The college is using radio and Facebook advertising to promote its foundation courses in science, math, reading, English and collegiate skills. These courses are designed to prepare the student for college-level work. Foundation courses have course numbers that begin with the number 0, as in BIOL 050: Basic Biology. This numbering distinguishes foundation courses from 100-level (freshman) and 200-level (sophomore) collegiate courses.

 

Foundation courses offered at Schoolcraft include BIOL 050 Basic Biology, CHEM 051 Basic Chemistry, Collegiate Skills, ENG 050 Modern English Grammar, ENG 055 Building Writing Skills,  ESL 051 English Language Skills - Communication, Speaking and Listening, ESL (English as a Second Language) 052 English Grammar and Basic Writing Skills, Mathematics and PHYS 051 Basic Physics

 

 

Visit the course schedules page to access updated class schedules for the Spring, Summer and Fall 2012 semester.

 

Two types of learners are being targeted with the advertising. One is the high school senior who plans to attend college in fall 2012 and feels the need to shore up his or her skills in a particular area. “We understand that some college-bound high school students lose momentum in their senior year,” said Schoolcraft’s Dean of Student Services Cheryl Hagen. “They might need a foundation course to boost their skills and help them make the transition to college.”

 

The second type of student is the adult learner who has been away from the classroom for some time. Because Hagen teaches one of the foundation English courses, she knows from firsthand experience that many of these adults have what it takes to succeed in college. “It’s a matter of helping them re-connect with skills that they haven’t used in a while,” she said.

 

One way Schoolcraft helps students refresh their skills is through the Learning Assistance Center. The Center offers professional tutoring, informational workshops, drop-in study sessions and other special events, and student-to-student peer tutoring, all designed to help students succeed in the classroom. This level of support helps to offset the challenges that students face in the classroom.

 

“Students do better in an environment that blends high academic expectations with quality student support services,” said Richard Weinkauf, who is vice president of instruction and an adjunct assistant professor at Schoolcraft. “In our foundation courses we cover more than the course content. We also make students aware of the academic support services available on our campus. This is the first step in connecting them with the academic experience at Schoolcraft.”

 

Research points to the quality of that experience. When Schoolcraft students are surveyed in studies using national benchmarks for peer colleges, they give Schoolcraft scores that are higher than the national average on faculty effectiveness, academic services, and overall rating of the education they received. In follow-up surveys, 89 percent of Schoolcraft graduates identify their instructors as what they liked best about Schoolcraft, and 97 percent say that they would recommend Schoolcraft to others.

 

“We enroll everyone from the class valedictorian and the student who struggled in high school to university guest students taking transfer courses with us over the summer,” said Hagen.  “We meet students where they are and help them to take the next step.”

 

Whatever the academic background, students at Schoolcraft continue to impress Hagen. “They work hard and it is gratifying to see them reap the rewards,” she said. Recent examples include Matthew Cornett and Gregory Larose.

 

In 2011 Cornett was one of only 60 community college students nationwide to receive the $30,000-per-year Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship, the largest and most competitive scholarship of its kind in the nation. And this month, LaRose will be named the winner of the 17^th annual Pythagorean Prize as Schoolcraft’s top math student. LaRose has completed all upper-level math courses (Calculus I and above) at Schoolcraft and in May will embark on a career as a nuclear power specialist with the U.S. Navy, pursuing his dream of working on a nuclear-propelled submarine.

 

The college is using radio advertising and Facebook to raise awareness of foundation classes. Right now the emphasis is on telling individuals about the courses available for spring and summer. “For many people, the time to think about college is when summer is winding down and fall is right around the corner,” Hagen said. “We want to reach people earlier and help them see the benefits of taking foundation courses over spring and summer. If you complete these courses now you can take more college-level courses in the fall. And that speeds up your progress toward your eventual goal.”