In partnership with the Department of Corrections and Iowa Workforce Development, the Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation has released a one-page report that outlines post-release employment wages between individuals in Iowa's state correctional facilities who did and did not take a college course as well as the respective recidivism rates of these groups.  Findings support tangible benefits to these individuals who saw post-release success in employment and had significantly decreased recidivism rates.

The data focuses on individuals who were released from incarceration in 2018 and had enrolled in credit and noncredit community college programs from 2012-2018. Credit and noncredit programs offered to these individuals included adult education, agriculture, business, transportation and logistics, health science and manufacturing. The full report of this data will be coming soon. The current one-page report can be found here. 

In a data-sharing partnership with the Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation, the education departments of the University of North Carolina—Charlotte and Baylor University have completed a groundbreaking research brief that not only defines the types of noncredit programs offered in Iowa, but also outlines the outcomes for the enrollees of those programs. The brief specifically addresses the number of noncredit completions and the number of noncredit contact hours—data that Iowa and very few other states capture. The brief categorizes Iowa’s noncredit programs into types to compare to national estimates on noncredit enrollment data from the 2016-2017 academic year. The brief also breaks down demographic data from noncredit programs and notes how these demographic details factor into noncredit program outcomes. The brief can be found here.

The Iowa Department of Education is excited to announce Northeast Iowa Community College will be the fiscal agent of the FY20 Iowa Intermediary Technical Assistance Center Grant. Northeast Iowa Community College will be partnering with Hawkeye Community College to deliver a collaborative statewide approach supporting the continued growth of the Iowa Intermediary Network. The Department looks forward to Northeast Iowa Community College and Hawkeye Community College's plans to build upon the momentum and growth established by Kirkwood Community College in the FY19 and FY20 Iowa Intermediary Technical Assistance Center Grants. 

Dr. Wendy Mihm-Herold, Vice President of Business and Community Solutions at Northeast Iowa Community College, notes, "The Iowa Intermediary Network is led by dynamic and innovative individuals across the state. We are excited that IITAC can continue to expand Intermediary efforts through statewide collaboration that will enhance work-based learning for Iowa!"

In December 2017, the Iowa Association of Community College Presidents unanimously approved an Iowa Department of Education proposal to establish an authorized process to permit community colleges to adopt transfer majors. This process has now been authorized through Iowa Administrative Code 281 21.3. These transfer majors are designed to guide students to take program-specific coursework within their associate of arts (AA) or associate of science (AS) studies that will transfer seamlessly into related majors at four-year institutions with the goal of:

• improving communication and transfer efficiency among institutions;
• providing students with a defined pathway toward their academic goals;
• supporting a more data-informed assessment/articulation process;
• avoiding excessive credits and decreasing time to degree completion; and
• making postsecondary education more affordable, thus reducing student debt.

As of October 1, 2020, 222 transfer majors have been approved by the Iowa Department of Education for enrollment by students as compared to 40 one year ago. All of Iowa’s 15 colleges have at least eight approved transfer majors and the disciplines available to each college include Psychology, Criminal Justice, Biology, Business, Sociology, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Early Childhood Teacher Licensure, Elementary Education, Secondary Education, Agriculture Business, Agriculture Education, Agronomy, Animal Science, Communication, Theater, Fine Arts, English, Journalism, History, Political Science, Exercise Science & Kinesiology and Social Work. Once a discipline transfer major is approved by the Department, colleges will be able to market and transcript their transfer majors.

A few more transfer majors will be discussed, vetted and approved in the next year for colleges that align their curriculum with these frameworks.

In Fall 2020, there are 24 potential transfer major disciplines available to community college students depending on which colleges are offering them. In the fall 2020 enrollment data, there are 2,014 enrolled transfer major students across 23 of these disciplines and across 14 colleges for 25,356.5 credit hours. The most popular transfer major disciplines for these students include: business with 491 enrollments (22.2%); psychology with 473 enrollments (21.4%); criminal justice with 337 enrollments (15.2%), elementary education with 290 enrollments (13.1%) and biology with 170 enrollments (7.7%). These four disciplines represent 79.5% of fall 2020 transfer major enrollments and were some of the first disciplines to be approved across the state, and thus have had the most time to become established at the colleges. In comparison, for fall 2019 there were 249 transfer major enrollments across seven colleges and only four disciplines were approved and available at that time.

In response to the pandemic and ongoing safety measures and to provide equitable access for Iowa's students, the Iowa Intermediary Network has created statewide virtual events so all Iowa students can continue to have valuable access to industry leaders. These events have been a great success, driving hundreds of new users to the Iowa Intermediary Network website. Thus far, 2,896 students have been signed up for events, with many attending more than one and some signing up for all future events. 

Registration for these events is free and includes a direct connection of the event to industry standards, topics covered in the event, and example assessments articulated to the content covered in the event.

Past events include a Cupcake Wars-themed session, and listed events include Agricultural Career Day, Careers in the Skilled Trades and Growth Opportunities Within Iowa Businesses. The Iowa Intermediary Network statewide event page can be accessed here.

Academy courses may be taken for license renewal or graduate credit, or for no credit (free) through AEA Learning Online.

Starting November 9

101: FOUNDATIONS OF COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS IN IOWA Register

201: CREATING IOWA’S COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS CULTURE Register

401: PLANNING AND THE DISTRICT’S ROLE IN CREATING A STUDENT-CENTERED CAREER AND ACADEMIC PLAN Register

601: ADVANCED EQUITY ISSUES IN PLANNING, ACCESSING AND FINANCING POSTSECONDARY OPPORTUNITIES Register

Complete 101 through 301 and earn a College Access Professional Certificate.

Complete 101 through 501 and earn a College Access Specialist Certificate.

Complete 601 and earn an Equity Badge.

See the 2020-21 course schedule and learn more at IowaCollegeAid.gov/Academy

The Division is pleased to announce Becky Scott, CPA, CMA, CGMA, will join the division October 30 as consultant for community college finance. Becky has an MBA from Drake University and a BS in accounting from Truman St. University. She has many years of experience, most recently serving as lead accountant with ITA group and earlier as a finance manager with West Des Moines Water Works, accounting manager at City of West Des Moines and deputy controller for City of Des Moines.  

In her role, Becky will provide leadership on community college finance issues, including financial data reporting, maintaining accounting manuals, preparing funding allocations and serving as liaison to community college business officers. 

We are seeking talented individuals who are passionate about excellence in education to fill several positions over the next few months within the Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation.

We don't just talk about inclusion; it's how we do business. Our team is globally diverse and we seek candidates whose differences will challenge our ideas, spur innovation and ultimately help build stronger programs serving the people of Iowa.

The division is currently seeking applicants for community college bureau chief who will provide leadership to the bureau of community colleges; this position closes tomorrow, October 29. The division is also in the process of reviewing and interviewing applicants for a consultant for high school and community college business, marketing and information solutions programs. Decisions on these positions will be made in the coming weeks.

To learn more about opportunities within the division, please contact Jeremy Varner, Administrator, Division of Community Colleges and Workforce Preparation, at jeremy.varner@iowa.gov, or at 515-281-8260.