Supporting the Achievement and
Success of At-Risk Students
CSU East Bay
April 26, 2005
tom@tbrownassociates.com
www.tbrownassociates.com
Increasing numbers of students
will arrive at college ill-prepared
academically and psychologically
for the challenges of college life.
If these students are to have a
reasonable chance for success
they will need a campus
environment conducive to meeting
their special needs…
…and educators with the
sensitivity necessary to support
them.
Harold Hodgkinson
All One System: Demographics of Education,
Kindergarten to Graduate School. 1985
If we can develop a formula
that empowers us to better
retain “at risk” students, we
will better retain students in
general….
Professor Barbara Paige
CSUEB Department of Ethnic Studies
March 4, 2004
Treating everyone the same
may be equal treatment,
but it may not be equitable
treatment.
A Principle:
Human beings seek to
economize on the energy
required to make
distinctions.
Example:
Most houseplants die
because we treat them all
the same.
The interactions students have in
the academic and social domains
are critical to their satisfaction,
achievement and success.
Professor Vincent Tinto, Syracuse
Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and
Cures of Student Attrition
The most consistently
structured, regularly
scheduled and socially
standardized human contact
on most campuses is facultystudent interaction, which is
the major vehicle by which
learning is facilitated.
The more interaction
students have with faculty
and staff, the more likely
they are to learn effectively
and persist toward
achievement of their
educational goals.
Perhaps the greatest inequity
on our nation’s campuses is
the unequal ability students
have to get others interested in
them.
Professor Robert Keegan
Harvard University
The Evolving Self, 1983
Institutions are far more likely
to attribute attrition to student
characteristics than to
institutional characteristics.
What Works In Student Retention, 2004
We build beautiful campuses,
 We hire distinguished faculty,
 We develop a challenging
curriculum…
then the “wrong” students show up!
Dr. Betty Siegel, President
Kennesaw State University
What happens to students
after they enroll frequently
has a more powerful impact
on whether they stay and
achieve their goals or leave.
Tinto 1987, 1993
Feelings of marginality often
occur when individuals take on
new roles, especially when they
are uncertain about what the new
role entails.
Marginality is the experience of
not fitting in….
Nancy Schlossberg, 1989 Marginality and
Mattering: Key Issues in Building Community
Many students who leave
college do so as the result
of experiences they have
during the first six weeks.
Astin, Tinto, Cowart
To achieve success with highrisk students in the 21st
century, social support
through advising and
counseling are a necessary
part of the equation.
High Risk Students and Higher Education:
Future Trends, ASHE-ERIC Digest
Making the Most of College
Good advising may be the
single most underestimated
characteristic of a successful
college experience.
Professor Richard Light,
Harvard University, 2001
We understand the
relationship between good
advising and retention….
CSU Hayward
Plan for Facilitating Student
Progress to the Baccalaureate Degree
November 2003
Teaching and advising need
to be part of a seamless
process, sharing the same
intellectual sphere,
informed by a relatively
consistent educational
philosophy.
Robert M. Berdahl, Historian and President
University of Texan at Austin
“Teaching Through Academic Advising:
A Faculty Perspective,” 1995
Questions to consider
during this session…
How can we better identify and
support students who may be
at-risk?
What existing offices, programs,
services, and people need to
collaborate in support of specific
at-risk groups?
What new strategies, programs
or interventions might be
needed?
Some at-risk groups in education
Adult
and re-entry students
First-generation students
Students of color
Student with disabilities
Student Athletes
Undecided/non-curricular students
First-year Students
Underprepared Students
Transfer Students
Some at-risk groups in education
Adult
and re-entry students
First-generation students
Students of color
Student with disabilities
Student Athletes
Undecided/non-curricular students
First-year Students
Underprepared Students
Transfer Students
Some at-risk groups in education
Adult
and re-entry students
First-generation students
Students of color
Student with disabilities
Student Athletes
Undecided/non-curricular students
First-year Students
Underprepared Students
Transfer Students
CSUEB Student Age Distribution
24 and younger
62.8%
25 and older
37.1%
Source: CSUH Fact Book, 2004
Adult students often
“recycle” through
developmental issues faced
by younger students.
Chickering and Reisser, 1993
Adult students
1. The Impostor
2. The Roadrunner
3. Cultural Suicide
Stephen Brookfield
Diverse Populations:
Summary of Characteristics
and Techniques for
Advising.
Susan Frost
Academic Advising for
Student Success, 1991
Adult Students
Key characteristics
Most work full or part time
Family responsibilities a
priority
Less involvement with
campus life
Managing multiple roles
Varied life experiences
Time challenged
Low self concept based on
previous academic
experiences
Adult Students
Key characteristics
Most work full or part time
Family responsibilities a
priority
Less involvement with
campus life
Managing multiple roles
Varied life experiences
Time challenged
Low self concept based on
previous academic
experiences
Advising techniques
Understand issues of adult
development
Understand purpose and
goals
Assist in forming campus
connections
Encourage academic
planning
Encourage balance of
academic and personal
issues/
Be willing to act as an
advocate
What services, programs and
interventions are needed by adult
students?
What existing campus offices
need to collaborate in support of
adult students?
What new strategies,
programs or interventions
might be needed?
Some at-risk groups in education
Adult
and re-entry students
First-generation students
Students of color
Student with disabilities
Student Athletes
Undecided/non-curricular students
First-year Students
Underprepared Students
Transfer Students
Forty percent of new students are
the first in their families to attend
college. (National Center for Education Statistics,
1996, 1998, 2001)
Often, they are not as
academically or socially prepared
as others and are prone to drop
out.
Watson Scott Swail, President
Educational Policy Institute
Chronicle of Higher Education, 1/19/04
The unfamiliar “world of college”
can be a daunting experience for
new students, especially firstgeneration students, who are
unable to draw on the experiences
of parents or relatives.
US Title V Grant Program
Rationale for Implementation Strategy
First Generation students
Key characteristics
Increasing levels of
enrollment
Lack of family “guides”
Issues of “representing”
Conflict between family
and academics
Lacking information about
career preparation
Often have collaborative
vs. individual
orientations
Non-academic Challenges for
First-Generation Students
Straddling
two cultures: home/family vs.
college/university
Experiencing changes in family and
personal relationships
Adapting to a more competitive
academic setting
Feelings of not belonging or feeling
excluded.
Texas Tech PEGASUS Program
Non-academic Challenges for
First-Generation Students
Learning
how to negotiate a [large]
campus system
Having family and friends who don’t
understand the demands of college
and/or who may be unsupportive of
students’ decisions to attend
Feeling overwhelmed
Living on and managing a tight budget
Orientation and transition
programs are critical for new
students and their families.
This is especially true for first
generation students.
Facilitating parent involvement
and providing means for keeping
parents informed can help to
maintain familial ties that are so
important to students.
First-Year College Experiences of Students
From Migrant Farmworker Families,
Journal of the First Year Experience, 2004
Following identified as critical to
student success….
Continuous
contact throughout the first
semester/year.
Referrals to sources of assistance and
support.
Outreach to help students feel
comfortable on campus.
Opportunities to meet and interact with
students with similar academic and social
concerns.
Texas Tech PEGASUS Program
First Generation students
Key characteristics
Increasing levels of
enrollment
Lack of family “guides”
Issues of “representing”
Conflict between family
and academics
Lacking information about
career preparation
Often have collaborative
vs. individual
orientations
Effective strategies
Awareness of issues and
challenges and strengths
Take early initiative to
establish relationship
Encourage full participation
in campus life
Connect with campus and
community resources
Be willing to act as an
advocate
Connect with role models
and mentors
Encourage maintaining
connections with family,
community
How can we better identify and
support students who are first
generation?
What existing offices, programs,
services, and people need to
collaborate in support of first
generation students?
What new strategies, programs
or interventions might be
needed?
Some at-risk groups in education
Adult
and re-entry students
First-generation students
Students of color
Student with disabilities
Student Athletes
Undecided/non-curricular students
First-year Students
Underprepared Students
Transfer Students
"Effective participation by
members of all racial and
ethnic groups in the civic life
of our nation is essential if the
dream of one nation,
indivisible, is to be realized…."
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor
Gruter v. Bollinger
June 23, 2003
California Population Growth
1995-2025
2000
2050
(thousands)
Asian Pacific
American
3,380
8,564
Black
2,184
2,680
Hispanic/Latino
9,206
21,232
White
16,630
16,626
US Census Bureau, 1996
Students of Color
The number of minority students
attending American colleges and
universities jumped 48% in the
1990s, with all minorities posting
double digit gains.
American Council on Education, 2002
By 2015…
In California, the number of
minority students will
exceed the numbers of
white students….
CSUEB Student Profiles
Students of Color*
White Students
Fall 2000
Fall 2004
51.8%
26.1%
53.0
24.8
*Asian Pacific American, Black, Indian/Alaskan Native,
Hispanic/Latino
CSUH Fact Book, 2004
CSUEB Student Profiles
Fall 2004
Students of Color
White Students
53.0
24.8
Other
16.6
CSUH Fact Book, 2004
Access to higher education continues
to be problematic for American Indian,
Black, Latino, and many Asian Pacific
American students. Even when they
are admitted to college, attrition
studies find them withdrawing as
higher rates, and they are far less
likely to achieve their educational
goals than their white peers….
“Academic Advising for Student Success & Retention.”
Mario Rivas and Tom Brown, 1997
CSUEB Retention-Graduation Rates
1995
2001
Asian Pacific American
White
Hispanic/Latino
Black
57%
52
43
31
57%
50
46
22
Total
50
47
CSUH Fact Book, 2004
Although an increasing number
of American Indians are
enrolling in college, the
percentage of those attaining
bachelor’s degrees remains
relatively low—11%, compared
with more than 24% of the
general population….
American Indians have the highest
dropout rate among minority
groups [and] must overcome
family pressures, poverty, a weak
high school education [and]
assimilate to a campus culture
much different from their own.
For American Indians, the Keys to College
Chronicle of Higher Education, 7/23/04
Latino students are more
likely to attend schools
segregated by race and
poverty, and there is strong
evidence that Latino
students have difficult
hurdles to overcome in the
quest to achieve quality
education.
Latino Education: Status and Prospects
State of Hispanic America, 1998
National Council of La Raza
In spite of their high propensity
toward college attendance, not all
Asian Americans are high
achievers in education. The
popular stereotype of “model
minority” has had an adverse
impact on Asian American youth,
especially those from poor and
non-English speaking
backgrounds.
The State of Asian Pacific America, 1993
Asian American Public Policy Institute
UCLA Asian American Studies Center
Asians reflect both the highest and lowest
levels of academic achievement….Hmong,
Cambodians, and Pacific Islanders have
some of the lowest academic achievement
and high school graduation rates, while
Chinese and Japanese have some of the
highest.
Higher Education Issues in the Asian American Community
Suzuki, 1994
All ethnic groups in this
nation are an aggregate of
many distinct subgroups.
Asian Pacific American Groups
Asian Indian Chinese Filipino
Guamanian
Hawaiian Hmong
Japanese Korean
Laotian
Pakistani Samoan Thai
Vietnamese
Philippines:
7000 islands
100 languages
Principle:
Diversity in Diversity
Diversity in Diversity:
Latino/Hispanic
Twenty Spanish and Portuguese speaking
countries in the Western Hemisphere.
Often “Latino” is used in contrast to
others who are not Spanish speaking.
Often identify based on country of origin
(e.g., Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba).
Diversity in Diversity:
American Indian
545 Tribal groups recognized by the US
government.
250+ languages spoken.
Many identify as members of a specific
tribal group and may not consider
members of other groups as “Indians.”
Wells, 1989
Diversity in Diversity: Black
Is the “Black” student US born, or from a
Haitian, West Indian, or African immigrant
family?
As with all groups, it is important to make
distinctions based on socio-economic
class, gender, and other elements.
Most Black and Hispanic students
are enrolled in high schools where
they can’t get prepared for
college. [Their schools] don’t
have the necessary courses at the
right level to get students
prepared.
Metropolitan Opportunity Project
University of Chicago, 1988
Quality interaction with
faculty seems to be more
important that any other
single college factor in
determining minority
student persistence.
Levin and Levin
University of Wisconsin
1991
African American students are
more likely to find faculty
members remote,
discouraging, and
unsympathetic.
“Exploring
Distinctions in Types of Faculty Interactions
Among Black, Latino/a, and White College Students.”
Cole and Anaya, 2001.
Transforming Students Through
Validation
Success
appears to be contingent on
whether [faculty, staff] can validate
students in an academic or
interpersonal way.
Even
the most non-traditional students
can be transformed into powerful
learners through in- and out-of-class
academic or interpersonal validation.
Dr. Laura Rendon, 1994
Hope is a better predictor of first
semester college grades than SAT
scores.
University of Kansas study
HOPE…
Believing you have the will and the
way to accomplish your goals,
whatever they may be.
Optimism is a better predictor of firstyear college grades than SAT scores or
high school grades.
Martin Seligman,University of Pennsylvania
OPTIMISM…
Having a strong expectation that things
will turn out all right, despite setbacks
and frustrations.
“I looked around this beautiful, lush rich
campus and thought, ‘What the hell am I
doing here?’ It’s only a matter of time
before they realize that I am not one of
them. I am not rich. I don’t have a
loving family to go home to on holidays.
I have foster parents who don’t want me,
a stepdad in prison, and a dead mother.
And, I am not smart. I scored 580 on my
SATs….”
Professor Tammy Ramos
BA and BS, St. Mary’s College of California
JD, Notre Dame Law School
The Pomp of Graduation After
Overcoming Difficult Circumstances
New York Times, June 14, 2000
The [students] who make it under
a variety of circumstances have
key features in common—most
notably relationships with
confident, competent adults who
believe in them.
Ann S. Masten, University of Minnesota
Students of Color
Key characteristics
Often first generation
Minority for first time
Often have low self
concept & issues of
faculty expectations
Academic integration
impacts achievement
Inadequate preparation
Lack of campus role
models
Students of Color
Key characteristics
Often first generation
Minority for first time
Often have low self
concept & issues of
faculty expectations
Academic integration
impacts achievement
Inadequate preparation
Lack of campus role
models
Advising techniques
Take initiative to
connect and validate
Encourage involvement
Encourage use of
campus resources
Avoid stereotypical
attitudes & behaviors
Understand identity
development
Connect to role models
What services, programs and
interventions are needed by
students of color?
What existing campus offices
need to collaborate in support of
students of color?
What new strategies,
programs or interventions
might be needed?
Some at-risk groups in education
First-generation
students
Adult and re-entry students
Students of color
Student with disabilities
Student Athletes
Undecided/non-curricular students
First-year Students
Underprepared Students
Transfer Students
Increasing numbers of students will
arrive at college ill prepared
academically and psychologically
for the challenges of college life. If
these students are to have a
reasonable chance for success they
will need a campus environment
conducive to meeting their special
needs…
…and educators with the
sensitivity necessary to
support them.
Harold Hodgkinson
All one system: Demographics of Education,
kindergarten to graduate school. 1985
Although 74% of US high
school graduates go to
college,
only 47% have fully completed
a college prep curriculum.
Greater Expectations, AACU, 2002
The California State University system
failed to meet its goal of having about
three quarters of its entering freshman
in 2004 prepared for college work….
The report showed that nearly half of
freshmen were not ready for collegelevel English, and more than one-third
were unprepared for college-level
math.
Chronicle of Higher Education, 3/16/05
Students’ academic
preparedness is down on a
variety of measures, but
students’ confidence in their
abilities is higher than ever.
Hansen, 1998
Do students have a realistic
understanding of the demands of
courses?
Students are not realistic about the
amount of time that is truly required
OUTSIDE the classroom in order to be
a successful student.
Survey of Faculty, 2001-2004
Do students understand what
is required to be successful?
How many hours did you spend studying or
doing homework during a typical week in
your last year of high school?
7%
More than 15 hours
66%
Five hours or less
38%
studied less than two hours a
week!!
2003 Freshman Survey
Most students are never taught
how to study. We call it the
“hidden curriculum.”
Marcy Fallon
University of Maryland, 2002
Preparing for a “big test”
a prayer—that’s what I do.
Eat lots of peanut butter or other “brain
foods.”
Listen to Enya the night before a test.
Say
University of Utah
Chronicle of Higher Education
December 6, 2002
A Definition of Underpreparedness
A student whose skills,
knowledge, and motivation are
significantly below those of the
“typical” student in the college or
program in which s/he is enrolled.
Maxwell, 1997
Students may be
underprepared in one or more
areas and competent in others.
Finding the match between
goals, background, interests is
an important part of the work
of advisors.
The major inhibitor to possible
success for the underprepared
student is the psychological
distance that most faculty
maintain between themselves
and their students.
Spann, Spann, and Confer. 1995
Many non-traditional students
want their doubts erased about
their being capable of learning….
This is especially true for first
generation students, Hispanic and
African American students….
Laura Rendon, 1994
Dispositional Barriers
Undermining
attributions
Ego involvement
Reluctance to seek assistance
Academic Achievement Attributions
 Ability
 Time
and Effort
 Task
Difficulty
 Luck
Bernard Weiner, 1972, 1977
Ability or Effort?
By the time students reach high
school, they generally believe
that ability is a relatively fixed,
unchangeable capacity.
British Journal of
Developmental Psychology
1983
Power of Attributions
The causes to which students
attribute their successes and
failures has an important impact
on subsequent performance.
Jeff Hooper and Ray Hammond
“Rumors of Inferiority”
New Republic, 1985
Shift attributions from
ability to background.
Students’ attributions and
those of faculty and staff.
Dispositional Barriers
Undermining
attributions
Ego involvement
Reluctance to seek assistance
Much of what can go wrong with
achievement—e.g., irrational goal
setting, overweening anxiety—is
the product of ego involvement
brought on by normative
comparisons to others.
Nichols, 1978, 1984
EGO INVOLVEMENT
Undermining
negative beliefs about lack of ability
(shame/doubt)
Interpreting task difficulty as too high/hard
(helpless/hopeless)
Comparing self to an idealized reference group
(peers, classmates, siblings)
CHANGE/REFRAME TO
TASK INVOLVEMENT
Reframe ability to consider background/level of preparation
Alter explanations for failure from low ability to inadequate effort and/or
ineffective strategies
Present strategy as a resource not a capacity
0 – 100% Competence
Advising/Teaching Method

Review student’s academic record and
learning history, looking for strengths and
weaknesses.

Help student to define personal, educational,
and career goals and skills needed to achieve
these goals.

Assess the student’s skill level in areas
identified as essential to achievement.
Mario Rivas, 1988, 1990
0 – 100% Competence
Advising/Teaching Method

Establish competency level student will seek
to achieve (0-100%).

Identify curricular, co-curricular, experiential,
and community learning experiences
(strategies) that will enable student to
develop skills.

Review and evaluate progress toward goal
achievement and skills development.
Mario Rivas,1988, 1990
Dispositional Barriers
Undermining
attributions
Ego involvement
Reluctance to seek assistance
At-risk students have difficulty:
Recognizing that a problem exists
Asking for help once they realize that
they have a problem
Asking for help in time for the
assistance to be of benefit
Professors Mary E. Levin and Joel R. Levin
University of Wisconsin - Madison
At-risk students must be
challenged and supported
to develop academic and
non-academic skills and
competencies associated
with success in college.
Intrusive Advising
Intrusive advising means taking a
personal interest in students and
approaching them with an open caring
attitude.
A personal relationship with a
concerned member of the campus
community can reduce the
psychological distance that hinders
academic integration.
Intrusive Advising
Intrusive advising does not mean
“hand holding” or parenting. Rather,
it does mean active concern with the
students academic preparation and a
willingness to assist them explore
programs and service to improve their
skills and motivate them to complete
their program.
Intrusive Advising
Early outreach is the key to effective
support for at-risk students.
Working effectively with at-risk students
means that we must insist on regular
contact whether students think they need it
or not.
Spann and VanDett
It is important to provide
at-risk students with early
opportunities for success.
Susan Frost
Strategies That Work
Proactive
intervention
Target services for specific
populations
Encourage formation of support
groups (including study groups)
Encourage utilization of campus
resources
Use technology to deliver services
Goethe
Knowing is not enough
We must APPLY.
Willing is not enough
We must DO.
Escalante Equation
SUCCESS=
Commitment
+
Determination
+
HARD WORK
Time
Supporting the Achievement and
Success of At-Risk Students
CSU East Bay
April 26, 2005
tom@tbrownassociates.com
www.tbrownassociates.com