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Engaging Faculty in Student Retention

Dr. Jim Black, President & CEO of SEM Works, presents research findings on student satisfaction and the crucial role of faculty engagement in retention efforts. The presentation debunks common myths surrounding faculty’s contributions to student success, emphasizing the need for high expectations, effective teaching, and meaningful mentor-student relationships. It outlines various strategies for fostering academic and social integration, providing early feedback, and supporting at-risk students. Key insights highlight how transformative faculty involvement can significantly enhance the educational experience and promote student success.

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Engaging Faculty in Student Retention

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  1. Engaging Faculty in Student Retention Presented by: Dr. Jim Black President & CEO SEM Works

  2. What the Research Says • Students are highly satisfied with: • The quality of instruction • The relevance of courses • Interactions with faculty • Preparation for careers or further study • The overall quality of the educational experience

  3. û The Tyranny of Faculty Retention Myths Myth Reality • Faculty must participate in campus-wide efforts to contribute to retention • Faculty do NOT value their role as advisors • Faculty understand their role in retaining students • The best contribution faculty can make to the retention cause is being effective teachers and mentors • Institutions rarely value faculty advising • Faculty want their students to be successful

  4. û The Tyranny of Faculty Retention Myths Myth Reality • Faculty should lower expectations to allow students to succeed • Faculty should solve student problems • Faculty should coddle students • Faculty should have high expectations and hold students accountable • Faculty should guide students in solving their own problems • Faculty should meet students where they are developmentally

  5. û The Tyranny of Faculty Retention Myths Myth Reality • Faculty are satisfied with the students they teach • Faculty effectively manage classroom behavior • Academic failure is the cause of attrition • Faculty generally desire to teach more academically able students • Classroom behavior and civility, in general, are growing issues on most campuses • Academic failure is often a symptom of attrition

  6. Retention Impact Faculty Retention Impact

  7. High-risk Student Experiences • Insufficient section or seat capacity • Delayed time-to-degree • Poor quality of instruction • Lack of student/faculty engagement • Program atrophy • Not challenging students • Poor classroom management • Inconsistent or poor advising practices

  8. High-risk Student Experiences • Absence of an academic plan • Protracted remedial education • Enrollment in high-risk courses • Class attendance • Late academic feedback • Underutilized academic support services • Brutal academic policies

  9. Conditions for Student Success • RELEVANT, VALUE-ADDED student engagement • Academic and social integration • A sense of belonging • Meaningful connections with peers, faculty, the community, and industry

  10. Conditions for Student Success • Provide early academic feedback • Require students to show up • Surround students with mentors • Ignite their passion • Deliver on institutional promises

  11. A shared definition of student success An awareness and engagement campaign Concrete opportunities to engage Systematic efforts toward creating a cohesive, transformational student experience Professional development and information sharing Improving Faculty Engagement

  12. Common good Autonomous Systems-focused Discipline-focused Cognitive dissonance Buy-in Unit-oriented Integration Academic freedom One voice Natural Tensions Academic Culture SEM Objectives

  13. Faculty Culture

  14. The Reasons Retention Efforts Fail • Making a case for faculty engagement based on institutional urgency • Institutional failure to value faculty contributions to student success • Misunderstanding resistance • Faulty mental maps • A lack of concrete opportunities for engagement • No feedback loop

  15. Overcoming Resistance to Retention Engagement • Education and communication • Participation and investment • Facilitation and support • Rewards and recognition

  16. Teaching Challenges • Teaching the Net Generation and Gen Xers • The classroom dichotomy • Increase of emotional, psychological, and behavioral issues • Increases in student diversity • Changing student expectations • Declining student motivation • Teaching digital natives • Multitasking

  17. Faculty Support Support individual faculty in their teaching responsibilities through one-on-one consultations.

  18. Teaching and Learning • Active learning • Experiential learning • Simulations • Gaming • Multimedia • Teamwork • Learning communities • Interdisciplinary instruction • Service learning • Supplemental Instruction • Early academic feedback • Frequent academic feedback • Aligning teaching and learning styles • Open learning labs • Blended delivery • LMS systems • Clicker technology • Skype • Twitter • Web chat

  19. Faculty Mentoring Model

  20. Early Intervention • Front loaded • Referrals • Assessment instrument • Systems • Analytics

  21. Other Faculty Retention Strategies • One place for referrals • Front-load the best instructors in first-year courses • Address high-risk courses • Required study sessions • Front-load an introduction to academic disciplines and related career opportunities • Sponsor an adopt a student program

  22. Other Faculty Retention Strategies • Offer academic unit socials • Provide advisors with a holistic advisee profile • Ensure advisor caseloads are small enough to provide individual attention and mentoring • Decouple advising and mentoring • Consider protective scheduling for at-risk students

  23. Q&A

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