Effective and Equitable Transfer Practices in the California Community Colleges

Fall
2020
Topic
Articulation and Transfer
Committee
Transfer, Articulation, and Student Services Committee

As the California Community Colleges system strives to meet the needs of students, one important part of its mission is transfer, as this goal is the one most identified by community college students. In order to address the needs and goals of so many students, community colleges throughout the state must provide resources that can guide students through the process. Transfer should command considerable attention at community colleges for a number of reasons.

Title 5 §51027 requires that “the governing board of each community college district shall recognize transfer as one of its primary missions, and shall place priority emphasis on the preparation and transfer of underrepresented students, including African-American, Chicano/Latino, American Indian, disabled, low-income and other students historically and currently underrepresented in the transfer process.” Embedded in this Title 5 section are equity considerations. Community colleges are required to place emphasis on underrepresented students, and since these students make up the largest percentage of community college students throughout the state, effectively serving the transfer needs of the student population will partially fulfill the mandate of Title 5. Additional strategies and interventions are required for minoritized populations.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LOCAL ACADEMIC SENATES

  • Embrace new transfer partnerships, including the UC Transfer Pathways, to facilitate the transfer path for students.
  • Facilitate and encourage the partnership between discipline faculty, curriculum committees, and counseling faculty to create degrees that align with new transfer pathways such as the UC Transfer Pathways.
  • Regularly evaluate disaggregated student outcomes and create recommendations to enhance and support student transfer.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR COLLEGES

  • Make scheduling decisions that accommodate UCTPs and ADTs.
  • Review curriculum to ensure necessary courses exist for UCTPs and ADTs.
  • Reach out to students that are transfer ready to help them reach their goals.
  • Embrace the various transfer partnerships including the Pilot UC Transfer degrees. This process will require collaboration between local curriculum committees and discipline faculty to create the degrees.
  • Have counselors that specialize in transfer, including an articulation officer, and whenever possible house these experts in a dedicated space that can not only help build a transfer community but can provide space for collaborations with others within the campus community.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS

  • Provide a dedicated and stable funding stream for transfer infrastructure such as transfer centers to facilitate increasing the number of students who are transfer ready in accordance with the Vision for Success.
  • Direct the Chancellor’s Office to work with UC and CSU partners to ensure that students who are transfer ready have access to a university that is accessible, especially to students who for financial or other reasons are unable to relocate hundreds of miles away.
  • Advocate for a funding mechanism that incentivizes the hiring of more faculty counselors.