D3C3 - $2,919,499 (2022-25)

Preparing for Success – D3C3/Ralph Wilson Foundation

The Detroit Drives Degrees Community College Collaborative provides community colleges with financial resources and technical assistance to implement collaborative regional strategies to improve educational opportunities and strengthen the talent pipeline. This work is designed to increase postsecondary attainment in Michigan to 60 percent and reduce the racial equity attainment gap by half by 2030.

October 2022 kicked off MCCC’s collaboration with D3C3, and the college hit the ground running with its $2,919,499 award from D3C3/Ralph Wilson Foundation. This grant project is titled Preparing for Success, and MCCC has several programs in the works to increase equity among the college’s student population and improve retention from year to year.

One of the first experiences college students have is culture shock on a college campus. The new demands, high volume of students and time management concerns are some of the major stressors for those new to higher education. To combat this, the college has implemented a First Year Experience program to help acclimation. This will also help improve college readiness, increase enrollment rates and provide the proper tools for success.

MCCC has also redefined advising at the college via several new student advocates and the establishment of academic advisors who both counsel and encourage students at all levels. Their knowledge will go beyond requirements for academic degrees and focus on the potential of each person who walks through their office doors.

The D3C3 grant has also allowed MCCC to focus more heavily on its occupational programs and reinforce the careers that drive and help sustain everyday life and the economy of Monroe County. The college has various apprenticeship and trades programs that focus on on-the-job training as well as classroom learning. MCCC understands that every learner processes information differently – the goal is to nurture all learning types and create innovative, hard-working, driven agents of change.