(Santa Ana, Calif.) – The prestigious University of California (UC) system has selected Santa Ana College (SAC) as one of the 65 targeted California community colleges for expanded student outreach efforts. This selection stems from a recent recommendation by a joint task force between UC and the community college system to increase transfer enrollment at the UC campuses. UC's system-wide goal is to enroll one California community college transfer student for every two California resident freshmen.
“We are excited to see the UC system's investment in transfer student success. These expanded outreach services will reduce barriers to the transfer process and support students' dreams of attending a UC, ultimately making our state's higher education system more accessible and equitable for all," said Dr. Annebelle Nery, president of SAC. “We commend UC's initiative to bolster their outreach towards California's diverse and bright student populations at community colleges like SAC."
All 65 selected community colleges have partnerships with UC and widely serve low-income students. Through this expanded outreach, UC plans to recruit more community college students by strengthening existing partnerships with SAC and the other selected colleges.
Potential outreach strategies include implementing expanded advising services onsite at the targeted community colleges or establishing new faculty-to-faculty collaborations between UC campuses and individual colleges. To achieve these goals, $2.5 million has been allocated to expand outreach services at these community colleges as part of UC's Student Academic Preparation and Educational Partnerships.
According to EdSource, UC's efforts to increase transfer access to four-year postsecondary educational institutions come at a critical time, as enrollment in California's community colleges has significantly decreased by 18 percent since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and transfer applications to UCs declined by 11 percent in the fall of 2022.
Additionally, a 2020 Public Policy Institute of California report indicated that only 19 percent of students who intend to transfer do so within four years and only 28 percent do so within six years. The report said students choose to attend community college for its many benefits and/or other personal obligations.
“For aspiring transfer students, UC's expanded and direct outreach services to SAC and other community colleges statewide will help streamline the transfer process across different UC campuses," Nery said.
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About Santa Ana College:
Santa Ana College (SAC), which turned 100 years old in 2015, serves about 54,696 students yearly. At SAC, students can work toward completing an associate degree, university transfer, career/workforce training or a bachelor's degree in occupational studies. As part of Santa Ana College, the School of Continuing Education located at Centennial Education Center offers FREE classes throughout the community for adults of all ages and academic backgrounds. Santa Ana College is an award-winning college and was recently ranked as one of the nation's top two-year colleges awarding associate degrees to Latino and Asian students and named one of the best community colleges in California by Intelligent.com. The college is also recognized throughout the state for its comprehensive workforce training programs for nurses, firefighters, law enforcement and medical personnel. Santa Ana College is one of two comprehensive colleges under the auspices of the Rancho Santiago Community College District.
