Lessons learned from San Jose State University: How nurturing an “Ecosystem” of students and faculty engagement leads to STEP student success NSF STEM Talent Expansion Program (STEP) Grant # Maureen Scharberg, Associate Vice President,Student Academic Success Services and Professor of Chemistry,

* College of Science had issues with student success and retention, especially in “gateway” courses—needed mandatory academic advising—started with Chemistry * Involvement with NSF Initiative for Systemic Changes of Undergraduate Chemistry Curriculum—very student focused, active learning, group learning, problem-solving * POGIL (Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning) * ACS Chemistry textbook project * Professional Development of Faculty, Graduate Students and Teachers (focus on student engagement)

STEM Student Success STEP by STEP * Academic/Social/Personal—Changes with time * Help students build their STEM student “toolbox” * Transform STEM student “novice” to STEM student “leader”, wherever their entry point to the STEM degree is. * Lessons learned and programs developed from this STEP grant applied throughout SJSU

Bottom Line Outcome from this Grant: * Transformed SJSU by creating a Student Success Ecosystem * Complex set of relationships * Many resources, including students, faculty, staff, student leaders, student support network(s) * Interactive * Dynamic * Variable environment (within and outside SJSU) * Function as a unit

STEP Objective 1: Expand and enhance academic & career advising to entering students * Created College of Science Advising Center (COSAC): * Opened April 2008—over 11,409 student visits to date * “One-Stop Shop” for academic advising, career services, tutoring, time management, study strategies * Intrusive, mandatory academic advising every semester. * Probation and disqualification in the major, not the university (Colleges of Science and Engineering)

STEM Probation Students: * Modified our existing transfer First Year Experience course in Spring 2009 * Started with College of Science, now expanded to include probation students from Colleges of Engineering, Social Science, Business, Applied Sciences & Arts as well as undeclared students on probation

7 STEM MAJORS RETAINED THROUGH INTERVENTION SP09,FA09,SP10,FA10 (Sci 90T or Advising/Peer Mentoring)

* Strong partnership with Career Center—more STEM students visit the Career Center now than at the beginning of the grant * Outreach to 2-year colleges by COSAC staff (professional academic advisor and intern); increased awareness of transfer STEM student needs by faculty * Transforming SJSU—six out of the seven colleges now have advising/success centers!!! * Five are based on the COSAC model and have opened during the grant period! (professional advisers, peer advisers/tutors, liaison with Academic Advising & Retention Services)

STEP Objective 2: Provide Professional Development Opportunities for faculty who teach STEM “Gateway” courses * Release time for small groups of faculty to study literature, attend professional conferences, develop/implement curriculum. * Math (supplemental instruction)—started with pre- calculus, expanded to calculus, algebra, business calculus throughout grant period. * Computer Science – (stopped traditional lectures; active learning labs with short lectures)

10 Precalculus and Calculus Passing Rates

STEP Objective 3: Immerse STEM majors into comprehensive learning communities * Frosh First-Year Experience – Sci 2 class (600 students this semester; expand to include non-STEM majors) * Supplemental instruction (Chemistry, Math, Physics) * STEM student leadership development (peer advisers, tutors, mentors) * 7,768 student questions answered during grant period * 11,636 hours of tutoring

First Time Frosh First Year Retention Rates Fall 2008Fall 2009Fall 2010Fall 2011 All University79.9% (3598)84.3% (2764)87.1% (2761)82.9% (3947) All University First Gen 76.8% (754)79.5% (601)85.9% (659)79.6% (1115) Science83.1% (338)86.6% (298)88.3% (314)88.2% (335) Science First Gen 78.2% (55)84.4% (64)95.2% (64)85.7% (84)

Bottom Line: * Created a college-wide social environment where science students feel a sense of belonging and identify with their college, fields of study, faculty, advisers and peers * Expanded student success culture throughout the campus, catalyzed by this grant

Data Analysis: * Beginning of grant period—pulling transcripts…too slow.. * Worked with our campus-wide programmers to create queries that gives associate deans major GPA, grades in key “gateway” courses—helps identify students for probation in the major * Worked with our Office of Institutional Research to create our Student Success Milestone Dashboard for frosh and transfers (

16 SJSU Student Success Milestones (frosh/transfer) “In search of adventure, 29- year-old Conor Grennan traded his day job for a year-long trip around the globe, a journey that began with a three-month stint volunteering at the Little Princes Orphanage in war-torn Nepal. But what began as a lark became a passionate commitment that would transform the young American and the lives of countless others.” -Taken from

Sustainability: * Student Academic Success Services (new Academic Affairs Unit as of June hub of student success operations, interacting with Student Affairs, departments, colleges, outreach) * Funding: Special Sessions revenues, new Student Success, Excellence, Technology fee for Fall 2012; majority of student success operations, especially success centers, peer advising are not State of California dollars.

Questions for discussion: * How does your STEP program define STEM student success? * What STEM student support services do you provide? * What data do you have to track STEM student success? * What support do you provide STEM transfer students? * How do you motivate your faculty to focus on integrating best practices for STEM student learning into their curriculum?

Thanks! NSF STEP Grant: , Susan Hixson, our Program Officer Dr. Dan Walker, PI Dr. Gerry Selter, Provost Emeritus and my mentor Ann Baldwin, Program Manager Michael Randle, Sci 2 and Sci 90T instructor Student Academic Success Services My colleagues at SJSU – students, faculty, administrators, and staff