Work Smarter Not Harder:
Breaking the Ice with
At-Risk Students
Dan Gockley
Director of Residence Life, Fairmont State University
Darlena Jones, Ph.D.
Director of Education and Program Development, EBI
How do you identify at-risk students?
Unsuccessful
Practices?
Ideas You’d
Like to Try?
Successful
Practices?
Identifying
At-Risk
Students
• Founded in 1994
• Over 1500 Colleges and Universities
worldwide
• MAP-Works implemented on over 100
campuses
MAP-Works Retention Platform
Motivate
Identify
Manage
Inform
Intervene &
Coordinate
The MAP-Works Process
• Student Profile Data
• Campus Resources
• Survey Data
• Alerts/Notes
• Social Norming
• Expectations
• Campus Resources
• Student Profile Data
• ERP Interface
(Banner, Peoplesoft,
Datatel, Jenzabar)
• BlackBoard, Building Block partner
• Talking Points
• Dashboard
• Share Notes/Alerts
• Coordinate Actions
•
•
•
•
Advisors
Residence Hall Staff
Seminar Instructors
Coaches
Quickly Navigate
Quickly Identify Students
Drill down to see
Johnathan’s Talking
Points…
Johnathan’s Risk
Indicator was Green,
now it’s yellow…
Quickly identify most
recent issues
Survey Rating is yellow
and he’s not strongly
committed to returning in
the Spring…
Poor academic self-efficacy,
low levels of academic
integration, experiencing
course difficulties…
Not highly confident in
obtaining the
tuitions/fees needed
Not socially integrating
or committed to the
institution
Not studying long enough,
poor time management
skills, weak academic
behaviors.
Keeping Track of Work
Allows Direct-Connects see the
interactions others are having
Utilize Everyone on Campus
Get everyone on campus involved
by allowing them to issue Alerts
when they have concerns
Collect Academic Info Quickly
Request instructors provide
immediate feedback on
performance
Information is instantly provided to
Direct-Connects for follow-up…
Effectiveness & Efficiency
Less Time Diagnosing
Less Time on the
Computer
More Time Helping
More Time
Helping Students
All Students Report - Shared Response
Target programming initiatives to
those in most need
All Students Report - Survey Snapshot
Aggregated information to
understand global trends.
Engage Students in Process
Written Student Report
Facebook / Portal
Take survey, download
report
Send emails or make
appointments…
Fairmont State University
Daniel Gockley
Who is Fairmont State University?
• College Stats
– Located in Fairmont, WV
– 4 Year, Public
– 4100 undergraduate
students
– 90% in-state students
– 98% full-time students
– 48% male / 52% female
– 51% of all first-year students live in college housing
MAP-Works at Fairmont State
– Fairmont State University was selected as one of three
institutions to pilot MAP-Works by the West Virginia
state Higher Education Policy Commission.
– Fairmont State University is co-located with Pierpont
Community & Technical College, and students from the
two institutions are mixed together in classes, in
residence halls, and in activities across campus.
– FSU and PC&TC were both interested in improving
retention efforts particularly due to the high percentage
of 1st generation college students attending both
institutions.
Implementation of MAP-Works
• Which students were involved?
– All first-time, first-year students at the institutions,
including part-time students. A total of 1376 students
were included in the Fall 2009 survey.
– All full-time first year students and transfer students
with fewer than 15 transfer credits. A total of 1538
students were included in the Fall 2010 survey.
• Which faculty/staff/departments were involved?
– Academic Affairs
– Residence Life
– Athletics
-Student Affairs
-Off-Campus Programs
-Financial Aid
Breaking the Ice
• Paraprofessional Staff Interventions
– Resident Assistants developed relationships encouraging students to
complete the survey.
– Resident Assistants utilized certain data elements for interventions.
• Faculty Interactions
– Faculty referred students in crisis
– Faculty utilized data to intervene with students.
• Student Behavior Interventions
– Student behaviors led to outreach efforts
• Conduct Processes
– Utilized student data during conduct meetings.
• Campus Intervention Teams
Intervention Challenges
• Meaningful Connections with Students
– Students often deflect or deny their challenges.
• Detailed Conversations
– Information helps overcome student resistance.
• Avoidance
• Timeliness of Interactions
– Intervene before there are academic consequences.
• Incomplete Information
– Students struggle with more than class work.
• Retainability
– Data helps identify which students can be retained.
• Reactive vs. Proactive
– Survey results facilitate a proactive approach.
Successful Interventions
• Early Intervention
• Relationships Determine Success
– Students will respond based upon their connections.
• Information = Foundation for Success
• Data Drives Planning and Decision-Making
– Plan programs to address student needs.
– Develop future budgets.
• Intervene at the Lowest Level
– Encourage resident assistants to utilize MAP-Works.
• Effective Interactions
– MAP-Works helps supervisors ensure interactions are
happening effectively.
Open Discussion
Discussion Points
• Does your campus have a culture of retention?
Have your faculty bought in?
• How do you train your staff to reach out to
students who are struggling?
• What transition factors (e.g., homesickness, time
management, etc.) do you focus on?
Discussion / Questions
Dan Gockley, dan.gockley@fairmontstate.edu
Darlena Jones, Darlena@webebi.com