Data

KSU aims to take full advantage of data gathered through the LMS, D2L, for a faculty audience. Our online learning unit, Digital Learning Innovations, has revised their mission to support faculty in using the LMS to manage learning in all modalities and using the data to identify problems, diagnose root causes, and take targeted actions during the semester to impact student success within the semester. The learning analytics solution, uHoo Analytics, is available to all faculty. Additionally, faculty are provided professional development in tool use and data interpretation.

The Continuing Student Communication Strategy priority is designed to establish a streamlined, cohesive approach to communicating with our continuing student population. We have already made progress with two key units—Registration and Financial Aid—by partnering with a third-party vendor to create personalized communication journeys for these processes.

GSU participates in a 7-institution University Innovation Alliance (UIA) initiative funded by the Kresge Foundation, conducting focus groups on identifying student success barriers. Through focus groups (30-50 students), we talk to different undergraduate populations, including First-Year, Transfer and Transition, Career Services users, and Academic Support users. Each semester targets a new population, gathering qualitative data to inform institutional improvements.

In freshman orientation classes each 1st-year student will be required to complete an assignment designed to encourage the use of stepping blocks data.  Based on an academic major of interest, students will research common jobs associated with the major as well as the job market and the salaries associated with these positions.

This initiative will expand the utilization of an academic chatbot in core courses.  The chatbot provides basic academic information, utilizes intelligent agents in the LMS to monitor student engagement and prompts as necessary, evaluates readiness for quizzes and reminds students about assignments and deadlines. GSU received a $7 million Post Secondary Student Success grant from the Department of Education to launch this technology in introductory English and Math courses in Fall 2024.  Chatbot technology is already used in American Government, Macroeconomics and Chemistry.

We are engaging in a large-scale analysis of student success metrics related to curricular complexity to analyze its impact on student time to degree. Curricular Complexity provides a way to analyze the impact of course sequences and required credit hours on a student’s successful progression through the curriculum and their time to degree. Research has shown that curricular complexity is directly related to time to degree; reducing curricular complexity should therefore reduce time to degree for students.

A team formed between Advising, Orientation, and Career Services that will continue to work with the undecided student population. We created a plan to intervene early with undecided students to connect them with resources to help them make a purposeful choice. The plan begins at orientation with a breakout session designed to get undecided students thinking about making a purposeful choice and continues once the semester begins with strategic talking points during advising appointments.

We would like to set up inclusive access for all the digital content used as textbook for all sections that require the purchase of a textbook. Inclusive Access is a sales model for college textbooks. Inclusive access allows for the digital content to be delivered to students by the first day of class. Students have a period to “opt out” before they are billed through their tuition and fees. In addition to saving money on the price of the digital content, inclusive access was shown to increase student success in classes and retention.

Research the possibilities of instituting inclusive textbook access – the idea that students would receive all digital course materials at a discounted rate, directly billed as part of their tuition. This model supports student academic success and retention efforts by ensuring every student is prepared on or before the first day of class.

An alternative presented by our textbook provider is branded as “equitable” access – the idea that students could pay a flat rate each semester for all course materials, print or digital.

The ENDEAVOR program helps students personalize, internalize, and later articulate their transformation beyond a credential. By awarding ENDEAVOR Tags that celebrate student development and engagement through courses and co-curricular activities, students become more aware of their own growth and are provided with the language to describe the skills they have gained. This language will give them an advantage when entering the workforce, as they will be able to describe their college experience in a way that resonates with employers.