including those who may dropout. Additional personal contact with students before classes begin or early in the term can link them with campus resources early in their college career. The goal is to improve the odds of success with their educational plans and career aspirations among individuals who appear to be “at risk”.
After Rend Lake College’s students participated in an on-line pilot project with Noel-Levitz during the Spring 2001 semester, it was determined that students' needs were better served by using the paper/pencil survey. This paper survey was given to all first-time, full-time students (excluding career/technical students) as they registered for Fall 2001 classes. Of the 243 students who participated in the survey, 40 students were determined to be dropout prone. To establish contact with at-risk students, a letter was mailed to each of the 40 dropout prone students, signed by the counselor who registered them. Rend Lake College officials invited these students to make an appointment with their counselor to review the survey results. Counselors attempted to make telephone contact with each students who did not respond to the letter. A post card was sent to the 40 students inviting them to make an early registration appointment with their counselor for the following semester. Thirty-two of the 40 dropout prone students (80 percent) enrolled for the next semester – Spring 2002.
SELECTED BEST PRACTICE RECRUITMENT AND PREPARATION PROGRAMS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Lincoln Land Community College reaches out to students with disabilities by visiting high school resource classrooms, speaking at Agency Representative Nights hosted by Springfield Area and Four Rivers Special Education districts, and holding a program on the college campus specifically for high school seniors with disabilities. This program, entitled “Mission Impossible”, has become so popular that high school counselors and special education teachers are requesting it by name. The program incorporates a tour of the college campus and features sessions with key college personnel who are important to a successful college transition for entering students with disabilities. Later in the day, students’ are then given the task of locating and investigating specific offices and must return with the necessary information for enrolling in classes at the college. This participatory approach has stimulated interaction, placed more responsibility on the potential student, and empowered them to take additional steps toward independence and college enrollment. Theses students are much more comfortable on their next campus visit after participating in this series of orientation sessions.
Joliet Junior College’s Student Accommodations and Resources (StAR) Department provides accommodations and support services to credit students with documented disabilities and limited English proficient students. StAR staff have stepped up recruitment efforts and in 2002 and served 869 students. StAR counselors and advisors logged approximately 6,672 hours of direct services to students. Tutoring and extended time testing are provided for limited English students. In Spring 2002, StAR provided services to 52 limited English proficient international students from over 25 foreign countries. Additionally, in an effort to provide additional outreach and share costs, Joliet Junior College entered into a formal cooperative agreement with the Office of
