Editor's Note

An increasing number of students begin their studies in community colleges with the hope of continuing at four-year institutions to earn a bachelor's degree;yet less than onefifth of these students achieve this goal. Using Astin's Input-Environment-Outcome model to guide their research, they found that student characteristics act as significant input factors, with having the perception of being college-bound being the most significant factor. Declining enrollment is a shared reality at many colleges and universities due to plummeting high school graduation rates.

Editor's Note

The talented team from CSU Channel Islands-Dang, Reyes Reilly, Soltys, and Soltys-provide a deep dive into how this can be applied to the independent variable in all our careers, whether or not the student will enroll. Dr. Furbeck's well-written and strongly researched article provides a clear roadmap for ways that enrollment managers can collaborate with faculty to improve the institutional match and value faculty time in the process. The final article of this issue is a wonderful case study contribution from two strong researchers and practitioners at Wichita State University, Gina Crabtree and Dr. David Wright.

Credential Transparency Illuminates Pathways to a Better Future

In the United States and across the globe, we are faced with a strange and new dichotomy made sharper by the pandemic. There are streets in nearly every city and town where boarded-up shops are next to others with "help wanted" signs. As businesses were closed or customers evaporated, millions were thrust out of work. As those businesses attempt to reopen, they are desperate for labor. How can those who were thrust out of manufacturing, services, hospitality, and retail move across those sectors or into other sectors where opportunities exist or will emerge? There has perhaps never been a clearer need for employers, government, and workers to identify needed and desired skills and competencies. It is also clear that there have never been more potential resources to make this happen. One such resource is credential transparency, which is achieved by publishing essential information about credentials and competencies that potential employees need and have, so that everyone can better understand what they represent and to what jobs they lead.

The rapid development and deployment of a new multidisciplinary CPAP service outside of a critical care environment during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a dramatic increase in patients presenting with type 1 respiratory failure. In order to protect our limited critical care capacity, we rapidly developed a new ward-based inpatient continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) service with direct input from the respiratory, infectious diseases and critical care teams. Close collaboration between these specialties and new innovative solutions were required to facilitate this. CPAP equipment (normally reserved for domiciliary care) was adapted to reduce the pressure on our strained oxygen infrastructure. Side rooms on the infectious diseases ward were swiftly converted into new negative pressure areas using temporary installed ventilatory equipment, reducing the viral aerosol risk for staff. Novel patient monitoring solutions were used to protect staff while also ensuring patient safety. Staff training and specialist oversight was organised within days. The resulting service was successful, with over half (17/26 (65%)) of patients avoiding invasive ventilation.