Championing community college success through student-centered research and policy change.
Overview
As a student counselor and researcher, Darla M. Cooper, EdD, connected deeply with students and witnessed firsthand how systemic barriers prevented many from reaching their potential. Seeing the transformative power of education in her own family — particularly her father, who grew up on a farm in the Jim Crow South and had his life and family’s future transformed by attending college — Cooper recognized that too many students were being failed by a system not designed for them. Where she once championed the success of individual students, she began to conduct large-scale research that reflected the human stories and talents of students. In 2009, she joined The Research and Planning Group for California Community Colleges (The RP Group) to drive the kind of systemic change that individual campuses could not achieve alone. When she was promoted to Executive Director/CEO, Cooper grew the organization, reframing traditional research by centering student experiences and asking how systems are failing students rather than focusing on perceived student deficits.
The RP Group now collects input from around 100,000 students annually, and its research has led to major policy changes including AB 705, which dramatically increased enrollment in transfer-level courses. The organization also works directly with campus-based researchers, providing professional development, actionable tools, and support designing research projects that inform campus decision-making. By centering student voices in research design and elevating researchers as advocates and leaders, Cooper is guiding the state toward a fairer future in higher education. For Cooper, this work is personal — ensuring that today’s community college students have the same life-changing opportunities she and her family had.
“When we stop asking ‘why are students failing?’ and start asking ‘how are our systems failing students?’— that’s when research becomes a tool for justice, not just measurement.”
Issue Areas
Primary Regions Served
Challenge
- According to the 2023 American Communities Survey, California workers with only a high school diploma earned a median annual wage of $46,000. Those with an associate degree earned a median $62,000, and workers with a bachelor’s degree earned $90,000.[1]
- College graduates with a bachelor’s degree are more likely to have jobs that offer paid vacation, health insurance, retirement, and flexible work arrangements, contributing to their overall wellness.[2]
- In California, most Black and Latine students start their higher education journeys in the community college system, yet only 12% of Black and 15% of Latine students complete their degree or transfer by the three-year mark[3]
- Traditional higher education research often focuses on individual student outcomes, which inherently frames results through a “student-deficit” lens—blaming a lack of student readiness rather than examining how institutional systems create barriers to student success.
Innovation
- Through surveys, interviews, and focus groups, The RP Group collects input from more than 100,000 students annually across 116 colleges to understand student experiences, measure impact, and identify solutions.
- As part of its professional development programming, The RP Group offers a 10-month project-based institute where institutional research, planning, and effectiveness (IRPE) professionals learn how to lead and/or support campus change initiatives.
- The RP Group hires researchers from the community colleges who not only understand campus context but also reflect the identities and experiences of the students they serve, ensuring the work is conducted with genuine proximity to students and practitioners.
Impact
- The RP Group raised awareness of the damaging impact of remedial course placement, inspiring the creation of AB 705 in 2017, which changed how students are placed in math and English courses. Since AB 705 became law, twice as many students complete transfer-level English, and 2.5 times as many transfer-level math, in their first year.
- The RP Group trains over 300 IRPE professionals annually, plus thousands more through professional development and technical assistance, equipping researchers and practitioners to be equity advocates who work to ensure the CCC system supports every student it serves.
- Through interviews with students, The RP Group learned “academic probation” evokes the carceral system and undermines their confidence (contributing to the fact that Black students on probation are 70% less likely to transfer). This finding spurred Cooper to advocate for eliminating the harmful term, leading several colleges to rename it before the CCC Board of Governors approved system-wide change.
Opportunity
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- To prevent the replication of ineffective practices, Cooper seeks to partner with state policymakers to ensure decisions are rooted in current, student-informed data, and to increase opportunities for research to inform policy development.
- Seeking to elevate researchers beyond their traditional role as data producers, Cooper is advocating for campus-based researchers to hold seats at decision-making tables —whether campus leadership, district policy discussions, or system-wide governance bodies — where they can interpret findings to guide implementation of systemic changes.
- Cooper hopes to inspire colleges to work directly with student leaders, closing the feedback loop by sharing survey findings with them, and supporting them in their efforts drive meaningful change on their campuses.
The written profile and video reflect the work of the leader(s) the year they received a Leadership Award. Please contact the leader(s) for current information.