The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to understand administrator perceptions of student retention practices in community colleges. The sample for this study consisted of 11 administrators within community colleges in Arizona. The theoretical framework for this study was the Zeithaml theory of behavioral consequences of service…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive research was to explore how students described their experiences within a semester-long, new-student orientation program as contributing to their year-to-year re-enrollment at a community college in Arizona. Two research questions guided the stud. Exhaustive review of prior research indicated the…

Arizona State University's (ASU) Bridging Success program, launched in 2015, is a campus-based support program for students with a background in foster care, also known as Foster Care Alumni (FCA). The program is housed within ASU's School of Social Work, which is part of the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions. The program…

The purpose of this mixed methods study was to explore how students experience the New Student Orientation Experience (NSOE) and how they perceived it prepared them for their 1st semester of college at a large public university in the United States, Arizona State University (ASU). Institutions of higher education are under pressure to operate more…

This research project addresses the decline in student engagement, retention, and academic performance in a college Reading 100 course at a local community college in Arizona over a threeyear period. Catering to students with low reading proficiency, including international students learning English, the course faced new challenges brought on by…

Cosmetology is one of the most widely and onerously regulated occupations for lower-income workers, yet little research has explored the experiences of aspiring beauty workers. This first-of-its-kind study takes advantage of federal educational data--including a large, and largely untapped, dataset on nondegree credentials and work experience…

This study examined the effect of the Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS) Scholarship on college cohort retention, college cohort completion, and college cohort time to completion--important student performance markers in an era of fiscal accountability. Over the six-year span (2006 - 2012) of this one year, renewable) full-tuition…

Engineering schools have been unable to recruit and retain Native American students at the same rate as other students. Consequently, the Native American representation in engineering has been declining over the years in Arizona, even though the state ranks third in the number of degrees earned in the US by Native Americans. To understand the…

The focus of each Technology Solutions for Adult Basic Skills Challenges column begins with a common challenge facing adult basic skills practitioners. This article examines a technology solution to two large and related challenges: student engagement and student persistence, which, from a program or school perspective, is often described as…

Student success measurements for 4-year institutions of higher education are a topic of importance for numerous stakeholders including prospective and current students, parents, staff, faculty, administrators, governing boards, policymakers, and citizens. Common measures of student success are retention rates and 4- and 6-year graduation rates.…

While it is well-known that faculty-student interaction is key to student success, few institutions have directly leveraged faculty in supporting academic persistence. Many myths about persistence proliferate, and faculty can unwittingly hinder persistence by implementing the wrong kinds of practices. Faculty are most empowered to support student…

Without persistence when enrolled in each online course, it is likely that students will not meet their personal goals of completing a course or earning a degree. Online students are especially susceptible to dropping out. Colleges and universities are interested in identifying factors that impact student retention rates. The purpose of this…

This study provides an overview and a snapshot of new student orientation (NSO) and new student e-orientation (NSEO) programs, with a focus on the content and feature analysis of the NSEOs. It offers an overview of currently available NSO programs of 100 randomly selected community colleges from a master list of nearly 900 community colleges in…

TransferBOOST (Bachelor's Opportunity Options that are Straightforward and Transparent) is a multi-year state-level initiative developed to provide students with affordable, quality, well-supported two- to four-year pathways. On average, 43 percent of credits are lost nationwide through the transfer process. Recognizing that today's students…

TransferBOOST (Bachelor's Opportunity Options that are Straightforward and Transparent) is a multi-year state-level initiative developed to provide students with affordable, quality, well-supported two- to four-year pathways. For every 100 students who enroll in community colleges, 31 students transfer to a four-year institution. Of those, only 15…