Project Background
Nearly ⅔ of African Americans who attend college in California begin their postsecondary journey at a community college, yet over 60% wind up leaving without a degree or certificate or without transferring to a university. Decreasing the existing racial inequities in transfer rates is a key strategy for increasing income equality.
In the first phase of our Through the Gate project, results revealed that while African-American students were less likely to make it “near the transfer gate,” among those who did reach this milestone, they were significantly more likely to transfer than their peers. In fact, when compared to White students, African-American students were 2.04 times more likely to transfer than remain near the gate and 1.17 times more likely to transfer than to remain at the gate.
This finding presents an alternative narrative to some common perceptions about academic achievement among African-American students. However, too few African-American students are making it to this point in the first place. Thus, we are seeking to understand the programs, practices, and factors that facilitate or hinder university transfer among African-American community college students.
Research Questions
The African American Transfer Tipping Point project is a 24-month, mixed-methods research study designed to answer two critical sets of research questions:
- Where along the academic continuum are we losing the greatest proportions of African-American students who leave without transferring? Conversely, where are the tipping points that signal students’ transition from being unlikely to reach their transfer goal to being significantly more likely to do so?
- What are the factors (both academic and non-academic) that contribute to students' likelihood of reaching the tipping point? Which programs and practices are associated with greater persistence to and through the tipping points and, ultimately, the transfer gates?
Project Plan
In the first year of the project, we are conducting a quantitative analysis of student course-taking patterns and unit completion thresholds to identify key transition points in their transfer journey. This analysis will be followed by qualitative assessment (via interviews/focus groups with students and administrators) to identify programs and practices that bolster or hinder transfer outcomes. In year two, we will administer a systemwide survey to African-American students at key points in their academic journey to develop a comprehensive understanding of the many variables influencing their transfer journeys and ultimate success. The results from all these analyses will be summarized in a series of materials, followed by outreach and engagement — developing practical resources to support efforts to improve African-American transfer outcomes.
We have recruited a robust Advisory Committee consisting of a range of transfer leaders working at the campus and system levels, leaders who are committed to equitable student outcomes, individuals with expertise overseeing African-American student programs, researchers with a focus on racial inequities in postsecondary outcomes, and most importantly students who are currently on the transfer journey or have successfully transferred.
Lead
Katie Brohawn
Team Members
Darla Cooper, Alyssa Nguyen, Michelle White, Daisy Segovia
Advisory Members
Name
|
Position
|
Organization
|
Natalie Aceves
|
Educational Director, Transfer Center
|
Norco College
|
Dr. Arynn Auzout
|
Partnership Relations Coordinator
|
CCC Transfer Guarantee Agreement to Historically Black Colleges & Universities
|
Anita Bailey
|
Program Director
|
Umoja Community
|
Dr. Antonio Banks
|
Director, Black and Males of Color Success
|
Compton College
|
Dr. Julianna Barnes
|
Chancellor
|
South Orange County Community College District
|
Dr. Lisa Cooper Wilkins
|
Vice Chancellor, Student Affairs
|
City College of San Francisco
|
Dr. Keith Curry
|
President
|
Compton College
|
Audrey Dow
|
Senior Vice President
|
Campaign for College Opportunity
|
Nzingha Dugas
|
Executive Director
|
Umoja Community, Palomar College
|
Sydney Farwell
|
Transfer Student involved in TTG project
|
Fresno State
|
Michelle Fowles
|
Dean, Institutional Effectiveness
|
LA Valley College
|
Dr. Su Jin Gatlin Jez
|
Executive Director
|
California Competes
|
Marcell Gilmore
|
Educational Research Assessment Analyst
|
Mt. San Antonio College
|
Dr. Frank Harris
|
Co-Director of the Community College Equity Assessment Lab (CCEAL) / Professor of postsecondary education
|
San Diego State University/Center for Organizational Responsibility and Advancement (CORA)
|
Dr. Aisha Lowe
|
Vice Chancellor
|
CCC Chancellor's Office
|
Dr. Valerie Lundy-Wagner
|
Assistant Vice Chancellor, Research and Data
|
CCC Chancellor's Office
|
Dr. Christopher Nellum
|
Deputy Director, Research and Policy
|
Education Trust-West
|
Ken O'Donnell
|
Vice Provost, Academic Affairs
|
CSU Dominguez Hills
|
Anthony Onwuegbuzia
|
Transfer student
|
Compton College Student who transferred to CSU Dominguez Hills
|
Gerald Richardson III
|
Student Senate Legislative Affairs Director Reg VI and student in Ventura County CCD
|
Student Senate
|
Dr. Wendy Sedlak
|
Strategy Director
|
Lumina Foundation
|
Sabrina Sencil
|
Director, Research and Equity
|
Cosumnes River College
|
Dr. Jennifer Taylor-Mendoza
|
Vice President, Instruction
|
Skyline College
|
Dr. Scott Thayer
|
President
|
A2MEND (African American Male Education Network and Development)
|
Dr. Eric Wada
|
Academic Senate: C-ID Curriculum Director
|
Academic Senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC)/Los Rios Community College District
|
Diamund White
|
Student Senate Legislative Affairs Director Reg III and student at City College of SF
|
Student Senate
|
Dr. Luke Wood
|
Dean’s Distinguished Professor of Education, VP for Student Affairs & Campus Diversity, Co-Director of the Community College Equity Assessment Lab (CCEAL)
|
San Diego State University/Center for Organizational Responsibility and Advancement (CORA)
|
Helen Young
|
Project Director
|
CCC Transfer Guarantee Agreement to Historically Black Colleges & Universities
|
Briefs and Reports
Infographic: Facilitators of and Barriers to Transfer for African American/Black Students, October 2024
Infographic from Phase 1 of the African American Transfer Tipping Point Project.
The African American Transfer Tipping Point: Exploring the Transfer Journeys of Over 7,000 African American/Black Community College Students, October 2023
Report sharing findings from the third phase of the African American Transfer Tipping Point study.
African American Transfer Tipping Point (AATTP) Brief 1 of 3, October 2022
Research brief featuring findings from the African American Transfer Tipping Point study of factors influencing the success of transfer-motivated African American/Black students.
Brief 1 of 3
African American Transfer Tipping Point (AATTP) Brief 2 of 3, October 2022
Research brief providing information gathered from conversations with college practitioners and transfer-motivated students regarding why certain factors, namely counseling, academic probation, Umoja, and instructional faculty, may act as facilitators of or barriers to transfer for African American/Black students.
Brief 2 of 3
African American Transfer Tipping Point (AATTP) Brief 3 of 3, October 2022
Research brief highlighting key recommendations offered by college practitioners and students from five colleges having success when it comes to transfer for African American/Black students to help other colleges better support transfer-motivated African American/ Black community college students.
Brief 3 of 3
African American Transfer Tipping Point Study Technical Brief, November 2022
Technical report providing detailed methodology and results from the first phase of the African American Transfer Tipping Point study.
Webinars
Spotlight on... Moorpark College: Academic Probation Reimagined, November 2023 (Recording)
Webinar recording of The RP Group's "Spotlight on..." series featuring Moorpark College: Academic Probation Reimagined.
Spotlight on... Moorpark College: Academic Probation Reimagined, November 2023 (PPT)
Slides from webinar of The RP Group's "Spotlight on..." series featuring Moorpark College: Academic Probation Reimagined.
The African American Transfer Tipping Point: Exploring the Transfer Journeys of Over 7,000 African American/Black California Community College Students, October 2023 (Recording)
Webinar recording of October 2023 Event "The African American Transfer Tipping Point: Exploring the Transfer Journeys of Over 7,000 African American/Black California Community College Students."
The African American Transfer Tipping Point: Exploring the Transfer Journeys of Over 7,000 African American/Black California Community College Students, October 2023 (PPT)
Slides from webinar sharing results from new report "The African American Transfer Tipping Point: Exploring the Transfer Journeys of Over 7,000 African American/Black California Community College Students."
African American Transfer Tipping Point Webinar, October 2022 (Recording)
Webinar sharing findings from the African American Transfer Tipping Point study on the factors that impact transfer success among African American/Black students.
African American Transfer Tipping Point Webinar, October 2022 (PPT)
Slides from webinar sharing findings from the African American Transfer Tipping Point study on the factors that impact transfer success among African American/Black students.
Conference Presentations
Identifying Factors Impacting Upward Transfer among African American/Black Community College Students, June 2023
Slides from presentation at the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity (NCORE) conference in June 2023 by Dr. Darla Cooper.
Identifying Factors Impacting Upward Transfer Among African American/Black Males in the California Community Colleges - Presented at A2MEND, March 2023
Slides from presentation at the African American Male Education Network and Development in March 2023 by Dr. Darla Cooper.
The African American Transfer Tipping Point Study - Presented at NISTS, February 2023
Slides from presentation at the National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students in February 2023 by Dr. Darla Cooper.
The Transfer Tipping Point: Identifying factors impacting upward transfer among African American/Black community college students - Presented at the Umoja Conference, November 2022
Slides from presentation on the African American Transfer Tipping Point project, presented at the 2022 Umoja Conference.