2009 Details & Downloads
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Featured Speakers
Opening Plenary Session, Wednesday Evening
Bob Craves, CEO and Chair, College Success Foundation
“Economic Benefits of Promise Organizations”
Bob Craves is the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of the College Success Foundation, a public/private partnership committed to providing college scholarships and mentoring to low-income, high-potential students. He also serves as President, CEO and Chairman of the DC College Success Foundation.
From1997 through 2005, Mr. Craves served as the chairman of the Washington State Higher Education Coordinating Board where he was responsible for overseeing the coordination of the budgets and policies of four-year public institutions and the distribution of financial aid to all eligible students, both public and private.
In 1998, Mr. Craves was appointed co-chair of the 2020 Commission on the Future of Post-Secondary Education. At the conclusion of the Commission, Mr. Craves and Ms. Ann Ramsay-Jenkins founded the Washington Education Foundation (now the College Success Foundation), bringing together community leaders from across the state of Washington to help the thousands of students who are left behind – the ones not adequately served or supported by existing government and scholarship programs.
In 1983 Mr. Craves was one of the founding officers of the Costco Wholesale Corporation. He served as the Senior Vice President of Membership and Marketing until 2000.
Mr. Craves is a member of the board of trustees of the Catholic University of America in Washington DC, the Arizona College Success Foundation and the Le May Museum.
Morning Plenary Session, Thursday
John N. Gardner, Executive Director, Policy Center on the First Year of College
“Improving Persistence Rates among Low-Income and Minority Students”
John N. Gardner is an educator, university professor and administrator, author, editor, public speaker, consultant, change agent, student retention specialist, first-year students’ advocate, and initiator and scholar of the American first-year and senior-year reform movements.
He serves as the Executive Director of the Policy Center on the First Year of College. The Center, based in Brevard, N.C., was founded by John and his wife, Dr. Betsy O. Barefoot, in October 1999. The Center was launched by an initial grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts, and has been subsequently funded by additional grants from Pew, The Atlantic Philanthropies, Lumina Foundation for Education, the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, and USA Funds. The Center works with colleges and universities to strengthen their resolve and processes to undertake assessment of the entire first college year experience as a means to improve student learning and retention. Currently, the Center’s work focuses on implementing a previously non-existent set of aspirational standards for excellence in the first year to be used both for the design of the first year and as a measurement process for effecting educational improvements. These new principles are known as “Foundational Dimensions ® of Excellence. Since its inception, the Center has received approximately $7,500,000 in support from its philanthropic partners.
John is also the Senior Fellow of the National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, and Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Library and Information Science at the University of South Carolina.
Note: Professor Vincent Tinto has been diagnosed with a highly treatable form of lymphoma and is unable to travel at this time. We are grateful that Dr. John Gardner has stepped in to keynote this session, and we are excited that Dr. Tinto will be joining the breakout session on retention by videoconference. (Those who are friends with Dr. Tinto are welcome to contact him with well-wishes.)
Luncheon Plenary Session, Thursday
Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army (Retired)
"Living a Legacy”
Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch is a renowned, charismatic, passionate and influential speaker who carries her powerful message of what it takes to be an effective leader in today's global marketplace to hundreds of schools, colleges, universities, corporations, and government institutions both in the U.S. and abroad. Born and raised along the border in a small barrio in Laredo, Texas, Consuelo Kickbusch is all too familiar with the challenges of poverty, discrimination and illiteracy. Although she grew up without material wealth, she was taught by her immigrant parents that she was rich in culture, tradition, values and faith. The values she learned as a child were reinforced throughout her career in the U.S. military. After graduating from Hardin Simmons University, Consuelo entered the U.S. Army as an officer and served for two decades. During that time, she broke barriers and set records in the military where she became the highest-ranking Hispanic woman in the Combat Support Field of the U.S. Army. When the opportunity to assume a command post arose, LTC Castillo Kickbusch shocked the military by deciding to retire. She chose to honor her mother's dying wish to get back to her roots and become a community leader. In 1996, Consuelo Castillo Kickbusch retired from the military and dedicated her time to operating Educational Achievement Services, Inc. and fulfilling her mission of preparing tomorrow's leaders today.
Closing Plenary Session, Friday
Chandra Taylor Smith, Vice President of Research and Director, The Pell Institute for the Study of Opportunity in Higher Education
"The Benefits of Communities Investing in Low-Income Students, from a Social Justice Perspective"
Dr. Chandra Taylor Smith is the Vice President for Research and Director of the Pell Institute for the Study of Opportunity in Higher Education. Taylor Smith was formerly Deputy Director of Postsecondary Education and Student Development (PESD) and District Director of Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) for the Board of Education of the Chicago Public Schools. In these positions, she implemented the Student Development, Secondary Counseling, Research, AVID/Advance Placement, GEAR-UP, Service Learning, and After School Matters programs as well as other PSESD initiatives. Dr. Taylor Smith began her career in college access as the first Executive Director of College Summit Chicago.
Dr. Taylor Smith’s teaching experience includes serving as Director of Women’s Studies and Visiting Assistant Professor at North Park University and teaching or lecturing at Fisk University, University of Vermont, Vanderbilt University, and Harvard University Divinity School. She was also a Development Officer at Harvard and has served as an Admissions Officer at Leslie College. She continues to lecture on how to create a college-going culture for school districts around the country.
A native of Chicago, Dr. Taylor Smith holds a B.A. in Philosophy and Ph.D. in Religious Studies from Vanderbilt University. She also received her Master of Divinity degree from Harvard University.
CONFERENCE AT-A-GLANCE
Event ROOM
WEDNESDAY, June 24
11:30 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. Conference Registration Mineral Hall Foyer
1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Pre-Conference Workshops Granite A, B, C
7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Opening Plenary Session Mineral Hall A/B/C/Corridor
8:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Welcome Reception Mineral Hall A/B/C/Corridor
THURSDAY, June 25
7:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Conference Registration Mineral Hall Foyer
9:30 a.m. – 3:45 p.m. Exhibits Mineral Hall Foyer
7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. Continental Breakfast Mineral Hall A/B/C/Corridor
8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Morning Plenary Session Mineral Hall A/B/C/Corridor
9:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Break
10:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. Breakout Session A
11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Buffet Lunch / Plenary Session Mineral Hall A/B/C/Corridor
1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Break, Informal Networking
2:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. Breakout Session B
3:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m. Break with Refreshments Granite Foyer
3:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Breakout Session C
5:30 p.m. – ?? “Night Out” No-host Dinners in Denver
FRIDAY, June 26
8:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast Mineral Hall E/Corridor
9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. Ad-hoc Roundtables, Informal Networking Mineral Hall E/Corridor
10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Closing Plenary Session Mineral Hall D/E
Conference Sessions
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
1:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Pre-Conference Workshops
(By pre-registration only)
1. Creating a PromiseNet Plan from the Beginning
ROOM: GRANITE A
This session is geared toward the beginning “promise” community, just starting its journey toward a community scholarship based initiative. It will provide participants with an outline of the scholarship planning process. Participants will be encouraged to consider their own community in light of the information presented. Hand-outs and other tools to begin this community journey will be provided.
Presenters:
§ Janice M. Brown, The Kalamazoo Promise
§ Eddy Jones, Pittsburg Public Schools
§ Louise Myrland, Denver Scholarship Foundation
Janice M. Brown is currently the Executive Director of the Kalamazoo Promise. She was Superintendent of Kalamazoo Public Schools from July 2000 to August 2007, and prior to that served as Executive Director of Instruction. In addition, she has over 36 years of experience working at all levels of public education, as a teacher, consultant, visiting professor, state administrator, principal and central office administrator.
Edward P. Jones is the Project Manager for The Pittsburgh Promise and other strategic initiatives at Pittsburgh Public Schools. Before joining Pittsburgh Public Schools in 2007 as a member of The Broad Residency in urban public education, Edward spent seven years at Deloitte Consulting where he managed planning and operations for information systems in large government organizations.
Louise Myrland is the Scholarship Program Director for the Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF). Louise joined DSF in 2006 as one of the organization’s first staff members and built upon her experience as a chemist and a science education outreach program manager to help design the Scholarship and Future Center components of DSF’s student services.
2. Student Support Services Grant Writing
ROOM: GRANITE B
Nate Easley is the Deputy Director of Denver Scholarship Foundation. Before coming to DSF, Nate worked with the Council for Opportunity in Education for 11 years and served as a key faculty member for TRIO proposal writing workshops. Nate has critiqued over 200 TRIO grant proposals and is ready to share his knowledge with you, just in time for the deadline this summer. He will share tips on preparing a successful SSS proposal.
Presenter:
Nate Easley, Denver Scholarship Foundation
Nate Easley, Ph.D. is Deputy Director for the Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF), a non-profit public charity that seeks to inspire and empower Denver Public School students to achieve their postsecondary goals by providing the tools, knowledge and financial resources essential for success. Prior to joining DSF, Dr. Easley served as Vice President for National and International Programs for the Council for Opportunity in Education (COE) in Washington, DC. He has more than 20 years of experience working with college access and retention programs and professionals.
3. Fostering Sustainable Revenue Sources
ROOM: GRANITE C
The presenter will lead PromiseNet attendees through the Denver Scholarship Foundation’s fundraising plan, provide insight regarding victories and pitfalls and create a workshop to strengthen PromiseNet development programs and their ability to deliver on their mission. The session will help participants identify their “hidden assets” and how to capitalize on them. “Attendees will be guided through all phases of the development cycle — including building the base of the annual fund, energizing major gifts and beginning planned giving programs and planning a campaign.
Presenter:
Myles X. Mendoza, Denver Scholarship Foundation
Myles Mendoza is the Development Director for the Denver Scholarship Foundation and has over 13 years working in non-profit development. Myles has a unique fundraising perspective specializing in identifying a non-profit’s hidden “assets” and capitalizing on them to raise money. As the Development Director he recently developed both $100 million+ endowment campaign as well as an annual campaign to support a $6 million annual budget.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
10:00 – 11:15 a.m.
Breakout Session A
4. Improving Retention: A Problem-Solving Session (RETENTION COLLOQUIUM SESSION)
Come to this interactive session with two of the nation's leading authorities on student retention. Discover how to use research to improve your retention strategies. From assessing programs to structuring them, learn Dr. Tinto's recommendations for improving outcomes and learn from Dr. Gardner how the beginning college experience can be improved through enhanced learning, success, and retention of new students.
Session Presenters:
§ Vincent Tinto, School of Education, Syracuse University
§ John N. Gardner, Policy Center on the First Year of College
Dr. Vincent Tinto is Distinguished University Professor at Syracuse University and until recently Chair of the Higher Education Program. He has carried out research and has written extensively on higher education, particularly on student success and the impact of learning communities on student growth and attainment. His most recent book, Leaving College, published by the University of Chicago Press, lays out a theory and policy perspective on student success that is considered the benchmark by which work on these issues are judged. Dr. Tinto has consulted widely with Federal and State agencies, with independent research firms, foundations, and with two and four-year institutions of higher education on a broad range of higher educational issues, not the least of which concern the success students in higher education in particular those of low-income and underserved backgrounds.
Dr. John N. Gardner is an educator, university professor and administrator, author, editor, public speaker, consultant, change agent, student retention specialist, first-year students’ advocate, and initiator and scholar of the American first-year and senior-year reform movements. Dr. Gardner serves as the Executive Director of the Policy Center on the First Year of College, which is based in Brevard, N.C. and was founded by John and his wife, Dr. Betsy O. Barefoot, in October 1999. The Center works with colleges and universities to strengthen their resolve and processes to undertake assessment of the entire first college year experience as a means to improve student learning and retention. Currently, the Center’s work focuses on implementing a previously non-existent set of aspirational standards for excellence in the first year to be used both for the design of the first year and as a measurement process for effecting educational improvements.
Professor Vincent Tinto has been diagnosed with a highly treatable form of lymphoma and is unable to travel at this time. We are grateful that Dr. John Gardner has stepped in to deliver this session in person, and Dr. Tinto will be joining the group by videoconference. (Those who are friends with Dr. Tinto are welcome to contact him with well-wishes!)
5. A Beginner’s Course for Developing Community Relationships
ROOM: AGATE A
One of the first steps to developing a successful Promise Program is seeking out community partners who share your vision for educational and economic improvement. Join us to learn more about Strive, a comprehensive birth through college partnership working with community stakeholders to strengthen the pipeline and deliver the promise of higher education for all. Through facilitated dialogue this session will offer strategies for building strategic community relationships in support of Promise programs, including assessing the appetite for collaborative fundraising and building a successful campaign coalition.
Presenters:
Jennifer C. Blatz and Tanya Cornejo, Strive Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky
As Director of Operations, Jennifer Blatz manages the day-to-day operations for Strive, a unique partnership of education, business, nonprofit, philanthropic, and civic leaders in the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky region committed to creating an education system that supports every student, inside and outside the classroom, from birth through college and into a career. Prior to joining Strive, Blatz served as Executive Director of the Ohio College Access Network and as a Senior Program Officer for Knowledge Works Foundation, managing the foundation’s work in College & Career Access.
As the Strive Promise Campaign Director, Tanya Cornejo serves as a liaison to the partnering higher education institutions and volunteers to implement campaign fundraising initiatives and identify existing resources in the community that can be allocated to the scholarship dollar pool. Prior to joining Strive, Tanya served as a Program Director for CCS Fundraising, one of the largest and most comprehensive fund-raising consulting firms in the world.
6. Independent Program EvaluationROOM: AGATE B
Now more than ever, having an independent program evaluation is a crucial component of any effective college preparation/scholarship program. At any time, but particularly in today’s economic environment donors, investors, practitioners, and developers need proof of programmatic impact and effectiveness for a variety of reasons. Those who attend this session will come away with information regarding the short-term and long-term implications of independent program evaluation and with strategies on the various ways to use these evaluations to leverage programmatic efficacy and resource allocation.
Presenters:
§ Ralph Bangs, Associate Director, Center on Race and Social Problems, University of Pittsburgh
§ R. Stephen Green, Kauffman Scholars, Inc.
§ Michelle Miller-Adams, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research
§ Vi-Nhuan Le, RAND
Ralph Bangs, Ph.D., is Associate Director of the Center on Race and Social Problems at the University of Pittsburgh. He is also Associate Editor of the new national and international journal, Race and Social Problems, which is published by Springer Press. His areas of expertise are public policy analysis and U.S. race relations. His current research is on improving education for African Americans and increasing local government contracting with minority and women-owned businesses.
R. Stephen Green, Ed.D. is the President and CEO of Kauffman Scholars, Inc., a 19-year college access and graduation program aimed significantly increasing the number of college graduates from Kansas City’s urban schools. Before joining Kauffman Scholars, Green was the Superintendent of Community School District #28 and a Local Instructional Superintendent in Region 3 for the New York City Board of Education. Green also served as the President and Executive Director of the New Jersey Teaching and Learning Collaborative, a not-for-profit organization founded to provide ongoing technical assistance, high quality curriculum-driven professional development, and advocacy for local and state policy reform.
Vi-Nhuan Le is a Behavioral Scientist at RAND. Her research interest and expertise lies in mathematics and science reform, educational assessment, and program evaluation. Her current projects include studying the effects of participation in an outreach program on student motivation, academic achievement, and college attendance. She has also co-authored manuscripts on the relationship between reform-oriented instructional practices and student achievement in mathematics and science, and conducted a comprehensive review on the conditions of learning and teaching in middle schools.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
2:00 – 3:15 p.m.
Breakout Session B
7. Economic DevelopmentROOM: AGATE A
It is their potential economic development impact that sets Promise-type programs apart from other college access initiatives. Yet the mechanisms through which universal, place-based scholarship programs contribute to economic development are not well understood, sometimes even by those engaged in planning them. This session will provide a conceptual understanding of the link between Promise-type scholarship programs and economic development (both urban and regional), and to offer a variety of perspectives on the potential of this approach.
Presenters:
§ Janice Brown, The Kalamazoo Promise
§ Michelle Miller-Adams, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, and Grand Valley State University
Janice M. Brown is currently the Executive Director of the Kalamazoo Promise. She was Superintendent of Kalamazoo Public Schools from July 2000 to August 2007, and prior to that served as Executive Director of Instruction. In addition, she has over 36 years of experience working at all levels of public education, as a teacher, consultant, visiting professor, state administrator, principal and central office administrator.
Dr. Michelle Miller-Adams is a visiting scholar at the W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and an assistant professor of political science at Grand Valley State University. Miller-Adams' recently published book, The Power of a Promise: Education and Economic Renewal in Kalamazoo, is the first comprehensive account of the Kalamazoo Promise. Miller-Adams' 25-year professional career spans the fields of nonprofit management, finance, research, and academia. An expert on asset-building strategies for fighting poverty, Miller-Adams is also the author of Owning Up: Poverty, Assets, and the American Dream (Brookings 2002). She holds a Ph.D. in political science from Columbia University.
8. Financial Aid and Scholarship Strategies to Promote College Access and Degree CompletionROOM: AGATE B
Almost all students need financial aid and/or scholarships to enroll in college. Fortunately, most students are eligible to apply for and receive a variety of financial aid (federal, state, private and college funded) programs that help them and their parents pay for the cost of college attendance. Typically each program has its own eligibility rules, including criteria on family income and/or student demographic characteristics. This session is directed at community organizations, school leaders and foundation officials who want to learn more about the financial aid eligibility rules, the financial aid process and how financial aid may be combined with scholarships awarded by PromiseNet organizations. The session will also provide an overview of some of the questions and program strategies that scholarship providers may need to address when they first begin awarding scholarships. Ideas will also be shared on how scholarship organizations can positively influence student access to college through to degree completion.
Presenters:
§ Louise Myrland, Denver Scholarship Foundation
§ Steve Thorndill, College Success Foundation
Louise Myrland is the Scholarship Program Director for the Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF). Louise joined DSF in 2006 as one of the organization’s first staff members and built upon her experience as a chemist and a science education outreach program manager to help design the Scholarship and Future Center components of DSF’s student services.
Steve Thorndill is Director of Scholarship Services for the College Success Foundation (CSF) located in Issaquah, Washington. Prior to joining CSF, Steve served as Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships at the University of Puget Sound and before that at Saint Xavier University in Chicago. Steve also is helping to establish a promise type scholarship program in Tacoma, Washington for low-income, high-potential students attending the Tacoma Public Schools.
9. Parent Engagement: An Essential Ingredient to Student Success
ROOM: AGATE C
Participants in this session will have the opportunity to explore six standard areas for parent engagement that represent the greatest potential for student achievement gains: communication between home and school; promoting and supporting parenting skills; roles in student learning; volunteering in the schools; involvement in school decision-making and advocacy; and community resource utilization in strengthening schools, families and student learning. Presenters will briefly share some of their practices within this framework, followed by a panel comprised of local parents and students and Q&A and discussion among all participants.
Presenters:
§ Curtis L. Esquibel, Denver Scholarship Foundation
§ Pam Kingery, Kalamazoo Communities In Schools
Curtis Esquibel has devoted his professional life to college access, working with low-income and underrepresented students and families. After eight years of serving as a college advisor in Denver Public Schools and on the Jemez Pueblo reservation in New Mexico, Curtis now co-manages DSF's pre-college and community outreach programs.
Pam Kingery is the founding director of Kalamazoo Communities In Schools. She holds a Master’s degree in Social Work, Policy Planning & Administration and has more than 35 years of experience in child welfare, health and human services programs.
10. Creating a Web of Support: Institutional Strategies for Retention Improvement (RETENTION COLLOQUIUM SESSION)
ROOM: GRANITE A
All of us a are concerned about “retention.” But what produces it? How can it be integrated into our institutions’ way of doing things? The workshop will take a closer look at retention and frame it in terms institutions understand best. The presenter will offer a framework for choosing among retention strategies, and will present one example of a comprehensive institutional retention plan that aims at institutionalizing retention principles, with particular attention to ways of intentionally structuring students’ first year to assure their success.
Presenter:
Paul Thayer, Colorado State University
Paul Thayer has worked on access and retention issues at Colorado State University since 1979. Currently serving as Associate Vice President for Student Affairs and Special Advisor to the Provost for Retention, he has worked previously as Director of Undergraduate Student Retention, Executive Director of the Center for Advising and Student Achievement, and Director of the Center for Educational Access and Outreach. He is a member of the Governor’s Statewide P-20 Education Council. Thayer received his B.A. in history from Williams College and an M.P.A. and Ph.D. in public administration from the University of Colorado at Denver.
11. Engaging and Retaining Low Income Students: One Urban University’s Case Study (RETENTION COLLOQUIUM SESSION)
ROOM: GRANITE B
The University of Colorado Denver is experiencing a 15-20% higher graduation rate among its Pell recipients and lowest income students. This session will highlight UCD’s efforts to establish a culture of college completion among low socio-economic student populations. Specifically, participants will learn how UCD has established K-12 partnerships resulting in a series of successful pre-collegiate initiatives and gain an understanding of specific retention efforts on the UCD campus. Presenters will facilitate a discussion on evidence-based practices and polices for student retention and degree attainment.
Presenters:
Janet Lopez and Frank D. Sanchez, University of Colorado Denver
Dr. Janet Lopez is the Director of P-20 Education Initiatives at the University of Colorado Denver. Before coming to UC Denver Janet was the Deputy Director of Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Jr.’s P-20 Education Council and she has also experience in pre-collegiate programs working at the Daniels Fund and directing the Scholars' Latino Initiative at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Her policy and research interests include P-20 education policy, access and success in higher education, and Latina/o student achievement.
Dr. Frank Sanchez is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at the University of Colorado at Denver. Prior to his post at UCD, Dr. Sanchez was the Vice President for Student Affairs at Adams State College in Alamosa, CO from 1999-2005. For the last 16 years, Dr. Sanchez has worked on college campuses as well as with state and national organizations to improve access and success for traditionally underrepresented student populations, including the P-20 Education Council and the American Association of State College and Universities.
12. Retention: It Takes a Village…
(RETENTION COLLOQUIUM SESSION)
ROOM: GRANITE C
At Pikes Peak Community College, we feel that everyone associated with the college contributes to student retention and success, so we try to involve as many faculty and staff as possible in retention. Representatives from the Learning Assistance Center Tutoring Program, Institutional Research, and the Retention Committee will share from their perspectives on how awareness of retention strategies and research (both national and institutional) direct their efforts. Participants in this break-out session will get applied hands-on examples of how research can be translated into action as well as a chance to exchange experiences. Information can be applied to four-year colleges and universities as well as two-year colleges. By the close of the session, participants will be able to generate three strategies for improving retention and have a rough plan for carrying them out.
Presenters:
Tina Getz, Sandy Ho, Misty Hull, Julie Witherow; Pikes Peak Community College
A recent retiree, Tina Getz has taught Developmental English at PPCC for 20 years and served as department chair for a number of years. She was instrumental in organizing the college Retention Committee.
Sandy Ho is the Tutoring/Supplemental Instruction (SI) Supervisor at Pikes Peak Community College. Her responsibilities include learning assistance center coordination, training SI Leaders and Tutors, scheduling tutoring/SI sessions, developing and facilitating college success workshops.
Misty Hull teaches psychology at PPCC, is co-chair of PPCC’s Retention Committee, and serves as the State chair for psychology, counseling, and social work for the Colorado Community College System. Her professional interests include mental health program development, suicide prevention, and the impact of student retention in higher education as it relates to mental health.
Julie Witherow is the Director of Distance Education at PPCC and a former Developmental English Department Chair. She monitors retention rates for online and hybrid classes and helps faculty to apply good retention practices to those sessions.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
3:45 – 5:00 p.m.
Breakout Session C
13. Messaging to the Public
ROOM: AGATE A
Create a "Buzz" and get the "Word Out" about your program: This session will provide participants with tools for “planning the message” and communicating it to a varied community audience. Examples and will be provided and participants will also have some time to craft their message based on their own community assets.
Presenters:
§ Janice Brown, The Kalamazoo Promise
§ Martin De Mucha Flores, San Francisco Promise
Janice M. Brown is currently the Executive Director of the Kalamazoo Promise. She was Superintendent of Kalamazoo Public Schools from July 2000 to August 2007, and prior to that served as Executive Director of Instruction. In addition, she has over 36 years of experience working at all levels of public education, as a teacher, consultant, visiting professor, state administrator, principal and central office administrator.
Martin De Mucha Flores Ed.M. is the Program Director of the San Francisco Promise at San Francisco State University. With more then 10 years of experience working with youth and college students in an educational capacity, he is a young, hip, bicultural, biliterate, Chicano male who relates well to the students SF Promise serve. As an activist in his community he understands the struggles that young people and their families face and the barriers that get in the way of success.
14. Taking Ownership of Access: The Role of Intrusive College Advising and Partnerships to Build a College-Going Culture
ROOM: AGATE C
Within every comprehensive Denver Public High School, a Future Center serves as the hub for students to achieve success during and beyond high school. A college resource center, the Future Center is staffed by a Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF) advisor who provides college admission and financial aid guidance to students and families on an appointment or drop-in basis. Because building a college-going culture requires collaboration, DSF advisors team with school-based counselors, college access programs, mentoring and youth empowerment programs. The goal of these partnerships is to ensure that resources and data are shared so that postsecondary planning starts early in high school and produces outcomes beyond graduation.
Presenters:
Cynthia Castillo, Curtis L. Esquibel, Yessica Holguin; Denver Scholarship Foundation
Cynthia Castillo is a senior college advisor for the Denver Scholarship Foundation at Abraham Lincoln High School. Cynthia, who has worked as a college advisor in Denver Public Schools the past five years, holds a diverse background in education, having also served as a middle school language arts teacher and higher education academic advisor. A recipient of a formal bilingual education in her native Miami and a first generation college student, Cynthia possesses a depth of understanding to the challenges and opportunities that confront public education.
Curtis Esquibel has devoted his professional life to college access, working with low-income and underrepresented students and families. After eight years of serving as a college advisor in Denver Public Schools and on the Jemez Pueblo reservation in New Mexico, Curtis now co-manages DSF's pre-college and community outreach programs.
Yessica Holguin is a senior college advisor for the Denver Scholarship Foundation at South High School, a post she’s held for the past 2.5 years. Prior to DSF, Yessica served as a program coordinator for the pre-collegiate program at the UC Denver Health Sciences Center and as the assistant director of a neighborhood college access center in urban Denver. A native of Mexico and proud Denver Public School graduate, Yessica is passionate about the relationships she builds with families and students.
15. Creating a Web of Support: Institutional Strategies for Retention Improvement (RETENTION COLLOQUIUM SESSION)
ROOM: GRANITE A
Presenter:
Paul Thayer, Colorado State University
(This is a repeat of Session # 10)
16. Engaging and Retaining Low Income Students: One Urban University’s Case Study (RETENTION COLLOQUIUM SESSION)
ROOM: GRANITE B
Presenters:
Janet Lopez and Frank D. Sanchez, University of Colorado Denver
(This is a repeat of Session #11)
17. Building on Latino Students’ Strengths to Improve their College Persistence (RETENTION COLLOQUIUM SESSION)
ROOM: GRANITE C
Many Latino students who enter college with aspirations of achieving a four-year degree face a myriad of obstacles. Among the most common are cultural disparities, lack of familiarity with the education system, the need to balance family issues and school, language issues, and academic deficiencies that stem from attending segregated primary or secondary schools. Learn how college personnel can identify and draw upon Latino students’ strengths to assist them in overcoming barriers to college completion. Learn how family legacy can serve as a strong source of motivation, perseverance and resourcefulness for Latino students.
Presenter:
Nate Easley, Denver Scholarship Foundation
Nate Easley, Ph.D. is Deputy Director for the Denver Scholarship Foundation (DSF), a non-profit public charity that seeks to inspire and empower Denver Public School students to achieve their postsecondary goals by providing the tools, knowledge and financial resources essential for success. Dr. Easley is a current member of Governor Ritter’s P-20 Council, serving on the Transitions sub-committee. Prior to joining DSF, Dr. Easley served as Vice President for National and International Programs for the Council for Opportunity in Education (COE) in Washington, DC. COE is a non-profit organization dedicated to furthering the expansion of educational opportunities in postsecondary education for low-income and disabled youth and adults.