Incorporating intentional “Touchpoints” to Promote Retention of First Year

Students using Civitas Data

Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C)Cleveland, OH

Gregory M. Kline, PT, DPT, EdD, MBAPamela Regrut, MA

Objectives

• Participants become familiar with strategies to engage first-year students with activities that will connect them to faculty, staff, and their peers

• Understand the benefits of incorporating touchpoints to engage first-year students based on Civitas data

• Provide recommendations regarding future implementation of touchpoint data

Introduction• Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C)

• Opened in 1969 and currently Ohio’s oldest and largest community college

• The College serves more than 50k credit and non-credit students annually• Has four large satellite campuses and several smaller centers with a wide

variety of programs• Over 4,000 high school students enrolled in “College Credit Plus”

program

Introduction• Tri-C’s Metropolitan Campus “Metro”

• Tri-C’s first campus, located near downtown Cleveland• The Metro Campus offers state-of-the-art health careers

labs, is home to the nationally-renowned Tri-C JazzFest Cleveland, and features industry-standard learning laboratories in a wide-variety of programs.

Introduction: Statement of the Problem

• Challenges in Cuyahoga County • Poverty

• One‐third (33.1%) of city of Cleveland residents lived below the poverty line in 2017, compared to half that (18.0%) of county residents, as a whole.

• Accessibility to Healthcare• Cleveland residents were significantly more likely to

die of (compared to county residents):• Cardiovascular disease (+27.5%), • Drug‐induced death (+64.3%)• To be a homicide victim (+99.3%).

2018 Cuyahoga County Community Health Assessment: Top 13 Health Issues

• Behavioral Health• Flu vaccination rates• Tobacco use/COPD• Lack of physical activity

• Mental Health and Addiction• Suicide/mental health• Homicide/violence/safety• Opioids/substance use disorders

• Quality of Life• Poverty• Food insecurity

• Chronic Disease• Lead poisoning• Cardiovascular disease• Childhood asthma• Diabetes

• Maternal/Child Health• Infant mortality

Introduction: Statement of the Problem

• Food Insecurity• Prevalence of food insecurity among undergraduate college

students (N = 524) in a poverty area (Taylor et al., 2019). • Results: Over half of the students (54%) who experienced food

insecurity also indicated that they had been eligible for a Pell Grant. • Students with food insecurity report a lower overall GPA• Food insecurity may also have adverse effects on students'

commitment and ability to continue their college education

Introduction: Statement of the Problem

Low Attainment Rates of Postsecondary Credentials

(Ohio Department of Education, 2018)

Introduction: Statement of the ProblemCleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD): Report Card “D”

Ohio School Report Cards (2020) https://reportcard.education.ohio.gov/district/print/043786

Review of the Literature

“Higher levels of perceived stress predicted lower grit, suggesting that improving subjective well-being may be a useful approach for increasing grit”

-Saunder-Scott et al., 2018

Review of the Literature

“Being open to “Diversity and Challenges” (DOA) is positively associated heightened levels of:

• Student engagement• First-year college GPA• First-to-second year retention.

“Simply stated, students who are open to DOA are more likely to seek out new experiences and to achieve educational success”

-Bowman, 2014

Introduction

• Incorporation of Civitas to Metro’s Retention Initiative• Civitas Learning offers a prediction service to predict retention

and ultimately promote graduation rates secondary to expectations related to performance-based funding rates. • Course completion (process)

• Degree attainment (output)

• Student achievement factors (process)

-(Letiza, 2016)

NEW STUDENTS

2017-2018

Fall to Spring Retention

60.3%

422/699Fall to Fall Retention

36.3%

254/699

ALLSTUDENTS

2017-2018

Fall to Spring Retention

65.0%

3135/4820

Fall to Fall Retention

40.1%

1933/4820

Introduction: Statement of the Problem

Establishment of Retention Teams (Spr 18’)

• Approach• Incorporate Civitas Data to Drive Communication Plan

with Students• Connect student campus resources• Engage students with programs offered at Metro• Promote communication between students and faculty

• “Everyone has a person”

Civitas Data

• Civitas Data (Provided by Evidence and Inquiry Department• Categorized students into Three Categories in respect to

persistence• High• Medium• Low

• Based on Overall GPA, # of Courses completed, # of terms attended

Establishment of Retention Teams (Spr 18’)Continuing

•Once a Tri-C student; however not enrolled from the Spring 2017 and beyond

•Returning

Once a Tri-C Student; applied to return to Tri-C but have not yet registered

•Inactive

•Once a Tri-C Student (Fall 2012 – SU 2017) – have not applied to return

Establishment of Retention Teams (Spr 18’)

• Divisions• Engineering, Liberal Arts, Business-Math and Technology,

Nursing, Creative Arts, Health Careers & Sciences (HC&S)

• Identification of key stakeholders in HC&S• Program Managers/Directors• Health Careers Enrollment Center• Administrative Support

Establishment of Retention Teams (Spr 18’)

• HC&S Retention Team (Met Weekly)• Program Managers/Directors (3)• Health Enrollment Center (2)• Financial Aid (1)• Counseling (1)• Enrollment Center (1)

Establishment of Retention Teams

• HC&S Retention Team Responsibilities• Reviewed weekly Numbers by division (Dean of Learning &

Engement)• Baseline numbers By Division Continuing, Returning, Inactive

• How many contacts were made each week by each division

• How many registered students for fall – cross referenced list

• Create Touchpoints to Engage Students during 2018-2019 academic year

• “Bring Metro Students” Home for the Fall 2018 Term

Establishment of Retention Teams

• Communication Plan/Associate Dean Report Out(s)• President’s Cabinet Meeting (Biweekly)• Success Council (Monthly)

• Divisional Update Meeting (1st, 6th, and 10th week of semester)

Implementation Strategy: Prior to Fall 2018 Start

• “Bring Them Home Campaign”• Robo Text Campaign to remind students to register

• Connect students with resources to file SAP appeals

• Associate Dean/Retention Team Call Campaign

• Associate Dean’s office mailings• Registration reminder

***Communications were uploaded into “Onerecord” student database***

Implementation Strategy• Activities to Improve Student Success

Implementation Strategy• Activities to Improve Student Success

Implementation Strategy• Activities to Improve Student Success

Implementation Strategy: 2018-2019 Academic Year

• Activities to Enhance/Improve Touchpoints (Student Success)

• New Student Orientation• Programmatic Orientation• Connecting Students to Professionals in their area of study• Faculty Learning Community (FLC)

Implementation Strategy• New Student Orientation (NSO) - College-Wide

Implementation Strategy

• Programmatic Orientation• Human Services Program Orientation (1st Day of HS-1300 Intro to HS)

• Career Opportunities + Employment Outlook• Degrees vs certifications vs licensure• Program Pre-requisites including Background Check• Practicum Expectations

• Eligibility for Practicum - immunizations, screenings, fingerprinting• Mandatory Orientation during Finals Week

Implementation Strategy• Connect Students to Professionals in their Area of Study

• Human Services Program - Representatives on site for full day Case WorkerCase Monitor Parole OfficerFamily Support WorkerYouth WorkerSocial Service Liaison Residential Counselor Behavioral Management Aide Case Management Aide Eligibility Counselor Alcohol Counselor Probation Officer

Rehabilitation Case Worker Residential ManagerCase Monitor Parole Officer Child Advocate Gerontology Aide Juvenile Court Liaison Home Health Aide Group Home Worker Juvenile Court Liaison Home Health Aide Group Home WorkerCase Monitor Parole Officer Child Advocate Gerontology Aide

Case Monitor Parole Officer Child Advocate Gerontology Aide Juvenile Court Liaison Home Health Aide Group Home Worker Juvenile Court Liaison Home Health Aide Group Home Worker Adult Day Care Worker Drug Abuse Counselor Client Advocate Therapeutic Assistant

Implementation Strategy

• Faculty Learning Community• Metamorphosis of the Pupil

• Health Careers Faculty and Program Managers• Use Stress Point Data to Determine Semester Timing for Events

• Quiet Space• Campus-wide Events• Wellness week

Implementation Strategy

• Faculty Learning Community• Metamorphosis of the Pupil

• Wellness Week• Therapy Dogs

• Meditation/Mindfulness

• Nutrition

• Healthy Sleep Patterns

Results

• “No matter how dramatic the end result, good-to-great transformations never happen in one fell swoop. In building a great company or social sector enterprise, there is no single defining action, no grand program, no one killer innovation, no solitary lucky break, no miracle moment. Rather, the process resembles relentlessly pushing a giant, heavy flywheel, turn upon turn, building momentum until a point of breakthrough, and beyond.”

-Jim Collins, “Good to Great”• https://www.jimcollins.com/concepts/the-flywheel.html

NEW STUDENTS

2017-2018 2018-2019 Percent Change

Fall to Spring Retention

60.3%

422/699

60.7%

400/658+0.4%

Fall to Fall Retention

36.3%

254/699

40.2%

265/658+3.9%

ALLSTUDENTS

2017-2018 2018-2019 Percent Change

Fall to Spring Retention

65.0%

3135/4820

64.0%

2972/4643-1%

Fall to Fall Retention

40.1%

1933/4820

40.6%

1889/4643+0.5%

Recommendations

• Monitor Fatigue of Retention Team Members• Incorporate data collection during touchpoints• Use Civitas as a complement to recorded “Intentional

Touchpoints”

References• Health Improvement Partnership.Cuyahoga. (2018). 2018 Cuyahoga County Community Health

Assessment. From, https://hipcuyahoga.org/2018cha/• https://www.news-herald.com/news/lake-county/college-enrollment-numbers-down-northeast-ohio-

officials-report/article_3876b3b4-ecdf-11e8-a3a7-b7546b11618b.html• Ohio Department of Education. (2018). Ohio Attainment Goal 2025: 2018 Annual Report.

https://www.ohiohighered.org/sites/default/files/uploads/attainment/Attainment%20Report%202018.pdf• Ohio School Report Cards (2020) https://reportcard.education.ohio.gov/district/print/043786• Saunders-Scott, D., Braley, M. B., & Stennes-Spidahl, N. (2018). Traditional and psychological factors

associated with academic success: investigating best predictors of college retention. Motivation & Emotion, 42(4), 459–465. https://doi-org.haproxy.palni.edu/10.1007/s11031-017-9660-4

• Xu, Y. (2017). Localizing College Retention Efforts: The Distance between Theoretical Orientation and Institution-Specific Needs. Innovative Higher Education, 42(1), 49–63. https://doi-org.haproxy.palni.edu/10.1007/s10755-016-9364-9

• Letizia, A. J. (2016). The hollow university: Disaster capitalism befalls American higher education. Policy Futures in Education, 14(3), 360–376. https://doi.org/10.1177/1478210316633378

• Collins, J. The Flywheel Effect. https://www.jimcollins.com/concepts/the-flywheel.html• Bowman N. Conceptualizing Openness to Diversity and Challenge: Its Relation to College Experiences,

Achievement, and Retention. Innovative Higher Education. 2014;39(4):277-291. doi:10.1007/s10755-014-9281-8.