Alliance for College and Career Student Success

Alliance for College and Career Student Success for College and Career Student Success (ACCSS) includes members from ECC District 509 and multiple local school districts. These districts include Community Unit School District 300, Central District 301, St. Charles School District 303, and Unit District 46.

Vision

All students in our region, from all backgrounds and abilities, have the opportunities and support to succeed in college, career, and civic life.

Mission

The mission of ACCSS is to align and leverage the partner organizations' joint resources and expertise and the communities they serve through continuous improvement of secondary-to-postsecondary educational systems that empower and support all students in the region toward postsecondary success.

Shared Values

In pursuing our vision and achieving our mission, we value and practice:

  • Equity-centered policies that foster model practices;
  • Aligned goals, collaborative planning, and efficient operations;
  • Robust, inclusive dialogue with the engagement of stakeholders;
  • Data-informed decision-making based on common metrics to inform our focus;
  • Research-based strategies, including innovation built on models of best practice;
  • Strong systems of support for staff and students.

This initiative promotes collaboration between educators from kindergarten through college and careers. Area educators from public and private education systems are welcome to participate. The goal of this collaboration between ECC and public school districts in Community College District 509 is student readiness. It ensures that all District 509 students are prepared for college-level courses and success after high school.

Members of ACCSS work in cross-organizational teams to establish regional priorities for strengthening regional students' college and career readiness. In recent years, priorities have been largely driven by Illinois' education legislation, the Illinois Postsecondary & Workforce Readiness Act. This act is also known as PWR Public Act 99-0674.

Collaborative Priorities

The Alliance for College and Career Student Success at ECC establishes yearly priority areas for collaboration and student success improvement. The current areas of focus are outlined below. This web page's sidebar includes quarterly college and career readiness reports detailing progress toward the priorities for a given year.

College-Career Pathways

ACCSS develops robust college-career pathways to help students move seamlessly from high school to college-level courses in specific career fields. These pathways align with regional employer expectations, meet state-defined competencies, and promote student preparation for regional employment opportunities. Course maps identify high-value dual credit courses to help students earn college credit while still in high school. The following publications detail recent products of our collaboration:

 
Our teams define regional and district-specific course maps to guide students. They also collaborate to create opportunities for team-based challenges and work-based learning. This work supports the development of the College and Career Pathway Endorsements in our district high schools.

Student Transitions

The state of Illinois has published a detailed framework to guide students, families, and educators in college and career planning. This framework outlines the experiences and information students need to make informed decisions. The framework acknowledges that preparation starts in 8th grade and continues through high school, evolving as students develop.

Several local school districts have adopted the Postsecondary & Career Expectations (PaCE) framework. These include Community Unit School District 300, Central District 301, St. Charles School District 303, and Unit District 46.

  1. Career Exploration and Development;
  2. Postsecondary Education Exploration, Preparation, and Selection;
  3. Financial Aid and Literacy.

The ACCSS team collaborates to plan regional college and career readiness events, pooling resources for students and families. For more information about upcoming workshops, see the College-Career Readiness Events link in the sidebar.

Instructional Design

ACCSS members believe all students should graduate high school ready for college, careers, and life, prepared for their future. This expectation is reinforced by the current federal and state education legislation defining student readiness expectations. To aid regional educators in supporting their students, ACCSS provides various professional development opportunities for educators:

  • High school counselor training on postsecondary pathways, coaching strategies, and tools to help youth explore their passions and goals.
  • Transitional math instructors attend orientation before teaching the high school math course for the first time. They also participate in ongoing professional development to assess and strengthen student learning.
  • Dual-credit high school instructors participate in orientation before teaching the college course for the first time. They receive one-on-one support from ECC faculty who also teach these college courses. Elgin Community College follows the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships accreditation standards. This ensures high school college courses meet the same quality and rigor as those on the college campus.
  • Teach CTE is an annual conference for regional career-technical program instructors from secondary and higher education institutions. At this event, instructors learn about evidence-based instructional practices and collaborate to strengthen student learning and engagement.

Transitional Courses

Transitional courses are part of the Illinois Post-Secondary Workforce Readiness Act (PWR). They are developed collaboratively by high school and college educators and taught in high schools. These courses give high school seniors not college-ready opportunities to improve their communication/literacy, and math skills. Students passing transitional courses with a C or better gain direct placement into college-level courses, bypassing placement tests.

  • Transitional Math Courses: High school and college faculty developed three transitional math courses using statewide curriculum resources for math education: College Algebra, Quantitative Literacy Statistics, and Technical Math.
  • Transitional English Courses: In April 2020, Illinois released transitional English course parameters and competencies recommendations. After ISBE, ICCB, and IBHE adoption, ACCSS will partner with school districts to plan the implementation of new transitional courses.

College Readiness Data and Trends

The ACCSS uses data to inform collaboration priorities. Regular review of regional college-career metrics ensures collaboration results in meaningful improvements for students. Data sources used include:

  • Illinois Report Card: Data on each public school and its performance on key state metrics.
  • National Student Clearinghouse: National data regarding collegiate enrollment and degree information for U.S. college and university students.
  • ACCSS Data Sharing: Pooled district and ECC data to illustrate regional college readiness trends. An online data visualization tool is available only for Alliance for College and Career Student Success members (login required via ECC's Tableau tool).

Students who attend ECC can demonstrate readiness for college coursework using several pieces of data (see Minimum Competencies and Placement Testing). Since the Alliance for College and Career Student Success’s creation in 2006, there have been increases in reading, writing, and math.

The following charts illustrate college readiness rate trends for students from District 509 high schools who enroll at Elgin Community College.

College Readiness Overall

In fall 2019, nearly one-third of graduating students from Community College District 509 high schools demonstrate they have college-level skills in reading, writing, and math. This is up from only 24% of graduates in 2006.

College Readiness by Subject

The preparation of graduating students from Community College District 509 high schools in the individual subject areas varies. In fall 2019, 81% of students demonstrated they have college-level skills in reading and writing compared to only 33% in math. For all three subject areas, the percentage of graduates with college-level skills has increased since 2006.

In ECC’s community college district 509, the college-going rate is higher than the national average college-going rates - PDF. The Alliance continues to focus on maintaining and increasing high rates of college-going and persistence.

College-Going Rates Chart: Percent of students enrolled in college after high school graduation. All district 300, 301, 303, and U-46 students combined.

64% of the Community College District 509 high school graduates from 2018 are enrolled in college the first fall after high school graduation. The percent of 2017 graduates enrolling in college the first fall was 66% but then rose to 73% within one year of high school graduation. These percentages exceed national averages.

College enrollment information for high school graduates provided by National Student Clearinghouse, Fall 2018.

Although not all who take college classes seek a degree or certificate, completion of these milestones within 6 years is one measure of the region’s educational success. The Alliance continues to focus on maintaining and increasing high rates of college-going and persistence degree or certificate completion - PDF so that our students can achieve their goals.

Degree/Certificate Completion Chart: Cumulative Percent of Students Earning a College Degree (Certificate or Higher), Within 6 Years of HS Graduation, By Race/Ethnicity. All district 300, 301, 303, and U-46 students combined.

38% of all Community College District 509 high school graduates from 2013 earned a college degree within six years of high school graduation. Different racial/ethnic groups demonstrated differing degree completion rates: 20% of Black students; 31% of Latino students; 41% of White students; and 49% of Asian students.

College enrollment information for high school graduates provided by National Student Clearinghouse, Fall 2018

Contact

Dean of College Transitions and Secondary Partnerships

Building G, Room G219
847-214-7824
sgonzalez@elgin.edu