Within the nation’s community colleges, underrepresented students and students from families with low incomes face many academic, personal, and financial barriers that deter them from graduating on time or at all. These barriers were further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which introduced new, and more difficult, challenges to prospective graduates.
In 2018, Westchester Community College (WCC) in New York State launched Viking ROADS (Resources for Obtaining Associate Degrees and Success), a student support program that helps students overcome these obstacles. Despite the pandemic, the program had positive effects on enrollment and credit attainment. This brief from MDRC describes the early findings from a study of the Viking ROADS program at WCC.
To learn more, read the report online.