Guided Pathways

Guided Pathways Collaborative

 

Background

In the 2025-2026 academic year, the Guided Pathways (GP) Collaborative was formed following the onboarding of new GP Leads and a reassessment of Guided Pathways efforts at SMC.
 
The cross-functional group, composed of Area of Interest counselors, Equitizing Gateway Courses (EGC) faculty, and classified educators, brought together expertise from across the student journey. Through professional learning, cross-departmental collaboration, and an equity-focused examination of institutional processes, the Collaborative identified barriers to student success and developed recommendations to better serve first-time-in-college Black and Latine students.

Members

The GP Collaborative members included faculty (counselors and instructors) and classified educators. Deans and VPs also supported the work in discussions. 

  • Tracie Bucsa

    Outreach and Recruitment

  • Nancy Cardenas

    Counseling

  • Lisa Collins

    Geology

  • Erin Cue

    Psychology

  • Jose Cue

    Counseling

  • Aaron De la Torre

    EOPS

  • Chanté Deloach

    Psychology; EGC co-Lead

  • Amanda Garcia

    Counseling

  • Jessie Garcia

    GP co-Lead

  • Erika Knox

    Counseling

  • Philip Lantz

    Counseling

  • Jamar London

    Mathematics

  • Kristin Lui-Martinez

    GP co-Lead

  • Marisol Moreno

    History; EGC co-Lead

  • Keena Mosley

    Early Childhood Education

  • Gladys Preciado

    Art History

  • Rebecca Romo

    Sociology

  • Flor Sandoval

    Counseling

  • Trisden Shaw

    Ethnic Studies

 

Reports 

A focus group study was conducted with Santa Monica College students to gain feedback on ideas designed to make college easier to navigate, strengthen support, build community and belonging, and help students succeed. Students were asked to provide feedback on several proposed strategies intended to strengthen student connection and support.

At the end of the year and after the student validation study, the Guided Pathway leads developed four recommended focus areas for the college to engage in redesigning the student experience. The GP Collaborative Report provides an in-depth overview of Guided Pathways efforts in the 2025-26 school year, identified institutional barriers, and focus areas to address the barriers to improve the student experience at SMC and increase student success.