The New Normal: Supporting Nontraditional Students on the Path to a Degree
Author: González-Rivera, Christian
Date: 2016-12-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Nontraditional Education,College Students,State Aid,Tuition,Community Colleges,Graduation Rate,Acceleration (Education),Part Time Students,Low Income Students,Intervention,Academic Achievement,Educational Strategies,Academic Degrees,Credentials,Job Skills,Employment Potential,Administrator Attitudes,Interviews,College Presidents,Scheduling,Student Needs,College Credits,Prior Learning,Career Development,Remedial Instruction,Student Financial Aid,Educational Innovation,Enrollment Trends

More New Yorkers than ever are enrolling in universities and community colleges, driven by seismic changes in the economy that have made postsecondary credentials nearly indispensable for today's workforce. On college campuses across the state, the makeup of the student body has changed. College is no longer just for &quot;traditional&quot; students who graduate high school at age 18, enroll directly in college, and are financially supported by family. In New York City, 27 percent of community college students are age 25 and older; half have a paying job, with 52 percent of working students employed more than 20 hours a week; and 16 percent have children whom they are supporting financially. While part-timers, older students, students with jobs, and students who are caring for children have become the new normal in community colleges from the Bronx to Buffalo, New York has been slow to develop a support system for helping nontraditional students succeed. The state has one of the most generous tuition assistance programs in the country, however few nontraditional students can take advantage of it. Likewise, New York is home to some of the most innovative programs in the nation to increase graduation rates at community colleges--including the Accelerated Study in Associate Programs (ASAP) initiative at CUNY--but these programs are primarily geared toward full-time students. Community colleges and education agencies in other states have experimented with new models to support nontraditional students, but education officials and academic leaders in New York have mainly watched from the sidelines. The need for new approaches is clear. In today's economy, community colleges are one of the most important platforms for elevating low-income New Yorkers into the middle class and enabling out-of-work New Yorkers to develop marketable skills for the new economy. Far too many of the New Yorkers enrolling in these institutions are dropping out without a degree--and much of the problem stems from alarmingly low success rates for nontraditional students. Helping more nontraditional students succeed will require pooling both academic and nonacademic interventions. By implementing strategies that help more nontraditional students earn a postsecondary degree or credential, New York's institutions of higher education can provide a path to sustainable employment for millions of under-credentialed New Yorkers. This policy brief-based on numerous interviews with community college presidents, education experts, and policymakers--presents a menu of options for New York education officials and community college leaders designed to speed the progress of nontraditional students toward a degree.