SEMI-ANNUAL CAMPUS DIVERSITY REPORT
Montana State University—Great Falls
College of Technology
January 2001
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: MSU—Great Falls College of Technology
Enrollment Management: MSU—Great Falls College of Technology is approaching and in some
cases exceeding the standard for enrollment established by the Board of
Regents. Its American Indian enrollment
level (6.1% in Fall 1998) was lower
than the American Indian proportion of Montana's general population (6.5%), but
significantly higher than that representation in Cascade County (4.5%), from
which the College, as a two-year commuter institution, draws 80% - 85% of its
enrollment. In addition, the College
continues its trend of enrolling other minority populations at rates that
exceed their representation in the general Montana population. Its non-minority enrollment in 1998 (83.7%)
was significantly lower than the non-minority (majority) proportion of the
general population (92.5%).
Completions: In the
last data year (1996-97), MSU—Great Falls College of Technology produced mixed
results with respect to minority populations’ completion rates. The completion rate of American Indians
declined from the previous year’s rate in associate degree programs, but
improved in certificate programs. For
other minorities, the completion rate in both certificate and associate degree
programs improved. The completion rate
of all minorities in certificate programs (4.92%) was below the average for the
decade (5.65), while the completion rate of all minorities in associate degree
programs (6.58%) was higher than the decade average (5.57%).
Funding: With the
exception of one "spike" year, the number of American Indian students
receiving fee waivers has averaged 27.53 FTE since 1996-97. Given its size, the College’s average
compares well with other two-year colleges and four-year colleges in the
Montana University System. The College
continues to assist system-wide diversity efforts by providing office space to
the Educational Talent Search and the Education Opportunity Center.
Faculty/Staff: MSU—Great
Falls College of Technology makes visible efforts to recruit employees
identified as racial minorities.
Nonetheless, only 2.25% of its part-time and full-time employees during
the period 1995-1999 were so identified.
The College takes proactive steps to address this imbalance
by ensuring that all faculty and staff receive training and continuing
education on diversity issues.
Coursework and Programs:
The College has initiated and/or sustained a variety of
initiatives to infuse multicultural awareness and understanding into its
curriculum and climate. In addition to
14 courses specifically identified for their multicultural content, including
one course focusing exclusively on Montana's American Indians, the College
continues to provide diversity programs for the Great Falls Community.
Future Directions:
MSU—Great Falls College of Technology has established three broad goals,
each with several objectives aligned with the goals established by the Board of
Regents and by Montana State University.
Its strategic plan includes the quality, access, and productivity of its
diversity-related activities as a sustaining effort.
II. STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES
In its initial Diversity Action Plan, Montana State
University—Great Falls College of Technology established six major objectives
to promote multicultural diversity to be, at a minimum, equal to the minority
group's representation in Montana's general population. Since then, these objectives have been
reviewed and revised to improve the College's effectiveness in its diversity
activities. The objectives for 1999-2000
are:
1. To sustain a culturally sensitive environment
at MSU--Great Falls College of Technology.
Areas of focus:
·
The development and implementation of policies and
procedures that ensure affirmative action and address intolerance and
discrimination
·
Course work and programs heightening awareness of multicultural
issues and developing an appreciation for diversity
·
Inservice, training, and continuing education devoted to
diversity issues
·
Efforts to make cultural sensitivity and appreciation for
diversity visible
2. To provide a supportive learning environment
as a means of recruiting and retaining a diverse student
population.
Areas of focus:
·
Recruitment activities focusing on recruitment of minority
students, faculty, and employees
·
Emphasis on retention with specific attention to diversity
issues
3. To partner with other educational entities to
improve access to, quality of, and success in the higher
education for minority populations,
especially American Indians.
Areas of focus:
·
Partnerships with K-12 educators, TRIO, Educational Talent
Search
·
Articulations with tribal colleges
·
Partnerships to increase understanding of cultural issues in
the Great Falls community
4. To study and respond to data on the success
of the College's efforts to recruit, retain, and graduate
minority populations in proportion to
their representation in the general population.
Areas of focus:
·
Institutional assessment practices attending to diversity
issues
·
Standing committee charged with studying student success, including
the success of minority populations
III. CAMPUS REPORT
A. Enrollment Management
In Fall 1998, MSU—Great Falls College of Technology
succeeded in enrolling a population of
American Indians (6.1%) that approaches the goal of a rate representative of
the proportion of American Indians in the general Montana population
(6.5%). The College’s enrollment of
American Indians improved significantly over the previous year (5.0%) and
approached the highest enrollment rate for the decade of the 1990’s (6.2%). When the percentage of enrolled students who
did not disclose their race is subtracted from the total, the College’s
American Indian enrollment (6.58%) exceeds the representation of American
Indians in Montana’s general population.
In addition, the College’s American Indian enrollment significantly
exceeded the general population of American Indians in Cascade County
(4.5%). Because the College has no
residential life and draws 80%-85% of its total enrollment from Cascade County,
this context is meaningful.
In recent years MSU—Great Falls College of Technology
continues its trend of enrolling other minority populations at rates that
exceed their representation in the general Montana population. In the case of African-Americans and
Asian-Americans, enrollment rates have doubled and even tripled the proportion
of each minority in Montana’s population.
With the relatively high representation of minorities in the College’s
enrollment, as well as the relatively high percentage of enrollees not disclosing
their race (7.6%), it is not surprising that the majority population at the
College (83.7%) falls significantly below the majority representation in
Montana’s general population (92.5%).
The College credits its success in these areas to the
following factors:
1. The emphasis on and incentives for improving
academic credentials among personnel at Malmstrom Air Force Base, a significant
percentage of whom represent minority cultures.
2. The effectiveness of the Great Falls Public
Schools in raising aspirations of its American Indian population with respect
to higher education.
3. The College's recruitment activities on
Montana’s reservations, including visits to Browning High School, Blackfeet
Community College, Stone Child College, Polson High School, and Wolf Point High
Schools, and to schools with substantial American Indian enrollments, including
Flathead Valley Community College, MSU-Northern, Kalispell High School, and
Havre High School.
4. The College's active efforts at including in
its high school-College networking activities Montana high schools with
significant minority populations, especially American Indian populations. For instance, as of today, 48 high schools
collaborate with the College to articulate tech prep course work; 4 of these
high schools, or 8.3%, have substantial American Indian enrollments. Current activities with Cisco academies
involve an even higher percentage of high schools with substantial American
Indian populations.
5. The high visibility of the College’s partnerships
with the Educational Talent Search and the Educational Opportunity Center.
B. Graduation/Completions
Trend data indicate that the College has produced mixed
results with respect to completion rates, varying from year to year, from minority
to minority, and from certificate to associate degree program. The completion rate for minorities in
associate degree programs in 1996-97, for instance (6.58%), declined from the
previous year, but was above the average for the 1990s (5.57%). The completion rate for minorities in
certificate programs (4.92%) was lower than the rate of the previous year and
lower than the average for the decade (5.65%).
Neither the yearly rate nor the decade average meets the completion goal
of representativeness, since the proportion of minority populations in Montana
of the general population is 7.5%.
The completion rates of non-American Indian minorities in
certificate and associate degree programs improved upon the rates of the
previous year. However, in certificate
programs, this rate fell below the decade average (1.87%), while in associate
degree programs it exceeded the decade average (6.37%). Completion rates of non-American Indian
minorities (1.64% in certificate programs, 2.63% in associate degree programs)
are also lower than the representation of these minorities in the general
population (2.8%), although locally compiled data indicate that completion
rates of African-Americans and Asian-Americans far exceed their representation
in the general population.
MSU—Great Falls College of Technology has also produced
inconsistent results with respect to completion rates of American Indian
populations. In certificate programs,
the completion rate for American Indians (3.28%) improved upon the rate of the previous
year, but was still below the 1990's average (3.78%). In associate degree programs, the completion rate for American
Indians declined from the rate of the previous year, but exceeded the decade
average (2.9%). Whether in associate
degree or certificate programs, the completion rates of American Indians has
yet to represent their proportion of the general population (6.5%).
In an effort to improve its performance in this area, the
College has undertaken the following activities:
1. The College has established a Student Success
Committee, comprised of faculty from each department, professional staff from
the Student Services Department, and the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
and Student Services to research and make recommendations to improve retention,
including retention of American Indian students.
2. The College has included data-gathering and
analysis on the satisfaction, performance, and completion rates of minority
populations in its institutional assessment activities.
3. The College has revitalized its Learning
Center, centralizing tutoring and
academic advising, providing brown bag workshops on issues ranging from
time management and problem-solving to substance abuse and writing essay exams,
adding to the tutoring staff, and tracking areas of use and need. In AY 2001, a summer bridge program will be
implemented as well.
4. The College has systematically provided
in-service and continuing education on diversity issues for its faculty and
staff, most recently in Fall 2000.
C. Funding
During the four years reported by the Office of the
Commissioner of Higher Education, MSU--Great Falls College of Technology
averaged 32 FTE each year using Montana Indian Fee Waivers. One of these years, AY 1998-99, was a
distinct "outlier," during which Fee Waiver FTE spiked to 45.60. Even with this year excluded, however,
Montana Indian Fee Waivers were applied to an average of 27.53 FTE during the
reporting period.
Although the College has no discretionary funding for
diversity incentives, it does dedicate funding to support the courses and
programs described elsewhere in this report.
In addition, MSU—Great Falls College of Technology provides office space
to the Educational Talent Search and to TRIO’s Educational Opportunity Center,
both of which programs emphasize enrolling and retaining American Indian
students in higher education.
D. Faculty/Staff
MSU—Great Falls College of Technology has adopted an
Affirmative Action Policy and complies with state and federal guidelines for
Equal Employment Opportunity.
Nonetheless, the College has failed to recruit and retain faculty and
staff in minority populations proportionate to their representation in the
general population. During this
reporting period, the College employed one African-American and one Hispanic
American as full-time staff. Of the 135
applicants for positions at the College who disclosed minority status in 1999
and 2000, 127 were white; 4, American Indian; 3, Asian-American; and 1,
Hispanic. No positions were filled with
minority applicants during this time period.
Factors contributing to the College's lack of progress in
recruiting and employing employees from minority populations may include:
·
Relatively high educational attainment requirements for
faculty (master's required, doctorate
preferred), but relatively low salaries (current base salary: $26,400/year)
·
Relatively low salaries for administrative positions
(starting salary for associate dean, $60,500; for assistant dean, $59,500)
·
Relatively specialized areas of instruction, limiting
applicant pools (e.g., network support, medical assisting)
The College attempts to compensate for the lack of diversity
of its staff through two measures:
1. Ongoing, systematic diversity training for
all faculty and staff. The most recent
training was offered by the Ellen Swaney of the Office of the Commissioner of
Higher Education in Fall 2000.
2. Visible support for cultural diversity in the
College’s environment. For instance,
Heritage Hall includes available flags from the state’s seven Indian
reservations, as well as the flag for the non-reservation assigned American
Indians living in the Great Falls area.
Major artwork on display at the College features American Indian themes. Offices for Educational Talent Search and
Educational Opportunity Center are integrated into the offices in the Student
Services Department.
E. Coursework and Programs
Appendix A lists all multicultural courses offered at the College
in the last three years and the enrollment in each offering.
Montana State University—Great Falls College of Technology
has made ongoing, concerted efforts to infuse its curriculum and programming
with content leading to multicultural awareness and appreciation of
diversity. As part of its General
Education Core, the College offers a total of 14 courses identified as
multicultural in focus, distributed in the following categories:
|
Fine Arts: |
5 multicultural courses |
|
Humanities: |
4 multicultural courses |
|
Social Sciences: |
5 multicultural courses |
One of the multicultural courses in the Social Sciences,
Montana's American Indians, is offered at least twice a year and is taught by
an adjunct faculty who is American Indian.
That course has been required for all students in the Elementary
Education program of study in the College's Associate of Science degree.
The College has also made multicultural awareness and
appreciation an ongoing facet of its specialized programming. An example of that effort is the program
offered primarily at the College in October 1999, “One America: A Community Celebration of Diversity. The program was the culmination of a
collaborative effort of the College’s with the Cascade County Extension Office,
MSU—Northern, Coca-Cola, Insty-Prints, and the University of Great
Falls—Americore Volunteers. The program
featured a week of lectures and events emphasizing issues related to tolerance
and diversity.
The College continues efforts reported in previous years as
successful. For instance, career
advisement and educational planning for minority, first-generation college, and
economically disadvantaged prospective students is provided cooperatively on
campus with MSU—Northern (EOC) and the Office of the Commissioner of Higher
Education (Talent Search). Also, the
College offers a six-week residential Summer Institute through a Veteran’s
Upward Bound Grant for American Indian Veterans.
IV. FUTURE DIRECTIONS
Increasing the enrollment, retention, and completion of
minority populations, particularly Montana's American Indians, and deepening
awareness and appreciation of diversity throughout the College community have
been and will continue to be major emphases at MSU—Great Falls College of
Technology. Specific directions the
College is pursuing to achieve these goals include:
1. Improving retention and completion rates by:
·
Systematically collecting and analyzing data on American
Indian performance, satisfaction, and progress toward educational goals at the
College.
·
Establishing a summer bridge program to assist at-risk
students in their orientation to College life.
·
Extending the faculty/staff continuing education program to
ensure best practices in teaching and serving minority populations, especially American
Indians.
2. Facilitating a seamless progression of
educational experience for Montana's American Indians by:
·
Establishing partnerships and ongoing communication with
departments, organizations, and institutions at K-12 and higher education levels
in order to evaluate, improve, and expand the College’s curricula and services.
·
Expanding tech prep articulations with reservation schools
and schools with significant minority populations.
·
Developing partnerships and articulations with Blackfeet
Community College and Stone Child Colleges and articulating Salish-Kootenai
College's dental assisting program with the dental hygiene program currently
under exploration at the College.
·
Partnering with Browning High School to pilot effective
writing and mathematics programs focused on preparing students for
college-level proficiency expectations.
3. Making more visible the College's commitment
to the success of minority populations and the
desirability of a appreciation for diversity by:
·
Developing, implementing, and actively promoting programs of
study in Multicultural Studies and American Indian Culture for the Associate of
Science degree.
·
Providing recognition and incentives for administration,
faculty, and staff involved in advocacy and awareness activities related to
diversity issues.
·
Partnering with MSU-Northern to provide a speaker series
featuring minority speakers and/or issues in Great Falls.
