Jessica Giles’ Testimony at DC’s Committee of the Whole
Jessica Giles
Executive Director, DC
Education Reform Now Advocacy
DC Council Committee of the Whole’s Performance Oversight Hearing on:
University of the District of Columbia
District of Columbia Public Charter School Board
State Board of Education
Office of the Student Advocate
Office of the Ombudsman for Public Education
District of Columbia State Athletic Association
Good morning, Chairman Mendelson, Members, and Staff of the Committee of the Whole. My name is Jessica Giles. I am a ward seven resident and the Executive Director of the D.C. Chapter of Education Reform Now Advocacy, an organization fighting for a just and equitable public education system for all students. We’re focused on improving student attendance, literacy, math, and secondary pathways to college and career. With low student outcomes in each of these areas, I urge the Committee of the Whole to review how each of these agencies is assisting with improvement. With limited time today, I will focus my testimony on the University of the District of Columbia (UDC).
Currently, in Washington, D.C. only 8 out of 100 9th-grade cohort students will complete postsecondary education within six years of graduating high school.1 Consequently D.C. residents 18 to 34 years of age make half of what transplants do: $31,658 v $58,547.2 It’s vital that D.C. leaders act with urgency to implement the eight student-first recommendations in ERNA’s affiliate organization, Education Reform Now DC’s report titled, “D.C.’s Quiet Crisis in College Access & Completion.”3 One of these recommendations calls for strengthening UDC.
As D.C.’s only public university, UDC is a critical partner in ensuring residents are able to earn an affordable degree and launch a career that allows them to thrive in their hometown. However, with low student enrollment (3,855 – Fall 2024, compared to 5,1188 – Fall 2014) and completion rates across campuses, there are many obstacles for UDC to overcome.4
To strengthen its services, UDC must do the following:
Launch a support model to incentivize on-time degree completion.
Provide grant-based aid sufficient to move part-time students to full-time status.
Provide student advising services that include fully utilizing early warning systems to target supports to students at risk of getting off track.
Reduce student debt by eliminating loans for first-year students.
Establish articulation agreements within the University (Workforce Development & Lifelong Learning to associate to bachelor’s) and between the Community College and other local universities, so that students can transfer their credits and earn a bachelor’s degree or credential.
Provide free corequisite courses with wraparound support.
Immediately end the practice of withholding student records and transcripts.
We urge the Committee of the Whole to ask follow-up questions to determine how far along the University is in implementing these recommendations.
Additionally, UDC should expand its dual enrollment partnership with the city. Although dual enrollment is known to lead to greater two-year and four-year college enrollment, degree attainment, and earnings six years after high school, with stronger effects for students who are traditionally underrepresented,5 only 1,300 students (7%) of D.C. public high school students participated.6 According to UDC’s performance oversight responses, the University is working to “expand the early college program at Anacostia High School” with a Spring 2024 cohort of 20 students. How many students are currently taking advantage of dual enrollment opportunities with the University? Is the Early College program at Anacostia on track to meeting its goal this spring?
Lastly, UDC should elaborate on the challenges facing the University in implementing the Teacher Preparation Emergency Amendment Act of 20217 as there appears to be very little progress that has been made.
Thank you for allowing me to testify today. I am available for any questions you may have.
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1 Coffin, Chelsea and Julie Rubin. State of D.C. Schools, 2021-22. D.C. Policy Center, 15 March 2023, www.dcpolicycenter.org/publications/schools-21-22/.
2 Coffin, Chelsea and Julie Rubin. Measuring Early Career Outcomes in D.C. Policy Center, 17 Nov. 2021, www.dcpolicycenter.org/publications/measuring-outcomes/.
3 Education Reform Now DC. “D.C.’s Quiet Crisis in College Access & Completion.” 1 November 2023. Source: https://edreformnow.org/2023/11/01/new-report-highlights-d-c-s-quiet-crisis-in-college-access-completion/
4 University of the District of Columbia. “2024 UDC Performance Oversight Hearing Responses.” 22 February 2024. Source: https://lims.dccouncil.gov/Hearings/hearings/242
5 College in High School Alliance. “Evidence of Success.” Source: collegeinhighschool.org/what-we-do/evidence-of-success/.
6 Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education. “Strengthening Student Access and Success in Dual Enrollment in Washington, DC: Report and Recommendations.” 11 December 2023. Source: https://dme.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/dme/publication/attachments/Strengthening%20DC%20Student%20Access%20and%20Success%20in%20Dual%20Enrollment_0.pdf
7 The Teacher Preparation Emergency Amendment Act of 2021 “requires OSSE to establish, in collaboration with UDC, District university grantees, and the District’s LEAs, a dual pathway “Grow Your Own” Teacher Preparation Support Program for the purpose of educating, training, and providing financial support to public high school dual enrollment students, public high school graduates, and paraprofessionals to become licensed teachers at DCPS schools or certified teachers at District public charter schools.” Source: 2024 UDC Performance Oversight Hearing Responses https://lims.dccouncil.gov/Hearings/hearings/242
