student progress within the bridge program – Each of these outcomes requires the following additional data to be collected:
course name, course code to identify students enrolled in the bridge program.
Outcomes Data to Collect
Percent of students
bridge course meeting an attendance standard for the Bridge program hours attended Percent of students meeting with a college advisor during the bridge
course or completing other appropriate college exploration steps Student meeting(s) with
transition coordinator career advisor, career coach, or Percent of students completing the bridge
completing each course in a multi-course course (or the percent
bridge program) Course completion, bridge program completion Percent of adult education
educational level students advancing at least one Adult education assessment test scores (pre- and post-) Percent
passing of developmental education
grade in the bridge course students obtaining a Course grade Percent of students attaining
math levels (or gain targets) pre- and post-program
the intended reading,
based on assessments writing, or
conducted Adult education assessment test scores
placement assessment scores (post-) (post-), or college
Percent of students obtaining a certificate Certificate name and type (industry, education)
student educational outcomes following the bridge program – Each of these outcomes requires the following additional data to be collected: course name, course code to identify students enrolled in a postsecondary program.
CIP code, credit or noncredit, course hours, enrollment date (or term)
Data to Collect Percent of students enrolling in one or more credit-bearing
postsecondary course(s)
Outcomes
Percent of students enrolling in one or more college-level academic course(s) within a postsecondary program of study Percent of students obtaining at least 12 credits of college-level academic courses within a postsecondary program of study
Credential name, credential type (certificate, degree), credential date granted
Percent of students completing a postsecondary program and obtaining a credential
CIP code, course hours, enrollment date or term
Course grade
student employment outcomes following the bridge program – Each of these outcomes (other than placement occupation) requires the ability to match the student’s social security number with UI covered wage data obtained from IDES.
Post-program earnings (quarter following program completion or exit)
Data to Collect Percent of postsecondary completers obtaining employment
Outcomes
Percent of postsecondary completers obtaining employment in an industry or occupation related to the postsecondary program Percent of postsecondary completers retaining employment.
Pre-program earnings, post-program earnings Average earnings gain for postsecondary completers
obtaining employment
Placement occupation
Post-program earnings (second and third quarters following program completion or exit)
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WORkshEEt NINE
Worksheet 9: Data and Sources
STudENT idENTifyiNg daTa
Name X X X
SSN X X X
College or other program provider name X X X
STudENT dEmographic daTa
Age at entry/birth date X X X
Gender X X X
Hispanic/Latino/Latina X X X
Race X X X
Single head of household X X X
Financial aid status (applied, qualified, receiving) X
Prior education level X X X
Family income level X
Size of household, number of children under 18 (optional) X
Current enrollment status X X X
Employment status, number of hours working per week X X X
STudENT program-lEvEl daTa
Adult education assessment test scores (e.g., TABE, Best Plus, Best Literacy,
CASAS) (pre- and post-) X X X
College placement assessment scores (e.g., COMPASS) (pre- and post- if possible) X
Bridge program hours attended X X
Bridge program completion X X
Student meeting with career advisor, career coach, or transition coordinator Student receipt of transition services by type (advising, counseling, tutoring, support services, financial aid)
Credential type (certificate, degree) X X
Credential date granted X X
STudENT EmploymENT aNd EarNiNgS
Pre-program wage X X
Pre-program earnings (from UI covered earnings database) X X
Placement occupation X X
Hours per week of placement job X X
Post-program earnings (from UI covered earnings database) X X
will this element be collected?
Adult Education Workforce Investment Act Perkins MIS72 Local Data Partner Data
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as data collected by community-based organizations for its private funders, a community college, or by cities for CDBG funded programs. The final column is to record whether the information will be collected for the bridge program, how, and by whom.
use The Data
Bridge program data can be used for both continuous improvement and for outcome reporting. A continuous improvement process provides an overall structure for the work of the bridge leadership team, and helps keep the team focused on student results. In addition, a structured process should provide the team with a method for identifying and implementing program improvements. Finally, a continuous improvement process can provide a means of broadening the scope of the bridge partnership by engaging additional stakeholders in efforts to improve student results generally.
To ensure a structured continuous improvement process, partners should:
• Involve all of the bridge program partners and providers. Identify and reach out to additional stakeholders, such as major employers, community organizations, and others.
• Provide a structured method for reviewing data on student progress and outcomes.
• Include a focus on the results for different segments of the target population.
• Facilitate discussion about the processes that the partners use to serve these students and how they could be improved.
• Support the development of organizational policy changes and other plans to address these improvements.
• Encourage the team to reflect on what has been learned in order to set the stage for further improvements.
Reviewing performance results
The leadership team should begin with a review of how the bridge program is doing in terms of student transition results and related outcomes. To do this, the team will need to assemble whatever data is already available on the results for similar students and similar programs.
In addition, the team may need to develop additional results information by making a request for adult education provider results, developmental education course results, or WIA outcomes. Outcome data collected for a comparable group of students makes it possible to show whether the bridge program is more effective in serving this type of student than other programs. It will be easier to collect data on a comparison group from the beginning of the program than to try to identify one after the fact.
Setting expectations
Once the team has produced data on its baseline performance, it will be ready to think about setting goals for the bridge program. This involves answering questions such as: What do we want to accomplish through the bridge program? What measures will we use to gauge success? At what levels of performance will we consider the program successful?
Preparing to collect and use data
Assessing the bridge program depends on the ability of the leadership team to collect and use data on student characteristics and outcomes. This will require decisions on what information to collect and a strategy for collecting it.
It may require data sharing agreements in order to access information that is gathered by one or more of the partners, and the team will need to create procedures for obtaining any information that is not currently being collected.
Assessing results of the bridge program
After implementation of the bridge program, the leadership team should assess its impact on students. This is where the leadership team will use the data and other information gathered during implementation to help determine whether or not the bridge program achieved its goals, and what, if any, changes need to be made to improve the program in the future.
ChaptER NINE
The main steps for assessing the program include:
1. Compare results to goals. What did we say we would do? How did we do? Are we reaching our own goals?
On what measures did we fall short? Where did we exceed our goals?
2. Assessing program components. What were rates of attendance, participation in group projects, completion of assignments, etc.? What individual and career development services did they receive? What can be learned about the reasons for success or failure?
3. Benchmarking. What can we learn from the results obtained by other bridge programs? How do we compare with other programs, not just on results, but also on whom we served? What were the key components of the program, and what strategies did we adopt to support student progress?
4. Impacts. What impact have we had on addressing the overall problems facing low-skilled students in completing postsecondary instruction and obtaining a marketable credential? How have our efforts affected the results of our funding sources, e.g., WIA Title I, Perkins, and Adult Education?
5. Ideas for improvement. What should be changed about the program in the future? How will these changes address aspects of the program or results of the program that were less successful than expected?