Postsecondary

During its 30-year history of success AVID has demonstrated by preparing students, mostly underserved from families without a college-going tradition, it is now essential to reach beyond the secondary level. Our strong connections to postsecondary institutions prompted colleges and universities to ask the AVID Center to extend our efforts to college students and create the possibility of a college support pipeline with grades 4-16. 

There are hard truths to which AVID can bring hope: Only half of our college students receive a degree and 30% of entering freshmen enroll in remedial coursework. These results worsen for community college, minority and low-income students. We understand the urgency to support college-goers and the need to build K-16 bridges that define a coherent system with a watchful eye on what students can achieve with rigor, high expectations, and support.

Objectives

• Develop and implement AVID models at the postsecondary level. One model includes the AVID elective class, interdisciplinary site team, support structures and tutorials, and curriculum. The other model includes contracted support by an AVID team to improve an institution's existing structures and provide pedagogy training for college instructors
• Conduct research on pilot projects
• Develop postsecondary curriculum

Postsecondary Pilots

We are determining appropriate professional development and examining barriers for students and needed support structures for their persistence and completion. Currently, there are three college campuses, diverse in geographic setting, student populations, and size, participating in pilot implementations:

• Los Medanos Community College, Pittsburg, CA
  A cohort of students is enrolled in an AVID course; a Site Team has planned for expansion and further professional development using AVID strategies to engage students and support their learning.
  
  
• San Francisco State University and City College of San Francisco,
  San Francisco, CA
  This co-developed academy is using AVID as a student support structure to a 4-year degree program focused on social justice and health.
  
  
• Skagit Valley College, Mt. Vernon, WA
  In order to better prepare students to enter and complete the registered nursing program, Skagit Valley College is beginning their post-secondary pilot efforts to infuse AVID strategies in nursing content and prerequisite coursework in sciences and math. Faculty in these departments are learning AVID strategies in Writing, Inquiry, Collaboration and Reading (WICR) to help students develop the classroom skills necessary to master the content for success in the nursing program and beyond. The next identified step in the pilot is to teach students AVID strategies based in the college success courses that are being taught for science and developmental math students beginning in fall 2009.

Want to learn more?

ACCESS Research Journal, Issue 14.3, Fall 2008 features the following article about Postsecondary:

Beyond High School: AVID's Postsecondary Project
Strong connections to postsecondary institutions have caused colleges and universities to ask AVID Center about extending AVID's reach to support students in college, creating the possibility of a college readiness pipeline with grades 4-16.