During the 2022-2023 academic year, the 121 community colleges in our survey served a total of 748,923 unique students in credit-bearing courses. More than 80 percent of these credit students were award-seeking, meaning they were actively pursuing an associate degree, certificate, or diploma. The remaining balance of credit enrollment (137,961 students, or 18.4 percent) was classified as non-award seeking. However, there is significant variation across states. In Virginia and West Virginia, for example, more than one-third of credit students are not enrolled in an award-seeking program while in North Carolina, non-award seeking students represent just 6 percent of credit enrollment.

Students earning college credit but not working toward an award may include many dually enrolled high school students as well as students taking individual courses for personal or professional development. Non-award seeking enrollment also includes some students planning to transfer credits to a four-year institution, or students actively enrolled in a four-year degree program elsewhere who are taking just one or two classes at the community college. Lower tuition rates and smaller class sizes make community colleges courses attractive for traditional college students to earn general education credits close to home, especially in the summer months.

The differences in age distributions for award and non-award seeking students partly reflects state dual enrollment policies and programs. North Carolina, which is a leader in early college dual enrollment that requires students to enroll in associate or certificate programs while in high school, has the largest share of award-seeking students under the age of 18. By contrast, the majority of dual enrollment students in Virginia are classified as non-award seeking.

State policy matters a great deal when considering the data presented in our findings, and no data should be interpreted without that context.

Aggregated across the 63 schools in the survey, just over half of the students are enrolled part time. However, there is variation across states. As with overall credit enrollment, the majority of cohort students are female. Students in the cohort are more likely to be under the age of 25. Again, some of this is due to policy. If dual enrollment students are classified as degree or certificate-seeking, they will be included in the cohort, potentially skewing the cohort population younger compared to states that classify dual enrollment students as non-degree seeking.

The total success rate across the 63 schools in the sample is around 47 percent. At the state level, success rates range from 37.8 percent in West Virginia to 48.2 percent in Virginia. Success rates for male and female students were similar in South Carolina and West Virginia while female students slightly outperformed male students in Maryland and Virginia.

There were larger than expected differences in success rates across full-time and part-time students, especially in Virginia. This may be a product of COVID-19 disruptions. Aside from dual enrollment students, part-time students are generally employed and older, meaning they are more likely to have children. It seems reasonable to assume that spring 2020 would have presented greater challenges for students trying to balance work, college, and home responsibilities. We expect these differences to normalize as we move away from the cohorts directly impacted by COVID-19 disruptions.

Aggregate comparisons along a single student dimension are useful but are limited in what they can tell us about the drivers of success. In the months to come, we will highlight institutions that have closed gaps in success between student populations and shed light on opportunities and strategies for other schools. We will also take deeper dives into how state policy and higher education institution structure play a role in student success.

Interestingly, we do not see part-time students persisting (remaining enrolled in good standing without attaining an award) at a higher rate than full-time students. This may be impacted by the fact that many students who start as full time (and are therefore categorized that way) may transition to becoming part time at some point within the four-year window, thus slowing down their degree progress. The primary driver of the gap between full- and part-time success rates is associate degree earners, though in South Carolina there is a large gap in the share of students who transfer to a four-year institution.

North Carolina has the highest share of dually enrolled high school students relative to the total number of public high school juniors and seniors in their respective states. Career & College Promise, North Carolina's statewide dual enrollment program, is well established and enables community colleges to offer courses for college credit to eligible high schoolers at no cost to the student, and with institutional funding via state appropriations. In some cases, these students are also earning dual credit — meaning the courses count toward high school diploma requirements as well as college credits.

Differences in state policy, local secondary education offerings, and the cost of dual enrollment classes for students and their families impact these data significantly. They are also impacted by the fact that some four-year institutions are offering dual enrollment, especially in South Carolina and West Virginia. We are hopeful that our data can be used in the future to analyze how these differences impact both enrollment and outcomes of high school students.

Dual enrollment students represent a significant share of headcount enrollment for some colleges. Depending on state policies and funding mechanisms, the prevalence of dual enrollment students can affect community college budgets. (See "Funding Dual Enrollment Across the Fifth District.")

In North Carolina, prioritizing dual education as a priority has elevated the state as a national leader in the space. The state offers dual enrollment courses at no cost to students and has well-defined pathways for students to transfer credits to a four-year institution or to earn a workforce-ready credential. There are a currently 134 Cooperative Innovative High Schools (CIHS) across the state, which are high schools typically located directly on college campuses where 100 percent of high school students take college classes. Of these, 118 are partnered with community colleges and are located on the community college's campus. These schools function as early colleges, which require students to co-enroll in an award program at the community college.

North Carolina also has a large number of high school students enrolled in more traditional dual enrollment programs. Students are provided two pathways: college transfer and career and technical education. North Carolina's support for dual enrollment is evidenced in the outcomes of their students: Dual enrollment students in North Carolina earn awards at higher rates than students in Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia.

State policies and funding models affect non-credit enrollment and the level of detail available on non-credit students. In Maryland, for example, a community college's non-credit students are counted identically to credit students in determining state appropriations. Maryland students can also use the Maryland Promise scholarship program for workforce non-credit programs. Consequently, Maryland data on non-credit students is comparable in coverage and quality to data on credit students. In Virginia, state funding for non-credit students is limited to short-term workforce training programs under the Fast Forward program, and data for some other non-credit programs may be incomplete. West Virginia community colleges offer very little non-credit curricula, which is at least partially driven by lack of non-credit funding available in the state.

The decline of male students in post-secondary education has concerned researchers and policymakers. In 1970, male students accounted for 58 percent of total college enrollment. By 1980, women had become the majority of higher ed students, and female enrollment now accounts for around 57 percent of the total. It is important to note, however, that these numbers do not include non-credit programs since these data are not collected nationally.

Across the 121 community colleges in the 2024 SCCO, 61.1 percent of award-seeking credit students were female, and 38.7 percent were male. However, on the non-credit side, this pattern is nearly reversed: Female students make up just 40.4 percent of the non-credit students enrolled in workforce programs while male students comprise 53 percent.

We recently wrote about the funding challenges associated with providing wraparound services at community colleges, as funding is generally not provided via state funding formulas. Our results support that fact, with a large number of community colleges responding that it is funding that provides the largest barrier to expanding wraparound services.

Our goal is to scale this survey so that we can eventually look at the causal relationship between wrapround services and student outcomes. In addition, this will allow researchers to evaluate which wraparound services are key determinants of success rate improvement.

The 2024 data collection tool design was comparable to the design of the SCCO 2023 extended pilot. Modifications and definition clarifications were based on input and feedback from participants and the continued goal of only collecting data points relevant to our efforts without overburdening the participants. In addition, questions about wraparound services were excluded from the primary survey and turned into a new survey (reference Survey of Institutional Wraparound Services and Student Supports). Where possible, for consistency and ease of data pull, we followed the categories and definitions of IPEDS.

The initial window for the 2024 data collection was open from May 1 through June 30, though we coordinated with many schools on alternative timelines. Prior to the open date, we received participation buy-in from the state-level systems, where possible, and individual community colleges where no system exists. For data consistency purposes, data collection is requested from the state-level institutional researcher departments. The participants use a downloadable file template for data collection and a document with definitions and standards, including inclusion and exclusion rules, for each component. Survey components include:

• Institutional Information
• Credit Enrollment
• Credit Outcomes
• Non-Credit Enrollment
• Non-Credit Outcomes
• Early College Dual Enrollment Students
• Other Dual Enrollment Students
• Dual Enrollment Student Outcomes

Aggregated counts of data are collected by varying demographics depending on the component.

As part of our ongoing effort to understand the unique role community colleges play in supporting student success, we launched a new survey to collect information on the wraparound services and student supports available at each community college in our region. We received survey responses from 80 of the 122 community colleges in the Fifth District.

We identified potential respondents through relationships with leaders at community colleges. In cases where we did not have personal connections, we relied on cold outreach. A request to participate was sent to staff and faculty representatives from each institution's student services administrator. The initial window for the survey was open from July 8 through Aug. 5, though we coordinated with many schools on alternative timelines.

The survey was made available online and estimated to take under 15 minutes to complete. Data collected were student support and wraparound services the institution offered during the 2022-2023 academic year.

Categories of data collected:

• Food Services
• Health Services
• Transportation
• Academic and Career Services
• Financial and Safety Net Supports
• Parent-Students
• Child care on campus
• Student services they would like to offer but could not
• Tracking of student services
• Funding partnerships