Connecting students to their community

As a Success Coach at Isothermal Community College, Lisa Courtney wants to help all students to do well and reach their fullest potential. But, sometimes in order to do that, students need interventions beyond help with math or reading. Sometimes barriers to education come in the form of needing childcare, housing or reliable transportation.

"Prior to my arrival, Isothermal had another success coach who recognized the economic impact for our county on students," Courtney said. "For those students, it wasn't just a matter of being able to get into college, but how to stay in college."

So, the college sought a way to connect students with organizations in the community that could meet their needs, said Dr. Johnny Smith, dean of health and public service at the college.

"The college received a success coach grant three to four years ago," Smith explained. "A success coach was there to help adults who hadn't gotten their high school diplomas and to help them further their education. But what we realized was we needed to get them plugged in on the curriculum side by helping to remove barriers, whether those were financial, housing or so on."

Working with helping agencies in the community, the college formed a Community Connections team, whose mission is to create a collaborative spirit among all. The group meets monthly with a guest speaker from a different organization each month.

"It really brings all the partners around the table," Courtney said. "What we found was there were organizations who didn't know all the services of other organizations."

Community Connections also provides a way for students who need service hours for scholarships to connect with organizations who need volunteers.

"Our students who have Powers Scholarships or are part of a leadership organization have to have service hours," Courtney said. "We recently had a community connection fair so students could learn about organizations in the community as well as connecting to volunteer. We have the fair twice each year - in the spring and fall - so students can learn more."

Community Connections fits well with the college's overall mission: to improve life through learning by providing innovative, affordable educational programs and offering opportunities for personal, professional, economic and cultural development.

"Giving back and providing service is invaluable to learning," Courtney said. "We want our students to be successful, no matter what."

Summer and fall registration at Isothermal opens on April 4. For more information on classes and enrollment, visit isothermal.edu.