The Developmental Education Institute

Dorcas Place Adult & Family Learning Center, in collaboration with the Community College of Rhode Island, (CCRI), has developed a three-year pilot project, the Developmental Education Istitute, to increase low-income adult student preparation, persistence and success at the college level. This pilot, funded by the Nellie Mae Education Foundation and the RI Department of Education/Office of Adult Education, builds on our existing partnership to create an alternative strategy to developmental education that links a community college with a community-based adult education agency.

The goal is to determine if those students who receive intensive college-level instruction in reading and math at an adult education center and preserve their financial aid are more likely to persist in college. We believe it is an alternative stategy that could lead to additional low-income students succeeding in college.

This innovative approach is untested but built on research that indicates the more development education courses a student enrolls in the more unlikely he or she is to persist in college (Remediation in the Community College: An Evaluator's Perspective, Henry M. Levin, Juan Carlos Calcagno, Teachers College, Columbia University). The Institute supports recommendations of the RI Boarch of Governor's Task Force on Groups Underrepresented in Higher Education to enhance student pathways to success through scaling up practices of community-based organizations and supporting adult learners with practices consistent with higher education institutions.

The Developmental Education Institute design includes extensive academic and case management services for students who typically have some of the greatest barriers to reaching their educational goals. In addition to classroom learning, the Institute includes multiple forms of learning assistance, e.g., intensified use of math and reading software ina staff-assisted laboratory setting that includes 12 computers and access to 15 laptops, small group tutoring, and personal, academic and career counseling. Instruction has increased from 3 hours (CCRI program) to 8 hours per week.

Presently, classes are taught by CCRI faculty at Dorcas Place in the evening, and a case manager is available on-site.