Comprehensive Requirement 3.4.9
The
institution provides appropriate academic support services. (Academic support services)
aCompliance___Partial Compliance___Non-Compliance
Narrative:
Lawson State Community College provides appropriate academic support services designed to assist students in reaching their educational goals. These services include academic advisement, assessment, accommodations for the disabled, career/job placement, and TRIO/Student Support Services (Catalog pages 12 to 14); developmental education (Catalog page 79) Library and Learning Resources Center (Catalog pages 42 to 43).
Academic advising is also available to support students in their pursuit of meaningful educational programs. Each student is expected to meet with his/her advisor at least once each semester to arrange a schedule of classes for the subsequent semester, discuss career goals and interests and become familiar with the program they will pursue. The advisor is expected to assist with awareness of resources and opportunities that can enhance a student’s chance of academic success. Students are expected to assume responsibility for their academic career and their personal growth and well-being. (Advising information in the Course Schedule book)
Assessment services are also available. Each college in the Alabama Community College System is required to obtain a comprehensive assessment of students upon admission to the college and prior to enrollment in programs. Students who enroll in associate degree, diploma, or certificate programs for more than four credit hours per semester are assessed through the administration of the computerized COMPASS assessment instrument, and placed at the appropriate developmental level as indicated by the assessment results. (Catalog page13)
Disability services are available in compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Special Services and accommodations are given on an individual basis once supporting documentation is provided. It is the student’s responsibility to notify the college of a disability that requires assistance. Students with disabilities receive appropriate accommodations relative to their specific disability. The college relocates classes, programs, and activities as necessary to accommodate students with mobility challenges. Service animals are permitted on the college campus and in its facilities. Counselors are located on both campuses to provide services to students requesting disability services.
Career/job placement services are offered by the College. Job placement and the Career Education Center function as a bridge between the student’s academic preparation and the world of work. Activities sponsored by the Center include career counseling, maintaining a career information library, receiving and publishing job vacancy notices, arranging for prospective employers to visit the campus, interviewing applicants, mailing students credentials to prospective employers, and publicizing campus interviews.
The college also offers the Student Support Services, a federally funded TRIO Program. (Catalog page 14). The Student Support Services Program targets and assist low-income, first generation college students, and students with disabilities to progress through the academic pipeline. Lawson State has Student Support Services on both the Birmingham and Bessemer Campuses. Services are provided for a maximum of 400 students. (Student Support Services Brochure).
Career/job placement services are offered by the College. Job placement and the Career Education Center function as a bridge between the student’s academic preparation and the world of work. Activities sponsored by the Center include career counseling, maintaining a career information library, receiving and publishing job vacancy notices, arranging for prospective employers to visit the campus, interviewing applicants, mailing students credentials to prospective employers, and publicizing campus interviews.
Developmental education (Catalog page 79) services are offered to students who place into courses based on individual placement test scores. Three academic areas are tested – English, reading, and mathematics. Personnel in developmental education support the personal growth of students through advising, tutoring, counseling, and tracking of academic progress. Student academic performance is tracked in each developmental course. Students are given a pre-test at the beginning of each semester to gauge their proficiency level and are post-tested upon completion of the course. Student results are tracked in an effort to analyze program effectiveness and provide teachers with the necessary data in order to offer more targeted-assisted instruction throughout the course.
The services provided by the Library and Learning Resources Center (Library website) include a collection that is current, organized and accessible to meet the instructional and individual needs of students, faculty and staff. The libraries maintain an atmosphere that is conducive to study and research. A library is maintained on the Bessemer Campus and the Birmingham Campus. The library staff is qualified and involved in the academic life of the college. The library’s collection development program includes print, electronic, and other non-print materials that support the instructional and individual needs of students, faculty and staff. The library participates in inter-library loan programs and has access to the collections of other libraries. The library services also include individual and group orientations, bibliographic instruction, and reference assistance. Additionally, the library provides instruction in the use of its resources so as to enable users to better utilize the services of the library. The library has 32 computer stations, access to the Internet, the Alabama Virtual Library, other electronic resources, videotapes, computer software, tapes, CD-ROMs, and other media material. The Library and Learning Resources Center contains more than 45,000 volumes and subscribes to more than 100 periodicals. It has over 140 telecommunications program materials, and more than 26,000 electronic books complement the print book collection. The collection is continuously weeded and new databases and holdings from various vendors are added for patron interface. Periodically, faculty and staff receive, via e-mail (Library Acquisitions) about new acquisitions. The Library staff is responsible for assisting students with the Alabama Virtual Library and other sites. The Libraries are open 62 hours per week with reference, open access computers, and circulation services Mondays through Thursdays from 8:00 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.; on Fridays from 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. and on Saturdays from 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Documentation:
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Documentation |
Location |
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Academic Advising |
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|
Assessment
Services |
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COMPASS
Test Information |
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Advising
Information |
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Disability services |
|
|
Guide
to Disability Services |
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Career/job placement |
|
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TRIO/Student Support Services |
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Developmental Education |
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Library and Learning Resources Center |
|
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LSCC e-mails about acquisitions |
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Student
Support Services Brochure |