Anne Arundel Community College
PAE-10: Affordability and Access Programs

AACC participates in Educational Talent Search (ETS), a federally funded TRIO program that provides early interventions to help students from families where neither parent graduated from college better understand their educational opportunities and options. ETS offers a variety of services for 6th- through 12th-grade students, as well as their parents and guardians.

For fall 2010, AACC was the third lowest in total tuition cost and fees among all 16 community colleges in Maryland. AACC believes no student should be restricted from attending college because of limited financial resources. The college offers grants, scholarships, loans, and/or employment programs to eligible full-time and part-time students in all degree programs and most certificate programs. AACC students received a total of $31,923,432 in federal financial aid (grants, loans and work study) in FY 2010. In addition, 1,433 students received $1,134,044 from Maryland state awards.

-- In 2009, the college launched Student Success 2020, a multi-tiered initiative driven by the goal of doubling the number of degree, certificate, and workforce credential recipients by 2020. In December 2009, AACC’s students, faculty, and staff, together with stakeholders and partners, launched Student Success 2020, outlining plans to build on the college’s commitment to student success by helping more students be more successful. The college will achieve its goal by: • Helping all students identify meaningful educational goals to transfer associate degrees into baccalaureate programs, to enter the workforce or move within the workforce, or to earn professional certifications or other workforce credentials; • Building systems and programs to track, monitor, and support students’ progress in achieving their goals; • Involving faculty and staff in examining all programmatic and functional processes to identify and address points of vulnerability in students’ journeys to goal completion; • Making changes necessary to increase student success, ranging from those that individuals or departments can effect immediately to academic, college-wide, or board-level policy decisions; • Integrating the initiative within the goals and objectives of the college’s strategic plan. Further, in May, 2010, AACC joined Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count, a national commitment to student success and institutional improvement, aimed at identifying new strategies to improve student success, close achievement gaps and increase retention, persistence and completion rates college-wide. In support of the college mission, AACC’s Office of Institutional Professional Development/Adjunct Faculty Development supports organizational and individual professional growth and development by offering a wide selection of learning opportunities including topics such as: diversity; teaching non-traditional students; online teaching and learning; assessment of learning; addressing disabilities in the classroom; security awareness; and emergency preparedness.

The Student Achievement and Success Program (SASP) coordinates the use of college resources to provide individualized academic support, mentoring, educational goal setting and planning services targeted to educationally disadvantaged students who are either low-income, first generation and/or disabled. Of the 537 students who have participated in the program, 77% are minority. The college evaluates the effectiveness of the SASP program, the results of which indicate that program participants score higher on various measures of success than do students with similar educationally disadvantaged characteristics but who do not participate in SASP (SASP-eligible). Since fall 2004, the average retention rate for SASP minority students (50%) has been statistically significantly higher than that of both SASP-eligible students (30%) and other minority students that were not educationally disadvantaged (47%). AACC’s Summer Bridge Programs, four-week long programs that provide a comprehensive college experience for both African American and Hispanic students, promote both academic and social issues. Adelante, a Hispanic Summer Bridge program, began in 2008 and mirrors the successful Summer Bridge Program for African Americans that began in 2001. Adelante is designed to ease the transition into college for Hispanic students by providing course work in the humanities and arts, an introduction to college resources, college expectations and Hispanic faculty/staff professionals. Through coursework and focused cultural activities, students are exposed to academic experiences in English, mathematics, literature, art and humanities. In an effort to encourage developmental students to enroll in and successfully complete their required developmental coursework, the First Year Experience (FYE) program was established in the fall 2010 semester. FYE is aimed at improving the success of first-generation college students who are also required to take two or more developmental courses. Developed as a new and separate program within SASP, the intent in developing FYE is to build upon components that have been successful when working with SASP students. FYE program components include: • Intrusive and individualized academic advising and support • Faculty-led study/life skills labs • Common course readings • Use of Noel-Levitz College Student Inventory (CSI) • Use of Connect Yard Educational Network • Priority registration for courses

For fall 2010, AACC was the third lowest in total tuition cost and fees among all 16 community colleges in Maryland. AACC believes no student should be restricted from attending college because of limited financial resources. The college offers grants, scholarships, loans, and/or employment programs to eligible full-time and part-time students in all degree programs and most certificate programs. AACC students received a total of $31,923,432 in federal financial aid (grants, loans and work study) in FY 2010. In addition, 1,433 students received $1,134,044 from Maryland state awards. The AACC Foundation Inc. authorized $451,934 to 428 students in FY 2010. Scholarships range from $50 to $4,500 per award. The foundation manages more than 250 funds supporting scholarships and college programs. Community organizations and individuals established 14 new funds for priority campus needs through the foundation in FY 2010. In 2010, AACC was the recipient of a $598,000 National Science Foundation grant over 5 years to support low-income, academically talented students who are enrolled full-time in one of AACC’s Engineering or Engineering Technologies programs.

--- AACC provides Parent Orientation sessions designed to provide families with information, resources and ideas to promote student success for incoming freshmen.

AACC’s Summer Bridge Programs, four-week long programs that provide a comprehensive college experience for both African American and Hispanic students, promote both academic and social issues. Adelante, a Hispanic Summer Bridge program, began in 2008 and mirrors the successful Summer Bridge Program for African Americans that began in 2001. Adelante is designed to ease the transition into college for Hispanic students by providing course work in the humanities and arts, an introduction to college resources, college expectations and Hispanic faculty/staff professionals. Through coursework and focused cultural activities, students are exposed to academic experiences in English, mathematics, literature, art and humanities.

AACC is an open-door institution which admits those who may benefit from post-secondary education. To help students succeed in college courses, AACC established policies and procedures to evaluate and assess their academic abilities. With learning as its central mission, AACC responds to the needs of a diverse community by offering high quality, affordable and accessible learning opportunities and is accountable to its stakeholders. The college’s mission mandates further emphasize student success, access and affordability. These include: Student Achievement and Success - providing appropriate services in support of learner access, success and development and providing appropriate placement for all learners; Access and Affordability - providing accessible learning opportunities responsive to a range of community needs and working to make all programs and courses affordable to those who can benefit; and Diversity - promoting a campus climate that is inviting to and supportive of diverse populations (dimensions of diversity include race, color, age, religion, sex, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, ability, genetic information and veteran status).