The purpose of this study was to develop an academic counseling and advising process that would improve the communication between other units of Grambling State University and the College of Basic and Special Studies (CBSS) in ways that would enhance student retention and satisfy students' academic needs. Five propositions on academic advising for…

An investigation focused on positive means of recruiting and retaining students needed to reach a goal of 200 students at the Abbeville Career Vocational Center (South Carolina). Two methods used to research pertinent data were a literature search and interviews with key persons who had experienced similar problems. Data were compiled to develop a…

A study was conducted at Phillips County Community College (PCCC) to analyze the impact of freshman orientation classes on students' persistence and academic performance. The participants in the study were all first-time, full-time freshmen who entered PCCC during the fall 1982, spring 1983, or fall 1983 semesters. During the registration process,…

In response to increasing student attrition rates, Topeka Technical College, Kansas, a proprietary school run by Education America, Inc., adopted a commercial retention program that included faculty and staff training and a success course for students. An evaluation was undertaken to determine the effectiveness of the program, involving a review…

A study was conducted at Shelby State Community College (SSCC) in Tennessee to determine the extent, causes, and solutions to the problem of student retention. The study involved: (1) a comparative analysis of headcounts to assess the extent of the dropout problem, which indicated that enrollments declined sharply from 5,289 in 1983 to 3,399 in…

A study was conducted in the Marin Community Colleges to determine whether direct mail and telephone contacts with college dropouts would be perceived as demonstrating a caring attitude on the part of faculty and staff, and positively influence their rate of return. The study measured the rate of return of four groups of students who were enrolled…

This study evaluated the stated and real goals of the freshman seminar course at Mount Vernon Nazarene College in Mount Vernon, Ohio. The stated goals for the course, as presented to parents and prospective students, were the enhancement of study skills, strategies for improving grades, and students' overall survival of the college experience,…

In 1992, a practicum was undertaken to develop a student retention plan for use at Sue Bennett College (SBC), an independent junior college located in London, Kentucky. The college had a retention rate of 33 percent between the freshman and sophmore year in 1990 which was a decline from the 62 percent in 1985. The development of the plan included…

A study was conducted at Kirkwood Community College (KCC) to determine whether three groups of "high risk" students had a higher rate of attrition than the general student population. The study sought to test whether the three groups identified from an earlier study as being "high risk" in terms of attrition (i.e., students who…

In 1996, Ohio's Terra Community College undertook a project to substantiate the need for a comprehensive orientation program and to develop such a program, including a pre-college session and a college orientation class. Information was gathered through a literature review, suggesting that orientation creates a bond between the student and the…

This study compares the retention rates between students at Tunxis Community-Technical Colleges who took the student development seminar and those who did not. Implemented in fall 1997, the seminar orients new students to the college experience, attempting to increase retention rates. In order to conduct the study, a review of the literature was…

For decades, educators have been concerned with the problem of truancy. Accordingly, this report focuses on an absentee improvement program at a rural, lower-middle class, predominantly white elementary school with 722 students that had a history of high truancy, as verified by teachers, the administration, the school counselor, staff, and…

As part of a practicum, an intervention to reduce the attrition rate of English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students was developed and implemented. The 12-week program consisted of direct instruction in English to limited-English-speaking students in conjunction with a cultural activity, the learning of two American square dances. The target group…

To address the needs of African American students at Beaver College in Glenside (Pennsylvania), a one-credit freshman orientation course on Afrocentricity was developed. The course was intended to increase the comfort level between the institution and its culturally diverse students and add additional support for increased retention of African…

This study was conducted to determine if there was a significant difference in the rate of success between initially matriculated and provisionally accepted students in the Master of Business Administration program at Dowling College (Oakdale, New York). Provisionally accepted students have met all admissions criteria except that they have scored…