UPDATE on Research and Leadership
The briefs in this longtime OCCRL publication contain topics highlighting policies, programs and practices that enhance community college education and the transition to college for diverse learners worldwide.
Sign up to receive news and updates on OCCRL's research, publications, and events.
Winter 2024 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- Advancing STEM Faculty Diversity in Community Colleges by Localizing the Self-Assessment Tool
- Community Colleges Grapple with Implementation of DERA
- Increasing Equity Through Common Course Numbering
- Revising How We Fund the Vital Community Colleges in Illinois
- Transforming Program Review from Compliance to Strategic Development
Summer 2024 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- Exploring the Value of Culturally Responsive Teaching in Career and Technical Education
- Good Intentions, Shaky Implementation Lead to Equity Concerns in New FAFSA Rollout
- Leading the Nation but More Work to Do: Bachelor's Degree Attainment Among Students Starting at Community Colleges
- The Unique Roll OER Plays with CTE Programs at Illinois Community Colleges
- Transforming Developmental Education in Illinois is Personal
Fall 2023 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
Spring 2023 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
Winter 2023 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
Fall 2021 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- Introducing Scholarly Personal Narratives
- Supporting Racial Equity in Career and Technical Education in 2021 and Beyond
- At What Cost: Strengthening California Community College Career and Technical Education Through Student Services
- Advancing the Completion Agenda: A Snapshot of Guided Pathways Efforts
- State Funding for Open Educational Resources
Fall 2020 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- The Multiple and Nuanced Ways Universities Perpetuate Settler Colonial Aims of Erasure for Indigenous Students
- Parenting Students in Higher Education Benefit from Community Colleges, but More Research is Needed
- Advancing Equity in Career and Technical Education in Illinois
- Latinx Community College Students: Navigating Pathways to the Doctorate
- Foster Youth and Basic-Needs Insecurity
Fall 2019 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- Reclaiming the Racial Justice Meaning of Equity
- Racial Realities of Community College Institutional Climates
- How Equity Exemplars Support Racially Minoritized Students at Community Colleges
- Inequities in Educational Opportunities and Funding
- Waiting to Exhale and Experiencing Reflux in American Race Relations
Fall 2018 UPDATE
Fall 2017 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- Policy Trends and Resources that Support Adult Learners
- Exploring the Implementation of Reverse Transfer in Illinois
- Libraries and College Readiness: The Bronx Community College Library High School Collaborative
- Student Affairs in Community College Contexts
- Community Colleges, the Racialized Climate, and Engaging Diverse Views Through Intergroup Dialogue
Spring 2017 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- A Framework to Approach Postsecondary Educational Program Design for College Students with Lived Experience in Foster Care
- Registered Apprenticeships: Integrated Earn and Learn Pathways at Harper College
- Equity and Student Services
- Racial Equity and Justice in Educational Settings
- Community College Pop Culture Portrayals
- The Illinois Landscape of Minority-Serving Community Colleges
Fall 2016 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- Bridging Hands-On Technical and Online Education
- Examining the Intersection of Online Dual Credit and College Readiness
- Reality and Resiliency The Educational Needs and Strengths of Former Foster Youth
- Texas Minority Serving Community Colleges Support Success and Equitable Outcomes through Resource Sharing
- The Chicago Landscape of Career and Technical Education
- Community Colleges and Democracy as Problem Solving
Spring 2016 UPDATE
This issue includes the following articles:
- Entrepreneurship Education as a Third Pathway for Community Colleges: An Interview with Paul Magelli
- The Impact of the Health Professions Pathways Consortium
- Altering the Pipeline to Prison and Pathways to Postsecondary Education
- Three Views on Concurrent Enrollment
- New Research on Applied Baccalaureate Degrees: Implementation in Five Regions of the United States
- Reverse Transfer: Taking Stock and Moving Forward
OCCRL UPDATE ARCHIVE
Spring 2015 - Spring 1990
View Archived Issues
Spring 2015 UPDATE
- The Importance of Linking Policy Intent to Policy Outcome: An Interview with Mark Mitsui
- Pathways to What?: The Implications of Learning Outcomes Paradigms forPathways to Results
- Perspectives on Opportunity Generating Pathways at OCCRL’s Scaling Up Conference
- Building Illinois’ Green Workforce through Career Pathways
- Strengthening Career Pathways in Manufacturing Education
- Guiding Principles for Scaling Transformative Change
- Strategies for Transformative Change
Fall 2014 UPDATE
- Charting Pathways in Challenging Times: An Interview with Eboni Zamani-Gallaher
- Dual Credit Funding Policies in Illinois: Understanding How State and Local Funding Relates to Student Access and Participation
- PRC Spotlight Briefs Highlight Promising Practices
- The Path to Revised Guiding Principles for the Transformative Change Initiative
- The Alliance for Quality Career Pathways (AQCP) Framework: Building Momentum to Individual Prosperity and Regional Economic Competitiveness
- Upskill America: U.S. Department of Education Launches the Career Pathways Exchange
- Pathways to Results: Helping Practitioners Improve Pathways and Programs of Study
Spring 2014 UPDATE
- Letter from Director Debra Bragg on OCCRL’s 25th Anniversary
- An Interview with Adrianna Kezar: Opportunities and Challenges for Scaling Up Innovation in Higher Education
- Pathways to Results Conference Highlight: Examining the Context for Scaling Up in Higher Education with Marcy Drummond
- An Interview with Health Professions Pathway (H2P) Consortium Director Marianne Krismer
- Guiding Principles from Transformative Change Initiative about Scaling Up
- Reverse Transfer Initiative Credit When It’s Due Expands: Three New States Join Initiative
- Scaling Career Pathways: Insights and Experience from the Field —20 Featured Presentation from the 2014 Pathways to Results Conference
- Executive Summary of Jobs for the Future’s Thinking Big: A Framework for States on Scaling Up Community College Innovation
Fall 2013 UPDATE
- Community Colleges and the Increasing Importance of Data: An Interview with David Baime
- The Illinois Longitudinal Data System (ILDS) Research Agenda
- Potential Models for Using State Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) Data to Improve Student Learning
- Education Lessons Learned with Longitudinal Data Systems and Quasi-Experimental Design
- State Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) Research Agendas: National Context and Instructive Models
Spring 2013 UPDATE
- Valuing Credentials: An Interview with Anthony Carnevale
- The Value of Progressing Along the Continuum of Educational Attainment
- The Potential Value of a Reverse Transfer Associate Degree: Diverse Values and Perspectives
- Rethinking Asian American Students’ Educational Pathways
- Barriers to Retention and Degree Completion of African American Males in Illinois
- Recent Doctoral Research on Community Colleges
Fall 2012 UPDATE
- Educational Equity: An Interview with Dr. Eboni Zamani-Gallaher
- Rethinking College and Career Readiness: A Call for Understanding Context to Address Racial Inequality
- How Policy Affects Access in the Context of the College Completion Agenda
- Past Failure, Future Opportunity: Lessons Learned about the Experiences and Perceptions of Males of Color in College and Career Readiness Programs
- Siguiendo Tu Sueno “Chasing Your Dream”: What Research Says about Barriers and Supports to Latino Student Community College Persistence
- Pathways to Careers Network Supports College and Career Transitions for Adult Learners
Spring 2012 UPDATE
- The Unsung Sector: An Interview with Under Secretary Martha J. Kanter about America’s College Completion Agenda and Community Colleges
- Pathways to College Completion: Credentialing Models for Students who Stop Short of a Bachelor’s Degree
- A Guide to Major U.S. College Completion Initiatives
- TAFE DIRECTORS AUSTRALIA (TDA) Occasional Papers What the UK, US and Australia Can Learn from Each Other
- Pathways to Results: Implementation of a Data-Driven Approach
- High Schools Promoting Career and College Readiness: An Interview with Mr. Corey Tafoya of Woodstock High School
- Contributions of Transfer Students and Structures to the College Completion Agenda
Fall 2011 UPDATE
- Partnerships that Support High Schools That Work Reform: An Interview with Dr. Gene Bottoms
- OCCRL Engages with High Schools in PTR Pilot
- Bridges Across the P-16 Continuum: The Role of Educational Partnerships
- College and Career Readiness in Illinois: What Illinois’ Pilot Projects Tell Us about the Challenges of Alignment
- Accelerating Opportunity Initiative Awards Grants to Eleven States to Transform Adult Education
- Developing and Leveraging Partnerships and Collaboration to Transition Adult Students into Postsecondary Education and Employment
- Partnership Research for Advanced Technological Education (ATE)
- Strategies for Involving Partners in Pathways to Results
Spring 2011 UPDATE
- The Equity Scorecard(TM): An Interview with Dr. Estela Bensimon
- Pathways to Results in Illinois
- State Perspective on Student Transition
- Pathways to Results Projects at Southwestern Illinois College
- Lessons from the Frontlines of the PTR Process
- STEM Learning exchanges
- Significant Discussions: A Guide for Secondary and Postsecondary Curriculum Alignment
- Book Review: Patton, M. Q. (2011). Developmental Evaluation: Applying Complexity Concepts to Enhance Innovation and Use. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Fall 2010 UPDATE
- The College Fear Factor: An Interview with Rebecca Cox
- What the Literature Tells Us about Bridge Programs
- From Curiosity to Results: The Creation of a Summer Bridge Program
- Illinois Connections in Engineering (ICE)
- Making the “College Connection”: Colorado’s SUN (Success UNlimited) Initiative, an Intensive Transition Program
- Results of the 2010 Illinois Bridge Status Survey
- Bridge Resources
Spring 2010 UPDATE
- The Lumina Perspective: A Conversation with Holly Zanville
- The Applied Baccalaureate Degree: What We Have Learned So Far
- Applied Baccalaureate Policy in Six States
- Development of Washington’s Community and Technical College Applied Baccalaureate Degrees
- Employer and Graduate Perspectives of the Community College Applied Baccalaureate: Meeting the College Mission
Fall 2009 UPDATE
- Year Three of the Shifting Gears Initiative: An Interview with Whitney Smith from the Joyce Foundation
- Basic Skills for College and Careers
- Lessons from Illinois’ Evaluation of Shifting Gears 1.0
- Inside the Black Box: Three Bridge Programs Involved in Illinois Shifting Gears
- Shifting Gears Phase Two: Advancing Policy
- Supporting Bridge Instruction through Title I of the Workforce Investment Act
Spring 2009 UPDATE
- Moving Forward with College and Career Readiness
- Evaluating the College and Career Readiness Act
- The CCR Project at South Suburban College
- Developing High School Partnerships
- OCCRL Welcomes Dianne Bazell, New Deputy Director, Illinois Board of Higher Education
- Kentucky’s P-16 Council as Agent of Change: Implications for College and Career Readiness in Illinois
- Achieve and the American Diploma Project
- Rethinking College Readiness
- College and Career Readiness Resources
- The Early College Movement: An Interview with Nancy Hoffman
Fall 2008 UPDATE
- Implementing Programs of Study: An Interview with Rich Katt
- Equity in Access and Opportunity for Bright Future
- OCCRL’s Role in Implementation and Evaluation of Perkins IV Programs of Study
- The College and Career Readiness Act Evaluation: Early Findings
- What’s Unique About Programs of Study? Three CTE Experts Respond
Spring 2008 UPDATE
- Perkins IV: An Interview with Kimberly Green
- Perkins IV: An Interview with AACC’s Jim Hermes
- State Secondary CTE Standards
- Implementing Perkins IV: A Snapshot of Illinois’ Progress
- Book Review
- Perkins IV and Career Development: Considering Pathways for Students and their Parents
Fall 2007 UPDATE
- Improving Access, Transition, and Success: Meeting the Challenges Facing College Students with Disabilities
- The TEAM Project at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Increasing Access and Improving Transition of Illinois Community College Students
- Illinois’ Shifting Gears Initiative: Helping Adult Students Transition to College and Careers
- OCCRL Reports Released: New Research on Youth and Adult Transition
- Credit-Based Transition Programs
Spring 2007 UPDATE
- Right of Entry, College Access, and Controversy: Implications of the Spellings Report
- Accountability in Community Colleges
- The Zero-Sum of Higher Education Affordability
- The Community College Response to Quality Issues and Recommendations from the Spellings Report
- Book Review
- The Future of Higher Education: A Conversation with Charlene Nunley
Fall 2006 UPDATE
- Students’ Right to Know: Help Students Take Advantage of Illinois’ Strong Articulation Agreements
- IS IAI IMPROVING TRANSFER?
- Update on Articulation: A Conversation with Jan Ignash
- Developing the Associate of Arts in Teaching: An Articulation Partnership in Illinois: An Interview with Dr. Charles Evans, Assistant Vice-President for Academic Affairs University of Illinois
Spring 2006 UPDATE
- Working in a Data Mine or Coaching?–The Importance of Research in One Community College
- How Does Community College Research Impact the Students’ Experience in the Community College?
- Research That Matters to the Community College: An Interview with John Levin
- Increased Needs for Community College Research in a “No Frill” World
Fall 2005 UPDATE
- Online Learning: How to Engage the Milliennial Generation
- Exemplary Professors: Factors Leading to the Development of Award Winning Teachers
- Early Start on College Possible in 50 States, But Results Unclear
- The Case for Learning Communities
- The First-Year Experience: Supporting Student Learning, Student Development and Student Success
- Giving a Little TLC: Providing Insights to Technology and the Learning College
Spring 2005 UPDATE
- The Dance of Assessment and Accreditation
- Assessment at Harold Washington College
- Implementing Academic Assessment: Parkland College’s Journey
- The Culture of Assessment
- Assessment Conference and Course Announcement
- Academic Assessment: An Interview with Peter Ewell
Fall 2004 UPDATE
- Learning to Lead in Community Colleges
- Leaders Are Not Born: Illinois Career and Technical Education Leadership Institute
- Community College Executive Leadership Program
- The Illinois Leadership Academy
- Survey of “Grow Your Own” Leadership Opportunities in Illinois Community Colleges
- Upcoming Conferences and Events of Interest for Those Interested in Leadership Development
- Leading Forward: An Interview with Nan Ottenritter, AACC
Spring 2004 UPDATE
- Illinois’ New Course Applicability System
- Intrusive Advisement: A Model for Success at John A. Logan College
- Developmental Writing and Student Success
- Academic Pathways to Access and Student Success
- Narrowing the Gaps in Educational Attainment: Assessing and Responding to Needs for Community College Services
- Transfer in Illinois: Meeting the Needs of Different Racial/Ethnic Groups
