Board asks for more data regarding County high schools, overall trend in last decade, and ponders whether remedial classes are needed at all
40% require remedial help.
According to data gathered and reported to the District Governing Board in November by Tom Hughes, Yavapai Community College Director of Institutional Effectiveness and Research, about forty percent of incoming students require courses in remedial math, English or both. “They come not ready for College,” said Mr. Hughes. He pointed out that this costs them more money in terms of tuition and increases the timeline before they will graduate from Yavapai with a degree.
The Governing Board was interested in obtaining additional information about this figure. Chair Ray Sigafoos wanted to know if things had changed over the past years. Does the 40% represent and increase, decrease, or no change in unpreparedness over the past? The College agreed to respond at a later date with this information.
Third District Representative Paul Chevalier wanted information about the various high schools in the District. Do some graduate more students under-prepared for College than others? He also wanted to know if there regional differences between the east and west sides of the County. The College has the information and will provide it at a later date to the Board.
Second District Representative Deb McCasland shared that during the latest Association of Community College Trustees conference she attended that some community colleges have done away with developmental courses. The reason for this is a belief that students involved in developmental courses before they get to credit courses “tend to drop out” before completion. Florida, for example, is a state that has eliminated developmental courses.
You may view Mr. Hughes report to the Board on this topic and the Board discussion in the short four minute video clip below.