FACE Wins $5 Million Grant To Improve College Completion Rates
The Federation for a Competitive Economy (FACE), a partnership of schools and
businesses in Riverside and San Bernardino counties in California, has won a $5
million Governor's Award for Innovation in Higher Education. FACE won the grant
for a proposal to help ensure area high school students are prepared for college
and that college students complete their bachelor's degree programs. It was one
of five proposals to win grants, out of a total of 57 submissions.
College completion rates in the region are are lower than the state average,
in a state that already has the one of the lowest bachelor's degree graduation
rates, according to information from the organization. To address this
challenge, California State University, San
Bernardino (CSUSB) in partnership with the University of California, Riverside, multiple community colleges, school
districts, governments, businesses, the Inland Empire Economic Partnership and
the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership developed a proposal that aims to
increase the number of high school graduates who are prepared for college and
also increase the number of college students earning bachelor's degrees.
The proposal's benchmarks for meeting those goals by 2020 include:
- Using FACE and its 175 members to align educational policies and
initiatives between the two counties to improve college outcomes and keep
those college graduates in the area;
- Reducing the number of college freshmen who need remediation classes by
20 percent by increasing college readiness at the high school level,
particularly in math;
- Increasing the number of bachelor's degrees earned at area universities
by 15 percent;
- Increasing the number of students completing their bachelor's degrees
within six years by 10 percent; and
- Strengthening partnerships with area industries to create more college
internship opportunities and help students develop business relationships
while they're in college.
A key component of the proposal aims to improve high school math instruction.
According to the proposal, more than half of CSUSB freshmen need remediation in
math, English or both. FACE proposed three solutions to the remediation problem,
including regional adoption of the Early Assessment Program, math and English
summer academies for high school graduates and a fourth year of high school math
for juniors who earn a score of "conditionally ready" on the Early Assessment
Program.
As a result of winning the Governor's Award, FACE anticipates that it will
receive additional funding from private foundations such as the James Irvine
Foundation, the California Futures Foundation and the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation.
About the Author
Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at [email protected].