Probation, Dismissal and Reinstatement (PDR) Policies Murky and Dull? Reanimate Them with an Adventurous Overhaul! Andrea G. Harris, Senior Director Student Administrative Services Office of Student Information and Services Pepperdine University Malibu, CA

A Clear Policy Results in Lower Professional Blood Pressure Lower probation percentage Better retention Fewer financial aid appeals Less mortifying 5-year review (don’t get me started) Happier students Happier administrators

This Is a Bad Probation Policy (Blurred to Protect the Guilty)

This is a Set of Bad Faculty Instructions “Keep in mind the following heuristic established with respect to the decisions: Let X = Grade Point Variance If X < -20, then Dismiss Else if X <= -16, then Severe (P or CP) 4BC Else if X <= -10, then (P or CP) 4BC Else if X <= 0, then Probation (P) In other words: (D4BC/D8BC is generally used only for the Spring/Summer for -28 < = X < -20 Be Fair. Be Consistent.”

WHAT PLANET ARE YOU GUYS FROM??

When you have bad PDR policies: Your school’s expectations are unclear Students do not know where they stand Staff and faculty cannot adequately advise students Your school’s probation stats may be less than desirable Your administrators responsible for PDR approach the end of each term with trepidation and panic

And the Razzie for worst PDR Policies goes to: Insert Name of Your School Here: ____________________________

Making the Case For Change Identify the decision-maker(s) and any relevant committees Communicate with your colleagues – Ask each one to explain how your school assigns probation, and see how many different answers you get Make a nifty spreadsheet showing probation stats for the previous 5 years Poll NACADA members to find out their probation rates

Getting Started Explicit executive buy-in, support and involvement Selling the problem vs. the solution Engage critical decision makers in the vision Engage community of practice in the development of idea (POLL NACADA) – What are best practices? – What do peer/aspirational institutions do?

Question Processes! Ask WHY? “It’s the way we’ve always done it” is an unacceptable answer Honor the past while planning for the future – Yes, you may “Grandfather in” anybody who came in under the previous policy (“Grandfather in”? Really?) That you have a plan for those folks will help you make the case Keep the student at the center of what we do

Hallmarks of a Good PDR Policy Easy to articulate verbally and in your catalog Consistent with universally-accepted benchmarks – 2.0, one warning term, readmission possible by exception/petition after sitting out Easy to enforce using your existing student information system and other technology – Can you query to get your pool? – Can you notify students in a timely manner?

When You Have Good PDR Policies Your school’s expectations are clear Students know where they stand Staff and faculty can adequately advise students Your school’s probation stats, and related data will help you figure out any trends Your administrators responsible for PDR approach the end of each term with trepidation and panic. Oh, I guess not everything changes with a good policy

Lessons Learned Identify the players early on, and engage them proactively – Deans, Committee Chairs, Financial Aid Substantiate! – Use data – your stats, stats from peer/aspirational schools, surveys Go through the proper protocols to effect change – Make sure your boss is on board, etc.

Lessons Learned Remember that you can do this with your existing staff and software just by engaging the right people The Readmission component is crucial – finding a clear path for those students to return will help your retention – We bring back roughly 25 students each term who have been away, many of which due to academic dismissal

Assessment How do you know if your new policy works? – You need hard data to assess to identify any new trends – 3 years of data would be ok, but 5 is better Try to tie your assessment to a 5-year review cycle so that you might get some money and additional support for your research Data analysis will help you tweak your policies and adjust your practices to benefit your students and help them increase their chances for success

Assessment Findings Roughly 5% of all new fall students and 9% of all new spring students ended up on probation after their first term.

Resulting Action Plan Updated presentation to new students with a greater emphasis on academic difficulty and mention of the sobering stats Mid-term academic peril query sent to faculty, so advisors may contact students before the end of the withdrawal period Yours truly joined the Student Care Team to better coordinate resolution of academic issues for students in emotional, physical or behavioral crisis

More Assessment

Assessment Interpretation The first 2 spring terms after the new policy saw a large number of dismissals. This was expected. – This trend continues due to the policy, but our retention numbers are still upwards of 97% from term to term. We are retaining the better-performing students, which should eventually lead to an increase in our graduation rates.

Final Thoughts While we need to get through at least the next couple of years to know the real, material effect of this change on our graduation rates, etc., we appreciate the trend we have identified. Our faculty, staff and students are far clearer about our policies than ever before. Our policy change helped save at least 12 hours of time of our faculty committee members over the course of the year.

Discussion

Probation, Dismissal and Reinstatement (PDR) Policies Murky and Dull? Reanimate Them with an Adventurous Overhaul! Andrea G. Harris, Senior Director Student Administrative Services Office of Student Information and Services Pepperdine University Malibu, CA