Through its P-16 Regional Council, Eastern Kentucky University has entered into a collaborative arrangement with two local school districts to develop a math transition course.

The course, to be taught at Madison Central, Madison Southern and Berea Community high schools beginning this fall, is expected to reduce the number of students who must enroll in developmental math courses (for no academic credit) in college. The transitional algebra course targets seniors who have successfully completed algebra I, geometry and algebra II, but do not have ACT math scores that allow them to enroll in regular college math courses.

Under the new arrangement, the transition courses, to be taught by teachers at the respective schools, is based on the curriculum and tests of the MAT 090, 095 and 098 courses at EKU. Students who pass the transition course and make a passing grade on the KYOTE, a Council on Postsecondary Education standardized test, will be recommended (if reading and writing scores are acceptable) to take Math 105 or 107 upon admission to EKU.

The math transition course is “critical to college retention and graduation because they prepare students to enter college in a regular math course that counts toward graduation,” said Dr. Bill Phillips, dean of EKU’s College of Education. “The number one indicator of college success is being able to pass college algebra without remediation.”

In fact, studies have shown that over the past 10 years approximately 60 percent of the Madison County students who took a developmental math class at EKU never went on to earn a college degree.

The transition course is the result of “exemplary” cooperation between the University and the local school districts, said Dr. Robert Thomas, a faculty member in EKU’s Department of Mathematics and Statistics. “The collaboration involves selfless efforts at a variety of levels: two EKU colleges (Arts and Sciences and Education), two EKU departments, three area schools, two school districts, three local education agencies (LEAs) and several individuals whose one common goal was to help students.”

The collaborative arrangement is a response to requests from the public schools.

“True systemic and sustainable change needs to be bottom up and tailored to the needs of the groups and individuals involved,” Thomas added. “That is what is taking place here. Helping students has been the driving force behind pulling together the diverse groups with a common purpose with very challenging time constraints and deadlines.”

Nancy Blue Williams, an EKU faculty member and regional coordinator for the Kentucky Center for Mathematics at Eastern, said, “This successful collaboration between EKU and Madison County and Berea Independent schools will no doubt encourage future partnerships that foster important learning for our children.”

Thomas said “special thanks” are due Dr. Billy Thames, director of field services for the EKU College of Education; Dr. John Wade, dean of EKU’s College of Arts & Sciences; Randy Peffer, chief academic officer and assistant superintendent with Madison County Schools; and Donna Lovell, director of district-wide services with Berea Independent Schools.

“I appreciate the efforts of the faculty and staff of EKU, Madison Central and Madison Southern,” Peffer said. “This transitional mathematics course will allow students who have not met the ACT benchmark to receive an additional year of instruction on the key concepts needed to begin their freshman year of college in credit-bearing mathematics courses.”

“Many times, students struggle with math and reading at a level that leaves them not completely prepared for postsecondary education,” Lovell said. “Because of this, we have seen an increase in the need for remedial courses to assist these students in reaching an appropriate level.

“The result is that students begin from below the ground level and have to climb their way up to where postsecondary institutions have set the appropriate standards,” Lovell continued. “Many times this is discouraging, frustrating and, without necessary support, can be an insurmountable hurdle.”

Thames said the Madison County/Berea project could be replicated in other school districts.