Table of Contents
About the Authors xiii
Introduction 1
Chapter 1 Enhancing Student Success With the Promise of Professional Learning Communities 9
Through a New Lens: Colleges and Universities as PLCs 11
PLCs and How They Work 13
The First Big Idea: An Intense Focus on Learning 14
The Second Big Idea: Capturing the Power of Collaborative Teaming 16
The Third Big Idea: A Focus on Results 17
Summary 18
Chapter 2 The Journey From Student Access to Student Success 21
Access for a Few 23
Access for All 25
The GI Bill 25
The Establishment of Junior and Community Colleges 26
Technology, the Internet, and Online Learning 27
From Access to Success 28
Student Success-or Else! 31
PLC as a Model for Cultural Change 32
Summary 34
Chapter 3 Leading Cultural Change 37
The Leadership Context 38
A Simultaneously Loose and Tight Culture 38
Top-Down and Bottom-Up Leadership 40
Reciprocal Accountability 43
The Knowing-Doing Gap 46
Progress and the Celebration of Results 47
Summary 49
Chapter 4 Enhancing Student Success Through a Commitments-Driven University 51
Articulating a Clear and Compelling Purpose 52
Communicating a Clear Message of Enhancing Student Success 53
Conveying a Compelling Purpose 54
Connecting Purpose With Action 56
Developing a Shared Vision of the Future 57
From Communicating to Believing 60
Benefits of a Clear and Compelling Vision of the Future 61
The Standard 62
Harnessing the Power of Shared Values and Commitments 63
Summary 67
Chapter 5 Capturing the Power of Collaborative Teaming 69
What Collaboration Is (and Is Not) 70
The Power of Collaborative Teaming 72
The Mayo Clinic: An Exemplar of Collaborative Teaming 74
Prerequisites for Team Effectiveness 76
A Passionate and Persistent Focus on Enhancing Classroom Success 77
What Do We Want Students to Learn and Demonstrate? 79
How Will We Know If Students Are Learning? 82
How Can We Provide Additional Time and Support and Extend Learning? 85
How Teams in the Nonaeademic Areas Approach Their Work 87
What Do the Data Reveal to Us? 87
What Goals, If Achieved, Would Lead to Significant Improvement? 88
How Can We Seek Information About Best Practices That May Help Us Attain Our Goals? 89
What Tasks Need to Be Done? When? Who Will Be Responsible for Each Task? 90
How Will We Monitor and Celebrate Success? 91
Are We Committed to Repeating the Process, Day In and Day Out? 91
Team Effectiveness: Team by Team, Task by Task 92
Summary 93
Chapter 6 Enhancing Student Success in a Culture of Continuous Improvement 95
Needed: A Conceptual Framework 96
Improvement of Student Success: A Date-Driven Process 97
A Systematic and Systemic Plan for Data Collection and Analysis 99
Collaborative Analysis 99
Multiple Sources of Data 100
Comparisons and Patterns 101
Identification of Strengths and Areas for Future Focus 102
Identify Patterns of Strengths 103
Identify High-Priority Areas for Future Focus 104
Meaningful, Strategic Goal Setting 105
Data Driven and Collaboratively Developed 107
Both Short-Term and Long-Term Goals 109
Results Rather Than Activities 109
Limited Number of Goals 110
Monitored, Encouraged, Supported, and Celebrated 111
Collective Inquiry: Research-Based Decision Making 111
Professional Learning Communities and Collective Inquiry 112
Internal and External Sources of Best Practice 113
Transferability and Tweaking 115
The Leadership Factor 115
Organizing for Success 116
Collaborative Planning and Development 116
Constant Connection to the Why 117
Major Tasks 117
Assignment of Responsibilities 118
Time Lines 118
Identification of Resource Needs and Alignment of Resource Allocation 119
Top-Down and Bottom-Up Planning 119
The Work; Implementation and Action Research 120
Loose on Approaches, Tight on Results: The Role of Action Research 121
Motivation and Inspiration 122
Cycle of Continuous Improvement 123
Summary 126
Chapter 7 Bridging the Rhetoric-Reality' Gap: Helping More Students Succeed-As If We Really Mean It 127
Aligning Institutional Structure and Culture to Enhance Student Success 130
Aligning the Work 131
Aligning Roles, Responsibilities, Policies, and Procedures to Support Student Success 132
Aligning Structure and Behavior 134
Aligning Behavior With Agreed-Upon Expectations 136
Aligning Attitudes and Dispositions With Institutional Values and Commitments 138
Aligning Training, Support, and Resources Allocation 139
Aligning Personnel Selection, Placement, and Promotion 140
Aligning Expectations and Actions With the Why 141
Aligning Monitoring, Recognition, and Celebration H-2
Summary 143
Chapter 8 Improving Student Retention and Graduation Rates: The Undergraduate Experience 145
Beyond a Culture of Luck: Cultural Changes in Academic Life 147
Clarity and Congruence of Course Expectations: Essential Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions 150
The Use of Formative Assessment in Each Course 151
Systematic Additional Time and Support for Students Who Experience Difficulty in Their Studies 152
Deep in the Curriculum and Instruction: Using Data to Improve Student Learning 156
First Impressions: Recruiting 157
Developing a Clear, Consistent, Data-Based Recruitment Plan 158
Recruiting Students: The Limitations of an Ability-Based Mindset 159
Recruiting Students Through a Different Lens. An Effort-Based Mindset 161
Building Bonds: From Acceptance to Enrollment 162
"I'm Your One Go-To Person" 163
Communicating Enrollment Musts 165
The Significant Role of Social Media 166
Pre-Enrollment Support Classes 167
Orientation Programs 168
Directed Integration and Involvement 170
Focused Financial Aid 171
Getting Started: The Freshman Year Experience 173
Differentiated Advising 175
Using Predictive Analytics 178
Summary 180
Chapter 9 Overcoming Barriers: Roadblocks, Detours, and Occasional Breakdowns 181
Real Cultural Change 182
Significant Barriers 186
Summary 190
Epilogue
A New Normal 193
References and Resources 197
Index 207
