The Key with Inside Higher Ed

Ep. 135: Reasons to Be Optimistic About Student Success Efforts

A recent IHE survey of university and college student success administrators found that they are confident in the quality of education their institution provides and say their college is effective in making student success an institutional priority. There are, however, still many areas where administrators say their institution can improve, with greater effort among faculty being the most common desired action.

This episode of The Key explores the results of our survey and how they compare with what students have told us in other polls. We’ll also hear a case study on how a teaching and learning center is encouraging faculty to be active participants in students’ success. Joining the discussion are Colleen Flaherty, special content editor at Inside Higher Ed, and Trey Conatser, assistant provost for teaching and learning at the University of Kentucky and director of UK’s Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning.

Both discussions paint an overall optimistic picture of how institutions are working to find innovative ways to support their students to stay in college and graduate.

You can read more about our survey findings in our article “Survey: Student Success Administrators Optimistic”.

 

Hosted by Sara Custer, editor in chief of Inside Higher Ed. This episode is sponsored by the Gates Foundation.

 

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Ep. 134: Voices of Student Success: Life Design for Student Success

A growing number of colleges and universities are integrating life design into the student experience to improve student well-being, academic pursuits and future planning beyond graduation. Life design, which originates from the 2016 book Designing Your Life, uses design thinking principles to help guide individuals as they navigate change and transition, ultimately helping them find meaning and purpose in their lives. 

In this episode of Voices of Student Success, Adrienne Ausdenmoore, assistant vice president and executive director, Geoffrey H. Radbill Center for College and Life Design at Bowling Green State University, shares how the university is implementing campus-wide changes to integrate life design into the student experience. Later, hear from Stanford University’s James Tarbox, assistant vice provost and executive director of career education, who shares how life design is essential in career services.  

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Reporter Ashley Mowreader. This episode is sponsored by KI. Read a transcript of the podcast here.  

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Ep. 133: Voices of Student Success: The Evolution of the Campus Library

Many college libraries have undergone transformation in recent years to serve as hubs for student success, offering a central location for students to hang out, work with peers and connect to support resources like tutoring. This reimagination of the library often comes with a physical reconfiguration, relocation of offices and expanded services, all in hopes of supporting access and student success.

In this episode of Voices of Student Success, Katie Clark, higher education market manager for KI and a former campus administrator, speaks to the evolution of the campus library and what it means for students and practitioners. Later, hear from Marquette University’s Lemonis Center director Marilyn Jones and vice provost for academic affairs and student success, John Su, to discuss how Marquette remodeled its Memorial Library to better support students.

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Reporter Ashley Mowreader. This episode is sponsored by KI. Read a transcript of the podcast here.

 

Ep. 132: Voices of Student Success: Teaching Career Competencies In On-Campus Work

Internships are a high-impact practice that can provide students with valuable career skills, a professional network and on-the-job experience, but not every student has the opportunity to participate. A recent report found of the 8.2 million students who wanted to intern in 2023, close to half didn’t participate in one. Many of these students are from historically marginalized groups, including first-generation, low-income, community college students and students of color.  

The University of New Hampshire launched Campus-2-Career in 2022, a campus-wide program that equips students with career competencies through their on-campus work positions.  

In this episode, Gretchen Heaton, associate vice provost for career and professional success and high impact practices at the University of New Hampshire, discusses how UNH is increasing rich work-based learning opportunities through intentional professional development.  

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Reporter Ashley Mowreader. This episode is sponsored by KI. Read a transcript of the podcast here.  

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Ep. 131: Bipartisan Alignment Around Workforce Training

The partisan divide in the U.S. seems unbridgeable at times, and many issues in higher education are deeply dividing politicians. But with the 2024 election just days away, there’s a remarkable amount of alignment around the importance of workforce development and training and how to strengthen it.

A new episode of The Key explores explores the relative consensus between the parties and its implications. Joining the discussion are Amanda Winters, program director for postsecondary education at the National Governors Association, and Michelle Van Noy, director of the Education and Employment Research Center at Rutgers University’s School of Management and Labor Relations.

They examines how this alignment around workforce training is affecting policy development at the state and federal levels, and how November’s election might change what happens in the next few years, if at all.

 

Hosted by Doug Lederman, editor and co-founder of Inside Higher Ed. This episode is sponsored by The Gates Foundation.

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Ep. 130 Bonus Episode: Focus on Caring and Building Strengths Leads Students to Success

In this episode of The Key, Melissa Ezarik speaks with University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s chancellor, Donde Plowman, and Amber Williams, vice president of student success on their efforts to ensure their teams—and students—are aware of and confident about their strengths as they navigate their work.

Williams, who joined the institution in 2020, soon before it fell a bit short on its retention increase goal, has found it helpful to remind colleagues that data is about individuals and showing what can be done to meet their needs. “One of my framings for leadership is that you lead through people, priorities and then projects,” she says. “People is the first thing. If you don’t get the people part right, the rest of it doesn’t work.”

On October 28, 29 and 30, student success professionals from across the country will visit UT’s campus to share their challenges and successes in supporting students at their own institution. Learn more about the Student Success US event here, and look out for coverage in Inside Higher Ed.

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Editor, Melissa Ezarik. Read a transcript of the podcast here.

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Ep. 129: Voices of Student Success: A College Bridge Program for Incarcerated Students

In July 2023, Congress lifted a ban on federal Pell Grant funding for incarcerated individuals in prison education programs, but there still remain barriers to enrollment and success for these learners. The Petey Greene Program (PGP), a non-profit organization that partners with prisons and higher education institutions, launched a College Bridge program in 2020 to increase college-level writing, reading and math skills for incarcerated students.

In this episode, PGP’s Chiara Benetollo, executive director of The Puttkammer Center for Educational Justice and Equity, and Katherine Meloney, director of the Villanova Program at SCI Phoenix, discuss the college bridge program and the ways higher ed can support justice and learning for incarcerated individuals.

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Reporter Ashley Mowreader.

This episode is sponsored by KI. Read a transcript of the podcast here.

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Ep. 128: Voices of Student Success: Building a Culture of Mentorship

Prior research shows students who have at least one connection to campus are more likely to persist, retain and complete a college degree, particularly for students from historically marginalized or less privileged backgrounds. However, building high-quality and long-lasting relationships can feel challenging or unattainable for many college students.

In this episode, Elon University’s Peter Felten, and Emily Krechel, who serve as members on the Mentoring Initiatives Design Team, discuss the role of relationships in student success and how Elon stakeholders look to create a relationship-rich university community.

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Reporter Ashley Mowreader. This episode is sponsored by KI. Read a transcript of the podcast here.

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Ep. 127:Voices of Student Success: Breaking Down Barriers to Basic Needs Resources

Rising costs of living and increasing student housing rates have exacerbated college retention efforts as campus leaders look to tackle a rising concern: basic needs insecurity.  

A lack of essential resources such as food, housing and clothing and general financial strain are two of the top reasons students say they leave college.  

To address this issue and provide resources to students, the University of Houston opened its Center for Student Advocacy and Community in 2020, which houses some of the university’s essential needs programs. I spoke with the center’s director and assistant director about the relationship between student success and basic needs and how to promote resources across campus. 

In this episode, host Ashley Mowreader speaks with the University of Houston’s director, Michael Crook, and associate director, Kevin Nguyen, of the Center for Student Advocacy and Community to learn more about how the center operates, the ties between basic needs and student success and some of the center’s future goals. 

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Reporter Ashley Mowreader. Read a transcript of the podcast here.

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Ep. 126: Voices of Student Success: The Role of Belonging in Campus Conflict, Protests

Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023, colleges and universities have seen heightened tensions on campus as student protesters demand change from their administrators.

Anti-war protests on college campuses are not a new phenomenon, with many institutions seeing similar unrest during the 1960s during the Vietnam War. The University of South Carolina was one such institution, which saw a general unrest among its student body amid racial tensions, the anti-war movement and other institutional grievances which came to a head in May 1970.

The University of South Carolina took an unconventional approach to mitigate student frustrations, which included implementing a comprehensive University 101 course that infused feelings of belonging among participants. The initiative was largely successful, with the university experiencing no student riots for another 50 years.

In this episode, John Gardner, one of the professors who helped create the first-year seminar at USC and founder of the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education, reflects on the protests of the 70s and shares how campus leaders today can learn from the past.

Hosted by Inside Higher Ed Student Success Reporter Ashley Mowreader. Read a transcript of the podcast here.

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