As part of the statewide Texas Pathways strategy, the Texas Success Center has launched a research agenda to inform policy, improve community college practice, develop practitioner-oriented guidance and tools, and provide training, technical assistance, and professional development. Projects are selected to support the ongoing efforts of Texas Pathways colleges as they redesign the student experience.
Basic Needs Insecurity in Texas Community Colleges
Basic needs insecurities affect students enrolled in Texas community colleges. In this research report funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Texas Success Center provides a landscape analysis of basic needs insecurity supports across colleges. The findings provide leaders with valuable insights about how to integrate basic needs supports into the comprehensive Talent Strong Texas Pathways strategy to support student wellness, belonging, and success.
Labor Market Insights
Phase 1:
The Texas Success Center partnered with EMSI-Burning Glass to identify 15 key occupations in the state. The research team then built skills-based career maps to highlight opportunities for training and career progression.
Phase 2:
Building on the framework from the statewide key occupation applied research project, the Texas Success Center continued its partnership with Lightcast (formerly EMSI-Burning Glass) to identify key occupations by region. The research team then developed skills-based career maps to highlight regional opportunities for training and career progression.
Dual Enrollment Equity Pathways (DEEP)
During this three-year research partnership, the Texas Success Center is working with the Community College Research Center (CCRC) as they develop research-based guidance materials and analytic tools. These resources will support scaling of efforts by community colleges and K-12 schools in Texas to increase college-going and success for Black, Latinx, low-income and other underserved students by aligning dual enrollment offerings with ongoing whole-college Texas Pathways reforms.
Texas Schools Project Collaboration
The Texas Success Center is partnering with the Texas Schools Project, housed at the University of Texas at Dallas, to support a multi-pronged research agenda with the primary goal of informing and supporting the pandemic recovery efforts of Texas community colleges.
The research projects will examine:
- pandemic recovery efforts,
- student mental health supports, and
- understanding challenges and responses to part-time student study.
As partners, the Texas Success Center will ensure that the research is responsive to the needs of Texas community colleges.
| Mental Health | Pandemic Recovery | Part-time Students |
Ability to Benefit (AtB)
The Texas Success Center is partnering with World Education, Inc. to conduct action-oriented research to increase the number of colleges utilizing ATB. Expert consultants, Dr. Tamara Clunis and Michelle Lamons of Amarillo College, will lead the work to develop resources based on research and collaboration with national ATB experts.