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Dismal graduation rates are one of the dirty little secrets of American higher education. Nationally, less than 60 percent of students graduate from their four-year programs in six years. At the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, that number sinks to 42 percent. Nearly 40 percent of the freshman class fails to return for the second year.
ACTA therefore applauds the news, that UTC officials have implemented a new program to boost their freshman retention rate. The Freshman Academic Success Tracking program keeps track of freshman attendance and reports students after two absences, thereby allowing the university to send a wake-up call to students who seem to be academically disengaged. Though the program is not mandatory (professors are not required to track attendance), it has already boosted the freshman retention rate by seven percent in the year since it has been implemented. The overall graduation rate has moved up three percentage points as well.
Trustees and administrators at other universities with low graduation rates may want to consider what seems to be a simple, low-cost and effective way to push students to go to class.
Posted by David Azerrad on October 12, 2009 at October 12, 2009 06:00 PM
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