The Learning College Project was funded by the Pew Foundation to forge a network of community colleges committed to learning-centered concepts, which could model programs and practical applications for colleges around the world. Each college was guided by five Vanguard College themes-Staff Recruitment and Development, Technology, Learning Outcomes, Underprepared Students, and Organizational Culture. These were rooted in the philosophy of Learning College principles as authored by Dr. Terry O'Banion in 1997 to create, expand, improve, and assess student learning.

Moraine Valley Community College, the state's fifth largest community college with nearly 15,000 credit students, is situated on 300 acres about 25 miles southwest of downtown Chicago. The district serves 26 culturally and economically diverse communities and offers credit and noncredit classes at two comprehensive off-campus centers as well as three other sites. Moraine's evolution as a Learning College is expressed in its mission and promise statements, the strategic plan and institutional priorities, and manifested in the five core objectives defined by the Learning College Project. Moraine Valley promises "to provide a student-centered environment and to focus all college staff and resources in support of student learning, student development and student success."

Well known as a student-centered college, Moraine has emphasized this philosophy through essential elements known as the seven C's: Challenge, Collaboration, Collegiality, Commitment, Communication, Consensus, and Core Values - Respect, Integrity, Fairness, and Responsibility. Each "C" represents an aspect of Moraine Valley's effort to operate as a learning-centered institution to improve student success:

Challenge: The challenge to focus on the improvement of all aspects of instruction, programs, services and operations as a continuous effort has enriched the learning climate. Through an annual institutional effectiveness process, regular reports on student learning outcomes and program effectiveness have become the basis for continual improvement of teaching and learning efforts. Innovative teaching methods have become second nature and include asynchronous learning and web-assisted classes.

Collaboration: Collaboration has provided opportunities to better serve populations in every community within the college district. Through partnerships with local high schools, a fire district, United Parcel Service, CEDA/Robbins, and a local hospital, classes are offered during the morning and evening to support various learners' needs, with adjustments made for location and time constraints, and academic or second language preparedness.

Collegiality: Faculty, staff and the community have embraced collegiality through participation in focus sessions to help create the college's 2002-2005 Strategic Plan. Focusing on the improvement and expansion of student learning has helped the Human Resources staff in developing a management training and career development program for employees. This program helped staff understand and embrace the concepts and principles of the learning college.

Commitment: The commitment to student learning prompted the college to expand curriculum offerings by adding new courses and certificate programs, promoting quick turn-around times for individual employment needs, and including new teaching and learning methodologies. Faculty and staff contributed prominently to freshman student success by providing the necessary tools to succeed in higher education through mandatory college placement testing, online new student orientation, and a freshman experience course called COL 101- Changes, Challenges, Choices.

Communication: Communication ensures that new students find the college friendly and welcoming. During the first two days of the fall and spring semester, faculty and staff set up information stations throughout the campus. Expansion of college communication for students, the community, and the college has occurred through the MVCC web site. The site provides all departments with a venue to share information about programs, new developments, and all college-related information.

Consensus: Consensus involves coming together as a learning community to consider issues that support learning such as a college-wide commitment to use Blackboard as the course management tool, and endorsing the budget, planning and evaluation system as part of the advancement of learning for all students.

Core Values - Respect, Integrity, Fairness, and Responsibility: Core values create a basic foundation for learning that recognizes and promotes civility, respect and responsibility for one's actions and behaviors as part of the life-long learning process.

By focusing on student success as expressed through the seven C's, the college faculty and staff became the creators and managers of a plan using the five Vanguard Project objectives as a guide to putting learning first.

Learning Outcomes. New students' integration into the college was enhanced by implementing structured experiences and developing or redesigning programs and services to meet their needs. For example, to support a successful transition to college for full-time freshman students, the college created a mandatory freshman experience course that helps students to develop the attitudes, behaviors and skills necessary for college success and provides ongoing instructor support throughout the critical first semester. In addition, the implementation of an Institutional Effectiveness and Assessment of Student Academic Achievement Plan ties the college's mission, strategic directions, and institutional priorities with the college's planning process, budget, and academic year objectives to foster student-centered learning.

Organizational Culture. Providing a learning community that fosters civility and respect for diverse views and cultures is embedded in every fiber of the culture at Moraine Valley. This philosophy is demonstrated in the increased efforts to foster an educational environment where all individuals are welcomed and accepted. Connectivity, a sense of community, and pride are enhanced among students and employees through college events and programs, ceremonies, and meetings.

Underserved Students. The college was committed to proactive efforts to meet learners at their current stage of development. This required the institutionalization of mandatory assessment and placement testing for all students registering for twelve or more credit hours and for any students enrolling in a composition or mathematics courses. To ensure that students would be able to take tests at their convenience, the college testing center moved to a computerized assessment lab with testing on a walk-in basis throughout the year. The creation of a faculty- and staff-to-student mentoring program called DREAM (Directing Results Through Educational and Academic Mentoring) helps students overcome obstacles, share experiences, and build relationships with the college community. Additionally, the college established a full-service off-campus center in a historically underserved minority community within the district.

Selecting and Developing Staff. The college's Faculty Expectation Statement was adopted in 2002 to underscore the role of the faculty in facilitating activities that promote student success and lifelong learning. It states that, "Each faculty member will cultivate and engage in collaborative working relationships as an active partner in the shared governance of the college's learning community." The New Faculty Orientation Program helps to acculturate new faculty into the college environment. The three-year orientation process includes in-depth information about the college, a mentor for each new faculty member, and seminars and workshops devoted to the improvement of instructional skills and course delivery. The new Center for Teaching and Learning provides leadership for professional development programs for faculty.

Technology. Learning Challenge grants were created to assist faculty to enhance student learning through the use of technology and interactive experiences. The availability of Internet technologies on campus allowed the establishment of a Virtual College for online class delivery. It also opened the door for the development of online support services that include advisement, registration, textbook purchases, library resources, readiness assessment, tutoring, and the college's first online certificate in e-commerce. The Counseling and Academic Advising Centers developed a Career and Educational Planning Lab that assists students in the use of online career and educational planning resources. With the development of the Online Student Orientation and Registration web site, students have access to a self-paced, interactive, Internet-based module that supports learning about college programs, services, and registration processes.

Moraine's journey of the seven C's and its transformation into a learning-centered college has garnered several best practice awards from national organizations such as the National Council of Student Development (NCSD) and the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA). In March 2003, Moraine Valley Community College and the other Vanguard colleges were recipients of the PBS O'Banion Prize, an award that is jointly sponsored by PBS Adult Learning Service and the League for Innovation in the Community College. The award acknowledged the visionary and transformational endeavors of all twelve colleges as they worked to make the Learning College a reality on their campuses.