The Foreign Service Journal, December 2009

74 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / D E C E M B E R 2 0 0 9 S CHOOLS S UPPLEMENT Carey believes that community colleges need to do a better job of see- ing to it that students complete their certificate or degree programs. But, he warns, for that to happen the col- leges need to match their expectations of the students with support. Special Programs Community colleges work very hard to engage students in a variety of ways. Cessie, the Community College Survey for Student Engagement (www.ccsse. org), monitors ways that community colleges are accomplishing that goal and increasing outcomes of student success. Cohort programs and study groups try to connect students with one anoth- er for support and study partners, as well as creating smaller learning com- munities. There are mentoring groups for students who want to transfer to four-year universities, as well as access to expert career assessment and plan- ning, internship programs, study- abroad opportunities and selective honors courses. In addition, community colleges offer study skills courses and tutoring centers and labs for writing, math and computers. There are learning sup- port centers for students with learning differences, as well as psychological and health services. Intensive acade- mic advising is known to improve out- comes, and advisers and counselors are available to mentor and counsel students. Most professors maintain office hours in order to provide addi- tional help for students, or to just be there for students who want to drop in and get to know them better. Students can also get involved in a wide variety of activities on campus. There are opportunities to participate in sports, both intramural and com- petitive, as well as in musical per- forming groups, drama, student gov- ernment and other organizations and activities. Many campus activities are proposed and organized by the stu- dents themselves. Joining the com- munity also leads to higher student There are mentoring groups for students who want to transfer to four-year universities, as well as career assessment and planning.