2008 Woodie Awards
Study Shows More Women Graduate than Men
Jonathan Montalvo
Issue date: 3/9/05 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
The academic success rate of male students at Citrus College is far lower than that of female students.
In the 2003-2004 school year 38 percent of males received their degrees in the 2003-2004, a statistic dwarfed by the 62 percent of females who graduated from Citrus College.
These findings are included in the Student Equity Plan, a study that the college recently finalized for presentation to the state.
In 1991, the California Legislature issued a directive which charged all levels of public education, including California community colleges, to provide educational equity "not only through a diverse and representative student body and faculty but also through educational environments in which each person...has a reasonable chance to fully develop his or her potential (Education Code ยง66010.2c)."
In 1996 The Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges amended the policy and regulations in 1996 to establish the adoption of a student equity plan as a minimum standard for receipt of state funding.
In spring 2004, Dr. Jeanne Hamilton, Citrus College vice president of student services, formed a committee representing all campus constituencies including students, to put the study together.
That Student Equity Plan was approved by the Citrus Community College Board of Trustees on Jan. 18, 2005.
The most notable finding of the research was the discrepancy between male and female completion rates.
"Even though they are not a 'protected, historically underrepresented group' their participation rate and success rate is well below that of females," Hamilton said.
"This is a national trend in higher education, and Laura Bush has even identified assisting young men to be more successful as her main goal during her husband's second term," she said.
Another concern was the basic skills classes.
"Course completion rates in basic skills, especially math, is a real problem," Hamilton said. "It is really the heart of the whole problem."
The goal of the college is to increase the success rate of students moving from basic skills to degree-applicable courses in English, math and English as a Second Language courses by three percent for groups below the campus average over the next three years.
"Many students begin at Citrus with the expectation that they will transfer but have difficulty completing the math and English requirements for transfer," said Dr. Michael J. Viera, superintendent/president of Citrus College.
The college findings did reveal a positive: as enrollment closely reflects the ethnic diversity of the district.
"We are an open access institution and the numbers of students that we have at Citrus in terms of their ethnicity background very closely reflects the communities that we serve," Viera said.
Except for the white/Non-Hispanic population, most ethnic groups were represented well in regards to the district's ethnic makeup.
In the 2003-2004 school year 38 percent of males received their degrees in the 2003-2004, a statistic dwarfed by the 62 percent of females who graduated from Citrus College.
These findings are included in the Student Equity Plan, a study that the college recently finalized for presentation to the state.
In 1991, the California Legislature issued a directive which charged all levels of public education, including California community colleges, to provide educational equity "not only through a diverse and representative student body and faculty but also through educational environments in which each person...has a reasonable chance to fully develop his or her potential (Education Code ยง66010.2c)."
In 1996 The Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges amended the policy and regulations in 1996 to establish the adoption of a student equity plan as a minimum standard for receipt of state funding.
In spring 2004, Dr. Jeanne Hamilton, Citrus College vice president of student services, formed a committee representing all campus constituencies including students, to put the study together.
That Student Equity Plan was approved by the Citrus Community College Board of Trustees on Jan. 18, 2005.
The most notable finding of the research was the discrepancy between male and female completion rates.
"Even though they are not a 'protected, historically underrepresented group' their participation rate and success rate is well below that of females," Hamilton said.
"This is a national trend in higher education, and Laura Bush has even identified assisting young men to be more successful as her main goal during her husband's second term," she said.
Another concern was the basic skills classes.
"Course completion rates in basic skills, especially math, is a real problem," Hamilton said. "It is really the heart of the whole problem."
The goal of the college is to increase the success rate of students moving from basic skills to degree-applicable courses in English, math and English as a Second Language courses by three percent for groups below the campus average over the next three years.
"Many students begin at Citrus with the expectation that they will transfer but have difficulty completing the math and English requirements for transfer," said Dr. Michael J. Viera, superintendent/president of Citrus College.
The college findings did reveal a positive: as enrollment closely reflects the ethnic diversity of the district.
"We are an open access institution and the numbers of students that we have at Citrus in terms of their ethnicity background very closely reflects the communities that we serve," Viera said.
Except for the white/Non-Hispanic population, most ethnic groups were represented well in regards to the district's ethnic makeup.