Coaching for academic readiness and excellence

Starting the c.a.r.e. journey Discover the benefits of coaching by watching our CARE video for students by clicking here.

Sign up today! Students can sign up by: Coaching Web Page Calling WKU Online at 270- 745-5173 or 270-745-3028 Emailing learn.online@wku.edu Automatically enrolled if they are a 100% Online, Degree Seeking, Undergraduate Student .

What is c.a.r.e.? Blackboard Organization site Individualized Coaching provided via email, phone, text, in person, Skype, and Google Hangouts Support when students feel alone, defeated, unsure of their actions/degree program, or when students need someone to vent to when life becomes overwhelming Resource to help students find the tools they need to succeed Provide preliminary advising for students who are considering changing degree programs Extra guidance at the most critical times via Starfish The goal of success coaching is to increase retention through providing extra support for online learners. We do this in multiple ways.

Who receives coaching? Undergraduate Degree Seeking Online Learners Through what mechanism? A personal success coach who works directly with each student to identify goals and develop strategies for staying on track. The coach uses a Blackboard Organization + Starfish EARLY ALERT to ensure every online student receives support to meet their specific needs. Students are identified in Starfish as being part of one of the following groups. C.A.R.E. Receives basic coaching using customized flags in Starfish In depth coaching is available On Demand Students with Academic Standing of AW (subgroup of CARE) In depth coaching required B.E.P. (separate from CARE) BEP requires completion of all modules, and regular communication w/coach Cohort Programs (may or may not be subgroup of CARE. depending on needs of group) Other specifics determined by additional needs of Cohort, if any Competency Based Education Programs (separate from CARE) Due to the nature of CBE, more in depth coaching is required

Blackboard Organization: C.A.R.E.

Weekly Modules based on student needs

Incentives (badges)

How coaches monitor student Progress? Starfish EARLY ALERT Retention Tool (connected to the Blackboard Grade Center) Community Email Inbox Regular conversations, and outreach History of CARE – prior to Starfish, this was an opt-in only service, and not terribly popular  The first semester there were 3, then 5, then 12….and now, thanks to the expansion of Starfish, which was made possible by efforts on the IT side, there are more than 2,400, many of whom have opted in for more in-depth coaching with Holly. All of these students have access to some great resources in Bb that Holly worked with the ID team to develop. The layout of the CARE org is modeled after work the ID team did to support AARC in the development of the BEP organization. Prior to this work, online learners were exempt from completing BEP, which put at-risk students even more at risk. So, back to present day, 2400 is a scary number! It’s important to remember that some only students only receive the basics, which means that we proactively reach out to remind them that we’re here to help AND in times of concern we do more to try to help them get back on track. Still, those who opt in for more in depth coaching, as well as those for whom it’s required (BEP and AW) exceed 200 (up by 1,700% since last term!! ). Luckily, Holly is full-time now, so we’re holding steady, and more help is on the way (we anticipate Donna picking up some coaching in the spring)! Each term, IT uploads all ug students degree seekers who have registered exclusively for online classes (web and/or On Demand) to the CARE org in Bb, which gives the student access to Starfish, Bb CARE resources, and allows us to track their progress.

Starfish early alert Student Retention Tool Log emails, phone calls, text, and general conversations as notes in system Send emails to participating students View Course progress in all Online and On Demand courses through connectivity with Blackboard Grade Center Set Customizable Flags Send Kudos to students Track retention and graduation Okay….so what is Starfish exactly, and how does it work? Starfish EARLY ALERT is a retention tool that provides academic success coaches the ability to measure the progress of each individual student in their online courses. Through utilizing EARLY ALERT technology, Starfish notifies the assigned coach of student activity in Blackboard. Enabling the coach to see each student’s academic progress…coaches can see Grades for assignments, quizzes, and exams Class participation Missing assignments Time since last Blackboard login Here you can see the flags that are automatically raised with the parameter of non-participation in web course. Once the student logs in, the flag is cleared. Other flags require that an overdue assignment be submitted before the flag can be cleared. Starfish and Blackboard Starfish monitors progress, and provides a place where students can make an appointment with their coach; the coach can log the student’s goals and personalized learning plan, while Bb provides easy access to supplemental materials and support that is specific to each student population. As we move forward in Starfish, much of this will also be provided there, but it will likely not be as interactive as Bb. Plus Bb provides materials in a central location that students are already accessing. The ability to customize flags is one of the most powerful aspects of Starfish, because rather than manually monitoring all 2,400 students, we can focus on those who have raised their hand, and need additional help + those required to complete coaching. The remainder, we can rely largely upon flags to notify us of an issue; and redirect our attention as needed “Flags” are used to notify the coach of a concern. They are set based on predefined thresholds, which are determined in conjunction with university graduation requirements, specific course requirements, student progress, course type (non-semester based web vs. semester-based web), and factors which impact academic performance in current courses, such as a course average dropping below a certain percentage, or lack of participation in an online course. Types of Flags System Flags, which are those I typically think of. They are based on course activity. Manual Flags, which can be raised by a student needing help – or even by a faculty or staff member to notify an instructor that the student needs extra help in a particular course. What happens when a Flag is raised? The coach receives a notification. This gives them the opportunity to reach out early, and help the student get back on track. Certain notifications also go to the student. These include: If a student scores below a certain grade on an exam, this activity will trigger an email to the student that connects them to related resources. If the flag is due to not logging in for a set amount of time, this communication will go to the student and the coach, and will remind the student to login, and check their courses. Some flags must be cleared by coaches; others are cleared automatically KUDOS In addition to flags based on concern, Starfish also provides the ability to recognize significant achievements, and send “KUDOS” to students for a job well done.

Inside starfish early alert Flags Okay….so what is Starfish exactly, and how does it work? Starfish EARLY ALERT is a retention tool that provides academic success coaches the ability to measure the progress of each individual student in their online courses. Through utilizing EARLY ALERT technology, Starfish notifies the assigned coach of student activity in Blackboard. Enabling the coach to see each student’s academic progress…coaches can see Grades for assignments, quizzes, and exams Class participation Missing assignments Time since last Blackboard login Here you can see the flags that are automatically raised with the parameter of non-participation in web course. Once the student logs in, the flag is cleared. Other flags require that an overdue assignment be submitted before the flag can be cleared. Starfish and Blackboard Starfish monitors progress, and provides a place where students can make an appointment with their coach; the coach can log the student’s goals and personalized learning plan, while Bb provides easy access to supplemental materials and support that is specific to each student population. As we move forward in Starfish, much of this will also be provided there, but it will likely not be as interactive as Bb. Plus Bb provides materials in a central location that students are already accessing. The ability to customize flags is one of the most powerful aspects of Starfish, because rather than manually monitoring all 2,400 students, we can focus on those who have raised their hand, and need additional help + those required to complete coaching. The remainder, we can rely largely upon flags to notify us of an issue; and redirect our attention as needed “Flags” are used to notify the coach of a concern. They are set based on predefined thresholds, which are determined in conjunction with university graduation requirements, specific course requirements, student progress, course type (non-semester based web vs. semester-based web), and factors which impact academic performance in current courses, such as a course average dropping below a certain percentage, or lack of participation in an online course. Types of Flags System Flags, which are those I typically think of. They are based on course activity. Manual Flags, which can be raised by a student needing help – or even by a faculty or staff member to notify an instructor that the student needs extra help in a particular course. What happens when a Flag is raised? The coach receives a notification. This gives them the opportunity to reach out early, and help the student get back on track. Certain notifications also go to the student. These include: If a student scores below a certain grade on an exam, this activity will trigger an email to the student that connects them to related resources. If the flag is due to not logging in for a set amount of time, this communication will go to the student and the coach, and will remind the student to login, and check their courses. Some flags must be cleared by coaches; others are cleared automatically KUDOS In addition to flags based on concern, Starfish also provides the ability to recognize significant achievements, and send “KUDOS” to students for a job well done. Customizable Flags Customizable Set based on predefined thresholds, which are determined in conjunction with university graduation requirements, specific course requirements, student progress, course type (non-semester based web vs. semester-based web), and factors which impact academic performance in current courses, such as a course average dropping below a certain percentage, or lack of participation in an online course. System Flags Manual Flags If the flag is due to not logging in for a set amount of time, this communication will go to the student and the coach, and will remind the student to login. COURSE PROGRESS We also have the course progress shown with the student’s assignments, grades, and date the assignment was submitted.

Inside starfish early alert Course Progress View individual student progress Assignment grades Any missing or past due assignments Allows coach or other participating faculty/staff to see if the student has been struggling for some time or had something unusual happen. This provides some important insight for our next steps (i.e. type of support needed). Note: Due date on the right is “undefined” because it’s an On Demand course. Customizable Flags “Flags” are used to notify the coach of a concern. Customizable Set based on predefined thresholds, which are determined in conjunction with university graduation requirements, specific course requirements, student progress, course type (non-semester based web vs. semester-based web), and factors which impact academic performance in current courses, such as a course average dropping below a certain percentage, or lack of participation in an online course. Types of Flags System Flags Manual Flags What happens when a Flag is raised? The coach receives a notification. This gives them the opportunity to reach out early, and help the student get back on track. Certain notifications also go to the student. These include: If a student scores below a certain grade on an exam, this activity will trigger an email to the student that connects them to related resources. If the flag is due to not logging in for a set amount of time, this communication will go to the student and the coach, and will remind the student to login. Some flags must be cleared by coaches; others are cleared automatically KUDOS In addition to flags based on concern, Starfish also provides the ability to recognize significant achievements, and send “KUDOS” to students for a job well done. COURSE PROGRESS We also have the course progress shown with the student’s assignments, grades, and date the assignment was submitted.

Other starfish features Reporting tools that provides summaries of flags, student progress, and most at risk students Case Management Communication tools for retention efforts Kudos Central, Secure Student Folders Prospective Student Advising Automated messages based on certain courses and/or certain flags Secure uploads of documents, such as a personalized learning plan Ability to assign specific coaches to certain groups

Questions about coaching? Contact one of our Student Success Coaches Donna Kasznel at Donna.Kasznel@wku.Edu Holly Young at Holly.Young@wku.Edu Questions about Starfish configuration or ideas for how we can improve our support? Contact Cindy Troutman at cindy.hawks@wku.edu or call 270-745-4087