Serena C. Klempin

Research Associate

Serena C. Klempin conducts qualitative research on advising and guided pathways.

Klempin holds a BA in English from Kenyon College with a concentration in African and African American Studies, a MSW from Columbia University School of Social Work with a concentration in policy, and a PhD from Teachers College, Columbia University in sociology and education. Her dissertation examined the role of higher education in addressing students’ basic needs.

Previously, Klempin worked for Columbia University School of Social Work’s Center for Research on Fathers, Children, and Family Well-Being, where she conducted program evaluations, survey research, and qualitative research.

June 2024

Pandemic Relief Spending and Recovery Strategies: Findings From a Survey of Community Colleges in Six States

This book chapter explores the personal support networks and help-seeking preferences of immigrant-origin, first-generation-in-college students (FGCS) as part of a three-year longitudinal mixed-methods study with FGCSs at four public Hispanic-serving institutions in California.

September 2023

Innovating at Scale: Guided Pathways Adoption and Early Student Momentum Among the AACC Pathways Colleges

Drawing on interviews as well as self-assessment and performance data, this report discusses what the AACC Pathways colleges have accomplished in their guided pathways reforms over the past seven years and what they have learned about institutional transformation.

September 2022

Funding Guided Pathways Reforms at Small Colleges: Three Ohio Community Colleges Show How to Do It

This report and accompanying case studies describe how three small colleges have made large-scale changes in practice based on the guided pathways model and how they funded and are sustaining these changes to improve rates of student progression and completion.

October 2021

Using Guided Pathways to Build Cross-Sector Pathways Partnerships

Based on fieldwork at four guided pathways colleges, this report introduces a cross-sector pathways model and highlights emerging practices and strategies that community colleges are using to build stronger connections with employers, universities, and K-12 schools.

June 2021

How Ohio Community Colleges Are Using Guided Pathways to Personalize Student Support

This report examines how Ohio community colleges—which have been engaged in guided pathways reform for several years—are innovating within the model to provide scaled, personalized support to help students gain early academic momentum.

January 2021

How Guided Pathways Reforms Can Improve Support for Adult Students: Lessons From Three Tennessee Community Colleges

Drawing on interview data, this report discusses strategies that three guided pathways colleges use to help adult students enter programs of study, stay on path, and enhance learning.

January 2020

A Complex Ecosystem: A Qualitative Investigation Into Dynamics Affecting the Implementation of College Advising Redesigns

This paper explores the dynamics in and around an institution that influence how advisors and students experience technology-mediated advising reforms, along with the opportunities and challenges these dynamics create for colleges.

January 2020

A Framework for Advising Reform

This book chapter describes key principles of CCRC's evidence-based framework for advising redesign, which emphasizes a sustained, strategic, integrated, proactive, and personalized (SSIPP) approach to advising.

August 2019

iPASS in Practice: Four Case Studies

This report shares the stories of four community colleges that participated in the Integrated Planning and Advising for Student Success (iPASS) initiative, which provided support for institutions as they redesigned their advising processes and adopted and implemented new technologies.

May 2018

Practitioner Perspectives on the Use of Predictive Analytics in Targeted Advising for College Students

This CCRC working paper examines the perspectives of college personnel engaged in the consideration, launch, and use of predictive analytics tools for targeted advising.

July 2017

Leadership for Transformative Change: Lessons From Technology-Mediated Reform in Broad-Access Colleges

This study explores the influence of different types of leadership approaches on the implementation of a technology-mediated advising reform at six colleges, and assesses which types of leadership are associated with transformative organizational change.

July 2017

Understanding the Ecosystem of Institutional Change: How Colleges are Leveraging Technology to Provide Holistic Student Support

April 2017

Understanding the Ecosystem of Institutional Change: How Colleges are Leveraging Technology to Provide Holistic Student Support

April 2017

Focus Areas

Serena C. Klempin

Pandemic Relief Spending and Recovery Strategies: Findings From a Survey of Community Colleges in Six States

Innovating at Scale: Guided Pathways Adoption and Early Student Momentum Among the AACC Pathways Colleges

Funding Guided Pathways Reforms at Small Colleges: Three Ohio Community Colleges Show How to Do It

Using Guided Pathways to Build Cross-Sector Pathways Partnerships

How Ohio Community Colleges Are Using Guided Pathways to Personalize Student Support

How Guided Pathways Reforms Can Improve Support for Adult Students: Lessons From Three Tennessee Community Colleges

A Complex Ecosystem: A Qualitative Investigation Into Dynamics Affecting the Implementation of College Advising Redesigns

A Framework for Advising Reform

iPASS in Practice: Four Case Studies

Practitioner Perspectives on the Use of Predictive Analytics in Targeted Advising for College Students

Leadership for Transformative Change: Lessons From Technology-Mediated Reform in Broad-Access Colleges

Colleges’ Experiences Integrating Support Services for Military Veterans

Supporting Military Veteran Students: Early Lessons From Kohlberg Prize Recipients

How Colleges Use Integrated Planning and Advising for Student Success (iPASS) to Transform Student Support

Postsecondary Partnerships in Collective Impact

Improving Student Services for Military Veterans

Establishing the Backbone: An Underexplored Facet of Collective Impact Efforts

Redefining Full-Time in College: Evidence on 15-Credit Strategies

How Community Colleges Spent Pandemic Relief Funds and What’s Next

A Unified Front: Understanding Holistic Student Support From Multiple Viewpoints

Understanding the Ecosystem of Institutional Change: How Colleges are Leveraging Technology to Provide Holistic Student Support

CCRC Research on Guided Pathways: What We’re Learning

Recent Publications

Pandemic Relief Spending and Recovery Strategies: Findings From a Survey of Community Colleges in Six States

Innovating at Scale: Guided Pathways Adoption and Early Student Momentum Among the AACC Pathways Colleges

Funding Guided Pathways Reforms at Small Colleges: Three Ohio Community Colleges Show How to Do It

Using Guided Pathways to Build Cross-Sector Pathways Partnerships

Recent Presentations

How Community Colleges Spent Pandemic Relief Funds and What’s Next

A Unified Front: Understanding Holistic Student Support From Multiple Viewpoints

Understanding the Ecosystem of Institutional Change: How Colleges are Leveraging Technology to Provide Holistic Student Support

CCRC Research on Guided Pathways: What We’re Learning