CUNY Master Plan 2012-2016

THE CUNY MASTER PLAN 2012-2016
Percentage of First-time Freshmen Entering Community College with a Remedial Need
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
85 84 85
83 83
80 82
77
24 21 19
18 22
22 26
23
33
28
34
29
37
29
35
30
33
27
31
27
31
26
27
27
82
79
19
24
23
25
41
29
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011*
Remedial Need in One Area Remedial Need in Two Areas Remedial Need in Three Areas
* In Fall 2011, the minimum math score needed to avoid remediation was increased.
Fall 2011 data is preliminary
As this population has surged, it has become clear that the principles of access and opportunity are
meaningful only when they are tied to another key concept: college completion. To that end, CUNY has
broadened efforts to find new ways to provide support and special programming for remedial students.
CUNY Start
CUNY Start is an intensive immersion program that began in 2007, as a pilot, to provide a bridge to
college for students enrolling with a GED diploma. By fall 2011, it had expanded to all six CUNY community
colleges and the College of Staten Island with a total annual enrollment of 1,200.
CUNY Start offers underprepared high school graduates, prior to matriculation, intensive preparation
in academic reading, writing, mathematics, and college success skills. These students have a high school
or GED diploma, but their CUNY Assessment Test scores indicate the need for significant remediation.
The program seeks to have students complete their remediation as quickly and effectively as possible,
and to foster higher levels of persistence and graduation once students start their degree programs.
Similar to a decades-long successful CUNY program for English language immersion, CUNY Start students
are admitted to CUNY, but defer matriculation in order to enroll in intensive non-credit instruction.
They pay only a $75 student fee, allowing them to reserve their financial aid allocations for
credit-bearing coursework leading to graduation. Instruction in the program is very intensive—25 hours
a week in the full-time program and 12 hours a week in the part-time program. The curricula have been
developed by instructional experts, and the teachers are trained in effective teaching practices. As part of
the program, advisers teach weekly college-success seminars and provide individual support to students,
and work closely with college financial, academic, and student support offices to help students make a
smooth transition into degree program studies.
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