FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 24, 2003
CONTACT: Luis Mercado, Palo Alto College Public Affairs
210.921.5077
Palo Alto College ‘Top Performer’ in National Community College Report
Palo Alto College is among a handful of community colleges highlighted on a Web site and featured in a national report for its "outstanding performance" in the areas of student effort, academic challenge and support for learners.
The findings are part of a survey administered directly to community college students last spring as part of the Community College Survey of Student Engagement, commonly called CCSSE (pronounced "ses-see").
The college is among only five medium-sized colleges of 4,500-7,999 students featured on the CCSSE.org website as "top performers on three or more benchmarks in 2003."
Approximately 65,300 students at 93 colleges in 31 states participated.
When compared to 20 other medium-sized CCSSE schools, Palo Alto College outperformed its peers in 38 different indicators.
The CCSSE is administered directly to community college students. It solicits input about institutional practices and student behaviors demonstrated to promote student learning and retention.
Using randomly selected classes generated at CCSSE, 82 Palo Alto classes and 1,379 students were selected to participate in the survey with 693 surveys completed.
The survey consisted of 157 questions and was administered by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Research at the college.
Transfer and frequency of use of skill labs are two areas where Palo Alto scored above its peers as well as all other college participants.
Students at Palo Alto College have a strong desire to transfer to a four-year institution. Sixty-eight percent of survey respondents stated that they were likely or very likely to transfer to a four-year university after attending Palo Alto.
In comparison, 56% of respondents from both peer and all participating colleges stated that they were likely to transfer.
When asked about the number of times the college skill labs were used, 55% of respondents reported that they "sometimes or often" made use of the labs. Fewer students at peer colleges- 40% - reported using skill labs "sometimes or often."
CCSSE will release a 2003 National Report featuring national benchmarks of effective educational practices in community colleges. Palo Alto is featured in the report, which focuses on about 15 community colleges that, when compared to other colleges of similar size, are demonstrating outstanding performance on one of more of five benchmarks.
More information about the CCSSE results is available by contacting the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Research at 210/921-5302 or by accessing the CCSSE website at www.CCSSE.org.
Palo Alto College is a fully accredited community college located on the Southside, and awards associate degrees, short-term certificates and offers non-credit continuing education classes. The college is recognized nationally for its high transfer rate. The campus is located at 1400 W. Villaret Blvd. at I-410 South and Texas Hwy. 16.