Student Success, Retention, and Graduation: Definitions, Theories ...

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Noel-Levitz Retention CodificationsStudent Success, Retention, and Graduation:Definitions, Theories, Practices, Patterns, and TrendsNovember 2008Page 16Every college and university has the potential to improve the quality of itsundergraduate education. Turning this potential into reality requires cultivating anethic of positive restlessness that takes the form of an institutional commitment tocontinual innovation and improvement focused on student success (Whitt, et. al.,2008, p. 1).Successful Retention ProgramsEffective retention initiatives are multifaceted in their approach and provide comprehensiveservices. Several different strategies to complement a comprehensive retention plan arelisted below:Ten Elements of Successful Retention Programs1. Collect, compile, and analyze pertinent retention data and research2. Implement early identification/alert and intervention strategies3. Commit to both “front-loading” and “progressive responsibility” philosophies and strategies4. Concentrate energies on the importance of the teaching and learning process5. Emphasize a deliberate strategy of student engagement and involvement6. Address students’ affective – as well as cognitive – needs7. Create programs and services based on meeting students’ individual needs and differences8. Develop a student-centered institution9. Monitor – on a systematic basis – student expectations and levels of satisfaction10. Establish an organizational structure/mechanism of life and learning issues and aninstitutional change processNoel-Levitz National Center for Enrollment ManagementAssessing the Effectiveness of Retention InitiativesAssessment is critical to informing the direction of planning and determining success. Byusing the “student success funnel,” which represents a model with key metrics formeasuring persistence and progression, campuses can better meet the needs of their studentsand help them be successful (Culver, 2008). The funnel depicts the movement of incomingstudents (Pre-Term 1) as they progress term to term in the first year to the second, third, andfourth years to graduation (up to the 6th year). For example, the funnel addressed thefollowing data questions:What is the retention rate for first time, full-time freshmen that return for theirsophomore year?What is the retention rate for first-time transfer students that return for their secondyear?What is the return rate of students from their sophomore year to their junior year?
Noel-Levitz Retention CodificationsStudent Success, Retention, and Graduation:Definitions, Theories, Practices, Patterns, and TrendsNovember 2008Page 17What is the retention rate for students in special populations?What is the four, five, and six year graduation rate?The model is based on persistence and progression rate data that is date-, year-, and cohortspecific.The progression indicators also should include such measures as courseregistration rates, rate of participation in orientation programs, rates of participation inacademic support programs, placement rates, rates of advising, and participation in earlyintervention program and/or programs for students at risk. It is important for institutions toidentify their own sets of retention indicators/measures that correspond with their array ofintervention programs as well as patterns of attrition. Along with measures of retention,surveys of students’ level of satisfaction with the educational product and campus servicesare helpful in letting campuses know which strategies work and which do not work. Ifstudents do not respond favorably to institutional initiatives, improvement in retention maynot be realized.In addition, predictive models can be created to identify common campus characteristicsthat lend to persistence or attrition. These variables combined with student levels ofacademic preparation, educational aspiration, social integration, and financial needs providea strong understanding of students needs.Assessment also includes general information regarding the state of retention services oncampus both for benchmarking and tracking purposes. For instance, it is important toconduct a campus inventory and consider such questions as:What are current campus retention initiatives?What is the campus definition of a successful retention program?What philosophical or theoretical base is used to define retention?What types of student support services are provided?What is the level of student satisfaction with the quality of instructional and othereducational services?Case StudiesSince its establishment in 1973 Noel-Levitz has partnered with over 2,000 colleges anduniversities across the United States and in other nations of the world. The RetentionExcellence Award Program, which was instituted in 1983, serves to recognize campusachievements and innovations in retention. Nearly 150 winners comprise an impressive listof case studies of success; both specific programs and campuswide initiatives have beenrecognized. The winners of the 2008 Noel-Levitz Retention Excellence Awards include:Grand View College in Des Moines, Iowa, for their student success program thatcombines four strategies to improve retention of all first-year students: including theestablishment of learning communities, early alert and intervention programs, Web sitefor student services, and the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning.
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