Skip to main content


Repost Message will copy the article into draft mode and enable you to edit/change dates and information.
Do not change the dates of this posting because it will affect the original.

MCC Daily Tribune

Unlocking Opportunity Update

I am pleased to share the following updates on MCC’s Unlocking Opportunity initiative:

Advising Redesign Progress

The advising redesign plan strives to create a sustained, proactive, and personalized approach to advising that will support students in reaching their academic, career, and transfer goals. Within this new model, all students will be advised from entrance into a program pathway through MCC post-completion. Advising professionals will connect students to the holistic supports and resources they need to be successful at our institution. Students will benefit from having a "go-to" person, continuous advising, and consistent advising points of contact. 

Implementation will occur in phases to ensure that each element of the redesign is thoughtfully implemented to support our students effectively. Here is what we are currently doing:

  • We are excited to hire new advising professionals in the near future. These positions, which include a Transfer Coordinator and Student Success Coaches, are critical to our plan for supporting student success. Be on the lookout for the posting of these positions.
  • Members of Enrollment Management and the Student Success & Strategic Initiatives areas are developing improved processes for strengthening the student onboarding experience and streamlining student placement, ultimately reducing procedural gaps.
  • This summer, a team will attend the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) Institute for Academic Advising. There, they will engage in professional learning and further develop the new model's strategies and outcomes.

Tutoring and Academic Assistance Center (TAAC) Assessment 

Academic and Student Affairs is in the early stages of building a team to lead our 2024-2025 assessment of the TAAC—specifically in terms of student success outcomes for gateway English and math courses. Comprising key stakeholders from Learning Support Systems and the departments of English-Philosophy and Mathematics (including TRS English and Math faculty)—as well as representatives from Institutional Research and the administration—this team will not only develop and execute an assessment plan, ultimately making recommendations for enhanced services for students seeking support in gateway English and math courses, but also submit a proposal for the establishment of a standing TAAC Advisory Committee to support the implementation of approved recommendations and bolster meaningful collaboration between the TAAC and academic departments.

Continued Efforts in Gateway English and Math Courses

The Summer English Professional Development Institute, scheduled for June 27 and 28, will serve as a kick-off for twenty individual faculty participants and department-wide reflective practice groups—slated to meet throughout the fall and spring semesters—to develop asset-based and equity-driven curriculum, pedagogies, and assessment strategies for corequisite and “stand-alone” ENG-101 courses.

MCC’s Mathematics Department’s participation in the SUNY Launch Years Initiative aims to strengthen the relationship between high schools and colleges by expanding efforts to engage high schools and promote concurrent enrollment, align high school courses with college pathways, and ensure a smooth transition to college-level mathematics. This work will inform the department's Unlocking Opportunity efforts moving forward as they develop their 2025 professional learning institute and continue their enhancement of curriculum and pedagogies.

A heartfelt thanks to those members of the faculty, staff, and administration who continue to work diligently to advance this initiative.

Michael Jacobs
Academic & Student Affairs
06/13/2024