1. Student Engagement Strategies Improving Retention in a Diverse Student Body Tara MacKay – Chief Academic Officer – tara@sessions.edu

2. “…diverse populations of students experience college differently and encounter group-specific barriers to success.”

3. Engagement for Improving Retention

4. Behind the Buzzwords 1980s: Diversity

5. Behind the Buzzwords

6. 1980s: Diversity 1990s: Engagement 2000s: Retention

7. Retention and Graduation Rates

8. Who’s At Risk?

9. It’s Not All Bad! Distance Ed Excels in: Attracting at-risk students Making college possible Shielding students from stereotyping Opening the classroom to the world

10. Group-Specific Barriers to Success

11. Otherness Perceived aloneness Lack of role models Majority-centric materials Deficit-minded approaches Growth outpacing resources

12. Support and Mentorship Difficulty with forms and procedures Difficulty locating resources/information Weaker academic ambition Weaker family support/understanding

13. Scheduling and Priorities Greater opportunity to drop Work priority over school Lack of continuity with class Need for distance ed- specific study skills

14. Accessibility Language/colloquialism barriers Cultural differences Difficulty understanding audio/video course materials “Bureaucratic interference”

15. Understanding Groups Through Institutional Research

16. Asking the Right Questions Ask questions that identify key groups Allow opt-out and maintain privacy Survey from entrance to exit (and beyond!) Use consistent questions and measures

17. In-Depth Studies Focus groups, case studies Sessions military student study to ask: – What are military time commitments? – Do fellow military members support design education? – Do fellow design students support military background?

18. Equitable (and Easy!) Strategies for Engagement

19. Representative Course Materials Racial/ethnic diversity in visuals Engaging language Diversity content in gen ed courses

20. Representative Course Materials

21. Accessible Course Materials Text transcripts Appropriate reading level Careful use of slang Screen-reader accessibility Accommodation training for staff

22. Experience-Based Assessments Projects that reflect/share backgrounds Lightly directed discussions

23. Experience-Based Assessments

24. Faculty Members = Role Models Make diverse faculty a priority Encourage relate-ability Make faculty visible and accessible Pay attention to student feedback

25. Scheduling and Advisement Cohort scheduling Assistance/understanding in scheduling Easy-to-read policies and resource guides Sensitivity training for advisors Group-specific advisement

26. Scheduling and Advisement

27. More Ideas and Next Steps Tutoring and remediation Clubs and community groups “Did you know?” campaign Allocation of resources to diversity and engagement

28. Any questions? Tara MacKay tara@sessions.edu