San Diego State University
It’s Never Too Early for
T.O.U.R.S.
Translating Opportunity to Uplift
Rising Stars
Bryan Spencer & Rodrigo Gutierrez
Recruitment & Early Outreach Officers
San Diego State University
San Diego State University
Topics of Discussion
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Current Issues in K-12
Purpose of T.O.U.R.S.
Building an Early Outreach Program
EOP Volunteer Program
Questions and Discussion
San Diego State University
Current Issues
According to the Campaign for High School Equity and its High School Policy
Reform: A Plan for Success (2008)…
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10% of California’s high schools are drop-out factories educating 17.2% of the
students
California graduation rate for 2006-07 was 67.7%
50% of CA 8th graders read at the “below basic” level
Drop-out rate for California is 22.5%, based on new tracking system implemented
– On-Time Completion Rates of HS
• African-American 55.3%
• Latino/a 57.8%
• Native American 50.6%
• In CA, SE Asians 50%+ did not graduate
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Only 35% of California graduates left high school having completed all the courses
required for entrance to the UC and CSU systems
10% of 8th grade graduate do not enroll in 9th grade
San Diego State University
Solution & Purpose of T.O.U.R.S.
• Inspire students to believe in the reality of attending
an institution of higher learning
• Illustrate the SDSU college student experience
through facts and personal experience
• Encourage students to do further research into SDSU
and other universities and take responsibility for their
UC/CSU Preparation
• Provide positive role-models for middle school
students
San Diego State University
Building an
Early Outreach Program
San Diego State University
Elements of T.O.U.R.S.
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Establish Goals, Resources, and Demand
Assess Schools in your Area
Assess Collaboration Partners and Allies
Design Services to Offer
Develop Procedures and Protocol
Evaluations & Testimonials
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
• Establish Goals, Resources, and Demand
– SDSU did not offer a dedicated program for tours or
presentations
– Staffing – EOP created SSP-1B to design, implement, and
assess an Early Outreach Program
– Become visible to middle schools, its counselors, teachers,
and other administrators
– Resources Available
• Promotional Items
• Educational Materials targeted for grades 6-8
• Student Volunteerism
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
• Assess the Schools in your Area
– Feeder Analysis
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Top Feeder HS to EOP
Top Feeder HS to SDSU
Highest Rates of Free/Reduced Lunches
Proximity to SDSU Campus
Suspension Rates
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
• Assess Collaboration Partners and Allies
– On Campus
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Gear-UP
Pre-College Institute
Compact 4 Success
Ambassadors & Prospective Student Center
SDSU Student Organizations
College Access Program @ SDSU
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
– Off-Campus
• California Student Opportunity and Access Program
(Cal-SOAP)
• Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID)
• Community Organizations and Churches
• Local Middle Schools
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
Define Services to Offer
• Tours
– Provide a 60-min walking tour highlighting fun areas on campus and the
college student experience
• Presentations & Student Panels
– Provide a presentation that is energetic with simple language to motivate,
inspire, and educate middle school students.
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Attention Getter
Reasons to Attend College
San Diego State Facts & Highlights
A-G Requirements
Eliminate the Fear of College Costs & Financial Aid
EOP
– Provide diverse and prepared student panels to offer a mentor perspective
• Material Requests
– Provide Resource Packets for teachers and administrators to aid in their
mission to establish a “college-going culture” in their classroom
• Attend College Fairs & Parent Nights
– Participate in Cal-SOAP’s College: Making It Happen
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
Tours
– Structure – High Quality Service
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Campus Sites Visited
Information Disbursed
Tour Guide Behavior & Dress Code
Develop goodwill with teacher
– Correspondence
• Request Protocol
• Confirmation/Denial Procedures
• Tour Evaluations (Collection Database & Teacher Eval)
– Goals and Limitations
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Tour Size
Student Volunteerism & Knowledge of University
Number of Tours Offered
Designated Times for Tours
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
Presentations & Student Panels
– Structure
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How to Communicate to 6th-8th grade students (style, lingo, etc…)
What Relative Topics to Cover
Templates in Existence (CMIH, Admissions, Fin. Aid, etc)
Survey Teachers and Administrators for expertise
– Correspondence
• Request Protocol
• Confirmation/Denial Procedures
• Evaluations (in progress)
– Goals and Limitations
• Classroom or Projector Availability
• Student Volunteerism
• Access to Middle School Sites
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
Material Request
– Structure
• Gather Materials Relative to Grade Level
– Promotional Items
– Cal-SOAP CMIH Booklets and Handouts
– Admissions – FTF, Fin. Aid, Scholarship Handouts
– CSU Office – College Posters
– EOP – Brochures, Folders, Promotional Items
– Correspondence
• Request Protocol
• Confirmation/Denial Procedures
– Goals and Limitations
• Limited to What Will Fit in a Large Yellow Envelope
• Teachers Will Request Everything & Anything!
• Financial Restrictions (materials & promo items)
San Diego State University
Building an Early Outreach Program
Develop Procedures and Protocol
– Tours & Presentation Requests in 2006
• Letterhead Policy
• Data Collection  MS Excel
• Confirmations via Email
– Tours & Presentation Requests in 2008
• EOP Event Request Forms
– Simple
– Electronic Format (Speeds up process)
– Easy to Collect Data
• Data Collection  MS Access
– Tour Evaluations
• Easy to Complete
• High Completion Rate
• Collect Valid Data with Proper Scales of Measure
San Diego State University
T.O.U.R.S. Statistics
At a Glance
San Diego State University
Number of Requests for Campus Tours
70
60
50
40
Semester
30
20
10
0
Total Requests
Fall 07
Spring 08
Fall 08
Spring 09
20
64
24
40
San Diego State University
Total Number of Tours & Presentations Completed for SY 07/08 & SY 08/09
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Fall 07
Fall 08
Spring 08
Spring 09
# of Tours
8
16
39
29
#of Presentations
0
14
6
23
San Diego State University
Average Tour Size for Sy 07/08 & SY 08/09
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
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Average Tour Size
Fall 07
Fall 08
Spring 08
Spring 09
44
66
52
69
San Diego State University
Total Number of Contacts for SY 07/08 & SY 08/09
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
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Tour Contacts
Presentation Contacts
Fall 07
Fall 08
Spring 08
Spring 09
349
1054
2012
1990
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1017
352
1685
San Diego State University
Tour Evaluations
Question
Request Process on EOP web site was sufficient and easy to understand
4.64
Email confirmation provided sufficient information and details of the tour activities
4.79
Bus and parking directions were adequate and easy to follow with the campus map that was provided
4.64
EOP staff provided a warm welcome intro
4.79
Campus Tour educated my students with relevant and important information
4.36
Language used by the tour guides were at an appropriate level for my students to comprehend
4.64
Size of the tour groups allowed for all my students to receive a quality tour that addressed their needs
4.57
Campus Tour had a positive impact on my students
4.71
Satisfied with the campus tour and would bring my students next year
4.64
San Diego State University
Testimonials
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“The SDSU fieldtrip is probably one of the best field-trips our 6th graders take. The
tour guides definitely build a relationship with the students which completely makes the
field-trip successful. “ -6th Grade Teacher
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“I have had parents tell me they have never heard their children as excited about college
as they are now” -7th & 8th Grade Teacher
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We constantly talk about college at school, but the students don’t really understand the
true concept of college until they visit a campus
-6th Grade Teacher
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Many students who once believed college was not an attainable goal, have now changed
their minds. -6th Grade Teacher
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I loved the presentation with the "planting of the seed" and the growth into the Giant
Sequoia. It was a wonderful metaphor for the students.
-8th Grade AVID Teacher
San Diego State University
High Demand & Quality Services
Based on…
• The demand and motivation to avoid denying
any requests &
• Desire to aid in the retention of EOP students
and provide opportunities for community
service…
• We devised the…
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program!!
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
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Began in Fall 2006
Current Structure began Fall 2007
Key component our Early Outreach efforts and T.O.U.R.S.
Volunteers made up of EOP and Non-EOP students
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
History
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Fall of 2006
Tours were conducted by Staff and whichever students happened to be around
This would create problems obtaining student assistance with Tours & Events
Tour groups were limited in size
Many requests had to be denied because of these issues
Summer of 2007
Outreach & Recruitment added another Staff member for Early Outreach efforts
Current EOP Volunteer Program developed
Tour Group sizes increased
Less requests were denied as a result
Spring 2008
Outreach & Recruitment Coordinator hired to allow Early Outreach staff to focus on Tours and
Events and developing and expanding the EOP Volunteer Program
San Diego State University
Goals of the EOP Volunteer Program
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To provide EOP and non-EOP students with an opportunity for community
service, to educate prospective students, and to stay engaged with EOP and
its staff and services.
To be flexible with our Outreach efforts in events and programs
Allows Outreach & Recruitment Staff to focus on other duties (visits,
application period, etc.)
Hosting more and MORE students with campus visits
Outside of time conflicts, not denying any requests for a campus visit.
Assist with EOP department events
Get students INVOLVED!!
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
• Opportunities for Involvement
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Middle School Campus Tours
Student Panels
Freshman For a Day (fall semester)
Middle School Visits (College Access Program)
EOP Graduation (spring semester)
EOP Student Advisory Board
Explore SDSU 2009
Community Events
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
Implementation of a Volunteer Program
How do we create a program out of nothing? Where do we get our students? How do
we communicate with them? Isn’t there something like this already on campus?
Step 1. Knowing your goals and objectives
Expand tours and event size and number. And keep US in the office.
Step 2. Knowing your potential volunteer pool.
Year One: EOP Students and select Student Organizations
Year Two: EOP Students, Students Organizations and the general campus population
Step 3. Love Technology.
Flyers to Email to Campus-wide Newsletters
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
Implementation of a Volunteer Program (part II)
Step 3. CONSTANT Communication
Weekly Announcement and Emails, electronic course communication (Blackboard)
Step 4. Know Your Resources
Do MORE with less
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
Challenges and Limitations of a Volunteer Program
a smart man once said, ‘the answer to all your questions is money.’
Challenge 1. Budget
$0 in our department’s General Fund for the Volunteer Program
Challenge 2. Incentives
See Challenge 1. What will it make it worthwhile for students to take time out of their
busy day and take their ONE free hour to give a tour to some kids?
Challenge 3. Student Availability
Tours mostly fall between 10am and 2pm Monday through Friday. So do student
volunteers classes.
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
Challenges and Limitations of a Volunteer Program (cont.)
Challenge 4. Volunteer Pool Size
The more the merrier
Challenge 5. Campus Visibility
Look outside of EOP for students and look outside email to reach potential Volunteers
Challenge 6. Show Rate
Yeah they say they can volunteer, but do they show up?
Challenge 7. Training
“I would give a tour, but I don’t know how to give one.”
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
Blackboard Academic Suite aka ‘Blackboard’
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Easy and Efficient way to communicate with students
Program is added as another enrolled course
Free for US!! Paid for by the University
Stores all your program information and resources for
you and your volunteers
San Diego State University
San Diego State University
San Diego State University
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
Testimonial
What did you enjoy the most about being an
EOP Volunteer?
“I enjoyed leading the tours around campus
the most. I felt good about being able to give
prospective students a positive experience
which could result in them joining the SDSU
campus.”
San Diego State University
EOP Volunteer Program
Statistics of volunteer participation
- 200+ Volunteers since Fall 2007
- Real cost of Volunteers based on $9/hr wage:
- 2007/2008 - $2965
- So far 2008/2009 - $1580
- Fall 2008 had 44 unique volunteers.
- 89 current members
San Diego State University
Future Possibilities
• Build a pipeline program that co-exists with our High
School and Community College Recruitment &
Outreach
• Measure effectiveness of T.O.U.R.S. by evaluating
Admissions:
Applicants and Enrollees
• Create a “Freshman For a Day” program for selected
middle schools
• Provide a tutoring/mentoring program that involves
EOP students and middle school students
San Diego State University
Thank You
Any Questions?