Maricopa Community Colleges

Alvarez and Marsal present Phase I Summary Report to Governing Board

On September 30, 2009, Alvarez and Marsal's team of consultants providing a third-party external review of Maricopa's efficiency and effectiveness presented its Phase I Report to the Maricopa Community Colleges Governing Board.

The team's charge for Phase I – capture the voice of the 21st Century Maricopa student:

• Map out current state of student recruitment, retention and achievement.
• Document major supporting functions and activities
• Engage student focus groups to review and obtain feedback

One of the most eye-opening findings in a District-wide survey of students: 82% of all students say they aim to be completers*, but only 11% reach their goal within three years.

In an effort to help the District increase completion rates, the A & M team identified 92 best practices already in place at one or several Maricopa colleges supporting student recruitment, retention and achievement. A best practice is defined as:

Characteristic	Measure
Observable	Defined by events and procedures that positively affect student satisfaction
Demonstrable	Identified practices that follow specific paths and procedures
Student-Focused	Practice is designed to directly affect a student's academic life.
Outcome-Driven	Focus towards specific goals and targets for potential and current students.
Replicable	Practices that can be standardized and integrated across the college systems with the same consistent, desired outcome.

The resulting goals presented to the Governing Board, Chancellor and his Executive Council:

1. Proactively recruit and retain learners who become completers through targeted recruitment strategies, applying remediation strategies for student retention, and enhancing existing services and resources for student achievement.
2. Mandate the replication of observed best practices across the colleges using a "one-door" enrollment process and student service centers, enhancing academic advising and counseling, refining financial aid processes, and using enhanced tools.
3. Drive accountability for best practice implementation with the use of data by creating an accountability plan, leveraging relationships with local employers to maximize Service Learning opportunities, and seeking continuous feedback from, and collaboration with students and stakeholders.

The attached presentation (pdf) (txt) provides a complete overview of the A & M findings. Additionally, Maricopa Colleges Television (MCTV) is posting the complete video recording of the meeting here.

Additional comments and ideas may be submitted directly to A & M at: Maricopa@alvarezandmarsal.com

Phase II of the firms work is already underway and will be reported out on November 24, 2009.

*Completers are defined as learners who transfer and/or attain a degree or certificate.

Student success is the fundamental goal at the Maricopa Community Colleges.

On August 24, 2009, the Maricopa Community Colleges began an aggressive four month effectiveness and efficiency review designed to help students succeed like never before.

The first phase of the project focuses on recruitment, retention, and student achievement - finding the best ways to support student success.

Alvarez and Marsal team of independent consultants, will blueprint a new organizational design for the Maricopa Community Colleges that:

• A. Captures the "voice of the 21st century student" at Maricopa with regard to their needs and aspirations from a multi-faceted, multi-location, single community college system.
  
• B. Re-examines the three critical processes to Maricopa students' future success: student recruitment, student retention, and student achievement (graduation/transfer/employment).  
  Develop redesign options on these processes to further enhance student success and satisfaction.
  
• C. Provide a high-level redesign of the remaining MCCCD organizational structures, interfaces, departments, processes, policies and functions that support student recruitment, student retention, and student achievement.

The project scope includes an exploration of key operational functions across the ten colleges and two skill centers with an assessment of opportunities for consolidation, centralization, and increased shared service delivery between and across the different colleges and the District. Updates on the project will be provided on this website at periodic intervals.