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Albany State University Campus Plan Update 2021

INSTITUTIONAL MISSION AND STUDENT BODY PROFILE

Albany State University offers certificate programs, transfer associate degrees, career associate degrees, bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees and the education specialist degree.  Students may take classes through online instruction while face-to-face classes are offered on two campuses located in the city of Albany, GA and three off-site locations in Cordele, Cairo and Waycross, GA.

The mission of Albany State University, approved by the BOR in March 2016, is as follows:

Albany State University, a proud member institution of the University System of Georgia, elevates its community and region by offering a broad array of graduate, baccalaureate, associate, and certificate programs at its main campuses in Albany as well as at strategically-placed branch sites and online.

Committed to excellence in teaching and learning, the University prepares students to be effective contributors to a globally diverse society, where knowledge and technology create opportunities for personal and professional success. ASU respects and builds on the historical roots of its institutional predecessors with its commitment to access and a strong liberal arts heritage that respects diversity in all its forms and gives all students the foundation they need to succeed. Through creative scholarship, research, and public service, the University’s faculty, staff, students, and administrators form strategic alliances internally and externally to promote community and economic development, resulting in an improved quality of life for the citizens of southwest Georgia and beyond.

ASU’s total enrollment for the fall 2020 semester was 6,509 with 49% (3,168) of students enrolled in an associate, bachelor or certificate program.  Approximately 72% of the total headcount are female, 77% self-identify as African American, and the average student age is 23.  On-campus student housing reached capacity at 1,897 residents.  The majority of ASU students, 91%, are in-state residents.

FALL 2020 STUDENT PROFILE SUMMARY

Student Classification

Fall 2020

Fall 2019

Fall 2018

Fall 2017

% Change from 2019 to 2020

Dual Enrolled

245

349

419

425

-29.8%

Freshman

2,439

2,341

2,515

2,434

4.2%

Sophomore

1,489

1,277

1,182

1,395

16.4%

Junior

1,017

891

974

1,046

14.1%

Senior

856

885

864

884

-3.3%

Other Undergraduates*

58

35

47

78

65.7%

Graduate

407

344

370

353

18.3%

Total

6,509

6,122

6,371

6,651

6.3%

*Other Undergraduates includes transient, and post-baccalaureates students

ASU Enrollment

Fall 2020

Fall 2019

Fall 2018

Fall 2017

Male

27.6%

27.1%

27.6%

28.9%

Female

72.4%

71.9%

72.4%

71.1%

         

African American/Black

77.3%

74.5%

72.5%

69.9%

White

11.5%

13.8%

16.1%

22.0%

Other

11.2%

11.7%

11.4%

8.1%

         

Full Time

68.2%

69.8%

68.5%

61.9%

Part Time

31.8%

30.2%

31.5%

38.1%

         

Average Age

23

23

24

24

         

Certificate

0.2%

0.2%

0.2%

0.3%

Associates

48.4%

53.6%

53.6%

53.4%

Bachelors

45.1%

40.6%

40.4%

41.0%

Graduate

6.3%

5.6%

5.8%

5.3%

Total

100%

100.0%

100%

100%

 

Enrolled Undergraduate Student Average Credit Hours (Fall)

2020

2019

2018

2017

15 credits or more

24.6%

32.6%

29.3%

25.2%

Less than 15 credits

75.4%

67.4%

70.7%

74.8%

ASU First-Time Freshmen Summary Data

ASU First-Time Freshmen Students

Fall 2020

Fall 2019

Fall 2018

Fall 2017

% Change

Total

1,444

1,427

1,626

1,506

1.2%

First-Time Full-Time Freshmen Retention Rate

 

Fall 2015 Cohort

Fall 2016 Cohort

Fall 2017 Cohort

Fall 2018 Cohort

Fall 2019 Cohort

First-Time Full-Time Student

1,193

791

1,378

1,517

1,322

Number Retained

656

499

768

929

938

One-Year Retention Rate

55.0%

63.1%

55.4%

61.2%

71.0%

Number Retained

447

351

518

730

 

Two-Year Retention Rate

37.5%

44.4%

37.4%

48.1%

 

Pell Grant Recipients (Fall 2020)          3,509    57.5% of Total Undergraduate Enrollment

Enrolled in Learning Support Courses (Fall 2020) 710   11.6% of Total Undergraduate Enrollment

IMPROVEMENT PRACTICES

Albany State University continues to provide opportunities that impact students from matriculation through graduation.  The continuation and enhancement of Momentum Year initiatives, alongside the implementation of additional activities, deepen ASU’s commitment to promote purposeful choice, cultivate a productive academic mindset, and support persistence along a clear pathway.  ASU uses data to gain useful insights and to inform our work to create and improve activities, while also paying focus to identified KPIs that bridge the institution’s mission, strategic plan, and Momentum Approach. 

Following the updating of program maps to align the appropriate math course required and to ensure students complete English and math in the first 30 hours to timely navigate programs, academic colleges partner with an Academic Programming Committee to review and pressure test program maps for relevancy and sustainability.  The purpose to cross-check the accuracy of maps to real-time course offerings is to support the elimination of scheduling conflicts, where possible.  To remain proactive, pressure testing incorporates assessment checkpoints to ensure a planned-for process.  Additionally, ASU initiated block scheduling in the fall 2019 semester to ensure course availability for incoming freshmen according to the program maps.  ASU is also continuing the adopted move to the co-requisite model for Learning Support classes in both English and mathematics.

Academic Affairs and Enrollment Management & Student Success employ a student success management system to analyze and review data as it relates to appointment and visit reporting, campaigning for academic and student support services, intervention and at-risk reporting, progress reporting, and student data reporting.  Analytics also benefit effectiveness reporting of interventions on academic progress and the review and analysis of population and sub-population data, intervention effectiveness, historical trend analysis, and overall activity visualization and reporting, supporting the efforts of the institution while aiding in developing applicable outcome improvement and a better understanding of the work being done at the University.  Additionally, planning and reporting tools benefit the improvement of activities and further inform the University, as relevant historical data feeds to the planning and execution of deployed and improved processes and activities.  Benchmarking and early intervention efforts also highlight Momentum data and activity planning, advance the breakdown of barriers in access and achievement opportunities for students, scale student support campaigning and progress reporting, and support momentum and persistence efforts at the institution.

Improvement practices at the institution engage a broad audience to support Momentum activities and positive student success outcomes.  The Momentum Approach is adopted campus-wide and strategies are a shared responsibility.  Engagement with various campus departments, to include IRE for data collection, analysis, and forecasting, helps the institution to further identify possible institutional and programmatic adjustments.  University faculty attend the Professional Development Seminar Series to focus on instructional strategies, culturally responsible and inclusive pedagogy, relevant high impact practices (HIPS), course redesign, online education and continuity of instruction, academic mindset, and student and academic support strategies.  Academic Affairs and Students Affairs partner to provide freshman residence hall tutoring and is implementing living and learning communities to engage co-curricular activities that support our six focus areas and correspond to academic pathways.  First Year Experience and Career Services, to advance outreach of matching interests for major identification and linking assessment results to student advising sessions, the Focus2Career assessment was embedded into the ASU 1101 FYE Pathways to Success course.  The pathway from FYE to Career Services supports improvement practices to better anchor students’ understanding of results through course assignment activities to career and clear pathway opportunities provided by the institution.  Academic Affairs, along with Enrollment Management and Student Success, provide a host of workshops and feedback sessions to engage student voices and focus conversation on student success as well as current and relative success strategies that feed improved retention and graduation rates.  Offerings are built to breakdown obstacles and student barriers, support academic skill building while promoting momentum strategies, and promote gains in student achievement.  Examples of workshops and sessions include freshman in-hall learning and study strategy workshops, milestone conversation sessions, Stay Ready student success workshops, Late Nite Library roundtable conversations, SGA and student listening sessions, and 1-1 personalized student support meetings.

OUR BIG IDEA

Summer Success Academy and Ram Success Week

ASU’s Big Idea focused to restructure the ASU Summer Success Academy and Ram Success Week, programs apart of ASU’s Welcome Week for entering freshman.  Restructuring aims to increase the amount of time with faculty and peer leaders to enhance student academic mindset and to collaborate with Career Services to provide efficient career development and purposeful choice activities.  Summer Success Academy is a 6-week program that provides students with a head start on their college experience while being involved in co-curricular activities. 

Summer Success Academy was structured to provide two program tracks for students, the Quantitative Cohort (QC): STEM, Business, and Health Sciences track and the Communication Cohort (CC): Arts, Education, Humanities, and Social Science track.  Students are assigned to tracks based on focus areas.  Students assigned to the STEM, Business, and Health Sciences track schedule for ASU 1101 (FYE), MATH 1001/1111 and either COMM 1100 (Human Communication) or HEDP 1164 (Stress Management).  Students assigned to the Arts, Education, Humanities, and Social Science track schedule for ASU 1101, ENGL 1101 and either COMM 1100 (Human Communication) or HEDP 1164 (Stress Management).  During the Academy, a week is dedicated to career exploration, deciding how to choose, and talking to professionals in different fields to have activities support connection from program to career.  Campus, community service, peer speakers, peer learning, self-care, mindfulness, and group building activities serve to promote purposeful choice and develop the academic mindsets of first-year students and University initiatives.

Summer 2021 semester’s Summer Success Academy (SSA), 1 31-student learning community, participated in activities to enhance academic mindset and purposeful choice.  In support of purposeful choice, Week 2 of the SSA devoted sessions and activities to “Charting a Golden Future,” to include: Guest Speaker Kenneth Boler on Entrepreneurship, Guest Speaker Dr. Julie Pettway-Francis, Interim Director of Career Services, on Are You Pursuing the Best Major and Career for You?, Speaker Dr. Kimberly Burgess, Executive Director of Student Success on Meaningful Work, where students developed value statements for their careers, .Table Talks of eight representatives from various careers spoke with students at roundtables for 10 minutes each in a "speed dating" format, and a student engagement activity for See the Vision and Make it Plain (Developing a Vision Board).

SSA provided a Lunch ‘N Learn Speakers series throughout the program that discussed how students may use practical skills in their everyday careers, to include: Guest Speaker Ms. Jawahn Ware, Dougherty County Clerk for the Dougherty County Board of Commissioners, on It's the Receipts for Me!  The Importance of Documentation, Guest Speaker Dr. Sonya Johnson, Albany Police Department, on What Should I Do? Solving Ethical Dilemmas, and Guest Speaker Ms. Ada Davis, Executive Assistant to the VP of Enrollment Management and Student Success on Leveraging Your ASU Network to Get Things Done.

In support of academic mindset, Weeks 1, 3, and 6, were devoted to activities relating to the theme of developing a productive academic mindset.  Week 1 of the SSA aligned themed content to Great Start with invited Guest Speaker Ms. Marcia Poulos, Director of Academic Support Services on Let's Normalize Tutoring and Study Tables.  Week 3 aligned to Speaking the Language of a Golden Ram with invited Guest Speaker Dr. Elizabeth Delancey on Say What?  Speaking the Language of Access and Guest Speakers Dr. Chinenye Ofodile and Dr. Rani George on Working with International Faculty.  Week 6 aligned to Moving Forward with invited Guest Speaker Mr. Frank Malinowski on Taking Care of Your Academic Business and The ASU Cabinet on Student Success Roundtable with Campus Administrators.

The Summer Success Academy assess success of the program and potential need for adjustment and improvement by way of surveying and data collection.  In preparation for next year’s Summer Success Academy, plans will incorporate enhancement of deliberate sessions on enhancing academic mindset along with mandatory academic coaching.  The program will continue to build on ASU’s purposeful choice activities by incorporating experiential field trips related to careers, mandatory career advising, and reflective activities relating to career in our freshman year experience course.

MOMENTUM WORK RESILIENCE UPDATE

ASU’s Momentum Year Initiatives are aimed at providing access and opportunities for students to achieve their educational goals, including successful degree completion and on-time graduation. Purposeful choice and academic mindset are significant to the Momentum Approach/Year initiative.  The ability for students to link their learning back to their career choices while also learning how students may shape their beliefs toward a growth mindset that promotes learning, purpose, and social belonging is an aspect on which ASU has focused our efforts. 

Strategy or Activity  

First Year Success Programs: Summer Success Academy and Ram Success Week 

Summary/Updates of Activities

Summer Success Academy (SSA) is a 6-week program that provides students with a head start in their college experience while being involved in co-curricular activities.  Campus, community service, peer speakers, peer learning, self-care, mindfulness, and group building activities serve to promote purposeful choice and develop the academic mindsets of first-year students and University initiatives.  Through the restructuring of SSA, purpose increased in the amount of time faculty and peer leaders connected to enhance student academic mindset and to collaborate with Career Services to provide efficient career development and purposeful choice activities.

Accomplishments for the Summer Success Academy include assignment of a 31-student learning community built to provide two program tracks for students, the Quantitative Cohort (QC): STEM, Business, and Health Sciences track and the Communication Cohort (CC): Arts, Education, Humanities, and Social Science track.  Students are assigned to tracks based on focus areas.  In support of purposeful choice, SSA devoted sessions and activities to “Charting a Golden Future.”  In support of developing a productive academic mindset, SSA devoted sessions and activities to modules supporting themes for Great Start, Speaking the Language of a Golden Ram, and Moving Forward.  SSA also provided a Lunch ‘N Learn Speakers series throughout the program that discussed how students may use practical skills in their everyday careers.  Challenges resulted in students needing more deliberate support in academic coaching to further engage purposeful choice.  In this, future iterations of SSA will incorporate academic coaching and additional experiential learning opportunities.  To engage all students and foster peer-to-peer, peer-to-faculty, peer-to-ASU, and peer-to-community relationships and growth opportunities, weekly schedules were built to promote campus and community services, group building activities, self-care and mindfulness activities, group dining, Lunch ‘N Learn professional series, speaker forums, study, tutoring, and workshop opportunities, and peer circles.

Outcomes/Measures of Progress  

Measures of progress will include course pass rates, overall GPA after the semester, percentage of students who return for Fall, and survey responses on individual sessions and the overall SSA experience.  SSA Summer 21 created 2, 6-week cohorts totaling to a 31-student learning community.

Lessons Learned and Plans for the Future  

We learned that students need additional deliberate sessions on enhancing academic mindset along with mandatory academic coaching.  Therefore, the program will continue to build on ASU’s purposeful choice activities by incorporating experiential field trips related to careers, mandatory career advising, and reflective activities relating to career in our freshman year experience course.

Strategy or Activity  

First Year Success Programs: First Year Experience – ASU 1101 Course

Summary/Updates of Activities

The restructuring of the ASU 1101 course for the FYE Program and Fall 2021 semester deployment, provided enhancement of academic mindset for students through the continuation of seminar, workshop, lecture, and other course materials, resources, and interactive activities.  Courses are taught by ASU faculty, advisors, and qualified staff who have been trained to instruct the restructured course, with inclusion on strategies to connect students with academic support services, student success support, and career services, each aimed to help students follow-through, successfully, with their purposeful program choice and career pathway.  Course restructuring promotes an extension of engagement with career readiness and academic support services, while also promoting a student’s academic programming for their present and future pathway, with a goal of strengthening the engagement and success of FYE.  Delivery of the course has increased faculty assignment and provides additional opportunities for active learning through assignments geared toward promotion of accountability in education and engagement with student and academic support services.

Accomplishments related to ASU 1101 restructuring include the course providing FYE supporting curriculum to students in both an in-class and online format, promoting equitable access to the course and its benefits, while also providing a platform to integrate career-readiness, purposeful choice, and academic mindset activities.  The course also provided embedded FYE joint seminars.  Integration of the pre-career assessment, Focus2Career, provided students with a course access point to complete the assessment along with instructional support from a course module activity build.  Within the course, students are informed of the purpose and benefit, in partnership with Career Services, while also receiving guidance on completion and results interpretation.  Activities supporting the development of a productive academic mindset and active engagement with the University, purposeful choice, and Career Services include the P3 Mentoring, Focus2Career pre-career assessment, Effective Notes Taking, ASU’s Quality Enhancement Plan, Study Table and Academic Support Services, Career Center and Advising, Cultural Diversity, Study Skills and Planning, Campus Map and Landmark Engagement, Etiquette, Netiquette, and Professional Communication, Time Management, Program of Study Reflection, Fine Arts and Community Engagement, The Golden Rule and Communication, Conflict Resolution, Mindset, Major Fair, Health and Wellness, Financial Success, and SMART Goals.  Joint seminars required mandatory attendance and were provided on-campus with an accompanying link for online attendance.  To engage and promote all student audiences, provided joint seminar sessions were geared toward supporting students in their transition into the University as well as in their understanding of service offerings and student, peer, and academic expectations, to include sessions for Welcome to ASU 1101 (Welcome from ASU with overview items for Focus2Career, campus resources, International Education, Honors Program, Center for Undergraduate Research, Study Table, and Academic Support Success), ASU History and Tradition, Diversity and Inclusion, and Making Sound Decisions and Title IX.

Outcomes/Measures of Progress  

Assessment on the restructuring of ASU 1101 progress is underway, awaiting successful completion of the Fall 2021 semester.  Measures of progress will have a strong focus on attendance as well as grading and surveying, with each data measure providing perspective for evaluation and continuous improvement.  Measures of progress will also include student performance on identified career assignments and reflection assignments that discuss major choice.  Additionally, KPIs of focus align to persistence, retention, reduction in transfer-out rate, completion (within 4 years) and reduction in debt-load and student-loan default rate.

Lessons Learned and Plans for the Future  

We learned that ASU 1101 requires additional restructuring as it relates to FYE and serving as a bridge to a planned SYE Program as well as strengthening the connection between academic mindset and focus areas, and fostering the incoming and sophomore experience with activities and intrusive guiding supporting the promotion of students, and increase content in support of educating the development of growth mindset, purpose and relevance, and social belonging.  ASU 1101 course credit impact is also currently in review to determine if issues related to course success are as a result of additional content adjustments or greater impact on credit hour production.

Strategy or Activity  

Academic Support Services Initiatives: Tutoring On-Demand and Study Table

Summary/Updates of Activities

Enhancement of academic support services led to the creation of TOD, ASU’s Tutoring On-Demand platform, and online and increased hours for faculty-led tutoring through Study Table services.  Increased access points as well as times were made available to students to further increase the use of tutoring and academic support services.  TOD connects students to online academic support services offered by the Math Center, Writing Center, Peer Tutoring, and more.  TOD is available to all students in the GaVIEW learning management system, within a Study Aids tab linked to every course, also providing access to ASU’s Online Writing Center, external tutoring service, and more, ensuring promoted support of TOD and other academic support offerings.  TOD provides students with access to a welcome host site upon entering into the environment.  Students are then triaged by the host to an appropriate breakout room to receive virtual tutoring services, which may be provided in a 1-1 or group setting.  Faculty-led tutoring with Study Table provides tutoring opportunities staffed by ASU faculty members who are subject-matter experts in their field.  Study Table was enhanced to increase hours of access, which resulted in schedule day hours for requested courses.  Study Table was also linked to GaVIEW to provide online access to services while also providing students with a deeper variety of tutoring and academic support for core and historically typified high failure rate courses.  Phased promotion of services targeted audiences of students, with a strong focus on the distance learning audience, with promotional events and activities scheduled to encourage all students to engage with services, especially those seeking proactive support and support as an at-risk student seeking out course-specific tutoring needs as identified by early-intervention progress report campaigning.

Accomplishments related to Tutoring On-Demand and Study Table enhancements resulted in increase from both Fall 2020 when compared to the following Spring 2021 semester and increase from Fall 2020 when compared to Fall 2021.  TOD increased student engagement opportunities with academic support services while also providing our staff and peer tutors opportunities to serve from various locations, increasing coverage of tutoring availability as well.  Study Table expansion efforts also increased access to services while also increasing opportunities for ASU faculty to serve in academic support outside of the classroom.  Greater service outreach was promoted to a greater sphere of audiences as well, to include dual enrolled and fully online students, further ensuring the mission to serve all students in gains of academic achievement.

Outcomes/Measures of Progress  

Measure of progress include a semester-to-semester comparison of tutoring attendance data, which showed an 8% increase from Fall 2020 to Spring 2021 as a result of TOD as an added academic support service, and Fall 2020 to Fall 2021, although still in progress – calculated through 11012021, showed an increase of 21%.  Comparison of Study Table attendance data and course pass rate data will be assessed following closure of the Fall 2021 semester.  Additionally, KPIs of focus align to GPA rates, decrease in DFWI rates for midterm and final grades, persistence, reduction in changing majors, retention, and completion (within 4 years).

Lessons Learned and Plans for the Future  

We learned that following the release of TOD that students required a more responsive host room when entering into the space.  As a result, the host room was branded and provides welcome signage informing students of service offerings, campus and academic resources, and next steps to engage.  Additionally, with ASU offering internal and external tutoring services, software applications are currently under review to consolidate systems and offer a more robust data collection and tracking portal.  The positive impact on the success of students in College Algebra and Quantitative Reasoning also increased outreach of Study Table for courses at mid-term whose DFWI rates were above 30 % (i.e. economics, accounting, chemistry, computer science, biology, English, mathematics, history).

Strategy or Activity  

Pre-Career Assessment: Focus2Career

Summary/Updates of Activities

Expansion of the pre-career assessment, Focus2Career, which provides career exploration to students through several assessments to include: work interest, personality, values, skills, and career planning readiness to support student career design, led to students more clearly matching interests for major identification and purposeful academic advising on choice, guided by Academic Advisors and Success Coaches.  Within the First Year Experience (FYE) course, assignments are required that anchor students’ understanding of the assessment results.  Core courses such as ENG 1101/1102 and career focused courses within the respective majors also include cascading assignments to enhance the use of the information students receive to more aptly embed career exploration and exposure to occupations in high-demand and emerging fields, supporting a purposeful career choice.  Having the assessment implemented across a range of courses and settings has led to providing a more engaged and structured approach, while also increasing opportunities for students to think critically about their path forward for career choices and readiness, investigate internships that strengthen career awareness, form networks and mentors as career resources, and identify and act on career options prior to graduation.

Accomplishments related to embedding the pre-career assessment and linking the assessment to exploration activities has promoted connection between the student, the assessment and results, faculty, and Academic Advisors and Success Coaches as students are required to complete the assessment, engage in a course activity submission, and follow-up with conversations from faculty and Academic Advisor/Success Coaches to further connect students to program fit understanding and a direct feed to conversations with Career Services.

Outcomes/Measures of Progress  

Measures of progress will include student performance on identified career assignments and attended follow-up sessions with faculty, Academic Advisors/Success Coaches, and Career Services, that discuss major choice.  Additionally, KPIs of focus align to increase in pre-registration, persistence, reduction in changing majors, retention, completion (within 4 years), and reduction in debt-load and student-loan default rate.

Lessons Learned and Plans for the Future  

We learned that by providing a more structured approach to delivery and review, students are more engaged with assessment completion and follow-up with campus representatives that will further engage purposeful choice and career readiness conversations.

Strategy or Activity  

Pre-Orientation Programs: Meet My Advisor

Summary/Updates of Activities

Meet My Advisor sessions provide a series of onboarding opportunities for incoming freshman, via a collaboration between Academic Affairs, Enrollment Management and Student Success, and Student Affairs, to improve the freshman student experience.  Focus of the sessions is to recognize that orientation sessions held throughout the summer should not be the only point of contact for newly admitted freshman and their families.  Structured opportunities for advisors, faculty, and peer mentors to connect with students between orientation and RAM Success Week further prepares them for onboarding and academic expectations of the upcoming semester.

Accomplishments related to Meet My Advisor sessions provided opportunities for students to connect in a 1-1 setting with their assigned advisor, further strengthening knowledge of how an advisor supports students in their academic journey and what students should expect during a meeting with their advisor.  Additionally, norming of conversations relating to purposeful choice, academic needs, and a clear pathway, with focus aimed to personalize ASU for students and respond to individual needs at the University.  A communication and academic plan is established during the initial meeting with follow-up meetings supporting a dynamic response to the advising process.

Outcomes/Measures of Progress  

Measures of progress will include Meet My Advisor attendance data and survey responses on individual sessions and the overall Meet My Advisor experience.  Additionally, KPIs of focus align to increase in pre-registration, persistence, reduction in changing majors, retention, completion (within 4 years), and reduction in debt-load and student-loan default rate.

Lessons Learned and Plans for the Future  

We learned that attendance should be mandatory for students as part of preparation for Ram Success Week so that the time and effort of advising staff does not become strained in an effort to reach out to students for session scheduling.

Strategy or Activity  

Orientation Programs: Online New Student Orientation

Summary/Updates of Activities

An Online New Student Orientation for incoming students, to improve access and delivery of the student onboarding process.  Content mirrors that offered in face-to-face orientations and provides an orientation opportunity for students to connect and review ASU, academic and career excellence support, academic programs and pathways, student and academic success opportunities and programs, and more, serving as a first point of contact and continuous resource throughout.

Accomplishments related to the Online New Student Orientation include greater outreach to audiences through an additional access point and a move to the online environment, which also provides access to the contents as a continuous resource for students beyond orientation requirement.

Outcomes/Measures of Progress  

Measures of progress will include online orientation attendance data and survey responses from the student experience.  Additionally, KPIs of focus align to increase in pre-registration, persistence, reduction in changing majors, retention, completion (within 4 years).

Lessons Learned and Plans for the Future  

We learned that to sustain the orientation, especially as it relates to currency and relevancy of content, an assessment and response plan must be developed in partnership with campus departments represented in the orientation.

GLOBAL MOMENTUM SUPPORT

Communications, Data, and Faculty and Staff Outreach and Support

Albany State University, as a means to promote and inform, partners with University Marketing and Communications to publish targeted emails, press releases, social media, marketing materials, roadmaps, and touchpoint graphics as a means to interact with the campus community through a communication strategy that provides both a physical and digital approach, customized for each Momentum Year and Approach activity and customized for respective audiences.  These plans and associated processes run on an ongoing, as-needed, scheduled basis, as determined by each activity.  University Marketing and Communications also publishes content, by request, to the University MarComm digital display system, which rotates communications as assigned by audience and location. Additionally, disseminates and promotes information for the Summer Success Academy and RAM Success Week through marketing materials and session delivery, to include sessions for Academic Advising, Degree Programs, Academic Planning, Goal Communication, Fuller Schedule, and Time Management.  To support First Year Experience, information is distributed through marketing materials, academic advising, success coaching, interaction with the First Year Experience Coordinator and Academic Support Services, focus groups, and through course delivery, to include promotional materials, video and multimedia engagement, 1-1 and group messaging sessions, seminars, course enrollment, and end-of-course feedback.  Tutoring On-Demand and Study Table promote and inform by way of marketing materials, academic advising, success coaching, interaction with Academic Support Services, focus groups, and through online learning management system integration, to include promotional materials, 1-1 and group messaging sessions, seminars, course enrollment, and surveying.  ASU disseminates pre-career assessment information and Focus2Career results in embedded course offerings.  A touchpoint graphic of the career assignment plan is provided to assigned faculty and hosts of embedded course offerings to promote implementation and student engagement.  Information is also promoted through marketing and promotional materials, interaction with Career Services and Academic Support Services, seminars, and surveying.  EAB Navigate is used to communicate with and inform students, faculty, and support staff, where outreach focuses on referral and campaigning opportunities for appointment scheduling, course-based tutoring, academic tutoring, advising, success coaching, at-risk reporting, and student success reporting.  Challenges that have been experienced include ensuring timely posting and removal of communication postings and accessibility of content in various platforms.  As a response to these challenges, lessons learned aided the University in its strengthened partnership with University Marketing and Communications so that communication strategies are planned for to better ensure timely dissemination of information relating to Momentum activities.

ASU uses data to gain useful insights and to inform our work to create and improve activities, while also paying focus to identified KPIs that bridge the institution’s mission, strategic plan, and Momentum approach.  Qlik is used to review and analyze data and data visualization opportunities, and through query and the exploration of data, ASU is provided better insight into the impact and success of activities and initiatives while also identifying thresholds, trends, and improvement opportunities.  EAB Navigate is used to analyze and review data as it relates to appointment and visit reporting, campaigning for academic and student support services, intervention and at-risk reporting, progress reporting, and student data reporting.  Analytics also benefits effectiveness reporting of interventions on academic progress, benchmarking and planning activities as well as the review and analysis of population and sub-population review, intervention effectiveness, historical trend analysis, and overall activity visualization and reporting.  Student specifics on progress data and institutional data is used to tailor communications to faculty, staff, and students.  Argos also serves as a reporting tool for course and program management and analysis, grade reporting for midterm and final DWF analysis, and for student progress reporting, as a means to influence planning and improvement and campaigning for academic and student support services.  Engagement with various campus departments, to include IRE for data collection, analysis, and forecasting, helps the institution to further identify possible institutional and programmatic adjustments.  Challenges that have been experienced relate to collecting and reporting on meaningful and real-time data.  To overcome this concern, the University is training data stewards in efforts of requesting, collecting, and analyzing data.  Focus aims to ensure access users are aware of the appropriate source to collect data, while also being trained on filtering and reporting tools.  To promote the collection and use of impactful data, instruction on presenting data visually, whether through a graph, chart, or other visual representation model, is also provided, and scaling of data analysis is working to support a system that grows within the institution as current and historical data elements are examined.

Faculty and staff use EAB Navigate for progress reporting, early alert referrals, and academic support referrals, where cases are routed to Student Success or Academic Support Services for resolution.  Training for faculty and staff on referrals and progress reporting is provided at the start of each semester, helping to ensure proper submission, accuracy in routing, and timely resolution.  Additionally, the Center for Faculty Excellence (CFE) at ASU conducts professional development workshops for faculty to share best practices in classroom instruction.  The CFE has created Global Training Modules that focus on areas such as curriculum design, providing effective feedback, designing effective learning outcomes and aligning classroom assessment to learning outcomes.  These modules are available through the distance learning platform to facilitate access for faculty.  The Center’s programs and services are available to all faculty involved in teaching students at the University, with development opportunities reflecting the program objectives highlighted in the annual plan for The Center for Faculty Excellence.  There are several major tenets that form the foundation for the faculty professional development, to include (1) Provide training through the New Faculty Academy, (2) Develop and implement an Aspiring Leadership Seminar Series, (3) Schedule and deliver a minimum of five faculty professional development workshops, (4) Provide Dean and Chair training, (5) Provide support to faculty through promotion and tenure, and (6) Support faculty scholarship and research opportunities in teaching and learning.  In addition, six Faculty Excellence Associates have been identified to help support the Center’s activities, and a cohort of Faculty Workshop Developers have been identified to help deliver faculty development that is content specific.  The Center for Faculty Excellence continues to be stocked with faculty resources that are available for faculty use and development. The USG has also offered additional support through the Chancellor Learning Scholars and the USG HIPS Implementation Team.  All these initiatives are brought together to support student learning through improved teaching and learning.  Challenges that have been experienced relate to evaluating the quality and impact of professional development and training programs.  To overcome this concern, programs will develop a data collection strategy and surveying approach. In efforts of implementing a data collection strategy, activities produce measurable and consistent outcomes, which promote learner awareness of how to achieve each outcome, with assessment of those outcomes producing data points for further review and continuous improvement practices.  Surveying also functions to allow participants an opportunity to express what they learned, how they will put what they learned into practice, and to have an opportunity to recommend suggestions for improvement and report their overall level of satisfaction.

Through a continued collaborative mindset, Albany State University remains encouraged throughout its Momentum work.  The Momentum Approach and ASU’s selected suite of strategies aim to help students in their first year of college while also supporting all students in the achievement of their educational goals, to include successful degree completion and on-time graduation.  Planning, evaluating, and improving ensures a meaningful response to the mission of Albany State University and its continuation and enhancement of Momentum Year initiatives and deepened commitment to promote purposeful choice, cultivate a productive academic mindset, and support persistence along a clear pathway.