1. Lesson Learned: Student Success Does Not Arise by Chance
Regional Symposia on Student Success
Cape Town, South Africa
August 23, 2013
Vincent Tinto

2. Lesson:
Improvement in rates of student success requires intentional and structured action that is systematic and coordinated in nature involving many people across campus. 2

3. Intentional Action: Development of a long-term course of action
with clearly defined and measurable goals
Data driven decision-making
Allocation of resources to action
Evaluation of effectiveness of action
Investment in improvement of those actions
found to be effective 3

4. Structured Action:
Clear organizational structure with defined lines of responsibility
Office or person(s) to guide, coordinate, and/or oversee action
Linkage to other offices, programs, and persons 4

5. Systematic and Coordinated Action:
Addresses all facets of student experience over time
Involves all key “players” in the organization
Coordinates the actions of those offices, programs and persons
Promotes collaboration among offices, programs, and persons (e.g. information sharing, joint meetings)
Sharing of information and data
Collaborative decision-making 5

6. Working Together for Student Success:
Sharing of information and data
Learning better together
Collaborative decision-making 6

7. Restructuring to Promote Coordination and Collaboration
Restructuring Academic Affairs and Student Support Services: A Case Study 7

8. Institutional Policy: Building Effective Programs
Read, visit websites, and talk to other people and institutions
Start small and pilot test (three-year)
Quantitative and qualitative evaluation
Expand and revise as necessary 8

9. Institutional Policy: Sustaining Institutional Action
Evidence of outcomes
Institutional commitment for continued support
Expanding ownership beyond initial group of reformers
Planning for one’s replacement
Institutionalization of action 9

10. Institutional Policy: Scaling-Up Institutional Action
Expanding circle of adopters across the university
Evidence of outcomes across groups/programs
“convincing others”
Institutional commitment to the scaling up of action and a mechanism for its improvement over time
Ongoing evaluation and improvement 10

11. Closing Thoughts: Closing Thought
Improvement in rates of student success does not arise by chance. It requires intentional, structured, and proactive action that is systematic in nature and coordinated in application. 11

12. Closing Thoughts: Closing Thought
Improvement in rates of student success does not arise by chance. It requires intentional, structured, and proactive action that is systematic in nature and coordinated in application.
Substantial improvement in rates of student success requires collaboration within and among universities across South Africa. 12

13. Closing Thoughts: Closing Thought
Improvement in rates of student success does not arise by chance. It requires intentional, structured, and proactive action that is systematic in nature and coordinated in application.
Substantial improvement in rates of student success requires collaboration within and among universities across South Africa.
Improving student success takes time. Stay the course! 13

14. Please feel free to contact me if
Thank You
Please feel free to contact me if
I can be of assistance. 14