Running head: BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 1
Benchmark and Dashboard Project: Compton College
Sean Moore
Pennsylvania State University
BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 2
Benchmark and Dashboard Project: Compton College
Introduction
In this paper, I selected Option 3: Create a Benchmark and Dashboard Report to compare
Compton College to three other California Community Colleges located in Los Angeles County:
El Camino College, Long Beach City College, and Cerritos College. The benchmarking rationale for comparing Compton College to these institutions is that they share the same institutional class, have geographical proximity, all offer vocational programs, and their students have similar demographic makeup.
Compton College recently attained autonomous accreditation and will be improving and expanding its infrastructure over the next 5 years. These improvements will potentially provide growth opportunities in both student enrollment and staffing. Currently, Compton College is smaller than its local rivals and examining surrounding competition provides insight into unlocking the college’s potential. As a result, online data collected will provide a platform to build benchmarking graphs regarding significant indicators. Data from these indicators below will be helpful in the institution’s decision-making process regarding the size and type of infrastructure to build. These findings will be shared with the Compton College Infrastructure
Committee.
List of Specific Indicators
a) Current size of student body enrollment
b) Student–faculty ratio
c) Number of degree programs through certificates and associates programs
d) Size of campus by area
BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 3
Rational for Indicators
The categorical and ordinal indicators above are important because they can be used to justify arguments for infrastructure improvements and growth. For example, larger buildings and more rooms will provide room for more students, positively affecting enrollment and graduation rates. Similarly, with higher enrollment, the college will also require more staff to accommodate this growth. In addition to traditional associate degree programs, California
Community Colleges have historically provided vocational programs supporting strong workforce initiatives in their communities, resulting in opportunities for vocational graduates and increasing their standard of living. It is important to note that the results of this study will apply to all certificated and associate degree programs, including vocational programs. Infrastructure growth will be designed to meet the growing needs of the local urban community and harness the potential of a larger student body.
Raw Data
• Compton College
o 2016–2017 total students enrolled = 7,492
o 2016–2017 student-to-faculty ratio: 24-to-1 = 4.17%
(“El Camino College Compton Center,” n.d.)
o 2016–2017 number of degree programs through certificates and associates
programs = 75
(“Area of Study at El Camino College-Compton Center,” n.d.)
o Campus size = 83 acres
(“Compton Community College in Compton, California - CA - Tuition Fees,” 2018)
BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 4
• El Camino College
o 2016–2017 total students enrolled = 24,033
o 2015–2016 total students enrolled = 24,001
(“Student Population at El Camino College College District,” n.d.)
o 2016–2017 Student-to-faculty ratio: 28-to-1 = 3.57%
(“El Camino College,” n.d.)
o 2016–2017 Number of degree programs through certificates and associates
programs = 142
(“Area of Study at El Camino Community College District,” n.d.)
o Campus size = 115 acres
(“El Camino College in Torrance, California - CA - Room and Board Information,”
2018)
• Long Beach City College
o 2016–2017 total students enrolled = 24,704
o 2015–2016 total students enrolled = 24,478
(“Student Population at Long Beach City College”, n.d.)
o 2016–2017 student-to-faculty ratio: 27-to-1 = 3.7%
(“Long Beach City College,” n.d.)
o 2016–2017 Number of degree programs through certificates and associates
programs = 167
(“Areas of Study at Long Beach City College,” n.d.)
o Campus size = 40 acres
(“Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California - CA - Overview,” 2018) BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 5
• Cerritos College
o 2016 - 2017 total students enrolled = 20, 979
o 2015 - 2016 total students enrolled = 22,043
(“Student Population at Cerritos College,” n.d.)
o 2016 - 2017 student-to-faculty ratio: 24-to-1 = 4.17%
(“Cerritos College,” n.d.)
o 2016–2017 Number of degree programs through certificates and associates
programs = 137
(“Area of Study at Cerritos College,” n.d.)
o Campus size = 140 acres
(“Cerritos College in Norwalk, California - CA - College Overview,” 2018)
Summary of Raw Data
2016/2017 Student to Number of Campus Colleges Student Faculty Ratio Degree Size Compton College 7,492 4.17% 75 83 El Camino College 24,033 3.57% 142 115 Long Beach City College 24,704 3.70% 167 40 Cerrtos College 20,979 4.17% 137 140
Criteria Level for Each Indicators
• Size of student body enrollment average in the 2015–2016 and 2016–2017 years
o Excellent = 24,500 and above
o Adequate = 18,000 to 24,499
o Inadequate = 17,999 and below
• Faculty student ratio
o Excellent = 4.0% and above BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 6
o Adequate = 3.6% to 3.99%
o Inadequate = 3.59% and below
• Number of degree programs per 1,000 total student enrollment
o Excellent = 10 and above
o Adequate = 6 to 9.99
o Inadequate = 5.99 and below
Note: Numbers above are calculated by dividing the degree of programs by certificates and associates programs offered by the total enrollment above and multiplying by 1,000.
• Utilization of campus size
o Excellent = 600 and above
o Adequate = 200 to 599
o Inadequate = 199 and below
Note: The numbers above are calculated by dividing the total enrollment averages above by the number of acres at each institution.
Summary of Criterial Level for Each Indicator
2016/2017 Student Student to Students per Programs per Colleges Enrollment Faculty Ratio Acre 100 Students Compton College I E I E El Camino College A I A I Long Beach City College E A E A
Cerrtos College I E I A
• Excellent = green
• Adequate = yellow BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 7
• Inadequate = red
Graphs of Each Indicator
2016/2017 Student Enrollment
30,000
25,000
20,000
15,000
10,000
5,000
0 Compton College El Camino College Long Beach City College Cerrtos College
Student to Faculty Ratio
4.50%
4.00%
3.50%
3.00%
2.50%
2.00%
1.50%
1.00%
0.50%
0.00% Compton College El Camino College Long Beach City College Cerrtos College
BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 8
Students per Acre
700.00
600.00
500.00
400.00
300.00
200.00
100.00
- Compton College El Camino College Long Beach City College Cerrtos College
Programs per 1000 Students
12.000
10.000
8.000
6.000
4.000
2.000
- Compton College El Camino College Long Beach City College Cerrtos College
BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 9
Graphs of Raw Data Not Included as Indicators
Number of Degree Programs
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
- Compton College El Camino College Long Beach City College Cerrtos College
Campus Size (Acres)
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0 Compton College El Camino College Long Beach City College Cerrtos College BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 10
Conclusion
Research data supports Compton College infrastructure improvements and the college’s ability to support this growth, given its current acreage. Compared to El Camino College, Long
Beach City College, and Cerritos College, Compton College was ranked excellent in the programs offered per 1,000 students and student–faculty ratio. Compton College’s challenge will be to maintain their excellent student–faculty ratio and the high number of programs offered per 1,000 students because enrollment trends grow as direct result of infrastructure growth.
Compton College ranked inadequate in student enrollment and students per acre, which leaves room for improvement. Specifically, to score in the adequate range of these two categories, Compton College will need to increase its student enrollment growth to 18,000, positively effecting its campus utilization score to 216.86. This projected increase implies a need to increase the number of faculty and programs required to maintain its current excellent score.
With student enrollment at 18,000 and campus utilization per acre of 216.86, diversity in program certificates and associate degrees offered will need to grow to 180 while faculty will need to more than double to maintain a 24-to-1 student ratio. The organizational culture of the campus reflects a family-like culture among students and staff and considered an asset that sets it apart from surrounding community colleges. Maintaining the culture while expanding infrastructure and increasing student enrollment lies in simultaneously increasing the diversity of our campus certificated programs and associate programs while enhancing our faculty with personable, passionate, and highly qualified instructors.
BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 11
References
Area of Study at Cerritos College. (n.d.) Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/111887/cerritos-college/area-of-study/
Area of Study at El Camino College-Compton Center. (n.d.) Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/112686/el-camino-college-compton-
center/area-of-study/
Area of Study at El Camino Community College. (n.d.) Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/113980/el-camino-community-college-
district/area-of-study/
Area of Study at Long Beach City College. (n.d.) Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/117645/long-beach-city-college/area-of-
study/
Cerritos College. (n.d.) Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/111887/cerritos-college
Cerritos College in Norwalk, California - CA - College Overview. (2018). Retrieved from
http://www.a2zcolleges.com/college_details.asp?ID=2359
Compton Community College in Compton, California - CA - Tuition Fees. (2018) Retrieved
from http://www.a2zcolleges.com/tuition.asp?ID=2583
El Camino College. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/113980/el-camino-community-college-
district
El Camino College Compton Center. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/112686/el-camino-college-compton-center/ BENCHMARK AND DASHBOARD PROJECT: COMPTON COLLEGE 12
El Camino College in Torrance, California - CA - Room and Board Information. (2018).
Retrieved from http://www.a2zcolleges.com/room_board.asp?ID=2888
Long Beach City College. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/117645/long-beach-city-college
Long Beach City College in Long Beach, California. (2018). Retrieved from
http://www.a2zcolleges.com/college_details.asp?ID=3843
Student Population at Cerritos College. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/111887/cerritos-college/enrollment/
Student Population at El Camino College Compton Center. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/112686/el-camino-college-compton-
center/enrollment/
Student Population at El Camino College College District. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/113980/el-camino-community-college-
district/enrollment/
Student Population at Long Beach City College. (n.d.). Retrieved from
https://www.collegetuitioncompare.com/edu/117645/long-beach-city-college/enrollment/