FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
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STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
John L. Winn
Commissioner of Education
F. PHILIP HANDY,
Chairman
T. WILLARD FAIR,
Vice Chairman
Members
DONNA G. CALLAWAY
JULIA L. JOHNSON
R
OBERTO MARTÍNEZ
P
HOEBE RAULERSON
L
INDA K. TAYLOR
Memorandum Number 05-31
November 4, 2005
M E M O R A N D U M
TO:
Community College Presidents
FROM:
J. David Armstrong, Jr.
SUBJECT:
FACTS.org implementation and student progression
As you are all aware, last year's OPPAGA report on Excess Hours, and the resulting legislation
(although subsequently vetoed), has heightened the awareness surrounding this issue. In fact, the
Excess Hours bill has been re-filed for the 2006 Legislative Session. In an effort to coordinate
efforts to improve higher learning (Strategic Imperative 8), we want to make sure that we are
operating from as strong a position as possible on addressing student progression. To that end,
Dr. Judy Bilsky, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Student Success, and Dr. Connie
Graunke, Executive Director of Florida Center for Advising and Academic Support (FCAAS), as
well as the entire FCAAS Board have continued discussions that we shared with you at your last
Council meeting. I am specifically referring to the role which FACTS.org can play in guiding
students toward appropriate course selections through the utilization of the 2 + 2 common pre-
requisite audit. You may recall that addressing the excess hours issue was one of the reasons for
the creation of FACTS.org by the Legislature. Section 1007.28, Florida Statutes (F.S.),
established a single, statewide computer-assisted student advising system which is charged with:
--identifying courses that will meet the requirements of a selected path towards a degree;
--providing a status report with each grade report;
--being an integral part of registration; and
--providing management information.
J. DAVID ARMSTRONG
R.
Chancellor, Community Colleges and Workforce Education
325 W. GAINES STREET • SUITE 1314 • TALLAHASSEE, FL 32399-0400 • (850) 245-0407 • www.fldoe.org/cc
Memorandum Number 05-31
Page Two
November 4, 2005
The 2 + 2 evaluation offers particular "value-added" in that the electronic evaluations go beyond
most institutional "graduation audits" by identifying common pre-requisites for a selected major,
and then tracking progress in completing those specific courses. Some colleges currently have
this capability with their internal degree audit system, but most do not. Fifteen colleges have not
completed the technical connectivity requirements; to date, only six of the community colleges
have fully implemented the FACTS.org “2 + 2” module (see attachment).
On November 2, 2005, a Student Progression Task Force, (with full representation from the
Council for Instructional Affairs (CIA), the Council for Student Affairs (CSA), and Registrars,
co-chaired by Dr. Bilsky and Dr. Graunke, will hold its second meeting to discuss procedures
and guidelines for implementing the “2 + 2” evaluation module throughout the community
college system by the end of this fiscal year. The goal of the Task Force is to recommend a plan
for full use of FACTS.org as a tool for addressing excess hours to the Council of Presidents
(COP) at the November meeting, and to identify additional strategies for moving students
successfully and efficiently through their programs of study.
In addition, Dr. Bilsky and Dr. Graunke will be facilitating regular conference calls with
appropriate staff at the institutions which have not yet fully implemented the “2+2” module to
address any issues they may be experiencing and to establish a reasonable timeline for
implementation. A status report on progress will be sent to you on a bi-weekly basis. A
technical assistance workshop is also planned for February 2006, in conjunction with the joint
CIA/CSA meeting. While our goal is to have 100% compliance with the “2+2” advising module
before the end of the fiscal year, I am hopeful that many of you can expedite this project and
implement it prior to the start of the legislative session. I will keep you posted regarding further
developments on this front, and urge your attention to and support of this initiative.
JDA/jbh
Attachment
c:
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Dr. Judy Bilsky
Dr. Connie Graunke
Dr. Theresa Klebacha
Ms. Stacey Webb
Mr. Larry Bracken
