This post has been excerpted from Penn State News. See the full article.
LEMONT FURNACE, Pa. — Campus academic officers (CAO) from all 19 Penn State campuses convened at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, for the annual summer meeting on June 19, followed by a pre-conference session on June 20 and the fourth-annual Student Success Institute, open to regional higher-education professionals on June 21.
The events were combined to afford the opportunity for key stakeholders from Penn State’s campuses to review new policies and procedures and to assess readiness to increase student retention and enhance student success, supporting a charge from the Office of the Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses (OVPCC) to promote collaboration across the campuses.
“Student Success is core to the Penn State mission and deserves to be at the center of our attention,” said Madlyn Hanes, vice president for Commonwealth Campuses and executive chancellor. “These events brought together talented colleagues working collaboratively to identify strategies that will positively impact the student learning experience.”
Improving student success
On the following day, Penn State affiliates gathered for a pre-conference session to continue a collaboration with the Starfish Enterprise Success Platform. The implementation of Starfish at all Penn State campuses began in 2016 to manage academic advising notes and allow instructors to provide early progress reports to students. Penn State intends to use the platform to effectively manage student success programs so that more equitable learning outcomes can be achieved. The pre-conference session illustrated Starfish’s role in helping Penn State to build a culture of intervention and information-sharing aimed at proactively promoting student success.
Ellyn Artis, Starfish strategic consulting practice director IMAGE: PENN STATE FAYETTE
Through progress reporting, for example, the platform allows instructors to alert other professionals at Penn State who can provide proactive outreach to individual students to connect them with valuable services or offer other needed help. Additionally, as Starfish reaches a stage of mature implementation, it will help assess which services and interventions best keep students on track towards reaching their academic goals.
The session was facilitated by Penny Carlson, assistant vice president and executive director for academic services and assessment in the Office of the Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses (OVPCC) at University Park, along with David R. Smith, associate dean of advising and executive director of the division of undergraduate studies, and Ellyn Artis, Starfish strategic consulting practice director.
“Through the engagement of colleagues from across the University, strengthened by our collaboration with Starfish, Penn State’s Commonwealth Campuses are making substantial strides toward enhancing our environments to better support student persistence at Penn State,” said Carlson.
Following the session, participants traveled to the Historic Summit Inn Resort to kick off the fourth annual Student Success Institute with higher-education professionals from around the region.
