CAMPUS
NEWS
STUDENT SUCCESS
TRANSFERS
After several years of increasing
transfers to four-year universities,
data shows that fewer Santa
Ana College are moving on to
post-secondary institutions, even
as transfer rates grow overall
statewide.
Since 2010, about 4,000 students
each semester transfer from SAC
to a post-secondary institution.
For the 2016-2017 school year,
however, the number of students
who transferred decreased by 25%.
At the same time, completion
rates for certificates and degrees
are steadily climbing, showing that
not everyone who enrolls at SAC
seeks to graduate or transfer to a
four-year university.
“We have different types of
students who have different
purposes of going to school such
as older people who own shops,
who want to learn to help their
businesses, or students who are
going to school to get an asso-
ciate degree or certificate,” SAC’s
Transfer Center Student Services
Coordinator Vanessa Orozco-
Martinez said.
Nearly 13,000 students obtained
a certificate or associate degree
after the 2016-2017 school year,
double the number from the
previous year. SAC’s 2017 Fact
Book shows that the age group
at SAC ranges from 18 to 55 and
older.
“For art majors like myself, it
benefits us more if we stay longer
to learn more for a cheaper price,”
SAC student Isabel Gonzalez said.
/el Don Staff
Additional reporting by Amy Ngheim
Your Path
Your Future
New educational plans will put all
students on a clear road to graduation
Starting fall 2019, incoming fi rst-year students will
select from an array of pathways when enrolling at
Santa Ana College.
Think of Guided Pathways as color by numbers. The
design is a potential career, the numbers are two-year
plans, and the colors are areas of interests that help
them step onto their selected pathway.
“Imagine if a student’s ‘next step’ was not just
obvious, but dancing off the page in pulsating neon
letters,” said California Community College Chancellor
Eloy Ortiz Oakley. “Imagine that ‘next step’ was a literal
step, on a literal pathway, with a clear and determined
destination.”
All of SAC’s nearly 300 degrees and certifi cates are
being re-organized into seven broader Career and
Academic Pathways, which will provide students with
resources specifi c to their interests.
For example, a student wanting to earn a certifi cate
in entrepreneurship and innovation will be placed
with like-minded students under the Business and
Paralegal Career and Academic Pathway and given a
comprehensive plan for completion.
Alongside educating the various learning
communities, increasing completion of certifi cates
and degrees helps SAC receive money through a new
point-based funding system.
Each point is worth about $876, and there are several
value-added areas, including receiving fi nancial aid,
taking transferable math and English, and more.
In previous semesters, students were encouraged
but not required to have an education plan, which led
some to take courses unnecessary for completion.
“What we know, unfortunately, is that not all students
[have an education plan] and that’s really integral to
student success,” said Fernando Ortiz, SAC’s Dean of
Academic Aff airs. “If you don’t have a [education] plan,
you don’t really know what to take next semester.”
Guided Pathways intends to help California
community college students complete courses
towards their interests, potential career and chosen
majors faster.
STORY
ASHLEY RAMYNKE
AND CHRIS CASTRO
PHOTO
EDUARDO VASQUEZ
el Don Santa Ana College · May 2019
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