Tacoma Completes Student Voice Research Report is now available

Student Affairs has been an active participant in the cradle-to-career collective action movement, Graduate Tacoma, since 2012. As part of our mission to move students forward, we recognize we’re in a unique community that is deeply invested in working alongside us to support student success. As an active member of the Tacoma College Support Network, Student Transitions & Success staff help realize the access-drive mission of UW Tacoma by supporting community-based efforts to increase access to right-fit colleges, especially students of color and those impacted by poverty. With support from funding that Graduate Tacoma obtained from the Gates Foundation, Student Affairs joined UW Tacoma Academic Affairs, Tacoma Community College, and Degrees of Change to launch Tacoma Completes to explore questions of how collective action can support better college completion rates. One product of this effort is an applied, qualitative research study to explore why Tacoma Public Schools (TPS) graduates leave college prior to completing their degree. The target population for this study is TPS graduates who enrolled at Tacoma Community College (TCC) or University of Washington (UWT) and left the college in good academic standing within the last five years. Part of the Tacoma Completes initiative, this report is intended to support deeper understanding and programmatic decision-making for systems-level changes to increase completion rates at each institution. 

 Also, a virtual forum for community will be held Feb. 19, 8:30-10 a.m. to share key findings from the report. Click here to register. Community members will have the chance to hear from current college students and social service organizations on the state of accessing and completing a postsecondary education. Community members are also invited to learn more and get involved with work to support college completion in Tacoma by visiting GraduateTacoma.org/TCSN.