Georgia Perimeter College

1
Georgia Perimeter College DeKalb County Schools

• Partnering to Address High School
  Dropout/Graduation Issues and Increase College
  Enrollments

2
Academy

• Robert Wigfall, Director
• Gina Gavin, Assistant Director
• Dr. Margaret Venable, Assistant Vice President,
  Educational Outreach/Educational Affairs, Georgia
  Perimeter College
• Dr. Dennis Harkins, Clarkston Campus Provost,
  Georgia Perimeter College
• Dr. Virginia Michelich, Vice President,
  Educational Affairs, Georgia Perimeter College
• Dr. Anthony Tricoli, President, Georgia Perimeter
  College
• Dr. Garry McGiboney, Deputy Superintendent,
  DeKalb County Schools
• Dr. Jim Mullins, Director of Governmental
  Relations and Special Projects, DeKalb County
  Schools
• Dr. Crawford Lewis, Superintendent, DeKalb County
  Schools

3
Background

• 2004-05 GPC snapshot
• Total Headcount 20,000 (nonresidential 2-year
  college)
• 45 White
• 34.5 Black
• 10 Asian
• 6 Multiracial
• 4 Hispanic
• 16 Non-US citizens
• 62 female
• 55 part-time
• average age 25.4 median age 23
• 6 campuses/sites in the Atlanta metropolitan area
• 3rd largest institution in the University System
  of Georgia

4
Background

• September 2006 DeKalb County Schools snapshot
• 101,817 students enrolled
• 75.6 African American
• 10.1 White
• 3.2 Asian
• 8.5 Hispanic
• 2.5 Other

5
Academy

• DeKalb County Charter School, opened in August of
  2005 on Clarkston Campus of GPC
• A replication of a very successful early college
  model in Portland, Oregon, targeting HS students
  who have not been successful in traditional
  classrooms so far
• Part of Bill Melinda Gates Early College
  Initiative with start-up funds from Portland
  Community College (Gates Foundation Intermediary)

6
Academy

• Students take GPC college classes and earn
  college credits and HS diploma credits
  simultaneously to complete their HS diploma.
• Students work with an assigned Resource
  Specialist (counselor) throughout their time in
  the Academy

7
Academy

• Who are the Students?
• DeKalb Co. School System students (ages 16
  through 20) who have not been successful in
  traditional high schools typically behind in
  credits for their age but capable of completing
  the HS diploma through college classes by age 21
• Students capable of succeeding in college courses
  after a semester of remediation (minimum 8th
  grade reading level required for admission to
  Academy)

8
Academy

• Who are the Students? (As of Fall 2006)
• 87.9 Black/African-American 4.6 Multiracial
  2.3 White/Caucasian 2.3 Other 1.7 American
  Indian/Alaskan Native 1.1 Asian/Pacific
  Islander
• 36 female 54 male
• Average age on entering Academy, 17 years old
• 33.5 were still enrolled in HS but were
  planning to drop out 30.1 were no longer
  attending HS 11.4 were in HS but were not on
  schedule to graduate 4 were in HS but were not
  attending regularly

9
Academy

• Who are the Students?
• Day and evening (late afternoon) students
• many work at least part-time
• a few are parents
• some have family and/or medical issues
• many have financial issues

10
Academy

• New students enter each fall and spring semester
  (currently no real funding for summer school)
• First semester of review/remediation coursework
  is spent as a learning community of 18 students
  per group studying basic reading, writing,
  mathematics as well as study skills and career
  development
• Students must earn grades of C or better to
  transition into mainstream college classes
• Students take college placement exams near the
  end of this first semester

11
Academy Stats

• Despite the lack of a high school diploma, the
  Gateway to College Academy early college students
  perform very well on college placement tests
• In Fall 2006, 38 of the newly admitted students
  placed into collegiate English
• 24 of the students placed into collegiate Math
  (Fall 2006)
• 19 of the students placed out of all learning
  support requirements (Fall 2006)

12
Academy Stats

• Overall, for the first academic year (2005-06),
  the Gateway to College Academys GHSGT results
  stack up well compared to other alternative
  schools
  Engl./Lang Arts Math Writing
  (Fall)
• Gateway 92 pass 71 100
• Open Campus 77 63 76
• DeKalb Alt. Day 58 74 75
• DeKalb Alt. Nite 70 89 (N lt5)

13
Academy

• Funding
• 350,000 start-up funding from Portland Community
  College, intermediary for Bill and Melinda Gates
  Foundation in partnership with the Carnegie
  Corporation of NY, the Ford Foundation, and the
  W.K. Kellogg Foundation
• 400,000 charter school implementation grant
  funds (federal funds through GA Dept. of Ed.),
  also used to defray initial costs of starting
  school

14
Academy

• Funding
• K-12 FTE dollars obtained as a DeKalb County
  charter school at alternative education funding
  rate
• Approx. 8800/student annually estimated earnings
  per student last year 10,800/student annually
  estimated for FY07

15
Academy

• Additional Budget Information
• Students pay student fees (approx. 242/semester)
  but the Academy pays for books and tuition
  expenses on behalf of the students
• All textbooks are loaned and recycled as they
  are in a traditional high school
• FT tuition costs Academy approx. 1040/semester
  per student
• Accel (Joint Enrollment version of HOPE) pays
  tuition for some courses (but no double
  dipping)

16
Academy

• Additional Budget Information
• GPC provides remodeled space for the Academy
  including utilities, custodial services,
  protective services, office and classroom
  furniture, etc.
• GPCs Foundation has established a new
  scholarship fund to help students who have
  financial difficulties with fees, summer tuition,
  transportation and/or living expenses

17
Academy Staffing

• For 2006-07 staff, the Academy has
• Director Assistant Director
• Intake Outreach Specialist, Secretary and PT
  Records Coord.
• 4 Resource Specialists and a Head Resource
  Specialist
• 2 Math Instructors 2 English Instructors
• Several PT tutors and lab facilitators

18
DeKalb Early College Academy (DECA)

• DeKalb County School (not a charter school)
• Opened in August of 2006 with approximately 100
  9th grade students
• Housed primarily in a wing of nearby Avondale
  High School

19
DeKalb Early College Academy (DECA)

• By the time students enter 11th grade, they will
  be ready to enter college-level courses on the
  Clarkston campus of GPC where they will earn dual
  credits toward both an associates degree and
  their high school diploma
• Within 5 years of entering DECA, students will be
  able to complete both their high school diplomas
  and earn at least 60 college credits toward an
  associates degree.

20
DeKalb Early College Academy (DECA)

• Bill Melinda Gates Early College High School
  Initiative ( P-16 Initiatives Office of the Board
  of Regents is the funding intermediary for DECA)
• The target population for DECA is rising 9th
  graders who historically have lower than average
  high school and college attendance or graduation
  rates and/or students who do not traditionally
  perform well on standardized tests

21
DeKalb Early College Academy (DECA)

• Classes within DECA are small and the Academy
  itself will never exceed a total enrollment of
  400 students including those students who have
  transitioned to the college campus
• A variety of activities and services are provided
  to students beginning in 9th grade to help ensure
  that students are ready for college classes in
  11th grade