FACULTY AS AGENTS OF CURRICULAR AND TRANSFER ALIGNMENT BETWEEN 2-YEAR AND 4-YEAR INSTITUTIONS: THE ROAD MAPS TO COMPLETION WORKSHOP FOR LOS ANGELES AREA GEOSCIENCE FACULTY

Transfer of geoscience students from community colleges (2YCs) to 4-year colleges and universities (4YCUs) is of high importance with respect to building a large and diverse geoscience workforce. However, factors such as limited quantitative skills, inconsistencies in course articulation between 2YCs and 4YCs, and differences between university-level and department-level admissions standards hinder the 2YC-4YCU transfer process. In March 2015, a SAGE-2YC (Supporting and Advancing Geoscience Education in Two-Year Colleges) regional workshop for faculty from local 2YCs and 4YCUs was convened to begin building easier and more informed transfer pathways for 2YC geoscience students transferring to 4YCUs, establish communication between 2YC and 4YCU geoscience departments in southern California, and develop preliminary articulation models between 2YC and 4YCU institutions. Led by two faculty from 2YCs and a 2YC Dean, the 1-day workshop brought geoscience faculty from 15 Los Angeles area 2YCs and 4YCUs together to discuss the principal challenges faced by their respective institutions related to geoscience transfer students. Pairs of representatives from a 2YC and 4YCU worked with articulation matrices to identify transfer pathways between their specific geoscience departments. We will provide an overview of the planning process and format of the workshop, highlights of the workshop plenary on identifying transfer pathway challenges, and best practices for workshop implementation. In particular, we found that including a 2YC Dean as a workshop co-leader was beneficial with respect to mechanisms of participant recruitment and insight into institutional-level barriers to transfer alignment between 2YCs and 4YCUs of which faculty may not be aware. We will also share post-workshop evaluation results from participants and workshop co-leaders. Assembling 2YC and 4YCU faculty and administrators from specific regions represents an effective model of fostering dialogue about transfer concerns and making progress on establishing clearer transfer pathways for geoscience students at 2YCs.