Guided Pathways @ Foothill

Overview of the Process

 

The following design principles were developed by engaging the campus
community at a brown bag event held on December 9, 2020. The Guided
Pathways team subsequently compiled feedback from the brown bag, and
created design principles to present to the Guided Pathways Steering
Committee.

 

Why Design Principles?

Guided Pathways design principles will guide our community in the work, and align with Foothill’s mission, values, and equity/strategic plans.

 

Guided Pathways Design Principles

 

• Student Readiness: We will be “student ready” rather than expecting students to be “college ready.” We recognize the diverse experiences and assets students bring to our campus and will design our programming around those assets. We will design structures that meet students where they are.
• Equitable Systems: We will align our work with the college’s strategic equity planning by centering race in our work and ensuring that guided pathways address systemic, structural inequities.
• Learning at the Core: We will ensure that learning is at the center of the student experience, with outcomes clearly identified, regularly assessed, and equitably achieved – at the classroom, program, and institutional levels.
• Systemic Student Support: We strive to ensure our services, working in concert with instruction, proactively and systemically serve every student, not just those that have the social and cultural capital to navigate our system.
• Clearly Communicated Pathways: We strive to eliminate structural barriers that cause confusion and unnecessarily long times to successful completion – by creating and communicating clear and visible pathways designed with student goals and timelines in mind.
• Community Engagement & Accountability: We will ensure all college constituents have a voice in our work. We will come together as a community to share the responsibility of improving the student experience.
• Open-Mindedness: We will encourage outside the box thinking when re-shaping our programming to better meet student needs.