Theory of Change Data Deep Dive on full-time enrollment!
In this Data Deep Dive, we shared shared the latest data and research on full-time enrollment at ACC with a spotlight on the first Free Tuition Cohort, as well as insights from our community partners at Trellis Strategies about what our Free Tuition students are saying about their experiences. The session featured a presentation by Dr. Jenna Cullinane Hege, Vice Chancellor for OIRA, focusing on strategies to increase enrollment intensity as well as newer data on ACC students overall, Free Tuition students, and more. Attendees heard from May Plumb of Trellis Strategies, who provided insights into the student experience of our first Free Tuition Cohort. There was also a panel Q&A with Samantha Croft, Jenna, and May.
What’s our goal? We know, both now and in the future, a part-time pathway is the best option for many students balancing complex lives. The “enroll full-time pillar” does not aim to increase all students to full-time enrollment. Instead, we think of enrollment levels as a continuum. Even moving from one class to two, or two classes to three, can significantly improve a student’s likelihood of completion. By improving processes like strategic scheduling so students can take more classes conveniently at the same campus, by ensuring costs do not prohibit students from taking an additional class, by offering coherent sequences of 8 week sections, and by supporting student success through tutoring and coaching, we can make “just one more class” possible for many students.
Did you miss the session? Would you like to revisit these exciting new data insights? You can watch the recording, access the presentation slides and related resources, and check out additional TOC data resources!
Dear Colleagues,
After last year’s Data Summit, OIRA held a series of Data Deep Dives to showcase the data supporting the Theory of Change to the ACC community. This spring, we are continuing this series with an Enroll Full-time Data Deep Dive on Friday, April 11, from 1:00–2:00pm (add to calendar). Please join us to learn about the latest research on the impact of ACC’s Free Tuition Initiative and see the latest data on full-time enrollment.
To gear up for the event, we’ll highlight key data resources and share data headlines in a series of four emails leading up to the event. We’ll also offer ways to engage with the data and each other and some opportunities to win prizes along the way!
Let’s begin with the end in mind. The North Star (big goal) of the theory of change is to reach a 70% completion rate by 2030.
Explore the North Star Dashboard for the most recent data on our North Star completion rate. You can even check how our full-time students are doing compared to part-time. What is the North Star completion rate? This includes students who, within 3 years of their first semester in college, either graduated from ACC or another Texas institution of higher education, completed another award at ACC, or transferred to a 2‐year or 4‐year institution. You’ll find additional information about methodology and other resources at the bottom of the dashboard.
By focusing on each pillar of the theory of change—helping students start strong, supporting full-time enrollment, meeting basic needs, and fostering a sense of belonging and connection—we will create a student experience that enables their completion success.
The upcoming Data Deep Dive will focus on the Enroll Full-Time pillar and will incorporate the latest findings related to the free tuition program and key implications for increasing enrollment intensity.
Win a prize! Each email will have a call to action that you can use to enter to win one of five prizes. (You can enter once per email and everyone who attends the Data Deep Dive will also be entered.)
Call to action: Share your thoughts on our question of the day in the Enroll Full-Time padlet!
Best,
Jenna Cullinane Hege, Ph.D.
Vice Chancellor, Institutional Research & Analytics
Austin Community College District
03/31/2025
Dear Colleagues,
Today, we’ll continue with a review of the Enroll Full-Time Data Deep Dive from last spring as a reminder about why this Theory of Change pillar is so important.
ACC students primarily enroll part-time
Among fall 2024 credit students, only 27% were enrolled full-time. This is an encouraging 3% pt. increase from fall 2023, but we have a long way to go in order to catch up to our peers. In 2023, ACC ranked 42nd among Texas community colleges in our share of full-time enrollment, and the gap between us and our peers has been widening.
Students who enroll full-time are more likely to complete
At ACC, one of the clearest predictors for North Star completion is full-time enrollment in your first term. First-time-in-college (FTIC) students who enroll full-time see a 19% pt. increase in their probability of completion within 3 years holding other enrollment and demographic characteristics constant.
Strategies to increase full-time enrollment
Within the Enroll Full-Time pillar, there are several strategies to help students increase their enrollment intensity. If we use strategic scheduling to improve course availability, help students pay for college, support them with academic tutoring and coaching, and add flexibility with 8-week sections, we believe students can successfully complete more courses per term.
Win a prize!
Share your thoughts on our question of the day in the Enroll Full-Time padlet and you’ll be entered to win one of five fun-filled tote bags with ACC data swag to show you are “Totes Data-Informed.”
Join us April 11 (1:00–2:00pm) for the Enroll Full-Time Data Deep Dive (add to calendar)!
If you’d like to learn more about the latest research about the impact of free tuition and full-time enrollment, join our virtual Data Deep Dive to see an in-depth presentation and panel discussion on free tuition implementation research and enrollment intensity.
If you don’t want to receive future emails about this campaign, please unsubscribe.
Best,
Jenna Cullinane Hege, Ph.D.
Vice Chancellor, Institutional Research & Analytics
Austin Community College District
04/03/2025
Dear Colleagues,
One of the strategies to increase full-time enrollment is to help students pay for college. A key piece of that strategy is the free tuition pilot. Today we’ll be highlighting insights from the Free Tuition Dashboard.
Free tuition increased enrollment for local high school graduates
In fall 2024, the first free tuition cohort enrolled at ACC with a significant increase over prior service area direct-to-college from high school (DTC) cohorts. With 4,982 students, this is a whopping 44% increase from the prior cohort.
Are they enrolling full-time?
Not as much as we thought! Free tuition students are enrolling full-time at a lower rate than prior service area DTC cohorts. This suggests we may be opening the door to more students who are unsure about going to college at all or have competing life commitments, but we have not yet removed the barriers that limit the number of classes students take each term.
Explore the dashboard
Check out the rest of the Free Tuition Dashboard to find out about up-to-date registration counts, persistence rates, financial aid, and which high schools our students are coming from.
Win a prize!
Share your thoughts on our question of the day in the Enroll Full-Time padlet and you’ll be entered to win one of five fun-filled tote bags with ACC data swag to show you are “Totes Data-Informed.”
Join us April 11 (1:00–2:00pm) for the Enroll Full-time Data Deep Dive! (Add to calendar)
If you’d like to learn more about the latest research about the impact of free tuition and full-time enrollment, join our virtual Data Deep Dive to see an in-depth presentation and panel discussion on free tuition implementation research and enrollment intensity.
Best,
Jenna Cullinane Hege, Ph.D.
Vice Chancellor, Institutional Research & Analytics
Austin Community College District
04/07/2025
Dear Colleagues,
In the last email, we discussed how full-time enrollment rates actually decreased for the free tuition cohort, much to our surprise. To figure out why that happened, we asked the students! We partnered with Trellis to conduct detailed student interviews and consulted one of our strategic scheduling tools, the Instructional Planning Survey.
Students enroll part-time for a variety of reasons
We asked students on the Instructional Planning Survey to tell us why they chose to enroll part-time. As you can see, the most important reasons for all part-time students are employment, preferences, and cost. There are some important differences in the reasons for part-time enrollment among Free Tuition students.
Predictably, cost is less of an issue for free tuition students. Employment remains an important factor for these students, but their most common reasons for taking a part-time course load are a lack of available seats and being advised to take fewer courses.
Free tuition student interviews, from Trellis
Last November, Trellis interviewed 19 free tuition students at ACC to learn about their enrollment patterns and choices. Students were categorized into a few personas based on their experiences around enrollment intensity, seen below.
The findings and recommendations from these interviews will be discussed more deeply in the upcoming Data Deep Dive on full-time enrollment (April 11).
Win a prize!
Share your thoughts on our question of the day in the Enroll Full-Time padlet and you’ll be entered to win one of five fun-filled tote bags with ACC data swag to show you are “Totes Data-Informed.”
Join us this Friday, April 11 (1:00–2:00pm), for the Enroll Full-time Data Deep Dive! (Add to calendar)
If you’d like to learn more about the latest research about the impact of free tuition and full-time enrollment, join our virtual Data Deep Dive to see an in-depth presentation and panel discussion on free tuition implementation research and enrollment intensity.
Best,
Jenna Cullinane Hege, Ph.D.
Vice Chancellor, Institutional Research & Analytics
Austin Community College District
Resources to learn more about the ACC’s Theory of Change and the data behind
Learn more about ACC’s bold course toward its North Star Goal: a 70% completion rate by 2030. To make this vision a reality, ACC is harnessing insights from our students, employees, and community to address the most pressing barriers to success.
Get oriented to ACC data! The videos and resources available on this page are designed to help you begin your journey with data. They will provide you with a solid foundation by explaining the basics of how to understand and use data effectively.