Retention programs in Higher Education

Mary Tupan-Wenno

TIES conference, Amsterdam, May 12, 2009

TIES Policy BriefMay 2009

”A quarter of the second generation Turks in Europe made it into higher education. This is

considering the low socio economic background characteristics of the parents a huge

accomplishment of both the second generation and their supportive parents. Also teachers and

societies actually provided them with the corresponding opportunities.”

‘Dejando Mi Pueblo’ by Daniel Flores

“I owe my education to my parents and all the sacrifices they made for me. If they would have not brought me to the United States, I

would not be walking around the UCLA campus. My mother struggled to learn how to sew and save money to reunite the family, and I know that I will face struggles of a different kind as

a student. I realize that being accepted to Oxford to obtain my Ph.D. will be like crossing another border, but I am mentally prepared to do it. I have

done it before and I can do it again.I am ready for the challenge. My parents' life struggle serves as my

motivation in anything that I do. They taught me to work hard to accomplish my dreams and not to give up.”

Academic Advancement Program (AAP) based on

the Pedagogy of Excellence

at

the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)

Collaboration with UCLA to implement AAP in Dutch HE

Understanding the concept and

strategy of the pedagogy of excellence

Improving student success by creating

a culture of exellence

Pedagogy of excellence• High expectations building on students

strengths instead of deficiencies• High level of support (peer mentoring, -tutoring,

-counseling)

• Early outreach and academic preparation• Creating a campus climate where students feel

included and involved create a sense of belonging

• Awareness on students cultural and social identity

Person

Ethnic group

Gender

‘Color’

Religious group

Age

Family

Education

Socio economic position

All students & professionals

Edwin Hoffman

Implementation in the Netherlands

Creating a culture of excellence at two intervention levels:

• Institutional level

• Student level

Institutional level (holistic approach)• Collaboration with secondary education (outreach)

creating a culture of transfer & academic preparation• Creating a culture of high expectations• Creating a high level of support including students as

peer tutors, -mentors and –counselors (backbone of the retention strategy)

• Being aware of the multiple responsibilities of students including parents and their communities

• Professional development influence attitude and commitment of teaching staff and faculty

• Creating a curriculum for students and professionals to reflect on identity development and diversity management

• Monitoring and accountability to improve results

Mentoring in outreach

Mentoring Resultaat 2004-2005

Resultaat 2005-2006

2006-2007 2007-2008

Mentoring 97 mentees

50 mentoren

2 toeleverende havo-scholen

1 mbo-opleiding

167 mentees

103 mentoren

9 coaches

3 toeleverende havo-scholen

3 mbo-opleidingen

300 mentees

150 mentoren

15 coaches

4 toeleverende havo-scholen

6 mbo-opleidingen

400 mentees

200 mentoren

20 coaches

5 toeleverende havo-scholen

9 mbo-opleidingen

Tutoring in retention programs

Resultaat 2004-2005 Doel 2005-2006 Doel 2006-2007 Doel 2007-2008

25 student-tutoren

35 p-studenten

7 opleidingen

4 academies

100 student-tutoren

5 coaches

200 p-studenten

10 opleidingen

5 academies

180 student-tutoren

9 coaches

360 p-studenten

18 opleidingen

9 academies

240 student-tutoren

12 coaches

480 p-studenten

23 opleidingen

12 academies

Results

• Increase in access of NW migrant students

• Increase of retention in the first two years of higher education (propedeuse)

• Glosing the gap in retention rates of native Dutch and migrant students

• Retention strategy based on the pedagogy of excellence being imbedded in institutional policy

Creating a culture of excellence on a student level

ECHO Foundation

ECHO Foundation

• Awarding accomplishments and perseverance of the many successful migrant students ECHO Award

• Awarding active civic engagement among these students

• Creating a process for institutions to present their most successful migrant students and to be able to be proud of them

• Creating a community of ECHO Ambassadors, change agents in their communities, institutions and society

• Connecting new leaders to present leaders in society • Creating leadership development opportunities

‘Happiness exists to be shared’ by Sharo Mohamed

“The ECHO-award has provided me with the unique experience and vital skill of Leadership. I have learned, by discussing with the many Somali youth and women that I have inspired, that leadership is not

a one-day thing. It is a constant commitment. A commitment to excellence, a habit . . . a daily practice. Leadership is the ability to

get extraordinary achievement from ordinary people, creating a vision, articulating that vision, passionately owning the vision, and

relentlessly driving it to completion. I believe it's never too late to be what you might have been.”

Thank you very much!

marytupan@echo-net.nl

www.echo-net.nl

www.ean-edu.org