School Involvement affects Retention
An effective and yet successful plan of retention would be to have always high end activities like clubs, guess speaker, outdoor events,open labs, field trips, demonstrations etc. Not just only for freshman's but all student body ,faculty and staff.
Its always nice to have things outside of school for the students to do such as car shows, bowling leagues and so forth which really gets the students involved...when the students are involved they tend to find school more enjoyable and tend to stay in school.
I have found over the years that happy students who are included in activites seem to stay the course. In the school where I teach, we encourage activities, such as, student government, field trips, and cook-outs. The student government is very active with structured meetings and coordinated cook-outs that benefit the entire student body and faculty. I have noticed a difference in the attitudes and conversation of these students.
You got it! It is the friendships and trust that make the difference in retention.
Dr. B
The student who gets involved with school activities develops a sense of belonging, and develops many long lasting friendships.
I agree. The more involved a student is the more motivated a student will be to stay in school until graduation.
Participation in the community outreach health clinics and project head start has opened many opportunities for students to get involved. Many of our students have been utilizing more of the services for them and have been getting success because of their involvement. Exposure to different programs has been addressed by the student services and careeer development and the academic programs as well. We have lots of student mentors and tutoring offered for the students.
I think guest speakers in the field help but have found great problems with students attending these voluntarily?
Patricia, you provided a great list of activities to promote retention. The guest speakers and field trips are great opportunities for students to see how they can apply their education will in the real world.
The idea is to do what you can to connect the student to the school. It is the relationship that improves retention.
Dr. B
Involvement during breaks helps ensure students will return It also helps their families see the hard work and long hours will be worth it.
We have always had student services activities for students during school breaks (movies, indoor golf, hiking) but I had not had hands-on student events led by instructors on campus during breaks. That will be the goal for this winter break. I know instructors live close by and I know the workshops, guests, field trips, and family activities students would like that often we cannot do during the school day.
Involvement during breaks helps ensure students will return when classes begin again. It also helps their families see the hard work and long hours will be worth it.
Good for you. Do all that you can to apply the concepts to improve retention.
L
If we can inforse there thoughts with a person from the real world or from the job place that can teel them there love of the work and how they made a great life it will help students understand how inportent it is to learn as much as they can when in school
I'm a huge advocate of field trips and guest speakers. People in the industry holding tours, q and a sessions, sharing industry knowledge is the best way to add value to a student's education. This makes the LCB education better over all when compared to other training institutions.
Yes, and some need social interaction. So, it is not one thing ... but a number of actions or activities that you'll need to do to improve relationships. Advising is a big idea and important to retention.
Dr. B
While I do think student activities and clubs help with retention, it is sometimes hard to find things that students will take an interest in with everything else going on in their lives. Many of them view this as one more thing that they have to do for school and any ideas to break through that barrier would be appreciated.
Excellent. Just what you need to do to build relationship. Hopefully, you have job fairs and outside speakers talk about skills needed to be successful. Just an idea.
Dr. B
During our recent week vacation for the summer, we held all sorts of events for students to participate in, including movies, demonstartions, techniques, etc. Not every day was busy, but quite a few attended more than one day and thought it was a great idea for these events to happen. This especially worked for students who maybe live too far away to travel back for a week, or are short on funds to travel. Very effective plan which we will use again during Winter break!
I agree. Involving the student in different activities will keep them motivated and that is the key. Motivation!
