Giving Diverse & Underserved Students a Leg up on Student Success Nicole Scott, Ed.D.

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The issue Students in online remedial and introductory courses were not passing at an acceptable rate 01 This was affecting persistence to subsequent semester 02 We knew, anecdotally, that this had an impact on student confidence 03

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Demographics of Online Population 70% Female 46% African-American <1% Hispanic 35 = Average age 72% Female 55% African- American 2015 2016

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Academic Coaching First implemented (by course) in Spring 2015 Launched with four courses Started with two academic coaches

Academic Coach Liaison to faculty Personal support Academic Coach contacts student one week prior to start of online course and introduces his/her role: Liaison to faculty Resource to university support offices* Personal support Tracking student’s course progress *For online tutoring, reference librarians, career services, & distance education

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Online tutoring Sends awareness emails regarding online tutoring Recommends tutoring to students who are ambivalent about course work Reminds all students that drop-off essay review is available for their courses

Efficacy of Online tutoring Course Passing Rates by Cohort Pass rate for students with Tutor.com usage was 14.2% higher Gains were highest among students with a GPA of 2.0 or lower and for those with fewer credits earned (0-75)

Efficacy of Online tutoring Students with higher Tutor.com hourly usage were more likely to pass their course than those with lower usage.

Efficacy of Online tutoring Course Passing Rates by Gender & Ethnicity Student Cohort Used Tutor.com Did Not Use Tutor.com Percentage Point Change Female 72% 59% +13% Male 84% 65% +19% African-American 64% 46% +18% Hispanic 85% 68% +17% Across the board, passing rates were higher for students with Tutor.com usage than for students who did not use the online tutoring service.

Academic Coaching Process Week One Coach checks in on students in their assigned courses Contacts students who have early alerts Week Two Repeats process Time management Prioritization Study skills Life balance Online communication Every Week Sends Helpful Tips email to all students

Reaches out to students to offer resources and encouragement Early alerts Tracks early alerts such as: - Not logged in - Missing assignments - Assignments 70% and below Reaches out to students to offer resources and encouragement

- + Initial Observations The majority of conversations with students were about external factors - + Overall, there was a low level of technology knowledge Students were overwhelmed by the LMS Coaches spent much of their time encouraging students Students were grateful for the support of online tutoring

Institutional Support Initial Observations Institutional Support Feminist Perspective Critical Race Theory Coaches needed to have an understanding of student experience beyond the classroom Consistent with findings of Bettinger and Baker ( 2013) Students needed to know that their experiences before and during their course work were valid Echoes Tinto’s ( 1973) Theoretical Model of Dropout

Overall course pass rates increased by Results from 2016-17 Overall course pass rates increased by Female 44% African-American 17% Hispanic 75% 5% Overall persistence to subsequent semester  44%

Overall course pass rates increased by Results from 2017-18 Overall course pass rates increased by Female 49% African-American 40% Hispanic 54% 6% Overall persistence to subsequent semester  44% + Added higher level 100 and 200 courses and did not replicate same results.

Contact Information Nicole Scott, Ed.D. Associate Vice President of Student Success Indiana Tech anscott@indianatech.edu

References Bettinger, E., & Baker, R. (2013). The effects of student coaching: An evaluation of a randomized experiment in student advising. Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 36(1), 3–19. Scott, A. ( 2017). Effectiveness of academic coaching and early intervention on under-served online learner populations at a private not- for-profit, midwestern university: a mixed methods study. Tinto, V., & Cullen, J. (1973). Dropout in higher education: A review and theoretical synthesis of recent research. Washington, DC: Office of Education. Retrieved from ERIC database. (ED078802)