LSUE, UL recognition touted on CNBC website

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A year ago, LSUE and the University of Louisiana Lafayette were named as one of six high-performing pairs of community colleges and universities with strong transfer student outcomes in a report from the Aspen Institute and the Community College Research Center at Teachers College, Columbia University.
That might have been a recognition tucked into the files and never mentioned again.
But on May 30, the CNBC website brought the LSUE/UL Lafayette report back to the surface in the site’s College Game Plan section. The link is: cnbc.com/2017/05/26/six-community-colleges-that-will-fast-track-you-to-a-bachelors-degree.html.
The story states, “Taking the community college route to a four-year university can save you thousands of dollars — and these six schools can boost your odds of a successful transfer.”
Average tuition and fees at a community college were $3,520 in the 2016-2017 school year, the story states. That compares to $9,650 for four-year state school and $33,480 at private four-year schools.
“LSU Eunice and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette — a common transfer destination — are an hour apart, which can hamper the progress of students who’d like to migrate to a four-year school but need to manage work and families,” the story states.
“The schools solved this problem by establishing a program that will allow students to complete a bachelor’s degree in education on the community college’s campus.
“LSU Eunice also offers advising services for undecided students to help them narrow down what they want so they can concentrate on working toward their degree and making a transfer,” it stated.
LSUE Chancellor Kimberly Russell said, “Thanks to our dedicated LSUE faculty members who serve as academic advisors to our students and to our guided 2 plus 2 pathways to LSU, ULL, NSU and McNeese, LSUE was among six community colleges nationally recognized for our students’ transfer success. Nearly half of all students who begin at LSUE transfer to a four-year university to complete a baccalaureate degree. We are so pleased to have been selected, and we will continue to develop more innovative pathways that lead to student completion, graduation, and success in their chosen careers.”
Van Reed, LSUE director of public relations, said the 10 year average of first-time, full-time freshman completing a bachelor’s degree within six years is 19.35 percent at LSUE. The state overage of all two-year schools in Louisiana is 7.5 percent.
LSUE’s retention rate for first-time, full-time students who stay for more than year and students who continue on to four-year schools combined is 66.4 percent. The state average for two year schools is 53.1 percent
The other community college and four-year institutions named are: Front Range Community College and Colorado State University; Manchester Community College and Eastern Connecticut State University; Broward State College and Florida International University and Florida Atlantic University; Holyoke Community College and University of Massachusetts Amherst; and Everett Community College and University of Washington Seattle and Western Washington University.
The report CNBC cited, “The Transfer Playbook: Essential Practices for Two- and Four-Year Colleges,” provides a detailed guide for two- and four-year colleges on how to improve bachelor’s degree outcomes for students who start at community colleges.
Every year, millions of students aiming to attain a bachelor’s degree attend community colleges because of their affordability and accessibility, a news release about the report stated. While the vast majority of students report they want to earn a bachelor’s degree, only 14 percent of degree-seeking students achieve that goal within six years, according to recent research from CCRC,
The report includes the following about the LSUE and UL Lafayette “2+2” education program. Established in 1999 through the joint efforts of LSU Eunice and UL Lafayette, a “2+2” bachelor’s degree program in elementary education allows students to complete all four years of coursework on the LSU Eunice campus. Each year, the UL Lafayette portion of the program enrolls approximately 20 students, many of whom live in Eunice and have children, which makes the hour-long commute to the UL Lafayette campus more difficult.
The central features of the program are as follows:
— UL Lafayette has specific faculty who teach at the LSU Eunice campus. This way, UL Lafayette faculty have an established presence on the LSU Eunice campus and can tailor their instruction and activities to the LSU Eunice campus context.
— First-year LSU Eunice students map the courses and activities they need to complete their degree—tailored to reflect whether they will commute to Lafayette to complete the program on UL Lafayette’s campus or remain at LSU Eunice for the final two years.
— A UL Lafayette advisor visits the LSU Eunice campus weekly to field students’ questions about their pathway options and to remind students of key milestones they must meet to stay on track, such as taking the PRAXIS certification exams.
— A UL Lafayette math faculty member on the LSU Eunice campus communicates regularly with math faculty on the UL Lafayette campus to ensure continued alignment in math courses.