Many at-risk students fail to avail themselves of the resources provided for them by their universities. In the interest of academic retention, colleges and universities are taking an increasingly proactive stance and contacting at-risk students to offer them specific services. This study compared retention rates of at-risk college students (N=65)…

Because the failure rate for Math 110 (a college algebra course for non-science/technology-oriented majors at the University of Maryland) was so high, it was decided to offer selected registrants the opportunity to take a free refresher workshop series to improve their mathematics skills before they took the course. In summer 1985, 809 students…

Students enrolled in two sections of college algebra (Math 110) at the University of Maryland in spring 1984 were informed about assistance available from the Math Lab. They were also informed that a sticker would be attached to any one of the four semester exams when grades indicated that the student should pursue one or more of the Lab services.…

Parents who are sufficiently aware of the specific campus resources available to help students confront barriers to academic success, may serve as referral agents for their children. This study combined the interest of parents in helping their child have a successful experience at college, with the availability of the "Resource Manual," which…

In response to the goal of improving college student retention, it was decided to require students in a freshman English course to participate in activities associated with academic persistence. Students (N=43) selected 3 of 4 retention-related activities in which to participate and recorded their experiences briefly in their course journals.…

Students who were academically dismissed at the end of the spring 1994 semester (at the University of Maryland, College Park) received an invitation to participate in a summer program designed to teach some of the skills necessary for academic success. Fourteen sessions were offered over a four-week period during the first summer school session.…

This study attempted to decipher what happens to African American students during their sophomore year to make them disenchanted with their academic experience in their subsequent years and tested whether a supportive mentoring relationship can be developed over the telephone. Fulltime African American students (N=27) entering their second year…

This study examined the effects of career testing and interpretation intervention on the retention and academic standing of first-year college students. A total of 78 mostly first-year students enrolled in 5 sections of an orientation course at the University of Maryland College Park (UMCP) during the fall 1994 semester completed the Strong…

The results of a retention intervention study designed to provide a one-to-one supportive relationship for incoming black male students at the University of Maryland are discussed. In this study, 34 full-time first-time American black male freshmen were matched with interested members of the Kappa Alpha Psi black alumni fraternity (a…

Many at-risk college students fail to avail themselves of the resources provided for them by their universities. In the interest of academic retention, colleges and universities are taking an increasingly proactive stance and contacting at-risk students to offer them specific services. This study compared retention rates for at-risk freshman…

Retention rates for black students at predominantly white campuses are consistently and disappointingly low, much more so than for white students. There is some evidence for black males that noncognitive variables are more predictive of academic success than the more traditionally used cognitive variables. In this intervention which was designed…

Full-time, degree-seeking students who transferred to the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), in fall 1983 and whose fall semester grade point average (GPA) was less than 2.0 (N=244) were invited to participate in a diagnostic and prescriptive program designed to help them figure out why their grades were low and how to prevent such…