2 local programs praised for course initiative success

Board recognizes both for helping students’ chances of graduating

Two Houston university programs are among the best for helping more young adults in Texas get a postsecondary degree or certificate, according to the state’s higher education coordinating board.

The University of Houston’s “UH in 4” program and the University of Houston-Downtown’s gateway course initiative are two of four winners of the coordinating board’s annual Star Award, recognizing programs that improve a student’s chances of graduating.

The “UH in 4” program, implemented in fall 2014, allows students to lock into four years of fixed tuition if they pledge to take a full course load annually. These students are required to meet regularly with advisers and stay in good academic standing.

When UH started the program, its four-year graduation rate was 16 percent. That first year, in 2014, about half of incoming freshmen enrolled. About half of those students have already graduated or are on track to graduate in four years, the university said.

In recent years, about 70 percent of incoming students have participated.

UH-Downtown is recognized for its efforts to improve entry-level courses that many students take — and struggle to complete. Without passing these courses, the university says, students have no shot of continuing on in their degree paths.

Professors of these classes, which include algebra, English composition and biology, added paid student tutors, group work and video review guides to help students pass the classes. They’re now sharing those strategies with other UH-Downtown faculty.

“You hear faculty saying, they enjoy teaching these courses now,” said Gregory Dement, who directs UH-Downtown’s teaching and learning center. “I’ve heard faculty

say (they) haven’t seen students so engaged — that in itself is a success.”

Pass rates are up for the developed courses. He said he believes about half of the improvements are from developing these courses. The other half could be from other factors, he said, including grade inflation, a trend happening across many institutions. UH Downtown also recently introduced admissions standards, imposing new academic requirements on incoming students.

The awards give some encouragement as Texas colleges and universities are under sharp pressure to lift graduation rates, which lag behind campuses nationally.

The state has set an ambitious goal of having 60 percent of Texas young adults earn a post-secondary degree or certificate by 2030.

Raymund Paredes, the state’s higher education commissioner, said Thursday that accomplishing this goal is unlikely with current “outdated” delivery models.

“We’re going to have to innovate,” he said.

Highlighting successful programs hopefully will help institutions graduate more students “with highquality job skills, with a better comprehension of the subject matter they studied and with employable skills that can help them have a higher standard of living,” he said.