How should I be addressing student retention issues in the midst of a pandemic? I am finding myself in the role of Director of Admissions saying something to students for retention and recruiting purposes that I never thought I would say . . . Yes, Sammy, I agree that your withdrawing from the program right […]
Making students feel cared for, connected and empowered is crucial for student retention in the midst of a crisis. Innovative use of technagogy (technology + pedagogy) is a powerful tool in this cause, as I discovered while serving as CSSO (Chief Student Success Officer) for Omega Graduate School (OGS) in Dayton, Tennessee. OGS, like many […]
If you are involved in Christian higher education, you know that students identify us as trustworthy sources of wisdom when they are in distress. It may seem as though troubled students use crowd-sourced strategies to seek feedback via social media, but the importance of face-to-face interaction with faculty and support staff cannot be ignored. Our […]
This article presents five board, administrative, and practical tips that can empower the nontraditional student (NTS) at Bible school to complete their studies. Helping non-traditional students graduate is crucial because, in the 20th century, one-third of students enrolled in the US were nontraditional students (NTS). These students hold multiple roles in addition to student, such […]
Higher education enrollment is up slightly in Canada and down slightly in the United States, according to 2012 figures released by Canadian Trends in Higher Education and the U.S. Census Bureau. Enrollment continued to grow modestly in Canada with 1,027,000 undergraduate and 190,000 graduate students attending colleges and universities in the fall, 2012. Conversely, the enrollment in American higher […]
Christian colleges, universities, and schools face a myriad of challenges that threaten much-needed revenue streams. The majority of schools lack substantial endowments and must rely on net tuition dollars to meet growing expenses. This financial challenge is compounded with the following realities in today’s higher education market: Demographics are evolving in ways likely to create […]
The opportunity to recruit Latino students should be important to Christian colleges. Latinos are forecasted to be 30% of the population in the U.S. by 2060, belonging to the more than 50% majority-minority, according to the U.S. Census. They have become the largest group of color in the U.S. and the highest represented in U.S. […]
“I don’t see why I really need to be going to college,” she complained. On a hike with a few fellow church members, this young lady, a child of missionaries who were perhaps too far away to see their daughter’s struggles, expressed all the motivation of a soon-to-be drop out. What should I say? Why […]
(Excerpted from, Finding Funds for a Small Christian College, by David Agron, Ph.D) A college newsletter can be an exceptional tool for recruiting donors and students—really. But how do you entice a potential donor or student to actually read your newsletter and engage with your school instead of throwing out your valuable insights with the […]
For the hundreds of small, private colleges and universities that enroll large numbers of “at-risk” students, proactive retention activities are necessary to keep the school solvent. However, while maintaining retention is much discussed, it is rarely addressed in any productive way that sees results. How should schools improve student retention? Too many institutions focus, instead, on […]
