Upgrading current analytic tools and adding professionally trained staff who can analyze reports and recommend appropriate action plans for interventions are the underpinnings of this Title III project. The Student Success Coaching approach, with the addition of the mental health component to the College’s retention plan is new and holds tremendous promise for the students at WC. By incorporating components of the WWC reviewed research study on the use of a coaching model by Inside Track, WC anticipates the same or similar results of increased student persistence. For example, students coached during their first year were 5 percentage points more likely to persist than those not receiving the same level of coaching. The study also noted that the positive effects of coaching on persistence did not end after the coaching stopped.

Increasing retention and graduation rates by specific percentage increases will be achieved by implementing a proven coaching model based on hard data. Upgrading current analytic tools and adding professionally trained staff who can analyze reports and recommend appropriate action plans for interventions are the underpinnings of this Title III project. The ability to reach out to student more effectively is the project’s primary strategy to increase retention. There is also a growing awareness of how mental health affects academic performance and college success. The addition of the mental health component to the retention model is unique and is likely to improve the efficacy of any outreach efforts to at risk students.