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Welcome to the presentation on Probation and Dismissal.
Let us begin by making it clear to you
that your success as a student is very important to us.
Due to your current academic standing,
it is vital that you understand how probation
and dismissal works.
This workshop will cover essential information
which should help you be more successful.
There are four main objectives of this presentation.
The first objective is to assist you
in understanding the process of stage one and stage two
academic and progress probation as well as dismissal.
Secondly, to increase your awareness
of specific reasons why you are currently
on either academic or progress probation.
Thirdly, to help you identify specific strategies
to clear probation or dismissal and gain good academic standing
as quickly as possible.
And lastly, to help you identify resources on campus
which may assist you in gaining academic success.
Based on state law, Contra Costa College is required
to keep track of your grade-point average
each semester and monitor your progress.
As a student, you are required
to meet minimum standards of success
in order to continue enrolling in courses at the college.
Your status as a student is monitored throughout
all three colleges in our district:
Contra Costa College, Diablo Valley College
and Los Medanos College.
If you are on probation or dismissal,
you are on the status at all three colleges.
There are two types of probation and dismissal.
Academic probation and dismissal occurs
when you fail to obtain a 2.0 or higher grade-point average.
Progress probation and dismissal occurs
when you fail to complete greater than 50% of your units
due to grades of W, which is a withdrawal grade,
"I," which is an incomplete grade,
NP, which is a no-pass grade,
or NC, which is a no-credit grade.
The first area that Contra Costa College
is required to monitor is your grade-point average,
which is the main way you are evaluated as a student.
You are expected to maintain an overall GPA of 2.0
or a C average throughout all semesters attended.
You may struggle to maintain the standard,
especially if life circumstances get in the way.
If you are unable to maintain this cumulative 2.0 GPA
after having attempted a total of at least 12 units,
you are placed on level one academic probation.
If you attempt additional units in a subsequent term
and, once again, you are unable
to maintain a 2.0 cumulative GPA,
you are then placed on level two academic probation.
Once on level two academic probation,
it is absolutely necessary to maintain a 2.0 GPA or better
during the specific term
which you are currently enrolled.
If you fail to do so, you'll be subject to dismissal
from the college.
If you reach dismissal status,
you will be unable to register for classes
or make changes to your existing schedule,
including adding, dropping or petitioning for a course
to be taken on a pass/no pass basis.
If you then wish to continue at CCC
or any of the three colleges in our district,
you must then file a petition for reinstatement.
Here is an example
of an academic probation grade report.
Note that each course is assigned a unit value.
In this example, English 1A, Psychology 220, History 120,
and Art 116 are all three-unit courses.
The PE 102 course is worth only one unit.
Each letter grade has a corresponding value
for each unit.
An "A" equals 4, a B equals 3, a C, 2, a D, 1, and an F, 0.
To calculate GPA, start by determining the grade points
earned for each class completed.
Grade points equal the total number of units
of the course multiplied by the grade value
for each letter grade earned.
The GPA equals the total grade points earned
divided by the total units attempted for letter grades.
In this example provided, a GPA of 1.69 is earned,
and this results in the student being placed
on academic probation level one since at least 12 units
were attempted
and the GPA falls below the minimum standard of 2.0.
The other area that Contra Costa College
is required to track is how successful you are
in completing the courses you enroll in.
You are subject to level one progress probation
after you've enrolled in at least 12 units
and 50% or more of all units enrolled in result in W, "I,"
NP or NC grades.
If you enroll in any courses in a subsequent term
and once again do not complete at least 50% of the courses
you attempt or are still below
an overall completion rate of 50%, then you will be placed
on level two progress probation.
Once you have reached level two progress probation,
if you do not complete more than 50% of all units
you enrolled in with successful grades,
you may be placed on progress dismissal status.
The definition of the above grade symbols are as follows:
A W is a withdrawal grade,
and it means that the student did not complete the course
either because they dropped themselves,
or the instructor dropped them after the drop
without W deadline;
An "I" is an incomplete grade and maybe assigned
by an instructor in certain instances
when an unforeseeable emergency or life circumstance
directly impacts a student's ability
to be successful in a course.
When an incomplete grade is received,
students have one year to complete the course worth
that the instructor requires of them.
At this time, a second letter may accompany the "I"
on a grade report, for example, I.F.
This second letter of F represents a default grade
the student earns if no additional work
is completed after one year has elapsed.
An NP, no pass, or an NC, no credit grade,
indicates that, overall, less than C level work
was performed in the course taken on a pass/no pass
or credit/no credit basis.
Using this example, you can see that this student withdrew
from two three-unit courses.
Only 6 units out of 12 units or 50%
were successfully completed.
So even though the student earned a 3.5 GPA
due to their successful grades in English 1A
and Psychology 220, they will still be
on progress probation due to only 50% of the units
achieved successful grades of "A," B, C or P.
Simply stated, progress probation level one
occurs when you fail to complete greater than 50%
of your enrolled units with successful grades.
Another way of stating this is if you enroll in a minimum
of 12 units
and you complete 50% or more of your units
due to unsuccessful grades of W, "I," NP or NC grades,
you'll be subject to progress probation.
As already mentioned, life circumstances
can get in your way, which can take away
from your academic success.
If you are having issues with your academic performance,
it is important for you as a student
to take a personal inventory of your life
to try to determine what is hindering you.
There are many possible reasons
why you may experience challenges
to your academic success.
These reasons can serve as barriers
and fall into two basic categories:
external and internal factors.
When barriers to your success come in the form
of life circumstances outside of yourself
which you may have little or no control over,
we can classify those barriers as external factors.
These external factors can include reasons
such as financial difficulties, which may cause an inability
to afford books or other school supplies,
transportation, rent or any personal necessities;
a lack of solid support system from your family or friends.
Family conflicts or responsibilities may get
in the way of school.
It may be necessary at times to seek support
within your family
so that you can focus more on school.
Your boss or employer may at times require you
to work too many hours, which may result in you
having less time than you need to study.
And unfortunate or tragic events may take place
that simply occupy your heart and mind to such a degree
that your school work is compromised,
and withdrawing from your classes may be
the furthest thing from your mind.
Internal factors are generally reasons
that come from you
and very often you may be able to exercise some degree
of control over.
Some internal factors include unsatisfactory study skills
or study habits, a work/school imbalance,
overloading or time management issues;
being unaware of how or when to drop classes,
low skill levels in reading, writing or math;
a lack of understanding of how or when
to approach instructors for help;
personal issues, which can include
low motivation, low self-esteem,
low self-confidence or a poor attitude;
health issues or unhealthy lifestyle choices,
having a learning disability of some type,
being unaware of or not utilizing campus resources
such as tutoring or counseling
or having unclear educational or career goals.
One very common internal factor seems to center around students
either working too much or taking too many classes
for the amount of hours they are working.
Very often, in an effort to make up
for what you may perceive as lost time,
you may choose to take too many courses
and thus sabotage your own success.
Only you can determine how many hours a week
you need to work to meet your expenses,
but you must consider the impact this can have
on your academic success.
Choosing your courses more carefully in the future
is an important first step toward your long-term success.
If you think you need to seek out
some academic help like tutoring,
ask your instructor or a counselor for a referral
as soon as possible.
Take out a piece of paper and pen and write down
one factor that you feel may be largely responsible
for your academic struggles.
It should be something you have some degree of control over
in the future,
so you may wish to consider the above list
of internal factors.
Pause this presentation now, and take a couple of minutes
to think about any internal factors
that may be hindering your success.
Your particular circumstances may be different
from the ones mentioned in this presentation.
Write down a goal statement for yourself
regarding any particular factor or barrier to your success
that you absolutely know you can improve on.
Be specific and write down exactly what you want
to have happen before the end of this semester.
Now underneath that goal,
write down three specific actions you'll take
before the end of this semester,
with specific dates next to them,
in order to improve your academic standing.
An example of a good goal statement
would be the following:
One week from today, I will have an appointment
with a math tutor to assist me with my algebra class.
Three actions I will take to make this happen.
Number one, I will meet with my math instructor
during his office hour on Monday morning
and request a tutoring referral.
Secondly, I will go to the skills center
in the library on Wednesday afternoon
and schedule an appointment with a tutor.
And thirdly, I will study a minimum of six hours
and write down at least five specific questions
before meeting with the tutor.
An example of a poor goal statement:
I will study more for my math class.
This goal statement is not specific
and does not define or quantify the amount of study,
nor does it give a timeline or specific action plan.
Pause this presentation now, and take a couple of minutes
to write down your goal statement
and three specific actions.
There are several strategies
to help clear academic probation.
First, you may wanna repeat a course
in which you earned a D or F.
If you repeat a course in which you earned a D or F
and receive a higher grade on this next attempt,
the higher grade will replace the lower grade
in your GPA calculation.
The original letter grade will still appear
in your transcript,
but the lower grade will no longer be factored
into your GPA.
Another strategy that you may choose to employ
to remediate D or F grades and raise your cumulative GPA
is a process called academic renewal.
If you complete 20 consecutive units or more
with C work or better beginning with the semester
after your last D or F, you can petition the college
to remove up to 24 units of D's and F's
from your GPA calculation.
Once again, the original letter grades
will still be on the transcript with a notation
of academic renewal.
But those grades will no longer be factored into your GPA.
Academic renewal can only be done one time.
To determine whether you should repeat a class
or participate in academic renewal,
you should meet with a counselor.
As mentioned earlier, your life may be out of balance
with respect to work and school.
Choosing to take two or three courses
may make it easier for you to balance
your work, school, life priorities
than taking four to five courses.
One other strategy may be to choose courses
you are more confident in until you can gain
good academic standing
and are no longer on academic probation.
There are also several strategies
to clear progress probation.
Enrolling in fewer classes in only those courses
you are absolutely certain you will complete
is one strategy.
Another strategy is to be aware of the deadlines that drop
without a W
and drop courses early in the semester.
Besides not counting against you for progress probation,
you may also be due a refund
if dropping your courses early enough,
normally by the end of the second week
of instruction for full 18-week courses.
To be sure of the deadline,
check the admissions and records webpage,
and look for the academic calendar link,
and then click on the CCC course deadlines link
for the specific term you're enrolled in.
Be aware of how much time school commitments will take
and how that factors in with your other commitments
like work, family and friends.
To be successful, you are advised to put in
at least two hours of outside class time studying
for every hour you spend inside the classroom.
So if you are enrolled in a total of 12 units
and you spend a total of 12 hours in class per week,
you would need to spend an additional 24 hours
outside of class studying,
for a total of 36 hours per week.
This is only a guide, however,
and short-term or summer courses,
lab science courses, studio courses
or other subjects where you struggle may require
even more study or activity time for you to achieve success.
Any time you're struggling in school,
you must ask yourself a very simple question:
"Am I giving myself the best chance to be successful
"by studying a minimum of two hours outside of class
for every hour I spend in the classroom each week?"
If the answer to that question is no,
clearly, some changes must take place with respect
to your schedule.
Here's an example schedule of what it might look like
if you're trying to go to school full-time
and work full-time.
Remember, there are only 168 hours in a week.
It might be helpful for you to do a time inventory
similar to this one
to see where you are spending your time,
and cut back in areas that you are overspent on,
just like a financial budget.
Remember, recreation is important to your productivity,
so don't cut out all recreation.
As you can see, with everything this student has
in their schedule,
from commuting to working, to chores, exercise and school,
adds up to 202 hours.
Clearly, this person is overspending their time,
and there aren't enough hours in the week
to accomplish everything this person has planned.
In this scenario, school is often impacted.
Take the appropriate number of courses that fit
with your other commitments and personal needs.
Here is a list of some resources for assistance.
At the counseling center, counselors can help you
figure out your academic plans, career options
and help you with personal counseling
in crisis situations
or if you are having difficulties
in personal areas of your life.
Meeting with an instructor during your office hours
can help you better determine
what the instructor expects from you
and will also allow you to obtain a referral
for tutoring if it is needed.
EOPS can help provide extended financial assistance
with books
as well as a great deal of academic support.
The financial aid office can assist you
with understanding what type of financial assistance
you are eligible for
based on your individual circumstances.
And finally, if you have a physical, emotional
or learning disability or need to be tested for one,
DSPS can help determine what accommodations,
if any, you may be eligible for.
To summarize, if you do not maintain a 2.0 cumulative GPA
or do not complete at least 50% of the courses you attempt,
then you will be placed on level one probation.
If you aren't able to maintain the standard once again
in a subsequent term,
you are placed on level two probation.
Finally, if you aren't able to maintain the standard
the third time in a subsequent term,
you are subject to dismissal.
If you are on dismissal, you cannot register
for future semesters
or add or drop a course in your current schedule.
It may result in you sitting out for one or more semesters
until you are reinstated to the college.
Remember that you can use course repetition
or academic renewal to improve your GPA.
Do your best to complete the classes you are enrolled in
and take a personal inventory of your time commitment.
It is also helpful if you gain awareness
of important deadlines,
like the last date to drop a course without a W,
and that you remember that you must dedicate two hours
outside of class studying for every hour
you spend in the classroom.
Don't forget that help is available,
but you must seek it out to take advantage
of the resources.
Please remember that we do want you to be successful here
at Contra Costa College.
If other priorities or commitments get in your way,
then it is important you do your best
to protect your college transcript.
Sometimes that may require you to enroll in fewer courses
or possibly not at all.
There is no shame in doing this.
With good grades, you will undoubtedly
have more options open to you in the future.
It is our hope that you do achieve success here
at Contra Costa College.
Good luck.
Congratulations.
You have completed the first step
of the online probation and dismissal workshop.
Next, you must successfully complete a short quiz.
To complete the quiz,
go to the counseling department webpage
on the Contra Costa College website, www.contracosta.edu.
You must get 8 out of 11 answers correct
for successful completion of this module. �