2024 Transfer Pathways Summit

Time: 9 – 10 a.m.

Location: Alumni Hall Ballroom

Speaker: Dr. Frankie Santos Laanan, Dean of the College of Education, University of Utah

Title: Supporting Transfer Student Success: Critical Framework for Transfer Student Research Revisited

Description: As someone who’s benefited from American community colleges and journeyed through multiple institutions as both a vertical, horizontal, and reverse transfer student, Dr. Laanan reflects on three decades of his research regarding transfer students and the role of community colleges in shaping individuals and society. This session delves into questions like: How is Transfer Student Capital nurtured and developed? What are students’ narratives of their transfer journey and post-transfer success? How can colleges and universities foster a “transfer sending culture” and a “transfer receptive culture”? The discussion also explores implications for policy, practice, and future research in this area.

Time: 12:30 – 1:30 p.m.

Location: Alumni Hall Ballroom

Presenter: Dr. Linda Garcia, Executive Director, Center for Community College Student Engagement, University of Texas, Austin

Title: “Helping Community College Students Climb the Transfer Ladder”

Description: Many community colleges have worked diligently to incorporate and increase transfer advising services and to form transfer partnerships with four-year colleges and universities. Even though many community college students intend to transfer, the process can still be a challenging one to navigate alone. Students are often met with complex articulation agreements and confusing website information to make sense of without guidance. And, students often find that many of the credits they have accrued at the community college won’t transfer. Hear about what helps students know more about transfer plans from a CCCSE national report.

Time: 4:15 – 5 p.m.

Location: Alumni Hall Ballroom

Speaker: Dr. Carrie Kisker, President, Kisker Education Consulting Group and Director, Center for the Study of Community Colleges

Title: “Addressing the Wicked Problems of Transfer Reform”

Description: In this keynote presentation, Dr. Kisker will describe the historical and contemporary reasons why improving community college-to-university transfer and articulation can be so difficult, why it is considered one of the wicked problems of higher education reform. She will then engage the audience in a conversation about how we can overcome these hurdles and better serve students without betraying the fundamental values upon which our system rests.

Breakout A

Time: 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Location: Room 121

Title: Promoting Post-Secondary Pathways Through High-Quality, Equity, and Collaboration in Dual Enrollment

Presenters: Dr. Esohe Osai, Assistant Professor and Director of Justice Scholars Institute at the School of Education, and Dr. Michael Giazzoni, Director of College in High School Program, University of Pittsburgh

Description: High-quality dual enrollment (DE) programs are an evidence-proven and equitable way to give high school students convenient access to college credits at a low cost. Though DE is an evidence-based practice that supports post-secondary pathways, opportunities are inequitable because Black and low-income high school students have less access to advanced course-taking experiences. Our presentation describes high-quality DE in Pennsylvania before highlighting an equity-centered partnership to support post-secondary pathways for youth in underserved high schools. This unique and promising collaboration supports enhanced educational experiences and clearer post-secondary pathways for youth in our region.

Breakout B

Time: 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Location: Room 323

Title: “Lessons Learned for Building Equitable Community College Transfer Pathways”

Presenters: Dr. Raina Dyer-Barr, Director for Community College Research and Engagement, School of Education; Jason Keist, Adult and Learning Workforce Research Manager, School of Education; Brett Visger, Director of Pathways Strategy and Research, School of Education;  and Dr. Eboni M. Zamani-Gallaher, Renée and Richard Goldman Dean

Description: Building transfer pathways should incorporate a variety of options. As more students, employers and community colleges strengthen certificate and certification programs, it is critical to ensure that these programs which are often oversampled with Black and brown students have pathways to associate and bachelor degrees. Building seamless and more equitable pathways is possible but requires purposeful effort from college leaders. The University of Pittsburgh School of Education is playing a leading role in two national initiatives to purposefully build these pathways that ensure that no learning is wasted; certificates can articulate to associate degrees, which in turn can transfer to bachelors degrees. This session will highlight lessons learned from the Lumina Foundation funded REACH (Racial Equity for Adult Credentialing in Higher Ed) and Gates funded DCTP (Dual Customer Training Program) and offer suggestions to consider how these sorts approaches can improve transfer pathways.

Breakout A

Time: 1:45 – 2:45 p.m.

Location: Room 121

Title: Transforming Transfer Opportunities in Pennsylvania

Presenter: Lynette Kuhn, Chief of the Division of Higher Education, Access, and Equity, Pennsylvania Department of Education

Description: This presentation will discuss the efforts of Pennsylvania’s Transfer and Articulation Oversight Committee, exploring ongoing research aimed at revolutionizing the transfer process to ensure equitable and streamlined transfer opportunities. In her current role, Lynette uses her 18 years of experience in higher-education administration in the oversight of state authorization processes for degree-granting institutions. Previously, she has worked as a career school administrator, overseeing the compliance and accreditation of six institutions in three different states. Lynette holds a Master of Education in Higher Education and a Bachelor of Arts in Law and Society with an emphasis in labor employment and relations, both from Penn State University. She is currently in the process of completing her Doctor of Education degree in Leadership and Administration. Lynette enjoys working with school leaders and regulators to ensure learners have access to and receive quality education.

Breakout B

Time: 1:45 – 2:45 p.m.

Location: Room 323

Title: Building Transfer Pathways for Honors Students: A Case Study from the David C. Frederick Honors College

Presenters: Nicola Foote, Dean, David C. Frederick Honors College, University of Pittsburgh, and Matthew Schultz, Director of Admissions, David C. Frederick Honors College, University of Pittsburgh

Description: In this presentation, we discuss strategies for building Honors-to-Honors pathways for transfer partnerships, using the example of work under way to connect the David C. Frederick Honors College at the University of Pittsburgh with Honors Programs in local community college systems. In particular, we focus on endowment-supported financial aid as a core strategy for partnership build, documenting how the expansion of Pitt’s Honors College’s endowment via a naming gift is being used to anchor transfer recruitment. We also discuss strategies being implemented to create a transfer-receptive culture within the FHC, including transfer orientation programs, and peer-mentoring networks