The Power of Student Voices:
Revisiting the Freshman Learning
Community Experience
Nannette Commander
AVP for Recruitment & Retention
Carolyn Codamo
Director, Freshmen Learning Communities
Teresa Ward
Research Associate, Institutional Research
Georgia State University
1
What Prompted Creation of the Learning
Community Program in 1999?
2

RESEARCH UNIVERSITY: 27,000 students – 30% graduate, diverse,
urban (in the heart of Atlanta), 2,500 beds

GOAL: Produce an undergraduate student body reflective of a top 100
research university/become more student friendly

RAPID GROWTH: 5,000 students since 1998

CHANGE IN STUDENT POPULATION: sharp increase in entrance
requirements when Georgia State designated a research university in
1995, became much more traditional with respect to student population

OTHER CHALLENGES: low retention, graduation rates, and
performance on NSSE
Freshmen Learning Communities (FLCs)
3

OVERVIEW: 25 students take five courses together centered around
a theme (Cluster Model)

THEMES VARY: Pre-med, Law and Society, Internet and the
Information Age, Quantitative Sciences, Strategic Thinking and
Learning

FLC COURSES: General Education Core Courses that apply to any
major; Linked curses and Integration of the curriculum

ANCHOR COURSE IN EACH FLC: GSU 1010 New Student
Orientation Course (70% Academic Theme, 30% Orientation Topics)

GSU 1010 INSTRUCTORS: 60% Taught By Tenure-Track and
Senior Faculty Members of the University
Growth of FLCs
4

FLC started Fall 1999: 11 communities & 295
students (16% of freshmen class)

Fall, 2007: 55 communities & 1, 375 students
(54% of freshmen class)
Recognition of FLC Program
5

Cited by US News & World Report for last six years
as a model program that leads to academic success

Recipient of the Best Practices 2005 Competition
sponsored by the Board of Regents of the
University System of Georgia in the category of
Academic Affairs
Outcomes of FLCs
Collected quantitative data for 8 years that mirror national
findings on the positive impact of FLCs
GPA


1st term GPA significantly higher (p<.001)
Cumulative GPA usually higher even after 2+ years
Retention


Greater Freshmen to Sophomore retention (7-8%) for FLC cohort
Significantly greater retention (6-8%) 2-4 years out
Progress towards graduation

More hours earned per semester
Graduation rates

6
4 year graduation rate 3.3% higher
Where is the Student Perspective?
7

Conducted the focus groups in order to bring life
to student experiences and perspectives on
Learning Communities

Purpose of focus groups is to feature and hear the
voices of students
Investigated Influence of
FLC Membership on:




8
Student/Professor Connections
Student Collaboration
Engagement with University and the City
Friendships
Student/Professor Connections



9
Most participants indicated one of most
important outcomes of FLC experience
Noted that professors encouraged them to
reach out to other professors
Some former FLC members are still in contact
with their FLC professors
Student/Professor Connections
“My GSU 1010 teacher stressed
‘be visible’ so that the professor
could put a name with the face.
The thing about teachers your
first semester is that they sort of
lay a foundation. They were
understanding, caring,
nurturing.”
“’Get to know your
professor’ was a buzz
phrase.”
10
“My FLC instructor always
told us that it is better for the
professor to know you. Helped
encourage us into making
sure we’re known in class.”
“The FLC really helped
me. Our professor
bought us pizza every
week. It was cool. He
brought other faculty in
and introduced us to
people we should know.
It helped me get a
student assistant job.”
Student Collaboration
11

All focus group participants cited ability to
collaborate with other students as a significant
aspect of the FLC experience

Collaboration enhanced study skills and
contributed to networking ability
Student Collaboration
“Networking with other groups, that was important and I’ve
kept that up. It broke down the barrier of working with people
I didn’t know.”
“It enhanced our study skills. One
of the girls became my best friend.
We developed study groups
together. And even though we have
different majors, we still come back
and tell each other what we
learned.”
“It helped me study better because I had
people with different study habits better
than mine, and I adapted those study
habits to do better on tests.”
“…it gave you a group of
people to go to class
with and we studied
together.
“We helped each
other develop the
study skills I can
utilize today.”
12
Engagement with University/City
13

Majority of participants believed membership
in FLC offered opportunity to learn the
university

Participants believed they were more
knowledgeable than non-FLC students about
the University and resources available to them
Engagement with University/City
“It did help me become
acquainted to the University
in a way I wouldn’t have if I
hadn’t joined. It helped me
familiarize myself with the
campus. It’s so spread out
and scattered.”
“At the time, I didn’t think
the FLC helped me to
become more familiar with
GSU, but some of my friends
who didn’t do a FLC, to this
day, don’t know where stuff
is.”
14
“The FLC was a
huge help
getting to know
the campus. The
scavenger hunt
seemed
pointless at the
time, but now I
understand.”
“It made me feel like I wanted
to go to more activities. I
probably wouldn’t have
engaged in other activities if I
hadn’t been in an FLC.”
“The FLC definitely helped
me to become more familiar
with GSU and Atlanta. In my
GSU 1010, we took a small
tour of Atlanta, the Rialto,
CNN Center, Centennial
Park. It made the city more
intimate and less
intimidating.”
Friendships



15
Cohort structure one of the most important
components of the FLC program
Relationships established in FLC helped with
developing more social skills, having more academic
support and feeling more comfortable with university
and urban environment
For most, friendships developed as FLC members
endured throughout their university career
Friendships
“In my FLC everybody was close-knit. We were all
going in the same direction and we’re taking
classes together now. For the most part, we keep
in contact.”
“I’m still good friends with people
in my group. We were able to go to
class together and hang out
outside of class. That made it
easier to build relationships. It’s
made us better friends today. We
see each other say, ‘Do you
remember the days in the FLC?’”
“I had a permanent study-buddy for two
years. It was a real comfort knowing that I
had a person I could study with. We still
have a strong relationship, even after the
semester.”
“I still talk to many of the
people in my FLC. We
talk in class and ask if
they want to study.”
“I still stay in
contact with
everyone I was close
to in my FLC.”
16
Number of Respondents and Response Rates

NSSE 2005 (Response rate: FY=25% and SR=26%)
FLC Members
First-Year - 133
Seniors - 32
Non-FLC Members
First-Year - 236
Seniors – 784

NSSE 2007 (Response rate: FY=20% and SR=27%)
FLC Members
First-Year - 234
Seniors - 71
Non-FLC Members
First-Year - 225
Seniors - 586
2007 NSSE FLC Experimental Items Survey
First-Year - 174
Seniors - 60

17
Survey of Recent Graduates - Fall 2006 through Fall 2007 (Average Response Rate = 52.2%)
FLC Members - 240
Non-FLC Members - 2077
STUDENT/PROFESSOR
CONNECTIONS
Talked about career plans with a
faculty member or advisor
FLC
No
Yes
2005 NSSE
2007 NSSE
FY
SR
FY
SR
M Sig. M Sig. M Sig. M Sig.
1.90
2.10
1.80 * 2.25
1.89
2.48
1.97
2.25
Worked with faculty members on
activities other than coursework
(committees, orientation, student
life activities, etc.)
FLC
No
Yes
1.39
1.57
*
1.55
2.03
1.38 **
1.60
1.61
1.79
*p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001
Survey of Recent Graduates
Worked with faculty members on activities other
than coursework
18
FLC
No
Yes
M
Sig.
1.96
2.17
STUDENT COLLABORATION
Worked with classmates
No
OUTSIDE OF CLASS to prepare FLC Yes
class assignments
Institutional contribution:
Working effectively with others
*p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001
19
FLC
No
Yes
2005 NSSE
2007 NSSE
Class
Class
FY
SR
FY
SR
M Sig. M Sig. M Sig. M Sig.
2.18 ** 2.61
2.04 *** 2.66
2.45
2.84
2.38
2.80
2.64 *** 2.97
3.03
3.07
2.72 ** 3.04
2.97
3.13
STUDENT ENGAGEMENT with UNIVERSITY
Hours per 7-day week spent
participating in co-curricular
activities.
FLC No
Yes
2005 NSSE
2007 NSSE
FY
SR
FY
SR
M Sig. M Sig. M Sig. M Sig.
1.81
1.53
1.74
1.58 ***
1.71
2.03
1.93
2.06
Attending campus events and
activities.
FLC No
Yes
2.43 ** 2.18
2.78
2.20
2.29 *** 2.27
2.79
2.56
*
Hours per 7-day week spent
working for pay ON campus
FLC No
Yes
1.28
1.33
1.31
1.27
*
1.41
2.00
1.50
1.85
*p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001
M
Survey of Recent Graduates
20
Attended campus events relevant to my academic interests
FLC
Attended athletic events at Georgia State University
FLC
No
Yes
No
Yes
Sig.
2.45 ***
2.80
1.55 ***
2.01
STUDENT ENGAGEMENT with CITY
Community service or volunteer
work
FLC No
Yes
2005 NSSE
2007 NSSE
FY
SR
FY
SR
M Sig. M Sig. M Sig. M Sig.
.295 *** .453
.332 *** .483 ***
.545
.633
.492
.723
Participated in a communitybased project as part of a regular
course
FLC No
Yes
1.43 *** 1.55
1.87
1.65
1.45 *** 1.47
1.95
1.68
Contributing to the welfare of
your community
FLC No
Yes
2.06 ** 2.16
2.34
2.40
2.10 *** 2.17 **
2.54
2.56
*p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001
21
*
STUDENT FRIENDSHIPS
Providing the support you need to FLC No
Yes
thrive socially
FLC No
Encouraging contact among
Yes
students from different economic,
social, and racial or ethnic
backgrounds
2.59 *** 2.48
2.73
3.09
2.62 *** 2.42
2.68
3.00
FLC No
Yes
4.81 ** 5.20
5.40
5.29
5.05 **
5.43
Quality: Your relationships with
other students
*p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001
22
2007 NSSE
2005 NSSE
SR
FY
SR
FY
M Sig. M Sig. M Sig. M Sig.
1.93 **
2.15
2.01 ** 1.92
2.23
2.31
2.17
2.29
5.21
5.51
DIVERSITY
Understanding people of other
racial and ethnic backgrounds
*p<.05, **p<.01, ***p<.001
FLC
No
Yes
2005 NSSE
2007 NSSE
Class
Class
FY
SR
FY
SR
M Sig. M Sig. M Sig. M Sig.
2.70 ** 2.69
2.67 *** 2.71 **
3.04
3.17
3.04
3.11
Survey of Recent Graduates
4 .
0 0
3 .
0 0
2 .
0 0
1 .
0 0
4 . 3 4
23
FLC
5 .
0 0
e a n
0 0
4 .
0 0
M
5 .
3 .
0 0
2 .
0 0
4 . 3 4
M
e a n
Degree of competency: Get along with people of other racial/ethnic backgrounds
.
No n - F LC
( En t e r i n g
.
G S U)
4 . 7 3
FLC
4 . 6 7
. No n - F L C
( Ex i t i n g
.
G S U)
NSSE FLC EXPERIMENTAL ITEMS
Student/Professor
Connections
Student Engagement
City
Student Collaboration
Student Friendships
Student Engagement
University
Diversity
24
CONTACT INFORMATION
25

Dr. Nannette Commander, AVP- Recruitment and Retention:
ncommander@gsu.edu

Dr. Carolyn Codamo, Director Learning Communities:
ccodamo@gsu.edu

Dr. Teresa Ward, Research Associate, Institutional Research:
tward@gsu.edu