The Galveston Community College District Board of Regents on Aug. 12 heard an update on student and graduate success data that will appear in the 2020 Texas Higher Education Almanac.

While the final almanac has not yet been released, some of the almanac data is currently available on the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Accountability System website.

Graduate success is measured as employment and/or enrollment in higher education in the fall semester following graduation. Both Galveston College academic and technical graduates exceed the state average in terms of graduate success, with 95.2 percent of academic graduates and 93.2 percent of technical graduates being deemed successful. Moreover, the college’s academic graduate success rate is higher than that of all local peer community colleges.

Between fall 2014 and fall 2019, Galveston College’s enrollment increased by 12.6 percent from 2,048 to 2,306. This outpaces statewide enrollment growth of 8 percent over the same period.

In fall 2019, 31.7 percent of Galveston College students were enrolled on a full-time basis, compared to 23.1 percent statewide. Likewise, 30.6 percent of Galveston College students were in a technical program; statewide that figure was 23.2 percent. Notably, Galveston College had the second-highest proportion of full-time students among local peer institutions.

Galveston College’s fall 2019 six-year graduation rate for first-time, full-time students was 48.6 percent, exceeding the state average by 9.5 percentage points.

On average, Galveston College students take longer than their statewide peers to complete an associate degree – 4.3 years compared to 3.9. Similarly, students graduate from Galveston College having attempted an average of 88 semester credit hours; the state average is 81.

In FY2019, 55.9 percent of Galveston College degrees were awarded to African American and Hispanic students. The college outperforms local peers and the state average on this measure.

Nearly one in four (23.8 percent) of the college’s fall 2013 first-time students transferred to a four-year institution within six years. While slightly below the state average, Galveston College’s performance on this measure is the second-best among local peers.

Un-expired Term of Regent Carl Kelly
Out of respect for Galveston College Regent Carl Kelly, who died on July 31, the board voted to wait until May 2021 to appoint a successor to fill the unexpired term.

Board Chair Karen Flowers said she plans to establish a nominating committee after the first of the year to accept nominations and to review and recommend a candidate to fill the unexpired term for position 8, which will run through May 2022.

Other Action
In other business, board members:

• approved revisions to the college’s Employees Standards of Conduct, including new sections on ethical standards, violations, electronic media, safety requirements, tobacco and e-cigarettes, alcohol and drugs, and arrests, indictments, convictions and other adjudications.
• approved revisions to the board’s Freedom from Discrimination, Harassment and Retaliation: Sex and Sexual Violence and Student Discipline and Penalties policies.
• accepted U.S. Department of Education Title V grant award funding for year three of the “Pathway Model for Improved Teaching, Advising and Transfer at a Hispanic-Serving Community College” initiative in the amount of $549,995.
• accepted the resignation of Mary Pyle, Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Academy program director, and the retirement of Patricia A. Perry, instructor in the Associate Degree Nursing program.
• approved salary schedules, adjunct faculty and overload pay schedules, and part-time classification and compensation schedule, effective Sept. 1.
• approved an annual contract for heating, ventilation and air conditioning service and repair with AMS of Houston of Stafford, Texas, as the primary vendor and Gowan, Inc. of Houston as the secondary vendor, effective Sept. 1.
• approved a $32,756.66 information technology purchase to convert two classrooms into video streaming studios.
• renewed workers’ compensation coverage through the Texas Association of School Boards at a cost of $15,742, effective Sept. 1
• renewed unemployment compensation coverage through the Texas Association of School Boards at a cost of $32,500.
• approved the utilization of the following investment firms: Gilford Securities, Inc., Landenburg Thalmann & Company, LOGIC (Local Government Investment Cooperative), Lone Star Investment Pool, TexPool, TexTERM and Vanguard (Mutual Funds).
• adopted a resolution designating Galveston County Tax Assessor/Collector as the officer to calculate tax rate information required under Texas tax code.
• approved board meeting dates for 2020-2021.