Dr. Marlon Hall, Superintendent/President

Dr. Tammy Robinson, Interim Vice President, Academic Services

Moderator: Dr. Shaun McKay, President, Suffolk County Community College

April 20, 2015

*Small College, Big Vision

* Managing Forward Thinking…

*Overview of Rural Community Colleges:

*The USDA specifies that a rural areas is where the population is less than 20k people.

*Susanville has a population of about 17, 500 people

*6,000 of those residents reside in the correctional facilities.

*Lassen College is the only college in Lassen County, California.

*Lassen County is 4,720 square miles

*And Career Pathways

Los Angeles County which is 4,752 square miles with a population of 10.2 million.

Clearly, there is a distinct difference between Lassen County and Los Angeles County.

The population numbers alone

create distinct obstacles and barriers for the rural college.

* In Rural Community Colleges

*According to the Census Bureau urban-rural classification is the delineation of geographical areas, identifying both individual urban and rural areas of the nation.

*A rural area has less than 50,000 people.

*Rural community colleges are the fastest growing sector of the U.S. community colleges (ruralccalliance.org).

*Economic Obstacles

*Difficult to find qualified faculty with proper credentials for many programs.

*Pay is considerably lower than many of the comparable positions outside of the region

*The area is remote.

*The population does not value higher education as the employment opportunities in the area only require a high school education.

* Educational AttainmentEDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENTState of

California      

Lassen County 

     

Population 25 years and over 24,455,010+/-

1,01924,455,

010(X) 24,601

+/-209

24,601

(X)

Less than 9th grade 2,501,496+/-

14,87710.2%

+/-0.1

1,205+/-

1884.9%

+/-0.8

9th to 12th grade, no diploma 2,085,785+/-

10,7078.5%

+/-0.1

3,861+/-

36815.7

%+/-1.4

High school graduate (includes equivalency) 5,066,034+/-

22,38820.7%

+/-0.1

6,332+/-

43725.7

%+/-1.7

Some college, no degree 5,404,742+/-

15,88722.1%

+/-0.1

7,496+/-

43030.5

%+/-1.8

Associate's degree 1,895,918+/-

11,1857.8%

+/-0.1

2,474+/-

30710.1

%+/-1.3

Bachelor's degree 4,753,446+/-

18,23919.4%

+/-0.1

2,218+/-

2779.0%

+/-1.1

Graduate or professional degree 2,747,589+/-

19,49411.2%

+/-0.1

1,015+/-

1854.1%

+/-0.8

                 

Percent high school graduate or higher (X) (X) 81.2%+/-0.1

(X) (X)79.4

%+/-1.6

Percent bachelor's degree or higher (X) (X) 30.7%+/-0.1

(X) (X)13.1

%+/-1.5

*What are the trends for this region?

*What is the college doing to meet the needs of the population?

*What happens when the community does not know what it needs?

*Economics

*Logging, mining and several large prison facilities are what the economy depends on in one of the largest commercial towns in the area.

*Hunting and fishing is in large demand in this area. The community also is surrounded by Lassen National Forest which has active volcanoes.

*Paradoxical Opportunities…

*With the influx of more prisons in the area, a new economic base for the community has been created.

*They need more trained individuals for the prison population. The CDCR is in need of Licensed Vocational Nurses, and Medical Assistants.

*The hospital cannot find qualified lab technicians in the community.

* How are the needs being met?

*LCC is developing more opportunities to have pathway programs:

*Medical assisting

*LVN program

*Phlebotomy classes

*Fire Science and Technology programs

*Strengthen partnerships with other agencies and colleges

*Where’s the $$$

*It is imperative in any college to continuously upgrade equipment and facilities.

*The college must have an active grants culture.

*Need to address aging equipment

*Obsolete skills being taught

*Energize the faculty

*Student Success Data

OverallRate Index Rate Index Rate

Number of Enrollments 4,298 738 5,036 Course Completion 90% 0.95 95% 1.00 90%Course Success 73% 0.91 80% 1.00 74%Enrollments 3162 604 3,766 Course Completion 90% 0.95 95% 1.00 91%Course Success 75% 0.89 84% 1.00 76%Enrollments 219 34 253

Course Completion 80% 85% 94% 1.00 82%Course Success 61% 74% 82% 1.00 64%Enrollments 260 14 274

Course Completion 84% 0.98 86% 1.00 84%Course Success 52% 1.00 50% 0.96 52%Enrollments 864 114 978 Course Completion 93% 0.97 96% 1.00 93%Course Success 81% 0.98 83% 1.00 82%

Course Type Metric

Lassen College 2011-12 Cohort*Econ. Disadvantaged Not Econ. Disadvantaged

General

Transfer

Remedial English

Remedial Math

CTE

*Conclusions

*The community has to evolve slowly.

*Residents must be given a clear and distinct pathway to educational opportunities.

*The college must be open to re-training all sectors of the population.

*The college must also maintain partnerships and continue to establish relationships beyond Lassen County.

*More conclusions…

*The college must maintain respect for its services and educational strength in the region.

*The college must also continue to seek new and emerging fields of study in order to stay competitive and stabilize enrollment.

*Rural college are always challenged with money. In short, always find the money!

*The college must also continue to remain open to changes from those outside the region.

*Susanville

*Lassen County, California

*Susanville: Elks’ Lodge