REDWOODS COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICT
Meeting of the First Year Experience (FYE) Committee
February 14, 2013
1:15 – 2:30 p.m.
SS104
AGENDA
Our mission is to improve the retention, persistence, and success of first year college students.
1.
Call to Order
2.
Review Notes from: January 24, 2013
3.
Action Items
4.
Discussion Items
4.1
Review revisions to new student letter/email
4.2
Math and English placement process
4.3
Orientation video outline
4.4
Review fee notice, information to students about D-Reg
5.
Reports
5.1 Student representative requested
6.
Future Agenda Items
6.1 Summer/Fall course scheduling to support FYE
6.2 Student Success Task Force Recommendations Status
7.
Announcements
8.
Adjournment
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Redwoods Community College District
New Student Orientation Video – Spring 2013
Outline
Talk show theme.
Topic of the Day: College of the Redwoods
I.
Introduction a.
Locations b.
Programs: CTE, transfer, general education
II.
Counselor welcome a.
Importance of selecting an academic program
III.
Enrollment Process a.
Apply for admission b.
Apply for financial aid i.
Importance of financial literacy and checking student email c.
Math and English placements i.
Importance of practice and taking tests seriously d.
Student Education Plan (SEP) i.
Importance of developing SEP ii.
Enrollment Priorities
IV.
Other support services a.
Counseling & advising b.
DSPS c.
EOPS d.
Eureka only: residence halls, athletics, CDC
V.
Summary

February 12, 2013
«first» «last»
«street»
«citystate»
Dear «first»:
Congratulations! Your application for admission to College of the Redwoods (CR) has been accepted. Your CR
Student Identification Number is «stuid» . Remember this number! You are required to use this number to access all
CR services and student records. Now that you’ve completed Step One of the enrollment process, please follow the next steps to assure your success at CR.
Step Two - Check your Student Email.
All further notifications from CR will be sent to your CR student email address. Your student email address is «waid»@MyCR.redwoods.edu
and your initial password is your 8-digit birthdate (mmddyyyy). To access your student email address click on this link: My Redwoods email address . You are required to check this email on a regular basis.
Step Three – Complete the Math and English Placements.
The math and English placements are required to assure you enroll in the correct classes. Information and practice tests are available here: Academic Support Center .
Step Four
– Attend Orientation.
For more information about academic advising and orientation options, please contact the location you plan to attend:

Eureka 707.476.4150

Del Norte 707.465.2300

Mendocino 707.962.2664 (testing) and 962.2605 (counseling)

Klamath-Trinity 530.625.4846
If you have attended another college, order your official transcripts as soon as possible, as it can be four weeks or more before we receive them. If you need that coursework to meet prerequisites, contact the location you plan to attend to request that your transcripts be evaluated; evaluation can take up to two weeks.
Step Five
– Register for Classes.
Use your WebAdvisor account to access your student information, register for classes, view your financial aid status, and pay your fees. Your WebAdvisor user ID is «waid» and your initial password is your birth date in six digit form (example: 010181). After your initial log on, you will be prompted to change your password. If you cannot remember your password, use the hint feature or reset your password from the
Main Menu on WebAdvisor.
Step Six – Activate your CR Access Card.
After you register for classes, you will receive a CR Access Card in the mail. DO NOT THROW THIS CARD AWAY; it is not a credit card. You must use this card to activate your choice of how you want to receive financial aid and other refunds that you may be eligible to receive from CR.
We encourage all students to apply for financial aid and utilize student support services. Visit the website for more information: Student Services
Sincerely,
College of the Redwoods Staff and Faculty
PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS EMAIL AS THIS EMAIL ADDRESS IS USED TO SEND EMAILS ONLY.

Meeting of the First Year Experience (FYE) Steering Committee
Thursday, January 24, 2013
NOTES
Present: Dave Arnold, Bob Brown, Sheila Hall, Angelina Hill, Pam Kessler, Lisa Liken, Ruth Moon, and
Erin Wall. Rachel Anderson participated by conference phone.
The following suggestions and statements were made:

We should identify the obstacles that students encounter with the application, assessment, advising, and enrollment processes--up through the first week of classes. If we make improvements to the processes, it will help students have a more successful first year experience.
Part of the focus needs to be on technology. We need to invite the programmers into the discussion to help improve the processes. We should have an assessment of Student Services’ processes and discuss any problems with the Data Owners Group. We already have staff in
Student Services who are working on the processes. We need a way to get feedback from other people on campus about what is being done. Email Angelina the information about any technical problems, and she will take it to the Data Owners Group. Email Sheila the information about problems related to matriculation (advising, assessment, and orientation).

It was suggested that a statement be added to the fee notice stating that students will be dropped from their classes if payment is not received by a specific date.

Organize an orientation day fair and involve everyone—advisors and faculty. Personal connections make all of the difference. The timing of this event is very important. Could faculty assist with advising in their own disciplines? Could placement be part of the fair?

We are developing a new student orientation video.

We could use basic skills funding for temporary positions and to pilot a program.
Erin distributed the FYE draft and reviewed some of the information. The following statements were made:

We are targeting all first-year students. All first-year students should have an SEP and attend a mandatory orientation. We will do more intervention with basic skills students because they will have greater deficiencies to overcome. The students should take the English and math assessment, and we should identify students placing in English 350 and Math 380.

Math Intervention: Students placing in Math 380 should meet with an advisor/counselor to determine whether they would be candidates for Math 302 or Math 302 and Math 303 to remediate either over the summer or during the fall, 2013 semester. Math 302 and 303 teach math refreshing skills. Students can take what they need to get back to the level they left off in math.

The Remediation Joint Statement document had a lot of good ideas that might change the way we advise. We need to clarify the roles of counselors and advisors. We need to train the advisors so the message is consistent and helpful to students. Counseling positions are a top priority.

Sheila showed everyone a copy of the new student letter and reviewed the letter and the process. The following suggestions were made:

There is too much text on the new student letter, and we should bold the sentence that states that students must check their MyCR email account on a regular basis. The students’ CR email accounts should be active when they receive the new student letter.

At the very top of the letter we should have a statement that tells students to watch the orientation video. The video tells students the importance of checking their MyCR email account. We need to put a link to the video on the letter.

Dave’s main objection: IT is not letting us contact students by using their personal email addresses. We need to find out if students can update their personal information from the
MyCR email account. We need to get students to access their MyCR email accounts.

We should have a diagram on the letter that illustrates the steps (in logical order) students need to follow to move through the process. We could give students a ticket when they complete a step.

There have been complaints about giving placement tests at the high schools. We should have a more controlled environment for placement testing. We should make a recommendation that placement tests be taken at CR or proctored for students that are out of the district. There should be a designated time and room for the tests. We should encourage students to prepare for the tests and take practice tests. The placement test practice information is included in the new student letter, but it could be changed to be easier to access. The practice information should be updated with Math Jam information. Students should take the initiative and come to
CR and take the tests. Sheila will work with Keith or MaryGrace about the placement test situation.

It was suggested that we keep a record of our phone calls and the types of questions students are asking.

Students need to step up and become college students. Enrollment in a GS class could help.

Students who have high school GPA’s that are below a certain level would be encouraged/required to take a GS6 class. We would need to get high school transcripts if we do this, or we could just review placement test results.

Everyone agreed that this semester we should work on streamlining the processes and ask IT for

 assistance when necessary.
At the next FYE meeting, we will look at placement.
We could have a subgroup of this committee that could look at obstacles and send this information to Sheila or Angelina.

Having a meeting with staff, faculty, and Student Development people could be very helpful to address specific issues. Angelina could bring this up with the Academic Senate. They could also talk to Keith about it.

Everyone agreed the FYE meeting schedule was fine. The meeting adjourned at 3:00.