In This Issue:
- Letter from the Editors
- Webinar: Hiatus in March; we’ll be back in April!
- Virtual Table Talk: Learning Communities and the Platform – Bring Your Questions! (March 22 at 1:00pm ET)
- Reminders & News
This newsletter follows close on the heels of two momentous Frontier Set events: our Annual Convening (Leveraging Connection, March 3-5 in Houston) and the launch of the new Frontier Set Community Platform! A critical common denominator of the two is that they are designed to optimize connections – between and among individuals and information/best practices – in service of driving us toward our goals of dramatically increasing student success and erasing attainment gaps.
We all need the bursts of energy and inspiration that result from finding an ally who is committed to the same ideals and who can candidly and substantively share the highs and lows of the work, seeding in new approaches, resources and support. Progress can be very difficult without such allies.
Frontier Set activities, data, and the Community Platform are simply tools designed to spark those relationships; and it’s the exchange and collaboration that carry our work forward. As such, we do our best to listen carefully and to anticipate your needs. We rely on your feedback; no one wants to suffer through clunky, ineffective tools. Please don’t hesitate to let us know how we can be doing better.
Warmly,
KD, Gila, Jerry, Lisa, and Victoria
frontierset@venturewell.org
Webinar
Given the high level of Frontier Set activity for March, we will be taking a break from the monthly webinar. We’ll be back in April!
Virtual Table Talk
Learning Communities and the Platform – Bring Your Questions!
Date: Friday, March 22 at 1:00pm ET
Hosts: Lynne Weisenbach, State Systems Intermediary and Gila Aispuro, VentureWell
Target Audience: Frontier Set members, especially those unfamiliar with the Platform or Learning Communities (which were introduced at the Annual Convening)
The Frontier Set Community Platform and the Frontier Set Learning Communities were both recently launched. Much of the Learning Communities’ work will be housed on the Platform, so in many ways, the two will work hand-in-hand. Join this month’s Table Talk for more background on Learning Communities and a tour of the Platform, geared to helping you find the most efficient way to deploy the tool. Tools are only as good as your knowledge of how to use them . . . become a super-user to accelerate your progress!
Register Here
Reminders & News
Frontier Set Platform
The Frontier Set Community Platform is launched! Read upcoming monthly newsletters for tips, how-to’s, and more videos about making the Platform work for you. Here are some tips to get you started:
- Have you logged in? If not, refer to the email sent on 2/28 to help you get started.
- Watch these short videos to familiarize yourself with what’s new:
- Use the “Not a member?” link on the Member Login page at frontierset.org to add new members from your site.
Postsecondary Data Partnership
The PDP Spring 2018 Data Submission deadline is Friday, March 8. Submission after the deadline could result in delays in receiving your institution’s KPI Reports.
Frontier Set Annual Convening
Photos, slide decks, supporting materials, and other learnings will be posted on the Platform.
News Featuring Frontier Set Sites and Frontier Set Related Organizations:
- How Learning Communities Can Keep Higher Ed’s Most At-Risk Students on Track – Chronicle of Higher Education, 2/24/19 – features San Jacinto College
- Colleges get hands-on to teach students real-world skills – Education Dive, 1/30/19 – mentions Georgia State University
- Can Online Education Lower Costs and Improve Quality? – EdSurge, 2/12/19 – describes the Teaching Online Podcast, or TOPcast, with co-host Thomas Cavanagh from University of Central Florida
- Consolidation and Completion Gains – Inside Higher Ed, 2/20/19 – features Georgia State
- A Policy Agenda to Develop Human Capital for the Modern Economy – Aspen Institute’s Economic Strategy Group’s 2/4/19 report
- Next on College Completion Agenda: Equity – InsideHigher Ed, 2/25/19 – focuses on Gates Foundation and Achieving the Dream.
Did you see these? Articles that may interest you:
- Massachusetts Pilots Housing for Homeless Community College Students – Education Dive, 2/4/19
- Midwest Instructors Move Classes Online During Polar Vortex – Education Dive, 2/4/19
- Creating the Path to Success in the Classroom: Teaching to Close the Graduation Gap for Minority, First-Generation, and Academically Unprepared Students, by Kathleen F. Gabriel (Stylus Publishing). Offers evidence-based instructional practices aimed at reaching students of all backgrounds, while maintaining high standards and expectations.
- Colleges’ Message to Low-Income Students: You Can Afford to Attend – LA Times, 2/5/19
- What a Difference a Few Years Can Make – Community College Digest, 2/11/19
To review past newsletters, click here.