The Role of the Financial Aid Office in Campus Retention Anita Hann – Director of Retention and Student Success Vanguard University of Southern California Carole Ann Simpson, Debt Management Consultant, USA Funds CASFAA Conference, 2008 Anaheim CA

Vanguard University  Christian Liberal Arts College  Founded in 1920  Located in Orange County California  City of Costa Mesa  Enrollment: 2171  Traditional: 1485 VANGUARD UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

ANITA HANN  UNDERGRADUATE ADMISSIONS COUNSELOR  ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF UNDERGRADUATE ADMISSIONS  2003 – DIRECTOR OF YOUTH MINISTRY RELATIONS  2007 – DIRECTOR OF RETENTION AND STUDENT SUCCESS

Agenda for Today’s Session:  Some common definitions  Who, exactly, is at risk of dropping out?  The role of data in retention efforts.  What data can Financial Aid add to the discussion?  What does data really tell us?  What do institutions do that puts students at risk?  What impact does quality service have?  How do we communicate our successes?  Anita’s Top 10

Retention words  P,P,R,C  Persistence  Term to term  Progression  Course success  Retention  Return rate from Fall to Fall  Completion  Is it the same as graduation? P + P = R P + P + R = C

Defining Success on your campus  What are some of the additional measures of success used on your campus?  IPEDS GRS  SAP  Transfer Rates  Satisfaction Surveys

Which Students are at risk?

“What students do you feel are most likely to be unsuccessful on our campus?” If your Dean asked you this question: What would you say? What risk factors would you list?

Academic Under-prepared Limited academic skills Poor study habits Doesn’t see value in course Poor academic performance Part-time course load Lack of career and educational goals Feedback that is too little too late Life Issues Financial difficulty Job conflicts Home-family difficulties Personal problems Health problems College not necessary for career goals Personal Lost Stressed Closed to new ideas/experiences Low self-esteem Undisciplined Unmotivated Insecure Uninformed Unrealistic expectations Student-institution mismatch Social Alienation and social isolation Subject to negative peer pressure Uninvolved in college activities Little involvement with faculty

Why data mining? When you have data, you take assumptions off the table. You can find out what students think about you if you ask them—while they’re still enrolled. Data can help you prioritize your interventions. Creating a sense of urgency to act without data is a challenge unto itself. It’s impossible to sustain momentum without data to support your successes.

What does data tell you? The cycle of retention planning Curiosity Data Information Expectations Outcomes Resources Partnerships

What Data does Financial Aid Offer?

An example of correlating two entering student variables: Need Level V. High Need 89% 86% 73% 74% 63% High Need98% 85% 82% 78% 67% Med.Need 96% 85% 82% 78% 69% Low Need93% 79% 88% 79% 72% Merit Aid 95% 88% 89% 81% 74% Full-Pay 100% 93% 80% 80% 77% Academic Preparation

Institutional risk factor Experience scheduling problems Experience administrative/billing problems Experience negative attitude in classroom/advising Experience poor teaching Academic program not available Get the “campus run around” Get no assistance during probation What do we do that puts students at risk?

Delivering Quality Service in Financial Aid What are some of the most frequently heard student complaints about the Financial Aid Office? How could we measure whether we are doing better in these areas? Two questions:

1.Busy/rushed/overworked. 2.Poor Listening skills. 3.The “Law of Familiarity.” 4.Reaction to student. 5.Service system problems (e.g., policies.) 6.Failure to identify individual needs/situation. 7.Lack empowerment. 8.Personal distractions 9.Physical condition. Some Reasons For The Knowledge/Performance Gap

How can we communicate our success?  What measures of  Processing  Dollars  Students served  Quality service Could we provide to our retention committee?

What can Financial Aid offer?  We have lots of data that could inform the retention effort.  Share it!  We have great successes to highlight in managing complex systems delivered to large populations.  Count it, measure it, and publish it!  We have budgeting expertise.  Deliver it to campus programs and to students!  We have quality service delivery and information that can contribute to student satisfaction.  Commit to it, model it, and bring it to the retention table!

Top 10 things Financial Aid can do to impact retention:  Help teach financial literacy  Help to solve the knowledge gap between the Bursar and Financial Aid  Help to reduce campus run around by giving students a road-map.  “You know who you should talk to…”  Remember how hard it is for some people to talk about money.  Partner with other offices to meet the challenge of affordability  Help inform registration policies so that students are clear about how the process works i.e. Registration Revision Committee  Look for students that might be at risk and identify them to your retention personnel  Educate students about the process of financial aid, not just about their financial aid  Remember that students are students first, and then customers, they are here to learn  Treat each student as an individual and try to meet their needs specifically

Thank You! Anita Hann, Director of Retention and Student Success, Vanguard University Carole Ann Simpson, Debt Management Consultant, USA Funds org