Transforming Remedial Education in California: Lessons From a Statewide Campaign

• In Event: 18.033 - Statewide Innovations in the College Access Space: Perspectives From Researchers, Practitioners, and Evaluators

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to highlight how a coalition of business, labor, religious groups, and civic organizations used research, strategic communications, and public awareness activities to secure a significant statewide investment in evidence-based practices that are proven to improve outcomes for students placed into pre-college level math and English in California’s Community Colleges.

In California, over 70% of entering community college students are assessed and placed into pre-college level math and/or English (basic skills and/or remedial education) of which, fewer than half will earn an associate degree, certificate or transfer after six years (California Community College Chancellor, 2015).

Community College faculty practitioners sought out the coalition, based on its track record of policy successes (Author, 2015), to see if an effort could be mounted to secure state funding for the scaling of four practices that are proven to improve the success rates of students placed into pre-college level courses. The four practices include: Changing assessment and placement policies; Co-Requisite Remediation; Redesigned and Shortened Remedial Courses; and, Contextualization.

Understanding the significant problem posed by an ineffective remedial education system, the coalition agreed to mount a campaign. First, the coalition sought the input of over 300 California business, civil rights, education, and student leaders through a Listening Tour across 14 cities to discuss higher education reform priorities. Over 60% of Listening Tour participants cited improving remedial education as the top higher education priority for immediate action (Author, 2014).

With faculty partners, research to support the four practices, and the will of California leaders, the coalition launched an aggressive public awareness campaign targeted at the legislature and Governor to secure funding. The campaign kicked off with a compelling narrative, aimed at legislative leaders and the media, of the remedial education challenge by ethnic subgroups in a series of three statewide reports on the state of higher education in California. The reports posited the issue of remedial education as the most pressing issue to address if outcomes are to be improved for community college students. A social media campaign was also launched around the reports and a series of opinion editorials and blog posts ran in support of reforming remedial education by investing in evidence-based practices at scale.

The coalition worked the halls of the legislature with over twenty civil rights, business and education partners and successfully secured a statewide budget allocation for reforming remedial education in the amount of $60 million to be distributed via a competitive grant application for community colleges across the state. In the first year (2015-16) 64 community colleges were awarded funding with an average grant size of $1 million. The following year, the coalition was successful at advocating for a permanent budget allocation of $30 million annually for on-going scaling of the evidence-based practices.

Policy advocacy, partnerships, and public awareness have served as the cornerstone of the coalition’s work not just on this issue but several others. This is an uncommon yet highly effective approach to achieving educational opportunity and corresponds closely with the conference theme.

Authors

• Audrey Dow, Campaign for College Opportunity

• Michele Patricia Siqueiros, Campaign for College Opportunity