Department of History Continues Eight-Week Student Success Initiative

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Students on Zoom session in HIST 2013.

The Department of History has continued its second eight-week student success initiative after a successful launch of the program in Spring 2020. The initiative provides an alternate pathway for students to make degree progress despite having academic setbacks at the beginning of the semester.

Thirty-one students enrolled in a specially designed modern American History course in the second eight-week semester (Oct. 14 to Dec. 10) taught by Jared Pack. The initiative, informed by education research firm EAB's call to "untether from the academic calendar," responds to the increasing demand from students for multimodal educational options. This need is especially apparent for those who would otherwise experience graduation delays under a traditional academic calendar. Students facing a "D" or "F" in a course typically either stay in that course to sustain scholarship eligibility or drop the course, leaving them behind in their path towards graduation.

By offering HIST 2013, a general education core curriculum course, in the second-eight week session, students can continue to make degree progress and maintain scholarship eligibility without either damaging their GPAs or extending their time to graduation. HIST 2013 was the only general education core curriculum course offered in an eight-week session in the 2019-20 academic year and the only one in Fall 2020. 

"History is excited to continue to offer an opportunity for students to advance in their degree programs and support the chancellor's call to support student success on our campus" said James Gigantino, professor and chair of the department. "After a successful launch with 32 students in spring 2020, we are happy to welcome our second cohort to this program. Pack is an award-winning veteran instructor who is passionate about helping students succeed and will do an excellent job helping support our students as they advance towards graduation."

This is the third student success initiative by the Department of History this semester. History once again collaborated with the 360 Advising Program and Office of Student Success to create a combined student learning community after a successful launch of the program in Fall 2019. Students in that program simultaneously enroll in a specially designed U.S. History course and a University Perspectives course taught by veteran instructor and now academic advisor Brian Hurley. Also in fall 2020, the department's collaboration with the University Libraries and Global Campus completed its Open Educational Resources and Affordable Partnership Project, which helped reduce the average cost of books in HIST 2003 and HIST 2013 by 25% since last fall, to just over $36, and a reduction by 60% since 2015.  Unfortunately, the department's planned expansion of its summer program with the Accelerate Student Achievement Program (ASAP) to support students in their transition into college was suspended in summer 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.