The College has an early intervention process in place to promote student retention using the Student Alerts and Grouped Events (SAGE) retention software. Multiple times during the semester, instructors report the names of students with excessive absences and students who are experiencing academic difficulty. The Director of Developmental Studies Support Programs and College Retention and the Retention Specialist contacts each student by email, letter, text, phone, and/or in person, encouraging students to attend class regularly and providing information about tutoring and other academic support services. Students who are on Academic Probation or Financial Aid Probation and/or taking an Incomplete are also reported in SAGE and contacted by the Retention Specialist.
When a student is placed on Academic Warning, Academic Probation, One Semester Academic Suspension, One Calendar Year Academic Suspension, or Financial Aid Probation, college officials may provide intervention for the student including, but not limited to, limiting the student’s course load, requiring study skills seminars, administering the LASSI (Learning and Study Strategies Inventory) and/or CITE Learning Styles Inventory, requiring tutoring, prescribing more advising sessions, and/or recommending other specific courses.
Proactive advising sessions are a crucial element of the academic plan for students on Financial Aid Probation and Academic Probation. Group advising sessions are presented to students taking developmental courses and students entering the Nursing Program as an early intervention method. The Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI) is used to diagnose student strengths and areas of improvement, and, based on these results, students are referred to appropriate resources that are available on campus and online. The Director of Developmental Studies Support Programs and College Retention advises and helps students develop strategies for time management, study skills, stress management, test anxiety, and other areas.