Author: Ashley Woods

The 2019-2020 Academic Tracking Report was presented to the Passport Review Board during their annual meeting on February 11, 2021 by author Michael Torrens, director of analysis, assessment and accreditation at Utah State University. Passports have been awarded to students since 2016; the total number awarded to date is 49,069 (see table below).

Total Number of Passports Awarded by Academic Year

Grade Point Average. Students who earned a Passport and transferred to another Network member institution earned an aggregated grade point average (GPA) of 3.54, statistically higher than the 2.92 aggregated GPA of students who transferred without a Passport in the same period (see Figure 1). In addition, academic performance GPA of students who transferred with a Passport was roughly comparable to Passport earners who remained at the same institution.

Earned Credit Hours. Students who transferred with a Passport to another Network member institution and completed two terms in AY 2019-2020 earned 13.64 student credit hours (SCH) on average, compared to 9.74 for students who transferred without a Passport (see Figure 2).

The detailed report can be found in the Interstate Passport 2019-20 Annual Report.

Interstate Passport and five of its Network member institutions participated in this year’s National Student Transfer Week (NTSW) October 19-23. Organized by the National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students (NISTS), NTSW takes place annually the third week of October and celebrates transfer students and the professionals who support them on their journeys. This year’s theme was “Thriving Through Transfer.” The participating IP Network institutions – Chicago School of Professional Psychology, University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville, University of Hawaiʻi West Oahu, Washington State University [https://news.wsu.edu/2020/10/19/wsu-celebrates-national-transfer-student-week-events-oct-19-23/], and Western Oregon University – hosted events through social media, webinars, workshops, and panels to connect former and current transfer students with one another and provide information about transfer to prospective students.

The University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville participated in National Student Transfer Week and offered these testimonials: 

Collin Hoffman and John Severs are both transfer students who transferred in to UACCB from other institutions. John was a student at the University of Arkansas at Morrilton. He said the more the two-hour commute to UA-Morrilton was too much of a strain. He transferred to UACCB because of its close proximity to his home. Collin was previously attending Arkansas State University-Newport. He completed one semester at ASU-Newport before transferring to UACCB. He said his transfer experience has been great and that he appreciates that the instructors at UACCB challenge their students. “The teachers care about the students and are willing to help in any way. My GPA went from a 2.75 to a 3.6 after I transferred to UACCB. I know that I will be better prepared for my bachelor’s degree having gotten my associates at UACCB,” he said.

 See the NISTS website [https://www.nists.org/campus-highlights] for highlights of all institutions that participated in National Transfer Student Week.

Dr. Kim Weismann is a Professor of Communication and the Arts and Human Sciences Department Chair at Williston State College in Williston, North Dakota. She earned her Associate of Arts and Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Dickinson State University, her Master of Arts in Speech Communication from North Dakota State University, and her Doctorate of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of South Dakota. Dr. Weismann is also a member of the Interstate Passport Oral Communication Faculty Committee, which is responsible for developing the learning outcomes and proficiency criteria for this foundation skill area.

This is her 15th year of teaching in higher education. Weismann has taught a variety of courses during that time including, but not limited to, Fundamentals of Public Speaking, Interpersonal Communication, Intercultural Communication, Oral Interpretation, Organizational Communication, Persuasion, Argumentation, Cultural Diversity, Social Problems, College Strategies and College Transition. Her doctoral dissertation, “Evaluating the perceived challenges in offering public speaking courses online” was published this year (Publication No. 27667256, ProQuest Dissertations Publishing).  Dr. Weismann currently resides in Williston with her husband, Tony Freed, and their rescue animals.

Oral Communication: A Foundation of General Education

I am a full-time professor of Communication at a small community college in northwestern North Dakota. In my 15 years of teaching in higher education I have taught a variety of courses as well as at different types of institutions, including a research university, a four-year regional teaching university, and currently a community college. During this time, unsurprisingly, I have seen a number of changes. Some practices, however, have remained consistent, one in particular: communication courses count as general education courses within the institutions where I have taught. More importantly, communication course outcomes connect to the workforce and employment. They help students learn ethics, critical thinking, listening, and critical evaluation – skills that employers want.

In a traditional public speaking class, students learn lifelong skills:

• Writing and organizational skills when writing speeches
• Analytical skills when researching assignments and assessing peers’ presentations
• Collaborative skills when working with their peers – considered vital in today’s workplace
• Listening skills when listening to their peers’ presentations.

Many institutions offer a course in interpersonal communication in which students typically work on communicating with other people in various settings including, but not limited to, the workplace, romantic relationships, friendships, and families. Students also learn about perception and intrapersonal communication. The focus is on collaboration, conflict management and listening skills.

At some institutions, interpersonal communication is the sole class students take for the communication competency. Thus, it is essential that students have a clear understanding of the concepts and skills necessary for effective communication – preparation, delivery, critical listening, and the ability to make adjustments. Students learn about these concepts and skills through a variety of ways such as role-playing and in-class discussions. Students also find examples of situations in popular culture and explain how the concepts apply to each scenario. Students may also share their personal experiences in small group discussions in class as well.

The Interstate Passport oral communication outcomes focus on ethics, critical thinking, organization, delivery skills, monitoring and adjusting with an audience, as well as listening and critically evaluating messages. All of the skills taught in a communication course are transferable to other areas of students’ lives, especially their careers.

Indeed, nearly every job has human interaction of some kind, so the ability to communicate effectively is critical. Employers are looking for candidates who have strong written and oral communication skills, very often labeled as “soft skills.” A 2019 article from the Forbes Coaches Council presents 15 such skills needed to succeed in the workforce, including communication: “speaking thoughtfully and intelligently, listening intently, and being a team player with leadership potential.”

The Indeed.com website, which provides services to job seekers as well as employers, cites communication skills as one of the top five attributes that employers are looking for in potential employees.

Communication studies is a discipline that imparts to students not only new concepts but also skills that will be valuable throughout their lives. The learning outcomes for these courses have remained consistent over time and likely will continue to do so because of the importance of good communication skills in all facets of life.