By Maricela Hernandez
An Associate Degree for Transfer could assist the journey in their to get a better reserved seat at the university table.
“I actually ended up earning my ADT in Psychology from Los Adanus College in Pittsburgh, California,” said Erysse Green, who wants to practice marriage and family therapy.
“It (ADT) kind of prepared us for college by actually helping us to basically map out every single semester,” said Green
Another student named Jannella Spells said, “I received my associate degree for transfer in universal Social Science degree, and I am a senior at Wiley College.”
Spells future plan is to become a social worker. Spells said, “It would be more beneficial for me to get my associate … when I found out about this program (ADT) it made it possible to take another step further.”
These were some of the remarks said from the students’ panel on getting an ADT degree.
The seminar took place on Monday over the Internet, where students could ask questions about ADT.
The message was targeted to black students, but could relate to all students in the California Community College (CCC) system.
The key presenter was Michela Siqueiros.
She said Black students are not transferring in large numbers to higher education.
In community college, three percent of Black students transfer to the University of California system, compared to nine percent to California State Universities.
Also, three percent of Black students take two years to transfer and 36 percent of them take six years.
An ADT makes the transfer process much easier for all students.
ADT is a degree offered through the California community colleges that gives students the opportunity to move on to at any four-year university, both in California and outside the state.
The ADT Journey for African American Students webinar was a statewide California Community Collewge (CCC) event for Black Student Success week that took place at East Los Angeles College.
ADT guarantees a place at the big table for California community college students. Some students did not realize they had these opportunities at universities.
In September 2010, Governor Schwarzenegger signed SB 1440, which created a seamless transfer path for all California community college students regardless of which college they attend.
Community college students who successfully complete 60 units of transferable coursework will be awarded an associate degree and receive guaranteed admission with junior standing at the CSU.
There are two kinds of ADT programs: Associate in Art for Transfer and Associate in Science for Transfer. AA-T degree programs help students further their education or enter various occupational fields.
On the other hand, AS-T degrees are for students wanting to major in the science fields.
“I believe that all students have the ability to succeed if they‘re given the opportunity, and certainly that opportunity is especially critical for our Black students,” Siqueiros said.
She is the president and founder of the Campaign for College Opportunity, a California based nonprofit policy advocacy and research organization committed to ensuring more students can go to college and succeed.
The importance of getting this type of associate degree is that students transfer guarantees admission to ADT students; ADT students enter with junior standing, and it guarantees that no more than 60 additional units will be completed toward the bachelor’s degree.
This way students do not take unnecessary classes and finish faster to getting their degree.
The goal is to create a pathway to universities will be smooth for all students, especially Black students.