Working Together for Student Retention SSAO/VPAA/CIO Executive Trinity:

Founded in 1885 as a land grant AAU institution 38,000+ students; 25,000+ undergrads; 7,300 freshman Mean SAT of entering freshman: academic year awarded 8,240 total degrees SOME UA FACTS

SOME CONTEXT Over $100 million cut in last 3 years Freshman retention rate between 78 and 80%. The UA has recently gone through a retention audit and written a retention strategic plan Three execs appointed by same administration within the last five years all reporting to the Provost University has a strong history of interdisciplinary, collaborative interactions

Work more efficiently and effectively on programs that impact student retention. GOAL OF THE PARTNERSHIP

Implement classes of students while maintaining quality of instruction and positive student experience. PROJECT 1: MEGA-CLASSES

Faculty Technology Student needs/support Faculty needs/support RETHINKING TEACHING IN THE MEGA CLASSROOM

Decision in May for August launch Appointment of external project manager Building a staff/faculty team Visit to Apple Delegation of responsibilities IMPLEMENTATION

CENTENNIAL HALL STUDENT AFFAIRS Learning Support (supplemental instr., tutoring) Preview Slides Cohorts Student input and feedback OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY Classroom technology Podcasting Response devices D2L ACADEMIC AFFAIRS Faculty selection Funding for TA’s Faculty training Library support Teaching evaluations Course evaluation

Overall student satisfaction: 67% Students considered classes of 50 to be “large” Overall student final grades declined slightly Teacher evaluation scores declined for some professors Students identified slides as a major source of information Mega-classes magnified issues that were common in all classes FIRST YEAR FINDINGS

Update and refine a system that warns students, faculty and staff when milestones are not met in a specific class. PROJECT 2: EARLY ALERT

EARLY ALERT STUDENT AFFAIRS Tracking during course Engaging students Post-semester analysis OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY Dashboards D2L integrations ACADEMIC AFFAIRS Faculty selection Identify triggers Compare data

Equip our classrooms and learning spaces with modern state-of-the-art technologies. Just getting started… PROJECT 3: CLASSROOM TECHNOLOGIES

“Early alert has helped me to be in sync with at- risk students as well as those who just needed a reminder now and then. I definitely had more s from students after an alert went out. Those s ranged from simple questions to exam preparation and exam grade consequences.” Elaine Marchello -- Assistant Dean, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Participating classes: General Chemistry Intro to Biology Multiple math levels Language General Education Students received 2-4 alerts in different classes from s to phone calls from Student Affairs Outreach Facilitators EARLY ALERT FALL 2011 QUICK FACTS Range of Course Enrollment: from 157 to 2042 ALERTS SENT THIS SEMESTER: 2,482 TOTAL STUDENTS ALERTED: 1,944 Alerts by Academic Standing Freshmen (75%) 1,862 Sophomore (18%) 453 Junior (5%) 115 Senior (2%) 52

CLASSROOM TECHNOLOGIES STUDENT AFFAIRS Engage students for input Emergency response requirements Classroom scheduling OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY Project planning & management Installation & support of equipment IT fee ACADEMIC AFFAIRS Faculty input Instructional support experience Classroom scheduling

Working with Admissions, Advisors, Faculty, and Students and using Technology to inform students Degree Search Degree Tracker Project 4: HELPING STUDENTS FIND AN ACADEMIC HOME HELPING STUDENTS GRADUATE IN 4 YEARS

Degree Search Degree Tracker STUDENT AFFAIRS Admissions website modified Student input and feedback OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY Programmers Web designers PeopleSoft consultants ACADEMIC AFFAIRS Advisors involved in development and testing Faculty involved in transfer articulation Faculty involved in curriculum review

DEGREE TRACKER

Appreciation for each other’s staff and areas A sense of urgency helps Use best practices from each culture Have the help of an external project manager WHAT WE LEARNED

Working together in this way has built a broader understanding of and commitment to student retention. WHAT WE LEARNED

Centennial has become a highly desirable venue for faculty Greater attention to testing, clickers, academic integrity Greater involvement of faculty in SA events Collaborative projects with senior executives are extremely valuable UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES

SUMMARY Collaboration and cooperation allows top administrators to tackle difficult problems with creative solutions and strong institutional support