Most public colleges offering credit for remedial courses

Three of four students at Oklahoma public colleges and universities who need remediation are able to enroll in courses that give them both the extra support they need and credit toward a degree.

The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education on Wednesday heard an update on efforts to replace noncredit remedial courses — which cost students $2.89 million in 2013-14 — with credit-bearing corequisite remediation.

“We’re spending the afternoon talking about higher ed once again fixing an issue that should have been taken care of in high school,” said Regent Jeff Hickman, of Fairview. “I don’t know what we can do to help fix the problem (in high school) rather than fixing it after they get to us.”

High school graduates should know the information when they are handed their diplomas, he said.

State data show 12,526 first-time freshmen (40.2 percent) enrolled in at least one remedial courses in 201617 because they weren’t prepared for collegelevel work.

Of the total, 10,459 students needed help with math.

Oklahoma was one of eight states selected in fall 2015 to participate in a three-year corequisite initiative by Complete College America, an organization dedicated to increasing college degree completion rates.

The state met two initiative goals by fall 2017, Debbie Blanke, vice chancellor for academic and student affairs, reported Wednesday.

Ninety percent of all state system students who need remediation were able to attend an institution offering corequisite remediation, and 75 percent of them were able to enroll in that coursework, Blanke said.

Representatives from Cameron University and Tulsa Community College presented an overview of corequisite efforts on their campuses.

Blanke said officials are evaluating various models and efforts as they move toward statewide implementation.

Students who pay tuition for traditional prerequisite courses, but earn no credit, are more likely to drop out of college, officials say.

“Corequisite courses give students the unique opportunity to move through remedial and gateway coursework more efficiently, so they can successfully complete their college degrees in less time,” Chancellor Glen Johnson said.