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Guided Pathways

In Fall 2015, PCCC embarked on a new initiative, Guided Pathways to Success.

Guided Pathways is national movement that engages colleges in the systematic redesign of their academic programs and support services to provide students with clear roadmaps and support from entry to completion. Pathways refers to broad categories of majors that are accompanied by targeted support services and interventions to keep students on track toward graduation, transfer and/or attainment of career credentials. 
(Source: Completion by Design, 2016)

The goal at PCCC is to address issues affecting student retention and completion through enhanced support services and advisement, and innovative classroom instruction.

The implementation of Guided Pathways is directed by the Four Pillars:

Clarify the Path – Create clear curricular pathways to employment and further education.

• Simplify students’ choices with program maps developed by faculty that outline a clear pathway to completion
• Begin with the end in mind. Assist students in identifying and planning career and transfer goals

Enter the Path – Help students choose and enter their pathway.

• Redesign the College Success course to help students explore academic and career options
• Implement accelerated remediation to ensure students succeed in college-level courses as soon as possible.
• Develop multiple measures to assess students’ needs

Stay on the Path – Help students stay on their path.

• Support students through ongoing, proactive advising (see page 10 on Advisement). Faculty and Professional staff:
  • Help students explore transfer and career opportunities
  • Assist students with developing an academic plan to map out current and future semesters
  • Monitor students’ progress
  • Develop systems/procedures to identify students at-risk, and intervene with necessary support when they go off-track
• Embed academic and non-academic supports throughout programs to promote student learning and persistence
• Provide targeted, contextualized extracurricular programming
• Utilization of technological tools for students to easily track their progress

Ensure Learning – Ensure that learning is happening with intentional outcomes.

• Establish program-level learning outcomes aligned with the requirements of transfer and career opportunities
• Integrate group projects, internships, and other applied learning experiences to enhance instruction and student success in courses across programs of study
• Support effective teaching practices throughout the pathways
• Develop faculty-led enhancement of teaching practices

PCCC Pathways
The academic programs at PCCC are grouped in Pathways, based on similarity of courses and career outcomes. Changing majors within a given pathway facilitates a seamless transfer of core courses, and a minimum of unused credits. PCCC majors have been grouped into the following seven pathways:

Business and Culinary Arts

Education and Public Safety Studies

Health Science

Humanities, Media Studies & Performing Arts Pathway

STEM

Social and Behavioral Sciences and Human Services

Technical Studies

Targeted support services and holistic advisement has been established for various special populations, which include:

• Students who have food insecurities
• Students who identify as LGBTQIA
• Formerly incarcerated students
• Students who identify as men of color