Starfish Early Alert Program

What is Starfish Early Alert?

Fresno City College’s Starfish Early Alert Program is designed to promote student success through communication between students, instructors, and counselors. This system allows students to receive feedback from their instructor(s) regarding their academic progress and to refer them to support services available to help them be successful in their coursework. Starfish Early Alert provides a convenient way to track your students and provide just-in-time interventions based on the student’s needs.

How does Starfish Early Alert work?

As faculty and staff, you can communicate with students and student support service areas on a variety of issues. Items will be tied to your course roster or relationship with the student in Starfish. Previously raised flags, referrals, and kudos can be tracked using the tracking screen to see the status or feedback on your concern.

Starfish Early Alert will send automatic emails to students and/or student service areas addressing your concern. General Concern Flags, and DSP&S Referrals will NOT be emailed to the student. All other flags and kudos will be emailed directly to the student, prompting the student to contact their instructor regarding the issue. The concern may then be closed once an issue has been addressed Starfish Early Alert will send automatic emails to students and/or student service areas addressing your concern.

What is a Flag? 

A flag is meant to alert students to their progress in their course/s so that they can take a more proactive approach to their learning.  Starfish Early Alert sends out automatic emails to students/or student service areas addressing the concern.  General Concern Flags and DSP&S Referrals will not be emailed to the students.   All other flags and kudos will be emailed directly to the student prompting the student to contact their instructor regarding the issue.  The concern will then be closed once the issue has been addressed.   Counselors intervene ONLY when “Concern with your work in Progress” and General Concern” is raised.   The General Concern flag is utilized to address social issues rather than academics.   All other flags have links to services FCC and the community at large as they are meant to be a connection tool to resources.

What is a Referral? 

A referral allows instructors to connect students to additional support services that may be beneficial to the student.

What is a Kudo? 

A kudo allows instructors to provide students with positive feedback. It offers the opportunity to celebrate a student’s great work, and acknowledge their improvement.

Starfish Early Alert Process 

1. A flag, kudo, and/or referral is made by an instructor
2. A Starfish notification is received by the student and the Counseling Department
3. A counselor contacts the student if there is a concern and a flag/referral has been submitted
4. The counselor provides students with resources and support

How To Get Access To Starfish

• To access Starfish Early Alert, log into your My Portal using your single sign-on credentials and click the Starfish link. Once logged into Starfish; 1) click on the Menu bar in the upper left corner and 2) select Students, My Students. To learn more about Starfish, please join the Canvas Starfish Early Alert course or email your questions to Evie.contreras@fresnocitycollege.edu
• Download the Getting Started Guide for Early Alert - Faculty and Staff

Evie Contreras, Starfish Early Alert Retention Specialist
evie.contreras@fresnocitycollege.edu
Student Services Building, 2nd Floor
559.443.8631