Interview Log

LABSS TOPIC: Office and Workplace Culture continued.

Week 9: Exploring the Relationships between Work & Life

Students will read about and discuss issues related to the role of work in

life. Concepts including work-­‐family conflicts and balance, work and leisure, work

creativity, pleasure, and alienation, and work arrangements will be

examined.

Readings: When Working Wives Get

-­‐422 (Clarke & Robboy) (Libguide); Garey,

-­‐540 (Wharton) (Libguide);

-­‐65 (Libguide)

Assignments: Interview Brief Transcription

LABSS TOPIC: Management: Being Managed, Managing Others, & Conflict Resolution

Module 4: Weeks (10-­‐12)

LABSS: Showcasing My Professional Portfolio

Week 10: Triangulating Data & Data Analysis

Students will learn how to organize data, identify patterns and inconsistencies

within and across field study components, decide when and how to use quotes from

research participants, analyze and label themes, and begin to create a structure for

the final written ethnographic report.

Readings: Fetterman, Description and Verbatim pp. 125-­‐

127 and Patterns, Key Events, Content Analysi pp. 97-­‐

105 (Libguide); Murchison, pp. 116-­‐118

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Assignments: Ethnographic Research Report Outline

LABSS TOPIC: Professional Exchanges: Cluster Meetings

Week 11: Putting It All Together

Students will continue to deepen their initial learning about ethnographic methods

of observation and interviewing and how they align with sociological and

anthropological concepts of work. Students will use class time to work on the draft

of their auto-­‐ethnographic assignment and will exchange work-­‐in-­‐progress for peer

review.

Readings:

Assignments: Ethnographic Research Report

LABSS TOPIC: Presentations

Week 12: Research Debriefing

Students will present their research from the semester. Self-­‐reflections will be

included as a preparation for their work in Ethnographies of Work II.

Assignments: Research Presentation (5 minutes)

LABSS TOPIC:

Presentations continued

4. LEARNING OBJECTIVES (LEARNING GOALS/COMPETENCIES) FOR

LABSS Upon successful completion of LABSS I:

Students will be able to describe themselves as learners and demonstrate an understanding of their learning styles.

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Develop study plans that reflect academic goals and utilize effective time management strategies and evidence of self-awareness.

Students begin to develop strategies for working effectively in groups, delegating

tasks, giving and receiving feedback with peers, approaching professors and administrators with questions and concerns, receiving feedback and critique from instructors.

Students will begin to develop an awareness of how verbal, non-verbal, and written

communication skills are imperative to the successful navigation of their academic and professional environments.

Students develop a sense of self-efficacy and will be able to formulate appropriate

questions, identify resources (both within the college and the larger community) and seek assistance when needed.

Upon successful completion of LABSS II students will:

Continue to shape their academic and professional identities;; select a major that is connected to their goals and explore the various educational paths to achieve these goals.

Practice the construction of professional resumes, cover and thank you letters, as well as effective strategies for professional dress, office etiquette, interview techniques, and networking skills.

Students will begin to develop an awareness of management styles, office culture, and current trends in the job market.

5. LABSS I AND II SYLLABUS LABSS I WEEK 1 Welcome & Overview of LaBSS I Touchpoint WEEK 2 Self-Assessment;; Discovering How You Learn WEEK 3 Time Management WEEK 4 Study Skills/Note-taking

64

WEEK 5 Public Speaking WEEK 6 e-Mail Etiquette WEEK 7 Urban Studies Group Presentation WEEK 8 Health Information Technology Group Presentation WEEK 9 Liberal Arts & Sciences Group Presentation Week 10 Business Administration Group Presentation WEEK 11 Information Technology Group Presentation WEEK 12 Human Services Group Presentation

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LABSS II Weekly Calendar: Week - Date Content

03/03 03-07 Syllabus/Expectations/Remind101

03/10 03/14 Major/Career + Degree Works

03/17 03/21 Resume

03/24 03/28 Cover Letter

03/31 04/04 Resume Review

04/07 04/11 Cover Letter Review

04/14 04/18 CCSSE

04/21 04/25 Spring Recess 04/13 04/22

04/28 05/02 Spring Recess Continued

05/05 05/09 Interview Skills

05/12 05/16 Interview Skills Continued

05/19 05/23 Thank You Note/Office Culture

05/26 05/30 Registration + Advisement

06/02 06/06 Course Evaluations Assignments: 1.) SSA Touchpoints-This is a mandatory meeting between you and your Student Success Advocate to discuss various topics regarding your personal & academic success. 2.) LaBSS II Comprehensive Portfolio- This will comprise of a collection of professional documents aimed to prepare you for current and future academic/professional success. 3.) New York Needs You Panel Discussions- In collaboration with the Office of Partnerships and Community Engagement, you will be required to attend a minimum of two panel discussions, which provide students an opportunity to hear from and interact with professionals from various fields. Please register for the following sessions by vising the links below: Urban Studies, March 6th Information Technology, March 11th

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Human Services, March 13th Business Administration, March 20th 4.) Wellness & AccessABILITY Office-You must select one of the workshops listed below: Becoming Your Own Superhero Tuesday, March 18, 2014 12:00 1:00 pm Location: TBA Are your own thoughts making you crazy? Come learn how developing self-awareness and self-acceptance could be the key to solving your own problems and transforming your life.

Tuesday, April 8, 2014 12:00 1:00 pm Location: TBA Struggling to keep it all together AND be a college student? Come learn strategies for dealing with stress and test anxiety through relaxation/breathing, time management, self-advocacy, and other coping mechanisms. Navigating Your Social World Tuesday, May 6, 2014 12:00 1:00 pm Location: TBA Lucky or unlucky in love and friendships? Learn tips for creating healthy, successful relationships and avoid the pitfalls that can derail your connections. For more information contact: Melanie Downs, Wellness/AccessABILITY Clinician at 646.313.8162 / melanie.downs@guttman.cuny.edu 5.) Career Strategists-This semester, you will meet your Career Strategists, who will assist you in major and career exploration, Degree Works, Office Culture, and Registration/Advisement for the Second Year Experience. 6.) Final Assignment- At the completion of the semester, you will submit your LaBSS II Comprehensive Portfolio via Digication. Further details on this presentation will be provided by your SSA.

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