Cheryl Bryant-Shanks

The Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) for Guilford Technical Community College (GTCC) focuses on improving student success within the first 12 credit hours, reinforcing the college's guided pathways initiative. The plan addresses an achievement gap between black students and their white and Hispanic peers, aiming to ensure equitable success rates. Key components include developing a college-wide attendance policy, implementing active student engagement strategies, providing faculty and staff professional development, and strategically distributing financial aid to support student outcomes. The QEP aims to change the college culture by ensuring all stakeholders are informed and involved, ultimately helping students achieve their educational goals and serving the community of Guilford County.

The Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) for Guilford Technical Community College (GTCC) focuses on improving student success within the first 12 credit hours, reinforcing the college's guided pathways initiative. The plan addresses the achievement gap between black students and their white and Hispanic peers by ensuring equitable success in early coursework. Key components include a college-wide attendance policy, active student engagement strategies in the classroom, professional development for faculty and staff, and optimized distribution of financial aid. The plan aims to change the college culture, enhance faculty support, and promote student success over the next 5 years, with ongoing monitoring and refinement.

The meeting included a discussion on QEP writing guidelines, student engagement, professional development, and financial aid distribution. Student engagement topics included expanding in-classroom and out-of-classroom engagement, tutor and faculty training, a syllabus repository, asynchronous support for online classes, and revitalizing the Canvas campaign. Professional development will encourage faculty to start taking attendance in Fall 2024. The financial aid distribution group discussed student disbursements in Self-Service, chunking financial aid distributions in fall of 2025, and communicating financial literacy to students.

The meeting included discussions on the final, approved Attendance Policy, its review and approval process, and its implementation in Self-Service. Instructors will input the last day of attendance during the Fall 2024 pilot. There was also discussion about participation grading, including tying assignments/deliverables to attendance, lab attendance requirements, and the use of weekly grading sheets in Cosmetology. Some programs may have more stringent requirements due to accreditation or regulatory agencies, subject to approval by the Senior Vice President of Instruction. Gen Ed classes for pilot programs will be opened to the general population after first-year pilot students register. Kristen will email syllabus requirements, and deans are asked to put their syllabi in the Teams site.

The committee discussed sub-committee reports, including updates from the Pilot Group (Aviation, Cosmetology, and Surgical Tech), Student Engagement (Academic), Professional Development, Attendance Policy/Reporting, Marketing, and Financial Aid Distribution Processes. Key topics included identifying courses for incoming students, improving attendance data reporting, updating the attendance policy, and strategies for student engagement. The committee also addressed professional development objectives, financial aid distribution processes, and marketing strategies for the QEP slogan.