A Student-Centered College

September 2021

Over the past several months, the College has engaged in a series of discussions about our next strategic plan. These discussions have led to three strategic goal areas identified by the Strategic Planning Task Force: increasing enrollment, improving student success, and improving college sustainability - with a focus on how we can become more student-centered as a college. While there is no question that we all want to serve our students’ best interests, what specifically does it mean to be student-centered from our individual perspectives?

Last week, a group of faculty, staff and administrators had a discussion on the recruiting process led by President Hazelbaker. The group shared what we learned from the SSA’s “secret shopper” experience and the CCRS Summer Institute, identified some of the issues that had prevented our students from being successful, and discussed possible solutions and resources to address these issues. We talked about ways to hear from students on their everyday experiences as they navigate the years at NPC, and our current and future efforts to improve their success through collaborative support and guided pathways. We agreed that to create a highly student-centered environment, change needed to happen at the procedural, structural, and cultural levels. However, we understand change is not easy, as it requires a systemic transformation from a transactional model to a relational model.

The discussion reminded me of a survey the College conducted a while ago, in which our dedicated faculty and staff and our technology innovations were identified as two of NPC’s biggest strengths. Acknowledgement of these strengths will help us overcome some of the obstacles during the change process, even when there are disagreements. As educators, we bring diverse perspectives together to build a strong, shared path forward. A great discussion I often had with my EDU 286 students (who were pre- and in-service teachers) was “digital disconnect” - how do our “digital immigrant” instructors effectively educate our “digital native” students? Most would agree on Marc Prensky’s suggestion that we should meet students where they are and be inclusive and open-minded. Even different cultures can find common ground. As an invited speaker in Professor Ryan Jones’ World Literature class this summer, I had one of the most enjoyable cross-cultural conversations with his students - in searching for the commonality between Tang poet Liu Changqing’s Staying in Lotus Hill on a Snowy Night and American poet Robert Frost’s Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, we seemed to find a bridge that helped transcend cultural differences. There are many ways to find that bridge between generations and cultures, and they don’t have to be complicated. At the institutional level, our common ground among diverse perspectives at the college can be found in our strong commitment to student success. And each and every one of us can be a change agent.

Last weekend, Interim Early College Director April Horne took a 7-hour, 400-mile round trip to Tuba City to deliver mobile hotspots for seven Early College students that are currently quarantined and without internet access at home, so they can continue their study. This collaborative effort between our Early College Team, NPC Friends and Family and our high school partners to bridge the digital divide during the pandemic is one of many great examples of how we define student-centeredness as a team. According to Director Wilson, NPCFF has provided over 70 hotspots to students who had no internet access, or limited access that was made worse by having to share bandwidth with family members who were also trying to work/learn from home. Even at the height of COVID, when the whole college was on lock-down, over 85% of the students who received them completed the semester.

A student-centric mentality was also evident during the Instructional Innovation Division session on the August 18 Division Day, when more than 50 faculty members joined us and participated in discussions on how we can work together to better serve our students through innovative initiatives such as HyFlex, Tech Hubs, META Telecounseling, OERs, etc. Such ongoing discussion will greatly benefit our Library Services, Instructional Technology and Curriculum Support, Office of Accessibility and Inclusion, Early College, and Perkins Grant, as we continue to develop a support network for teaching and learning through innovation and collaboration.

More discussions will be taking place to map out a seamless path for our students - from the moment a student expresses interest in the College, to the time they begin their journey at NPC and eventually accomplish their goals - how can we produce a positive college experience and enrich their lives beyond college? Moving forward, we need to develop a list of student-centered activities across almost every aspect of the College, and align them with our strategic goals. When we agree on the shared mission and vision, and acknowledge our strengths and weaknesses, every single effort to help our students succeed will contribute to a college-wide culture shift.

The poll during the Fall Convocation reveals three main keywords that describe how most people feel about the coming year: optimistic, hopeful, excited. There will likely be challenges and growing pains as we move forward, but positive change towards a truly student-centered college is already underway.

Wei Ma, PhD
Dean of Instructional Innovation