Changing Culture: Imperial County College Going Initiative

1. Changing Culture:Imperial County College Going Initiative

2. The Imperial Valley ¿Donde queda? Right Here

3. Our County • Home to 161,800 residents (CA Dept of Finance) • Rural desert community 4,597 square miles • Borders Mexico, Arizona and mountains separating it from metropolitan areas • Labor Market : Agriculture 23%, Government 31% • High unemployment (17.4% for 2004, 58/58 in CA) • 32% of the population foreign-born

4. Our Schools in 2000 • 72.2% Hispanic • 67.8% speak a language other than English • 55% of students below federal poverty level • 16 districts with 51 K-12 schools • 74% decile 5 or below • 44% in some phase of state or federal corrective action • 7.9% UC Eligible, far fewer actually attend

5. 2000

6. Obstacles to Overcome: • Geographic size • Duplication of services • Roles and sensitivities • Low expectations • Cultural perspectives • Cash = commitment!

7. Our Foundation:Sense of community and commitment • IHE Pre-collegiate Programs • Imperial County Partnership for Higher Education • Intersegmental collaboration • Counselors’ Roundtable • District improvement initiatives • Partnerships for Student Success

8. A preschool through higher education community collaborative promoting a college-going culture. Charter Members, Imperial County College Going Initiative P-16 Council

9. Purpose To formalize leadership for a collaborative and comprehensive regional approach to promote a college-going culture to increase eligibility, admittance, and attendance at post-secondary institutions for Imperial County students.

10. A Collaborative Culture

11. 2004-2005 Goals • Articulate a plan for a common P-16 vision to increase student eligibility, admittance, and attendance at post-secondary options. • Develop a P-12 College Access Plan to increase student/family understanding of and access to the educational system. • Develop and implement a countywide P-16 plan to increase student success in mathematics.

12. Inclusion and Cooperation Early Victories! • Established P-16 Council • Funding by educational institutions (MOU) • Teacher Training (IVC, SDSU, UCR & ICOE) • Counselors’ Retreat and Comprehensive Guidance Plans • 4th year of the implementation of Summer Algebra Academies with a culminating Parent Conference • Parent Institutes for Quality Education (PIQE)

13. Mathematics Articulation… • Documented success of Algebra Academies • Continuum of math training for K-16 aspiring, new and veteran math teachers • MATE Institutes at UCR • Developed protocols and materials to connect the idea of a college culture to the on-going math support • Training for counselors on Counseling Standards

14. What got our attention: Data! Data! Data!

15. Imperial CountyUC Eligibility Rate by Year * Projected

16. Number of Imperial County UC Applicants by Year * Projected

17. Number of Imperial County Students Admitted to UC by Year

18. Number of Imperial County Students Enrolled in UC by Year * Projected

19. Institutional Partners

20. PROGRAM PARTNERS

21. Intensive summer residential programs focusing on mathematics and science research at UCD, UCI, and UCSC (UCSD – Summer 2005). Summer 2001 = 1 application and 0 attendees Summer 2002 = 25 applications and 15 attendees Summer 2003 = 96 applications and 46 attendees Summer 2004 = 57 applications and 31 attendees Summer 2005 = 62 applications and # of attendees TBD

22. College Going Initiative Sponsored Activities Mathematics Academy for Teaching Excellence (MATE) - Two week intensive mathematics professional development training at UC Riverside. Summer 2001 - 0 Imperial County participants Summer 2002 - 6 Imperial County participants Summer 2003 - 14 Imperial County participants Summer 2004 - 15 Imperial County participants Summer 2005 - 15 Imperial County participants

23. College Going Initiative Sponsored Activities UC/CSU Admit Reception

24. College Going Initiative Parent Conferences

25. College Going Initiative Sponsored Activities Counselors Retreat at UCSD

26. UC & CSU RECRUITERS SUMMIT

27. Inter-Segmental Higher Education Week 1.Fall -Higher Education Week I - 11 Higher Education Institutions - Senior Presentations (2103 students) - Parent Nights (8 high schools) - Senior College Application Workshops 2. Spring – Higher Education Week II - Junior Presentations

28. Our Schools in 2005 • 72.2% Hispanic • 67.8% speak a language other than English • 55% of students below federal poverty level • 16 districts with 52 K-12 schools • 66% at decile 5 or below (2004) • 8% in some phase of state or federal corrective action • 10.8% UC Eligible (2003 data)

29. WFIM!!! • Realizing the benefits • Developing accountability • Building in sustainability! • Changing history… Making a difference for students, families and our community!

30. 2005-2006 Goals • Increase access by students and their families to resources and information to make college a reality. • Improve student performance in mathematics and academic literacy, especially writing. • Implement a system to collect and analyze relevant data and take action to increase college eligibility, acceptance, and attendance.

31. Next Steps • Expand Imperial County college-going initiative partners. • Develop strong communication and student transitions between schools. • Create parent-teacher training teams. • Build in sustainability!

32. Thank you! Contact: Javier Ramos, Coordinator P-16 Council/College-going Initiative jramos@icoe.org (760) 312-6190