Major arguments, both pro and con, for applying the "schools of choice" approach to educational improvement in Detroit (Michigan) are described, and the results of a recent public opinion survey are reported. The main argument of proponents of school choice is that it will improve the quality of public education. Opponents of choice do…

The purpose of this study was to assess the need for information about transfer students of both "sending" institutions (schools from which students transfer) and "receiving" institutions (schools to which students transfer) and to assess also the institutions' capacity for and willingness to enter into data-sharing activities.…

In the fall of 1989, the Intersegmental Coordinating Council organized the Data Needs Task Force (DNTF) to determine the feasibility of establishing a transfer rate definition. Specifically, the DNTF was charged with defining the information needed to strengthen intersegmental transfer programs, establishing common definitions (including…

Historically minorities, especially African-Americans, have been underrepresented in the mathematics and science fields. In order to attract more minorities as mathematics majors, these students must first experience success in the pre-calculus sequence and enroll in higher-level mathematics courses. The Georgia State University (GSU) Atlanta…

Designed to examine New Jersey's articulation policy for two- and four-year public institutions, this report by the Transfer Advisory Board (TAB) analyzes longitudinal transfer data gathered from the state's public universities, state colleges, and community colleges for 1987 through 1989. Following a brief introduction, the first part of the…

This study report summarizes the results of six follow-up surveys of Maryland community college students conducted between 1976 and 1982 to assess the success of the state's community colleges in preparing students for transfer to four-year institutions. After an introductory discussion of the transfer function of community colleges and the data…

The University of California at Los Angeles's (UCLA's) Transfer Summer Program (TSP) is designed to increase the academic achievement, retention, and graduation rates of underrepresented and low-income students and to ease their transition from community college to UCLA. In 1989, a study was conducted to assess the extent to which TSP students…

In 1988, Assembly Bill (AB) 1725 directed the governing boards of the University of California (UC), the California State University (CSU), and the California Community Colleges to jointly develop, maintain, disseminate, and adopt a common core curriculum in general education for the purpose of facilitating student transfer between institutions.…

In March 1990, the Center for the Study of Community Colleges in Los Angeles hosted a Transfer Assembly as part of an on-going effort to stabilize the imprecise definitions and data relating to student transfers from community colleges to four-year institutions. This report provides excerpts from six of the presentations given to the assembly.…

Existing choice plans, which allow parents and students to choose among a variety of schools, vary dramatically in size, shape, and purpose. Different types of choice programs have different impacts, especially on low-income and minority group students; and it is not yet clear how school choice programs should be structured to assure that those…

A major reason for the paucity of usable data on the contributions and effectiveness of community colleges is that the definitions on which the data are based are imprecise. Colleges' contributions might be better understood if their functions were reconceptualized. The collegiate dimension of community colleges (i.e, that portion of the…

In response to requests for information on transfer education in California, this report examines the number and rate of transfers from two- to four-year institutions, the ethnicity of transfer students, the academic performance of transfers, and questions remaining to be answered. After a summary of major study findings and background material,…

This supplementary report presents testimony on the community college transfer function given to the California Postsecondary Education Commission's Ad Hoc Committee on Community College Transfer. First, Paul Elsner discusses developments related to transfer and articulation with four-year institutions within the Maricopa Community College…

This discussion of the transfer function of California's community colleges focuses on the problems of obtaining reliable information, research findings on factors affecting transfer success, and ways of accurately assessing transfer rates. After affirming the importance of the transfer function of community colleges, the paper examines flaws and…

As part of an annual statewide evaluation process, quantitative information on community college programs is reviewed by the Maryland State Board for Community Colleges. Subsequently, a qualitative assessment is conducted by a selected individual community colleges in response to specific questions raised by the Board. This report contains the…