Lone Star College-North Harris has been selected by the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education to be one of 12 Founding Institutions for the pilot of the Gardner Institute’s Gateways to Completion™ (G2C™) process. Gateways to Completion is a structured course transformation process that will allow faculty and staff at Lone Star College-North Harris to analyze student and institutional performance in lower division gateway courses. The Gardner Institute developed the G2C process with extensive input from the thirty-two member G2C National Advisory Committee.
By accepting the invitation to be involved in the G2C pilot, Lone Star College-North Harris has agreed to focus its analysis on up to five high-risk courses. The courses will be identified using evidence collected during the first year of the three-year G2C process. The analysis will inform the creation of evidenced-based course transformation plans that Lone Star College-North Harris will subsequently implement.
“Gateway courses enroll large numbers of undergraduate students,” stated Drew Koch, the Gardner Institute’s Executive Vice President. “Research studies, such as Clifford Adelman’s Answers in the Toolbox and The Toolbox Revisited, show that students who do not succeed in gateway courses are significantly less likely to complete their stated programs of study and they are also are less likely to complete college degrees anywhere.”
“Failure rates in these courses at institutions across the nation often exceed 40% and 50%,” Koch continued. “Given the connection between the completion of a postsecondary credential and both economic and personal well-being, these high failure rates are unacceptable. The nation simply cannot realize its Completion Agenda goals and institutions cannot maintain the public’s trust if colleges and universities do not take decisive action to address high failure rates in gateway courses. Lone Star College-North Harris clearly recognizes the need to improve student learning and success in gateway courses. We are quite pleased that its faculty and staff will use G2C as part of their ongoing efforts to intentionally and positively address the issue.”
“We have more than 17,000 students pursuing their educational goals at LSC-North Harris, and we are committed to their success,” said Dr. Steve Head, president of LSC-North Harris. “Our participation in this program will give us an even greater understanding of the challenges facing students, and will guide us as we find new ways to promote academic completion.”
Lone Star College-North Harris joins 11 other G2C Founding Institutions from across the United States. The 12 institutions include: American Public University System; Arkansas Tech University; Ashford University; Florida International University; Kennesaw State University; Lansing Community College; Lone Star College-North Harris; Metropolitan State University – Denver; Nevada State College; North Dakota State University; University of Houston – Downtown; and the University of Rhode Island.
“The cohort’s composition shows that this is an issue that spans all of academe,” shared John Gardner, President of the Gardner Institute. “We applaud Lone Star College-North Harris for its willingness to take action on this issue. The institution is a true leader and innovator in the student success movement.”
Faculty at Lone Star College-North Harris will play a significant role in the G2C work. The plans the faculty generate working with their academic and student affairs colleagues will be supported with G2C predictive analytics and dashboard tools. In addition, Lone Star College-North Harris will join the other 11 G2C participating institutions at the annual G2C Community of Practice meeting and the annual Gateway Course Experience Conference.
About The Gardner Institute
The Gardner Institute is a North Carolina-based, federally-recognized non-profit organization. Since 1999, the Institute has worked with hundreds of postsecondary institutions within the United States as well as a select number of international institutions to improve undergraduate student learning, success, retention and completion rates.
About Lone Star College
Lone Star College System has been opening doors to a better community for 40 years. Founded in 1973, LSCS remains steadfast in its commitment to student success and credential completion. Today, with 78,000 students in credit classes, and a total enrollment of more than 90,000, Lone Star College System is the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area and the fastest-growing community college system in the nation. Dr. Richard Carpenter is the chancellor of LSCS, which consists of six colleges including LSC-CyFair, LSC-Kingwood, LSC-Montgomery, LSC-North Harris, LSC-Tomball and LSC-University Park, five centers, LSC-University Center at Montgomery, LSC-University Center at University Park, Lone Star Corporate College, and LSC-Online. To learn more visit LoneStar.edu.
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