Academic Innovations Higher Ed

The Goals of the Get Focused...Stay Focused! Initiative

For career and college readiness, every student entering college should have:


An informed declared major
A college or post-secondary path
An online 10-year Career & Education Plan

For a comprehensive example of this program, click here to learn about the
Get Focused...Stay Focused Initiative of Santa Barbara City College.

Professional Development Opportunity

For colleges working with their high schools in dual enrollment a strand at the annual Focus on Freshmen conference in July in Los Angeles, would be of interest.
It started with a 9th grade dual enrollment freshman transition course…

In collaboration with local schools and partnership organizations, Santa Barbara City College has developed the Get Focused…Stay Focused!™ Initiative that backward maps the necessary knowledge and skills required for success in today’s workforce. GFSF evolved from the Dual Enrollment Freshman Transition Initiative and Career Choices course that was introduced as a pilot as a result of an Irvine Foundation Grant three years ago. This initiative is designed to provide every student with the necessary information and experiences to develop college and career readiness skills and to facilitate the development of an online 10- year Career & Education Plan.

…now updating and using students online 10-year plans throughout high school and college.

Once students complete their online 10-year Plans in 9th grade, targeted classroom-based lessons in 10th, 11th, and 12th grades ensure students stay focused on their goals. These three, 16-hour modules provide students with a "touch-point" at each grade of high school to help them transition seamlessly to their post-secondary goal. In addition, the module content is aligned with what students need to succeed in life, in line with the new Common Core Standards, and meets the recommendations from the California Community Colleges’ Student Success Task Force. This provides the opportunity for integration into academic courses.